The large wolf and two horned herbivores made for an interesting looking trio as they all headed back to the Cherryton campus. Louis kept a firm grip on either Legosi's arm or hand the whole way, which Pina soon matched on his own side once he noticed. Other animals stared at them in bewilderment and curiosity.

"They must think we're your wranglers." Pina commented at one point on the train, to which Louis responded by smacking one of the sheep's horns.

Otherwise, the trip was spent in silence, forcing Louis to get lost in annoying and juvenile thoughts. He was unsure if Pina was just like this or if he had an interest in Legosi. That in and of itself wasn't an issue. He couldn't blame any animal for being attracted to his boyfriend, after all, because just look at him. Plus, Louis didn't have to ask to know that Pina probably wasn't heterosexual.

What caused the annoying knot in the deer's stomach was the reality of Legosi's attraction to herbivores. Was he attracted to Pina? If he was, it shouldn't be a problem. It was just his gut reaction.

But did Legosi only like Louis for being an herbivore? Was their relationship only established to fulfill that need for Legosi?

Louis thought of his own attraction to carnivores, and yes while it was very much there, he liked Legosi for a multitude of other reasons. He was thoughtful, intelligent, caring, but also adorably airheaded and innocent in many ways. The fact he was a carnivore simply amplified everything to an obscene extent.

The deer let out a deep sigh as he arrived to a temporary conclusion in his mind: Legosi was probably attracted to Pina, but he was with Louis because of their strong bond. Nonetheless, he'd have to talk to Legosi about their attractions at some point to put to rest the green devil in his mind. In an act to further placate this feeling, Louis leaned up and kissed Legosi's cheek to establish their togetherness. Legosi let out a small whine and leaned into Louis more. The antelope seated across from them quickly stood up and sat somewhere else.

"Oh no, scary, two boys that love each other, aaaaaaaah." Pina mocked softly at the sight before leaning over to smirk at Louis, as if waiting for approval. Louis's quiet chuckle seemed to satisfy him. Pina wasn't a bad dude, at least.

The train deposited the trio and they set out for Cherryton, still more or less holding Legosi the whole way. The wolf's ears swiveled as the gates to the campus appeared, and he started to sniff the air. Louis pulled his hat back on while the guard at the gate gave them a confused stare. Nonetheless, they were let in again.

The trip continued silently across the campus, which was thankfully still barren. Legosi's sniffing grew in intensity when they entered the stairway to the roof. The two herbivores loosened their grip on him while ascending. Finally, they pushed open the door to the garden and stepped out into the sun.

Legosi visibly relaxed as he gazed in awe at the garden. It had not been something Louis had taken note of when he first arrived, understandably, but it really did look quite stunning. Flowers of all colors bloomed happily around them. Vines snaked up wherever a brick wall allowed it. Succulents sat snugly in their pots and ferns hung and swayed comfortably in the wind. In no way did Haru do a poor job when this was her solo project, but she was only one small rabbit. An assertive wolf who wasn't afraid to recruit help was what the garden needed, and Louis had no doubt that it was Haru who was still pulling the strings.

Legosi snapped out of his stupor when Louis rested an arm on his shoulder. "Hey. Juno and Haru should be in the shed."

The animals headed toward the structure, Pina remaining outside and resuming his gardening duties. The two found Juno laying on the bed spooning Haru, but they both quickly sat up at their intrusion.

"Legosi! You had me so worried!" Juno sat up on the bed and pulled Haru into her lap as she voiced her concerns. "Why didn't you answer my calls!"

Legosi looked around the room, seemingly not hearing the words directed at him until he laid eyes on the two girls. "S-sorry, I was sleeping."

Louis supposed he was sort of telling the truth.

The big wolf lowered himself in a chair and looked pointedly at Haru. "Louis told me." His large hands clenched and unclenched. "He told me about what Melon did."

Haru immediately sat up. "Oh no! No no no no no you don't! I see that look in your eyes! Don't make this a personal grudge against him! It's not your business to stop him! You're an eighteen year old boy with your whole future ahead of you and none of us want you throwing that away!"

Louis couldn't stop himself from smirking at the sight of a large gray wolf shrinking back at the scolding of a small rabbit. Legosi tried to say something else but Haru stood up on the bed and thumped one of her feet.

"No! You almost died so many times because you never know when enough is enough! Louis told me the deal that Beastar guy made with you but it's not worth it!" Haru's eyes were moist by this point and her hands were clenched into little fists. Juno stared at her in awe as her tone began to soften. "Legosi...I know you care for me and Louis. He knows that you love him. Please..." She fell to her knees on the bed, clearly tired from her outburst. "That's enough for us...I know having that criminal record hurts you but...what good is having a clean record if you're dead?"

