Chapter 75 - Enter, the Tiger
It was the next day that the official announcement was distributed. The murder, and the suspension of the drama club, as well as the extension of the holiday. Because of this, most animals stayed home, forcing Pina to stay with Legosi and Louis.
Louis sighed. "Sorry you two, I know you liked the club."
The two animals he was talking to were lying on the bed, playing a co-op game. They barely left the room, and if they did all three would go together. It was nice, at least, seeing the wolf and sheep become genuine friends now.
"I understand and agree with the decision," Legosi said, voice still sad.
"Gives us more time to focus on the investigation," Pina offered.
"True. Where do we begin?" Louis asked.
Pina pursed his lips, sticking his tongue out in concentration as he clacked the buttons. "Well, we have to wait for everyone to get back so we can observe them."
"So what do we know?"
The sheep laughed. "Funny how you guys are piling all this on your junior!"
"Well, you were the one that sort of started it," Legosi pouted.
"Legosi, let's see if you've been paying attention." Pina pat his back. "Give us the scoop."
Legosi paused the game. "Well, we concluded that Els was killed by the same carnivore that killed Tem. That would most likely lead to them being in the drama club. Juno is off the list, since she wasn't in the drama club at the time of Tem's death, and so is Kai, since Dom was talking to him at the time of Els' death."
"And so are you," Pina reminded.
Louis nodded. "Phew."
"Yeah, so at least one of us isn't dating a murderer, probably," the skinny animal looked down at the floor.
"Probably."
"Unpause, Legosi. I wanna play some more."
The wolf did so, and the two continued.
Louis joined them on the bed. "So...Should we split up and search for clues?"
Pina smirked at the deer. "Wow, you're eager. I doubt there's anything in the school we could find right now, and we'd be caught if we went into any of the dorm rooms. We should also not split up under any circumstance." He flipped his head, twirling a lock of wool. "It's like you want to get killed."
"Sometimes."
Legosi tensed up. The sheep responded. "Well, don't drag us down with you. With the school so empty, we'll be really suspicious snooping around, even if we do split up. We need to let this thing settle."
"But that might take too long."
Pina turned to Louis, looking annoyed. "Too long for what?"
"If we just let it lie, someone else could be killed."
"What do you think we should do?" the sheep now turned the question on the deer.
"Oh. Uh...Not sure."
Pina sighed. "I know you want to find out as soon as possible. I do too. But right now I think all we can do is wait." He pulled his phone out again to check it.
"Still no Bill?" The deer tilted his head a bit.
"Still no Bill."
"Maybe his phone died and he doesn't have his charger?" Legosi suggested.
"Heh, wouldn't put it past him." Pina returned the phone to his pocket. There was a beat of silence. "I...I don't know what he actually thinks of me."
"What do you mean?" The cervid tilted his head more.
Pina put his controller down. "Like...he's a horny fuckin cat, yeah? And I get that. But...being with him makes me want it to like, last. It's not a cheap thing to me. But whenever I ask him anything pertaining to like, an actual relationship, he just acts like he has no idea what I'm talking about."
"What have you asked him?"
"Like, at the dance I asked him where he was going to take me this year, and all I got from him was..." He put on his best Bill impression, "Uh, the drama club?" He shook his head.
"Oh..."
"Right? Isn't that like, bad? It's weird, actually giving a shit about a relationship. It...doesn't feel good...but it does." Bill's boyfriend fiddled with the comforter, clearly not comfortable expressing emotions like this.
"Are you into him that way?"
"I think so? I don't know, I never really felt like this before, so it must be, right? Fuck, man." Pina let out a frustrated groan, kicking his feet on the bed in a tantrum-like way. Legosi, who had remained silent for most of this conversation, just slid farther from the sheep.
Louis sighed. "Aww..."
The frustrated animal stopped kicking. "Yeah, and now he could be a fucking murderer."
"We don't know that."
The sheep put his hands in his face, grunting in frustration. "Biiillllll!"
Legosi pat him on the back, unsure of what else to do.
Suddenly, Pina's phone was ringing. He jumped up, fumbling for his phone. Legosi sat up too, looking. Louis watched intently as he struggled to grab it.
The sheep finally got a firm grasp on the device, looked at the screen, and uttered an "Oh shit." He accepted the call and in a completely calm and neutral voice. "Hey."
