Dolph stood by a speaker next to the closed gate, pressing down the button to talk. He looked at the other animals around him with a baffled expression before turning back to the device. "This is...the Shishigumi."

It didn't take long for the speaker to crackle to life, a gravelly, high pitched voice responding. "The Shishigumi...to what do we owe such a pleasure?"

Dolph responded. "We have come to do...business. If you would let us in."

Silence. Then, the old gate slowly began to slide open on its track. The group filed in, approaching the large oak doors.

Louis kept a grip on Legosi, as if letting him go would sweep him away instantly. He yawned, realizing he had not slept in over twenty hours. All the other animals in the group were probably in the same boat.

Up the steps, they all stood in front of the door, unsure of what to do next. There was soon a voice from the speaker above them, the same voice as before. "Please do enter. The door is unlocked."

Dolph and Free opened up the large doors, stepping inside with everyone else in tow. They were in a large, open area with two sets of stairs leading up to a balcony on the second floor. Bookshelves lined the walls, as did a handful of hanging bats, chattering amongst each other. They all fell silent when their guests walked in.

"Ah, I was told the Shishigumi were here!" Everyone looked up, spying a small figure on the second floor. He quickly descended the steps, akin to how a child would, and walked over to the group, small dress shoes clicking loudly against the linoleum. It was a small feline, none other than the civet leader.

He heard Legosi make a confused noise, tinged with amusement. Louis tensed up. He knew how deceiving looks could be. The lions remained stoic, feeling the same as the deer. It didn't matter how small or squeaky-voiced an animal was.

Everyone bowed to the small boss, who bowed back. "Come, let us talk in my study." The civet turned heel and headed back up the steps.

The study was much like the lobby area, with bookshelves where walls should be, and bats hanging from perches. The only difference was the carpeted floor and the small table with chairs set up near it. The small feline took his own seat, having to climb up into it due to his size. Louis noted how strange it was that the building was set up for larger animals when the ones that inhabited it were so small.

The civet's legs didn't even hang off the edge. He kicked them against the material. "I do believe introductions are in the way. My name is Deshico. I run Kopi Luwak."

"Our pleasure." Dope took the role of speaking, now. "You already know who we are."

Deshico smirked. "That I do. Although I didn't know the Shishigumi took in non-lion members."

Louis looked at Legosi, and then to the lions. "We're...friends of the Shishigumi."

Deshico's smile remained. "I know who you are, Louis-san. One does not forget the herbivore boss of a carnivore group in the back alley. I had my men investigate you, as I thought maybe you took leadership due to being a hybrid. What they turned up was...much more interesting, I must say."

Louis scowled, hoping the lions would ignore what he just said. "You don't need to tell me my own history."

The small animal laughed. "Of course not! I'm curious as to why you're back with them, now, considering an actual hybrid now has the reigns."

Dope grunted. "Ah, I see you already know of Melon?"

"Of course I do! He may be hidden from the public, but he is quite noisy with his activity in the market. He is very intelligent, but I have eyes and ears everywhere." He gestured to the bats around the room, all of them training their eyes on the newcomers. "I've made it my job to research hybrids, after all. I wish to see for myself the unknown possibilities of mixed species, and how worthy they are as animals."

"I see." Dope looked around the room. "I had no idea Kopi Luwak was a well-funded research organization."

"It's all thanks to the perfume and coffee I produce! It is the Kopi Luwak that allowed me to get all these bats to work for me so I can focus on my studies." He got off his chair and walked to one of his bats, who seemed to be nursing a wound. "However, we're easily misunderstood. Just recently one of my bats was reported to the police by a komodo dragon, the poor thing!" He held his arm up, allowing the bat to perch on it. He ruffled the fur on their head.

"That's true. I was under the impression that you were a pure-blood supremacy operation.", Dolph stated bluntly. Louis gripped Legosi tighter.

Deshico snapped his head to the lion quickly, eyes wide in shock. "Oh? Well, that's certainly not the case! I simply wish to learn all I can about hybrid species, and what their strengths and weaknesses are compared to pure-blooded species. Is it 'pure-blood supremacy' to simply wish to know where they stand with each other?"

Louis clenched his jaw. Nothing this little feline said sat right with him.

Legosi leaned down to the deer, whispering. "He cares about his underlings, and he seems to have nice ideals...Kopi Luwak actually seems like a decent group."

Louis side eyed the wolf. "Yeah, well don't go showing your belly just yet.", he whispered back.