Silence proceeded Haru's words, Legosi's eyes cast downward, Louis's on his boyfriend, Juno's still on Haru, and Haru's buried in her hands. Legosi eventually spoke up.

"Haru...um, what do you want me to do?"

Haru's face emerged once more with a scoff. "Go and tell Mr. Beastar to take care of it himself! If Crenshaw really is this Melon guy then he can take it from there! Giving away his identity should be good enough for him! And if not then let me talk to him!"

"O-okay, Haru. We'll give Yahya the information." Legosi leaned forward, concerned look back on his face. "You should stay away from the school in the mean time."

Haru rolled her eyes. "I can't sacrifice my grades for this, and who knows how long the 'mean time' is gonna be?"

"You won't tell the school board that a professor assaulted you?" Louis spoke, finally.

Haru's eyes rolled yet again, more exaggerated. "Yeah, and you know how well that will be taken care of. Face it, I can't say he tried to eat me because everyone thinks he's a regular gazelle, and I can't say it was sexual because..." Haru made a wide gesticulation with her arms before bringing a hand to her forehead. "The staff might do something about him anyway. They did see him stab himself after I pushed him off me."

Every other pair of ears in the shed perked up.

"What?"

"Haru, you didn't even tell me that when I found you here!"

Legosi remained silent, but was clearly equally shocked.

Haru's ears drooped. "E-everything was such a blur I kind of didn't think about it."

Louis stepped toward the bed. "What happened?"

"So, I got out of his grasp and questioned his motives, and he goes on about being in pain? And he whips out a box cutter and jams it into his thigh. A staff member happened to walk by right as he did it and they pulled him away." Haru flumped down on the bed where Juno immediately scooped her into her lap, her long snout poking between the rabbit's ears.

"Okay, then that turns my 99% hunch into a 100% one." Louis put his hands on his hips and turned to Legosi. "I think we have enough reason to go to Yahya with this."

The wolf didn't turn, and Louis walked over to jostle him.

"Ah, what?"

"Legosi, we have to go to Yahya with this."

"Okay."

Louis reached up and tugged one of his ears gently. "Today, preferably."

Legosi just nodded and stood up slowly.

"It sucks that we were only able to meet up again under these circumstances." Juno lamented while nuzzling into the bunny. "Keep in touch, you guys! We miss you."

"I thought the whole point of this date swapping business was to stay away from each other." Louis chuckled. How far away and mundane the whole thing seemed now.

"But we're fun together!" Haru had to place a hand on Juno's arm to calm her. Louis did the same with his own wolf as he began to lead him out.

"Well, we're off to take care of this thing." Louis turned to the girls. "Haru, it'd be best for you to stay here until we know more. Juno, make sure she actually stays."

Juno saluted. "Of course!"

"Wait! You can't just tell me to skip classes! I need those!"

"Haru, sweetie, I'm not letting you anywhere near that building until that creep is behind bars. Just stay here, tend the plants, and forget about all of this with me. I'll even skip my own classes if you want."

"I won't ask you to do that!"

Louis smiled, leaving the shed and giving his friends their privacy. He noticed that Pina had left, now leaving him and Legosi alone.

Finally.

Louis held onto his arm on the trip down, neither saying a word, as if sharing the fear that Juno or Haru might somehow hear. It wasn't until they were out of the gates that Legosi broke the silence.

"So...what are we going to do?"

"Just as I said: giving Yahya this information and with enough luck we'll be rid of this mess."

Legosi didn't look convinced. "You're going to drop this if Yahya tells you to?"

"We did our work, now he can finish his. You can go back to your peaceful life."

The wolf's long stride slowed. "And you?"

Louis kept walking. "What about me?"

"You're not going to drop it. Because of the Shishigumi."

"I never said that."

"I know you won't, though. You never give up on something once you want it!"

Louis turned back to face Legosi. "Guess that's something we have in common."

"I can't let you do it alone!"

Louis sighed. "Would you drop it if I did?"

"I...yes."

"That's a lie and we both know it."

Legosi huffed and caught up to Louis. "I have to catch Melon! He's my responsibility and Yahya said-"

"I know, Legosi!" Louis interrupted. "This argument we have is just one big circular dance now. Let's pause it until we hear what Yahya has to say."

Legosi nodded. "Okay."

"And Haru and Juno can't know."

Legosi's entire posture dipped. "I feel really bad about lying to them..."