"You can yell at me," the tiger's voice, which he hadn't heard in a while came through.
Pina bit his lip to prevent the smile that threatened to tug at his mouth. "I'd rather do that in person." He seemed to think about his next words. "How is...everything?"
"I guess they're fine. Kinda boring. I lost my phone for a bit there...You shoulda seen my face! It was so lame."
"What, when you found your phone in a stupid place?"
"Shut up, sheep..."
Pina laughed, then breathed out slowly through his nose. "You...you heard the news, right?"
There was a long silence. "Don't remind me."
"I'm sorry." Pina covered the phone and nodded to the two other animals, confirming what they already knew about who was calling. He stood up and walked into the bathroom. "I'm back at school. Know when you're coming back?"
"Actually, I'm heading back today. I was hoping to see you maybe? If you're there."
The herbivore shut the door. "I am. I'm staying at Legosi and Louis' at the moment. Didn't feel safe in my dorm all alone."
"I get it."
Pina thought to himself. Bill's reaction to him bringing up the murder did seem like he wasn't the culprit, but maybe he just imagined that because he didn't want him to be the killer? Then again, Bill had the worst poker face ever, and that extended into his voice. He decided he wouldn't be able to make a totally accurate deduction until he saw him face to face. "So...your family wondering why you're coming back so early? What with classes being postponed."
"Ah...I came out to them about...all this. I was pretty nervous. Had to have, like, notes and shit."
HIs boyfriend blinked. He was totally not expecting Bill to have done that. Did that mean...he took this seriously? "Oh...what did you tell them, exactly?"
"...I told them I was dating a male dall sheep and that it makes me feel good. Like...it doesn't feel like me unless we're alone or with people we know. Then I feel like me."
Pina's eyes felt wet. "Oh..wow. How did they take it?"
"...They weren't happy. They constantly bothered me about it which made me realize just how much I want to see you. So I left."
"Oh, man. I'm sorry..." Pina leaned on the sink.
"Eh. Screw 'em. They'll come around one day. One day..."
"Um..." Bill was talking about this like it was something that would last. The words Pina wanted to say stuck in his throat. "Well, whenever you get here...you know where I am."
"I'll be there soon. Hope you didn't miss me too much." He blushed on the other end. "Erm, anyway! Bye!" He hung up.
Pina held the phone to his ear for a few seconds before lowering it. He put it in this pocket and slowly left the bathroom. Louis and Legosi's head turned as he did. He put his hands in his pocket and sauntered over. "Bill's coming back. I told him I was here, so I guess we'll be able to determine his innocence or not."
"How is he?" Louis asked.
The sheep sat back on the bed, barely moving Legosi as he put his full weight on the mattress. "Family trouble. He told them about us. And he's upset about the murder."
"Trouble?"
"Yeah. Trouble. So he's coming back."
"Why is there trouble? They're not supportive? I guess it makes sense if they heard about Els..."
"Yeah, they were antagonizing him about it, so he's coming back." Pina looked down at the ground.
"Oh...that sucks."
The other herbivore simply nodded, and started the game back up with Legosi.
"Are you okay?" Louis asked him.
"I'm okay."
"You can talk to us."
His voice stayed the same. "Nothing to talk about."
"Okay..." The deer turned to go back and make food for them.
A while later, there was a knock at the door. Bill shuffled his feet outside nervously.
All of the animals inside jumped, as they were all on edge. Pina stood up and strolled over to the door, looking through the peephole. "It's Bill." Not waiting for a response, he opened the door.
The tiger was wearing a light grey hoodie with some weird anime graphic on it and jeans. He looked really nervous for whatever reason, which wouldn't help his case.
Pina looked him over, feeling his heart rate speed up. He himself was wearing a simple t-shirt and jeans, and his wool was unkempt from his lounging. It was probably the most casual they had seen each other. He finally answered. "Well, you can think about it." He stepped forward, wanting to hug him, but remembered he was still on the suspect list.
"U-uh...okay..." Bill swallowed.
Pina managed a smile. "You can come in, unless..." He gulped. Was he really afraid to go somewhere alone with him?
"Unless?"
Pina shook his head, flicking the stray lock out of his face. "Nothing. Just come on in."
The tiger stepped in. "Hi, Legosi and Louis." He raised a large paw up.