"Deshico-san." Dope spoke politely. "We won't ask you to give us information after we rudely barged into your place. In exchange for the information you have on mixed species, what do you want us to do for you?"

The small mammal smirked. "A trade deal, I see...all right!" He hopped back up in his chair. "Well, you can't have a trade deal without coffee! I have to get some ready." Deshico got comfortable in his chair, addressing the group once again after doing so. "Well, I at least know Melon's current public self."

Legosi perked up. "P-public self?"

Deshico nodded. "I can tell you, but in exchange..."

The civet clapped his small hands together, prompting a bat to swoop down with a paper bag, which was set on the table in front of them. It was clearly quite full. The bat flew back to their upside down perch.

"Take this bag."

Louis and his friends all eyed the bag. Free was the only one to ask, "What's...in it?"

Deshico's tone was matter of fact: "One week's worth of my poop."

The animals gawked at him.

"Don't worry! That means it's a lot!", Deshico continued cheerfully, ignoring the tone change the room underwent. "A coffee bean diet gets you lots of caffeine and very loose bowels."

Louis heard one of the lions gag.

"I want you to pick out all the undigested coffee beans from all that poop so we can drink Kopi Luwak together!" The civet finished, simply smiling at his guests, waiting.

"Okay." Legosi's response was quick.

"No hesitation!", Dolph barked out in exasperation. "Are you insane?"

"I came here expecting to have to fight!", Legosi shouted back. "If all I have to do is dig through some poop to get information about Melon, I'm taking it!"

"But we're talking about shit from a guy we just met! You can't be serious!"

Louis scowled, eyeing the bag on the table intensely. "We have to do it."

"Oh, c'mon! You too?"

Deshico simply smiled through the whole argument, eventually leading the group out to a balcony, illuminated by the first rays of sunshine to peek above the horizon. They emptied the contents of the bag onto a tarp provided by the bats, and donned rubber gloves for the extracting, lucky that civet poop was at least pleasant smelling. Predictably, Legosi tackled the task head on, with the lions being a bit more reluctant. Once they saw how hard Legosi was working, however, they matched his pace. Louis picked a handful out before calling it quits, sitting to the side with Free, who'd make offhand remarks to him.

Said lion nudged him about ten minutes in, pointing over to Legosi, who was handling a large amount of the feces. "So...that's the guy you fell for, eh?"

Louis felt like retching, but the sight of Legosi kept him from doing so. "Yes. You're just mad I didn't like any of your hookups."

Free put his hands up as if he were being accused. "Mad? I'm not mad, Boss! Just havin a joke. You two seem very happy."

Louis laughed. "I was joking too."

Free huffed. "I'm sorry we got you tangled up with this again. You were supposed to stay out of the back alley."

"Well, I'm back now, and I can't turn my back on you guys." Louis smiled grimly.

"And him?" The lion gestured toward the wolf, who deposited more beans onto the paper towel they had behind them.

The deer sighed. "I hate that he's here. But he's dead set on capturing Melon. Yafya more or less hired him for it."

Free's face scrunched up slightly. "Shiiiit, Yafya? Damn, now I wish he wasn't here."

"It's not like you guys exactly work in secret. If Yafya could take you down he would have tried by now." Louis tried to be reassuring, but he wasn't sure himself how this would all look to the Sublime Beastar. He didn't care about the horse's feelings, of course, but he didn't want him laying another finger on his wolf.

"Well, at least Yafya is trying to do something about Melon. With any luck those bastards will kill each other.", Free added.

Louis looked back over to Legosi. "If I don't kill Melon myself..."

…

After an hour of disgusting work, the group had successfully extracted all of the pleasant smelling coffee beans, which Deshico washed, wrapped up in a bag and brewed right in his study. The lions still held looks of disgust on their faces, but that soon faded as the pleasant aroma filled the room.

Once the brew was finished, each of the animals went forward to grab their share. After Louis took his mug, Deshico gestured for him to follow him back to his chair. Louis did so, sitting in the other chair across from the table.

"It's time for me to fulfill my end of the bargain. I'll share any information you need."

Louis stared down at his coffee, swirling it. "Why single me out, then? It was the Shishigumi's plan to come here."

Deshico chuckled. "Well, you used to lead them, correct? I see no better animal to relay the information, considering you're even here to begin with. Besides, I think those carnivores are going to be distracted by the...quality of the coffee."

Louis turned in his seat, observing his boyfriend and the lions drinking from their mugs, looks of surprise on their face. None of them even paid the two of them any mind. Louis sighed, looking back to their host.