"I know, hon." Louis placed a reassuring hand on Legosi's shoulder. "Hey, let's get something to eat before heading to Yahya's."

"Okay."

The two made it into the city, Louis releasing Legosi's arm and the conversation lying dormant once again. Louis made a beeline to the closest fast food establishment, not exactly liking how he was getting used to eating from them.

Another rich kid quality getting squashed, Louis supposed. Could he attribute this one to Legosi too?

The two stood in line, and the buck couldn't help but imagine that their troubles were nonexistent. Just standing next to his tall, handsome, very cute wolf boyfriend while waiting to get called up to take their order. He leaned into Legosi subtly and sighed. Was this just a fleeting moment or one of many to come?

Soon enough, they both had their trays of food which they brought to a booth in the corner made specifically for two animals to sit face to face. Legosi dug in, and Louis figured that the wolf hadn't actually eaten since the previous night. He must have gotten self conscious from Louis staring, since he started to eat with more table manners after noticing.

"Are you still nervous around me?" Louis nibbled on one of his fries. "I really don't care about last night."

Legosi set his soy burger down with a small groan. "It was really scary, Louis, and it's still scaring me..."

"Why don't we talk about it? We haven't gotten a chance to properly do that one on one yet." Louis leaned forward with his chin rested on the palms of his hands. "Tell me what's going on in that big, cute head of yours."

"Well..." Legosi gulped and took a sip of his drink. "I'm scared. I keep remembering last night and how I felt toward you and it freaks me out." His large claws tapped against the plastic surface of the table. "Even now, I'm afraid of my feelings for you..."

"What feelings are we talking about here, exactly?"

"My feelings of...closeness? I feel better when you're around me, and I want to keep you close. I don't...I don't want you to leave."

Louis's ears flicked back before he smiled. "Legosi...we're dating. That's normal. You haven't felt that way about me before this?"

"I have! But now it feels like it's different! What if I just want you close by me so I can eat you? What if my body wants its prey to be close by at all times?"

"Woah woah woah!" Louis held a hand up and placed another over Legosi's. "That funky coffee isn't effecting you still! We're still the same couple we were before this. The Kopi Luwak situation was strange, yes, but it didn't change who you are."

Legosi tensed, and Louis could tell he wanted to pull his hand away. "After I ate your leg...I went through really awful meat withdrawal. Every night spent suffering in my bed, unable to sleep, drooling uncontrollably as my mind forced me to remember your...your...taste." Legosi spat the word in disgust.

Louis placed his other hand against Legosi's as well. "Did you get that last night when you got home?"

"...no."

"I don't think it's a problem, then." Louis retreated so he could eat more of his food. "I know you're generally a nervous guy, but I need you to know that I'm completely comfortable around you. I feel safe. Even when you ate my leg, you were lucid the entire time. You stopped right after you ate what I told you to, and immediately afterwards you saw to my safety and wellbeing. Not once in your life have you succumbed to your instincts or even acted on them! Aside from last night, which, and I must remind you again, was caused by an outside agent." Louis sat back and proudly took a bite of his salad, savoring the look of relief that would surely befall the wolf's face after hearing his very logical reasoning.

What Louis was greeted with instead was Legosi flinching and looking out the window. He brought his large hands off the table and out of sight on his lap.

"...Legosi?"

He still wouldn't look at Louis.

"...Legosi, talk to me. You know you can, right?"

Legosi cautioned a glance at the deer. "I...never told you how I met Haru."

Louis opened his mouth, but then closed it again. It really was a mystery that he decided didn't matter, but it was an event that ultimately lead him to the Shishigumi and, by extension, Legosi. Funny how life worked like that.

"You haven't." was all Louis could offer.

Legosi swallowed so hard his eyes squinted. "Do you…do you remember the night you had me stand watch when you rehearsed with Zoe? In the empty theater."

"Yes..." How could Louis forget the damned night that he had fractured his ankle. The damn thing still would feel stiff some mornings.

"Well...I was outside, obviously. Outside, in the dark, hoping we wouldn't get caught. But that's when I smelled an herbivore."

Louis nodded, already enraptured by this story he knew nothing about despite him being just a few meters away from it at the time.

"I immediately hid, and in the darkness I made out...a shape." Legosi's eyes pointed downward at his food. "A small shape. Over by the fountain."

"...Haru?"

Legosi didn't answer. "I didn't know what to do, until a part of me felt...I should scare the animal away. I'm a big wolf, so it should be easy, I thought. That's how that train of thought started, but once I put it into action I..." The wolf let out a shuddered breath. "I really don't know, it was all a blur, but the next thing I knew I had tackled the herbivore and had them in my clutches, all the while this...horrible voice in my head telling me to bite."