The deer nodded. "Hello, Bill." He was already keeping an eye out for anything suspicious.
Legosi waved lightly. "Hi...Bill." Could he really be the killer?
The feline looked around. "Why are you all looking at me like that?"
Pina sighed. "The news is sort of just weighing down on all of us, you know?" He sat down on the bed.
Legosi nodded, looking back at the screen.
"Even my own boyfriend doesn't seen excited to see me..." Bill muttered.
"Can you blame us?" Louis asked.
The tiger frowned. "I guess...I can leave if you need time."
His boyfriend shot his head up. "No!" He slunk back down in embarrassment at his outburst. "We...we're just...we're trying to..." He wracked his brain. Should he just come out and say it? God, he wanted to. He wanted to absolve Bill immediately of this horrible crime.
"Did you kill Els?" Louis said, looking up.
Bill's head reared back. "What? You guys think I would..." He turned away. "And here I thought we were becoming good friends."
Pina stood up and grabbed his hand. "I don't think you did! But we have a list, and we need to cross off all the suspects. I know you didn't do it! But we needed to hear it from you."
His mate frowned. "I was with my family...We all found out together. It ruined our dinner that night. They started harassing me about eating meat..."
Legosi's ear flicked. Hadn't Bill gone on and on about how all adult carnivores ate meat? "I'm sorry, Bill. I know she was a good friend of yours. She was my friend too."
Pina squeezed his hand. "I'm sorry to have to put you through that...we just had to know." He felt a lump in his throat as he swallowed. It was so strange, allowing himself to act this way in front of others.
"I didn't do it. I swear. I'll do anything to prove it."
His sheep started stroking his arm with his other hand, understanding in his eyes. He could tell by Bill's face he was telling the truth.
Legosi looked back over, also believing him.
Louis sighed. "Thank god."
Pina tugged lightly on Bill's muscular arm. He had been without him for so long, he craved contact.
Bill put an arm around him and leaned close. "I missed you."
"...I..." the herbivore flung himself into the tiger full force, tears now streaming freely down his face. He gasped and sniffled, trying his best to fight back the sudden outburst.
Pina gripped his sweater, looking up and kissing Bill on the lips quickly. "I...I was so scared...I don't know." He laughed, wiping his eyes before pressing the side of his face against Bill's toned chest.
The cat rubbed his back. "Ha, kill someone and lose my boyfriend? No way."
The dall sheep squeezed tighter. "I don't want to be the only reason you don't kill animals, idiot!" He managed to laugh again.
"One of them! I thought you'd appreciate it!"
Louis smiled at the couple. He was thankful Bill wasn't a killer.
Pina pulled away and dragged the tiger with him to sit on the bed. "So, we've decided to look into these murders, since it seems nobody else cares."
"What? People care!"
"I meant law enforcement. The city. They left Tem's case in the dust and now they're treating Els like an isolated event. But we know that a carnivore in the drama club did it!" Pina gazed at Bill with fire in his eyes.
"How do we know that?" Bill blinked. Pina was pretty attractive when he was in detective mode...
The sheep pointed a finger to his temple. "Think about it! Tem and Els were both in the drama club, and Tem had a crush on Els. Els found out about this after his death. Now she's dead, too! I don't think this is a coincidence, especially because the killer is still out there!"
"Oh..." The cat gulped. "Scary."
Pina got up on his knees and used all of his weight to push Bill back onto the bed, so he could lay on his side while hugging him. "I know, but I'm determined to find them. You don't have to be a part of it if you don't want to."
"No, I will."
"Maybe you could stay with me in my dorm until my roommates get back. As long as the headmaster doesn't know about it, it should be fine."
Louis shook his head. "You both stay here."
Pina looked over at the room's dictator. "Yo, where's he gonna sleep? The dude is huge!"
"The floor? The couch? I got bigger furniture when Legosi moved in!"
Legosi stood up, walking over to said couch. "It pulls out." He lifted the cushions up and reached down, pulling the bed out but then retracting it when he realized there wasn't enough room at its current position.
Pina laughed. "What do we do if Bill gets horny?"
The deer shook his head. "The tub? I don't know. Legosi and I haven't done it since you've been here."
"We're talking about Bill here." He kissed his tiger on the cheek.
Bill groaned. "I won't unless Pina urges me."