"Alright, tell me what Melon's 'public self' is."

Deshico sipped his coffee. "It's not as much as you'd hope, but it's better than nothing."

"I'm listening."

"Melon has a PHD in history. It took quite a bit of digging to bring that up. The hybrid is surprisingly good at covering up his records."

Louis nodded, taking a tentative sip of his own coffee. He drew his head back in surprise at the smooth, flowery taste. "Well, that narrows down what his public career would be. It's surprising that he'd be able to lead such a double life."

Deshico seemed to agree. "He is definitely unique for a carnivore-herbivore hybrid. You see, from my research, I've discovered that most of them are unable to lead fulfilling lives at all."

Louis's ear flipped. "Why's that?"

"Well, you see, most hybrids of that nature tend to lack appetite and sexual drive. They spend their lives searching for a means to feel anything, and that distracts them from any sort of normal life they could lead." Deshico adjusted in his chair, clearly getting into the explanation. "Imagine, if you will, living in a cage your whole life." His mouth curled up in a bit of a frown. "Well, I guess you don't really have to imagine that..."

Louis shuddered, looking down at his feet.

"...anyway, their bodies are almost like a cruel trap for them, one which they cannot escape. Not only can they not derive pleasure from food or sex, they are also targeted by society. So it's very surprising that Melon has been able to live a life such as he has. He must be very strong-willed."

Louis scowled, looking back at Legosi. He was glad the wolf wasn't near enough to hear any of that. He turned back to Deshico, once again. "If Melon's life is going so swimmingly, then why is he doing such horrible things?"

"Carnivore-herbivore hybrids may be numb to feelings of pleasure, but they can still feel an equally strong feeling: pain. Many of them become self destructive, or even worse, derive their pleasure from inflicting the pain onto other animals. Melon seems to have taken to a violent life alongside his regular one. It's the only way he can feel anything, after all."

Louis put a hand to his chin. Things still didn't quite add up right. He found himself drawn for another sip of coffee. "...Kopi Luwak is delicious..."

"I know, right?" Deshico beamed. "My intestinal bacteria are the best!"

Louis retreated from his mug. "Well, I do find the flavor to be unique and delicious, as long as I forget where it came from."

"You know." Deshico took another gulp. "Bodily-produced food used to be treasured as a substitute for meat before the war. Milk, eggs, Kopi Luwak."

Louis smirked to himself. "Before the war, huh? It must have been a very peaceful time if that was enough to satisfy carnivores. Nowadays, pretty much every carnivore knows what meat tastes like..."

Louis glanced back to his carnivore entourage, who were now all standing stiffly together, having finished their cups. The deer turned in his chair to face them. "You all had your own coffee, so you might as well give your thoughts."

Legosi and the lions ducked down, as if fruitlessly attempting to avoid the deer's gaze.

"...guys?"

They stood up slowly. Free was laughing nervously.

"It...it was good! Kopi Luwak!", Agata managed to sputter out.

Legosi held his hands up, still crouching down slightly. "It was so good, I drank my cup in one gulp! And that's more than enough for me..."

Louis rose slowly from his seat. "Guys...what's with you? You're all acting weird. Even you, Legosi." He walked forward, and the carnivores jumped, moving away from him. "Why are you backing away from me?"

"N-nothing's wrong!", Legosi nearly shouted. "It's the coffee! Please don't get near us!"

Louis felt a sudden ache in his chest. "Wh-what are you talking about? Did I do something to make you guys upset at me?"

Louis approached them, and they all covered their mouths. Eventually, they were backed against the wall, halting their retreat. Louis strode up to them. "Enough of this. Tell me...", he reached up and touched Legosi and Dolph's hands, lowering them from their faces quite easily. "...what's...wrong..."

They were both drooling profusely, and their previously wide eyes were now half-lidded. Louis felt a chill run up his spine.

"Louis...", Dolph spoke up. "I-I must say...you look...damn delicious right now."

At hearing these words, Legosi smacked the lion across the face and attempted to hold him back. "He's mine!"

Louis's unease amplified at those words. Legosi covered his mouth again after uttering them, a terrified look in his eyes. Dolph and the other lions continued to keep their distance.

Louis smiled nervously. "Wh-what are you talking about, silly? Come on, show me that face I love so much." He reached his hands up again, shakily.

In an instant, Legosi enveloped him in his arms, his large jaws wrapped completely around his right shoulder, pressing down enough to be painful, but not enough to draw blood. Louis barely processed what happened until he felt his body constricted, unable to move. He looked fearfully at the Shishigumi, who looked fearfully back, unable to do anything with their own apparent meat hunger.