The image of Legosi that Louis had in his mind shattered, forcing him to reevaluate every single interaction he had with the wolf in his life. The run in they had in his office. The incident at the second Adler performance. Everything was put under a different light, but in a way, it made more sense.

Legosi was rambling now. "...and that's the same feeling I felt last night. I heard the voice again, and it was you. I never...never wanted to hear that voice in my head with you. I never wanted to view you like a piece of food. It's disgusting and disrespectful to you and your past. I don't even feel worthy being in front of you after that. And now you know what I did to Haru, so you'll probably want to distance yourself from me. I understand, really. I won't hate you if you do."

Louis held a hand up, and Legosi immediately stopped talking. Louis took a deep breath in, gathering his thoughts. "Legosi."

"Yes?"

"Bring your hands back up, please."

With some confusion, Legosi presented his hands to Louis, palms open. Louis took both of them in his own and squeezed them. He looked Legosi directly in the eyes as he began to speak. "About that night with Haru. I feel even safer now that you told me about that."

Legosi blinked in disbelief, and after that wasn't enough to sell it, he cocked his head and twitched his ears. "What?"

"I mean it!" Louis brought Legosi's hands up a bit as he raised in his seat. "Knowing you had a moment like that with your instincts way before our relationship started and the fact that you were able to eat my leg without losing yourself to it. Knowing that every time we've been intimate you never heard that voice in your head." Louis smiled and shook his head. "Legosi, don't you see? You...you've done so well with yourself! You've grown so much." He cleared his throat when he felt tears in his eyes, attempting to compose himself again. He sat back down in his seat and went back to eating his meal, leaving Legosi dumbfounded.

"You're really okay with the fact your boyfriend almost ate his girlfriend at one point?"

"I mean, you didn't, and Haru never mentioned you trying to eat her that time or any other time." Louis swallowed his food and pointed his chopsticks at Legosi. "She does know it was you that night, right?"

"Oh, yeah. I told her some time later and she took it about as well as you are..."

"I guess herbivores that fancy carnivores just don't see things like that as a problem. Or maybe this is just a Legosi thing." Louis winked.

Legosi didn't know what to do with himself. His tail thwapped against the material of the booth while he fiddled nervously with his food in an attempt to finish the meal. Louis dropped the flirty look on his face and replaced it with a serious one.

"Legosi. It's really okay. I promise."

Finally, Legosi managed a smile. "Alright, Louis."

…

Louis craned his head up to take in the structure of the Sublime Beastar tower. He couldn't possibly imagine what Yahya needed with all of those rooms, but he was aware of all the office work that was also done. He just didn't see Yahya being the type of animal to give paperwork any thought. Next to him, Legosi seemed to be nervous.

"Maybe we should have dressed up." he suggested. "When I went here I bought an entirely new outfit. I feel kind of weird going in with a t-shirt, shorts, and sneakers."

"That was when you first met Yahya, right?" Louis brought his view back down, rubbing the back of his neck where it ached. "He knows who we are now, and he doesn't seem to be a stickler for formality. He's a bastard and I don't care about barging into his place, too."

Legosi turned away, obviously trying to hide a snicker, but he couldn't hide his tail. Louis reached up and scratched his cheek. "C'mon, let's go see the horse."

The lobby they entered was huge, with all sorts of herbivores bustling along with their business, but that wasn't what caught Louis's attention. Instead, it was a large gathering of mice on the floor that moved toward them.

"Legosi-san, Louis-san." A mouse in the front stepped away from the crowd and bowed. "What brings you here?"

Surprisingly, Legosi spoke before Louis could. "We have important information for Yahya-san regarding the Melon case. We need to see him."

"One moment." The speaker mouse joined his brethren and the mass moved back toward a secretary desk. The mice spoke into an intercom, although neither Legosi or Louis could hear what they said. They paused for a moment before receiving a response, also inaudible. They nodded in unison and faced the duo.

"Yayha-sama will see you now. If you would." They leaped to the ground and formed an arrow pointing them toward an elevator. "Take it to the top floor, please."

Legosi waved a hand at them. "Yes, I know where to go. Thank you." He turned to Louis with a small smile. "They made an arrow when I first got here too. It's kind of cute, don't you think?"

"Not particularly. You're cute, not some mouse party trick." Louis couldn't help but grasp his cheek fluff again as they boarded the lift.

Legosi started to fidget again as he mumbled. "Wonder how long this will take."