"Mmm." The dall sheep rolled on top of him, hugging his barrel chest. "I fuckin' missed you."
The feline grinned. "I'm here now."
Pina traced lines around his pecs. "Maybe we should go on holiday together?"
"What do you mean?"
"Like, be together during them?"
"You mean we should have stayed together?"
Pina rested his chin on Bill so he could face him, his head bobbing up and down as he spoke. "Sure. I mean, it might be hard. Your family probably won't want to meet me. I don't want to keep you from them, but..."
"I don't care what they think. It's not fair."
The sheep's heart fluttered. He wrapped his arms around the back of Bill's neck, nestling his face into his cheek while his tail thwapped back and forth.
Legosi got up from the bed and joined Louis in the kitchen.
The herbivore looked at him. "Hey."
"What're you making?"
"Pizza. First time. Good group meal."
Legosi's tail wagged excitedly. "May I put the cheese and ingredients on?"
"Of course."
The wolf hugged his fiance, going to the fridge to pick some out.
Back on the bed, Pina took his face out of Bill's cheek and looked at him. "Remember...that night when I invited you here?"
"Yes I do. Lotta firsts that night..."
The sheep giggled. "You were so scared at first. I sometimes feel bad about how much I pushed you, but the result was pretty nice."
"It made me realize how much my family doesn't support me."
"Hm...sorry." Pina reached up and rubbed the top of Bill's head.
"It's fine. I have you now."
His boyfriend smirked. He held up an imaginary glass. "To shitty families, I guess."
"Yours too?"
"Clink." The sheep bumped their fists together. "Guess you could say that, yeah."
"What's up?" He ran a finger on his jawline.
Pina looked down. Did he really want to spill it all? Maybe just a little bit. "My parents...aren't the biggest fan of me. I'll leave it at that."
"Of you? As an animal?"
"Yeah." Pina grabbed Bill's cheek and tugged it lightly. Quit talking, Bill.
The feline blushed.
"I guess I should tell you the progress we made, although it's not much." Pina walked his hand across his chest, the fingers acting like legs. "Going by just the carnivores in the drama club, the only ones we've absolved are you, Legosi, Kai, and Juno, although she isn't a definite quite yet. Just very unlikely."
"Because?"
"She wasn't in the drama club when Tem was killed, although we'd still have to see her alibis. That said, if we go through every carnivore in the club and they all have solid alibis, we'll have to start moving outside the club. But it's an easier place to start. The drama club, that is."
"And why the drama club again?"
"Because both victims were a part of it!"
"I guess that makes sense."
Pina nodded. "Now you get it. I just hope we can operate without much suspicion. I have a theory that Els was killed because she found out who it was."
"A little sheep like that...?"
"She used her brain, unlike you."
"Ah..."
"Kidding," He grinned, caressing his cheek.
"I missed you too much..."
The herbivore kissed the carnivore's nose. "I missed you just the right amount."
"Aw...not enough."
"You're being selfish now." Pina sat up, pulling Bill's arms in an attempt to get him sitting up.
The tiger did, blushing. "Am I?"
"I'm joking around, you big oaf." In the new position, he wrapped himself completely around the feline, arms and legs. It was the first time he felt this safe in days.
Bill poked his nose.
Pina poked back, laughing.
"I'm pretty sad..." the cat mumbled.
"I know, babe. You were really close with her..."
"Yeah..."
Pina rubbed the back of his neck, moving his mouth to one of his round ears. "It'll be okay, sweetie. In time." It was strange, saying words like this to someone. At least, actually meaning them.
"Pet names are new..."
"Too weird?" He scratched under his chin.
"No! I like them!...A lot."
Pina moved his hands to his cheeks again, mooshing them as he spoke. "Cuz you're a big, spoiled baby. Mine."
"Sp-spoiled?"
"Mhm. You were getting sex like, every day."
"I was getting sex? Like it was a privilege."
Pina pretended to pout. "What, I'm no good?"
"Hey!"
He laughed again. "What?"
"I always tell you how amazing your ass is."
"Gehehe." The sheep sunk into his boyfriend. "Guilty as charged."
"At least I'm not the guilty one."
"Why, afraid of my dick?"
"Excuse me?"
"If you were guilty of having a great ass I might just have to top you, right?"
"Am I? You've seen it..."