Legosi didn't move from that position, and Louis did the only thing he could think of: he moved his arms up to gently wrap around his back. He rubbed his boyfriend's shoulder blades softly. "L-Legosi.", he whispered. "It's me...it's me, Louis. We've known each other for years. You don't want to eat me..."

A choked sob could be heard from Legosi, before he gripped tighter, his fangs sinking in deeper and causing Louis to gasp softly. He felt something warm trickling down his back. His body went cold, head swimming. The lights in the room swirled in his vision, and all he could do was grip Legosi tighter as well. He swallowed, his body trembling. "L-Legosi..." He shut his eyes tight. "I...I won't hate you..."

Louis felt something wet drop onto his shoulder, Legosi sniffling softly.

He pulled himself into Legosi more, ignoring the pain in his shoulder. "I-I could never hate you...Legosi." His own eyes grew wet now, tears flowing freely. Oddly, this didn't affect his speech. "You know...", the deer managed an amused huff, "...on New Year's...I wanted you to eat me whole. So...if this...if this happens...please know that I will always love you. I will love you to my dying breath." Louis tried to clear his throat, making a croaking sound. He moved his mouth to Legosi's neck, kissing softly. He could feel the wolf's pulse racing through it. He couldn't even imagine what he must be going through.

Legosi's crying was more apparent now, his jaws clenching and unclenching around the shoulder. Louis would grunt at each bite, trying his best to keep quiet. He continued to rub Legosi slowly, moving one hand to the soft fur on his cheek, scratching softly. "It's okay...I'm glad I met you, Legosi. You were the animal that made me realize I didn't hate carnivores. I-"

Legosi suddenly let go of Louis, his jaws disengaging from him as well. Louis fell hard on the ground, holding his shoulder and looking up at the wolf. Legosi looked down at him intensely, before reaching into his mouth and pulling out his bloodstained dentures. With a deafeningly loud shout, he threw them against the wall, turning heel and facing the Shishigumi.

"Geph ouf!"

The lions flinched. "Wh-what?"

Legosi approached them, large hands open, showing his sharp claws. "We're leabing!"

In an impressive display of strength, Legosi managed to shove the lions out the door, sparing one last, pained look back to Louis on the ground before slamming the door.

Louis blinked, and then let out a deep breath he didn't know he was holding. He gripped his shoulder, hissing in pain as he stood up. Moving his hand away, he saw that he wasn't bleeding as much as he thought.

"Well...that was educating."

Louis stiffened at the high-pitched voice behind him. He turned around slowly, malice in his eyes. "...YOU."

Deshico touched his cheek innocently. "Yes?"

Louis stormed over to him, pointing accusingly. "WHAT DID YOU DO."

"Well." The civet pushed his two index fingers together. "I forgot to tell you. Kopi Luwak has the ability to partially satiate the appetite of carnivores. If that carnivore has had meat before, it will trigger an intense craving, amplified when seeing a herbivore."

Louis shook with rage, staring down the small animal. "WHY. DIDN'T. YOU. TELL. THEM."

Deshico shrugged. "In order to get into Melon's mindset, they needed to realize what it was he lacked. It was a test of their willpower. I'd say they passed, although that wolf of yours..."

In a blur, Louis had reached under his shirt and pulled his gun out, pointing it at the civet, finger on the trigger. As soon as he did this, a bat flew down and snatched the gun from him, delivering it to Deshico, who simply released the magazine onto the floor and pushed the slide back, releasing the bullet that had been primed. He placed the now harmless piece of metal on the table.

"Now, now, there's no need for that."

"HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO THEM!"

Deshico remained eerily calm. "Hm? Everything turned out alright in the end, right? I can have my bats dress your wound for you..."

"THAT'S NOT THE ISSUE!"

Deshico now looked annoyed. "I let you have your information, and now you're yelling at me. Please calm down. Your friends will be alright. The stimulation is only temporary."

"FUCK YOU!" Louis stormed over to where Legosi's dentures now lay, noting one of the big fangs had chipped. He put them into his pocket and walked quickly to the door, slamming it behind him.

He felt dozens of eyes upon him as he descended the stairs. He felt nauseous. He flung the front door open, stomping down the steps. The early morning sun was now fully up, bathing everything in a warm gold. The deer looked down the single path they took to get here, and quickly made his way down it.

He had to find his carnivores.