"Hopefully not too long." Louis mused.

The elevator reached the top floor, tilting the boys off balance as it stopped. Louis took his hands off Legosi as the doors slid open, and he was surprised to be met with sunlight. The top room of the tower was encapsulated by a glass roof, the function of which was revealed with a cursory look around the room: beds of dirt with plants growing in them lined the walls. Louis's attention was torn from the gardens once he noticed the figure of a black horse standing in the middle of the large space.

Yahya stood with his hands in his pockets, clothes completely casual. He stared straight up, and Louis could hardly believe that he and Gosha were around the same age, what with the horse's youthful arrogance apparent in everything he did. He didn't even turn to address them when he spoke.

"Tell me what you've learned."

Legosi stepped forward. "Melon is a history professor at the university near here."

This roused Yahya from his spacing. He turned to the two with wide, almost angry eyes. "What?"

"Without a shadow of a doubt." Louis placed a hand on Legosi's chest and walked past him. "Our friend goes there and she said her history professor is a gazelle who wears a mask going by the name of Crenshaw. He tried to eat her, after which he stabbed himself with a box cutter. Sounds like something a messed up animal like Melon would do."

Yahya squinted at them. "Is that all you have to go on?"

Legosi shook his head. "We met with the leader of the Kopi Luwak group. He said that Melon has a degree in history."

"Kopi Luwak..." Yahya brought a hand to his chin. "I considered getting information from them, but I'm not one for cooperating with gangs."

"We did your job for you." Louis fired bluntly. "Are you going to erase Legosi's criminal record?"

Yahya replied with the closest herbivore equivalent of a snarl. "Melon's not behind bars yet. I'll follow up this lead, but it will take time to cut all of the red tape. Him working as a professor under a fake herbivore identity is going to complicate things."

"But once you catch him, will you take care of it?" Louis looked back up at the wolf, whose eyes were anxiously darting over to the plants along the walls.

Yahya sighed and turned his back to them. "I'll look into it, and I will be in touch."

"Don't make Legosi do anything dangerous again!"

Yahya faced Louis again. "I. Will. Be. In. Touch." He spun around again. "Now leave."

Louis shrugged and pulled gently on Legosi's arm. "Come on."

The elevator ride down and subsequent exit of the building was uneventful, thankfully. Louis stretched his arms in the air and breathed out audibly. "See? Didn't take long at all. Now we just have to wait on him."

Legosi lingered closely to Louis. "Ah, yeah."

"...when do you work tomorrow?"

"At 1."

Louis turned and beckoned him along. "Why don't you come back to my place? You need sleep."

Legosi stood there for a moment before nodding and lumbering along.

…

Louis sighed once he entered his air conditioned room. He kicked his shoes off and moved straight to the bed to sit down on it. "Well, that was quite the day."

Legosi followed closely behind and sat next to him. He only nodded in agreement.

"You're still being quiet." Louis reached up and scratched the ear closest to him, smiling as Legosi leaned into it. "I miss my chatterbox wolf."

"I know. Just tired. Last night was hard."

"I know, hon." In one smooth motion, Louis pivoted and swung his leg over Legosi's legs to sit on his lap, facing him. "Just relax now." He pushed him gently on the chest, coaxing him to lay on his back as he leaned over him. "I'll take care of you, if you'll let me."

Legosi smiled slightly. "I'll let you. I...want you to take care of me."

Louis beamed in pride. It was so hard to get the stubborn carnivore to admit things like that sometime. He quickly silenced the voice in his mind that reminded him that he was the same way.

"Let's start with this then..." Louis lowered himself completely onto the wolf and pressed their lips together. Legosi breathed out softly into Louis's mouth and brought his large hands to gently caress his back.

Louis could feel every fiber of his being relax as he made out with Legosi on the bed. He belonged there. It was so right. Even if they had to hide like this because the world said it was wrong, it was right.

Their bouts of making out were interspersed with cuddling and talking about mundanities in their life. Slowly but surely, Legosi dipped further and further into his sleepiness, finally falling into slumber around an hour later. Louis quietly slipped off the bed, watching his soft-looking boyfriend sleep soundly on his side, his hands and toes twitching. The deer took a seat at his desk and turned toward his homework. Would he really be able to pick up on where he had left off from two days ago? So much had happened in that time."

Before he could think further on it, his phone buzzed. Checking it, he found that his father had forwarded the email he had sent previously to him again. The same email Louis had been avoiding. He swallowed hard and opened it. He grew dizzy.

Oguma wanted to discuss his engagement plans over dinner.