Pina bit his lip. "Mmm, I've said it before, but I think it'd be fun to have a go at you one day."
"Well...maybe..." he leaned in and licked his nose.
"Of course, I do like what we usually do."
"Oh I know. You make it very clear."
Legosi and Louis had made some progress on the pizza by now. Legosi looked over to the couple sitting and embracing each other on the bed. "Wow, I still can't believe they got together."
"They're cute, though, right?"
"Yeah. I feel like we helped."
"Yep. Too bad we are together under these circumstances."
"Yeah..." Legosi looked down at the pizza, ready to go in the oven. "I hope this doesn't take too long. I hope nobody gets hurt."
"You hope a lot of things, dog."
Legosi brushed his thumb on Louis' cheek. "Guess I'm just...hopeful."
"I'm...frightened."
The wolf rested his head on his shoulder. "You sure you want to do this still?"
"Like I said, who else will? Sooner we find out, the sooner we can move past this."
"I know it'll be easier if it's a member of the drama club, but...I don't want it to be any of them. I don't know," Legosi sighed.
"I'm sorry."
"Nothing to apologize for."
Once they finished dinner and watched a movie, Louis yawned. "I'm pretty tired. I think we should all head to bed."
"Or couch," Pina quipped, nudging Bill.
The tiger blushed. "That movie was really good. I don't watch much films."
"Mostly anime," his mate snickered. He felt...light. Not that foreboding sense of dread from before.
Bill frowned. "Shhhh..."
Legosi started cleaning up the stray mess here and there.
Pina clacked his teeth together as he looked at his boyfriend. "We're going to have to get all your stuff from your room tomorrow."
"Guess we're all just...moving in," the tiger laughed.
"It's safer," Legosi said, clearly just following Louis's lead.
Pina laughed. "It'll be more suspicious, if anything. When classes start we'll have to go back to avoid suspicion."
"It will be nice while it lasts," Louis nodded.
"You just wanted a big sleepover, huh? You big softie." Pina stuck his tongue out.
The deer frowned. "Not true!"
Legosi snuck up behind him and hugged him. "True."
"I just like having friends..."
"And you're soft." The wolf kissed his mate.
Louis kissed back. "Okay...fine. I'm soft..."
Pina hopped over to where he had deposited his clothes, slipping into his pajamas. "Bill, get our wonderful bed ready."
The tiger nodded, moving the table out of the way and pulling the couch out into its bigger bed form.
Everyone mulled around, performing the pre-sleep rituals of brushing teeth and using the bathroom. It really did seem like a sleepover, albeit under not the best circumstances.
Bill kept watching Pina silently as he did his normal activities.
Pina and Louis were over by the closet, divvying up the extra blankets and pillows. It was a miracle they even had extras.
"Why are there so many, Louis?" The sheep asked.
Louis shrugged. "No idea. It's not because I was expecting this, I'll tell you that."
Pina scooped some of them up and brought them over to the pulled out bed, dumping them unceremoniously onto it.
"Oh right. Himiko and Kasumi gave them to me," Louis said. "They're from this nice couple we met— Well, I've only met Himiko but I've talked to Kasumi on the phone."
Legosi plopped on the bed, tail wagging at their mention. "Maybe we could get them to make something for you guys?"
Bill looked at him. "Like what?"
"Like scarves."
Pina puffed out his neck proudly, showing the lustrous wool. "No need. Got all the warmth right here."
Bill chuckled. "Babe, maybe some gloves?"
The herbivore's eyes widened and he turned back to the wolf. "Maybe some gloooves!"
"Fingerless! You'd look hot in them," the tiger added.
Pina laughed. "That's an odd fixation to have, Billy."
"Trust me!"
"Oh, I know I'd look great in them." Pina slipped under the cover, laying on his back on the hard mattress. "Oh, this is a really nice blanket..."
Bill joined him. "Oooh...Wow...Imagine wearing this on your hands."
Legosi looked at the two. It was nice to see them together like that. He embraced Louis as he entered the bed, turning off the lamp on the nightstand, drenching the room in darkness.
Pina answered, "Think you might be onto something there. I think you could get a beanie. That'd look cute."
"A beanie? And look like a punk?"
"Well, maybe one of those that has a pom on the top?"
"How much longer will it be cold?"
"It gets cold every year. You'll get use out of it!"
"But then I won't be wearing it for most of the year!"
"Hmm." Pina laid there, looking up at the ceiling, eyes adjusting to the dark. This was the first time he had slept in the same bed as Bill, funny enough. Why was he lying so far away from him? They weren't even touching.
Bill looked to the ceiling as well. He had quite a few thoughts running through his mind and none of them were the space between them.
The sheep turned on his side, looking in his boyfriend's direction, but of course not seeing him. He had been affectionate today, called him his boyfriend, hell, even ruined his family relationships because of him. That had to mean something, right? The sheep moved closer, finding Bill's big hand with his own and holding it gently.
The cat sighed. "Sorry."
"What's up?"
"I've been quiet..."
Pina brushed the tiger's fur with the back of his knuckles. "Well, a lot of stuff happened. I understand."
"Yeah...I've just been thinking about it all. Especially..." He whispered the last word. "Els."
The dall sheep stayed quiet for a bit. He moved closer until he was hugging his lover's arm. "I know."
"...I just...if I was here...I could've..."
"What? It was in the city, Bill. Really early in the morning. There was no way you would have been there..."
"Oh yeah...I guess I couldn't have...but..." He exhaled. "Mm."
Pina rubbed his chest. "There's no use trying to think back on how you could have fixed it. It happened. You'll drive yourself crazy if you keep pondering 'what-ifs'."
"But...I can't help it!" He whispered. "I feel like it's my fault somehow because I'm a carnivore..."
Pina fell silent. He really didn't know how to respond to that. He couldn't relate at all. What could he do? How could this relationship work? They were so different. What were they thinking? All of these sudden negative thoughts bombarded the sheep. He released a sad sigh, and reached up to where he thought Bill's cheek was.
It was his mouth. The feline kissed his hand and then turned his head away.
That made Pina smile. He moved up a bit, climbing upon his large body to spoon him.
Bill's arms went around him. "I'm just scared and I don't like admitting it..."
"You can...always talk to me about it. You know that, yeah?"
"I...I know..." He was vulnerable, something Bill rarely was. This really had upset him.
The herbivore stroked his head and cheeks, getting poked by his whiskers at points. "It's going to hurt a lot. It will hurt less as time goes on, but it'll always hurt."
"I don't want this..." He mumbled. "Els..." Then he sniffed. "Poor Els..."
Louis lied awake, listening to everything. Whoever did this needed to pay. They were going to get what was coming to them.
Legosi laid next to him, fists clenched. He felt the same.
Pina just clutched to his boyfriend tighter, stroking his head and rubbing his face against him. He had consoled many a girl before, but it was always an act. Actually doing it now...it was strange. He hoped he was doing it correctly.
Bill felt himself get a little calmer. He sniffed as he felt tears. "S-sorry..." That's all he could think to say.
"No. Cry. It's okay. It's normal."
Bill began sobbing, clutching his boyfriend tighter and shaking.
Louis sighed next to Legosi.
The wolf clenched tighter to him, unable to stand the sounds he was hearing. It made tears come to his own eyes.
The deer kissed his neck. "There, there."
There was a dark black cloud over everyone in the room.
It was a strange feeling for Pina, being the one to comfort the larger carnivore. He felt a strange sense of power and responsibility. Here was this large feline, who regularly ate meat from the back alley market, breaking down in his arms. The arms of a herbivore. It definitely wasn't something he would have expected to happen a year ago.
Bill settled down after a while. Pina had been there for him in his time of need, He really did care, which meant the carnivore really did love him.
Pina didn't want to tell him, but he had had trouble breathing when he squeezed him. His breaths were heavy now, but he tried to hide it from him. He stroked his head still, wanting to ask the question that had been on his mind before Bill's mini breakdown. It wasn't a good time...Has he ever wanted to eat me...?
The tiger had, so many times.
Even with that unknowable factor...Pina had never felt unsafe with Bill. Even that night weeks back, exposing his naked body to him for the first time, in an act that was so sudden and bullheaded, it didn't cross his mind. It was a strange thing about his boyfriend, to be sure. Maybe it was what drew the sheep to him.
Pina kissed his forehead, unsure if he was still awake or not.
Bill sighed. "I'm going to try and sleep..."
"Go ahead. I'll be here."
And with that, the tiger closed his eyes, trying to let sleep take him away. But it never came.
