A/N: Posting here first than AO3 due reasons.
nadillaandlaprasthefireandice;
"Very suggestive, I won't go further than that. Unless people want M rated stuff on a separated fic, which I suck at writing about. Like, never tried. Lol"
KitsuneKaze;
"Hahahahah, that's for sure. But, hey, people are weird, I won't judge. :P"
Tommy423;
"Yeah, that hurt to watch, the school setting feels so good already. ;("
Guest;
"I would be more on the 'Ermmm, okay?' kind of reaction, lol. "
ChaoticCrazy;
"Welcome and thank you! Yeah, he ain't living that down. Don't mind the duplicity :P"
LzMan;
"Well, I mean... it got awkward cause Ellen won't make it easy for him, cause she's mean like that :):):):):):) Nah, no sex scene at all. That would be stepping over boundaries and taking way too many risks at once. Maybe, but I won't write that scene in details, this is T rated after all."
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"Alright, everyone pay attention! Since we don't know of Louis whereabouts, Sanu has put me in charge for the Meteorite Festival act. I hope the group we have here can stay long enough for the weekend. Anyone who's not going to be here for that day just say it already."
"Well, I think everyone that's here will be until the last day. Unless there's been a change of plans..."
"Aoba, ain't you going traveling with your family this summer?"
"Oh, yeah. We will, but they managed to reschedule for after our semester is actually over. So I will be here till then."
"What about you, Tao? Not going back to Shinju earlier? I heard is quite few hours of travel."
"Huh, yeah, it is... but Mom won't be upset if I'm invested on the club. She said she wanted me to focus on it as much as I could."
"What about you, Elle-
Shiira stopped, her eyes widening slightly at the sight of the zebra. Ellen's face expressing nothing but utter joy, nuzzling herself into a very distraught coyote. The others on the group were already eyeing the couple with puzzled looks, some with smirks on their faces as they enjoyed the sight of a nearly panicked Durham being cuddled on plain sight. The cheetah never saw her equine friend express this much happiness before, the absolute delight on Ellen's face was astonishing, and even more the fact that Durham, despite apparently wishing to be swallowed by a hole and disappear, hadn't really complained about how touchy the zebra was acting towards him.
"Eh, okay? So... Juno? Are you staying with us for the Festival?"
Juno, who's been quite distracted with the amazing sight of the Herbivore holding the smaller Carnivore as if he was a comfy pillow, blinked in confusion as her attention shifted back towards the cheetah.
"O-Oh, y-yeah. I will be here. Huh, my home ain't really far anyways, so I don't mind staying for a bit longer." She replied sheepishly, her eyes glancing back to the couple near her, a sudden feeling of longing and jealousy spouting inside her chest. It was quite a blow for her to see Ellen getting so happy with a partner, while the wolf failed to even get anything close to an affectionate gesture from Legosi. 'A Herbivore and a Carnivore managed to get this close to each other and I couldn't even get Legosi to like me!'
She could help but feel slightly depressed at the fact. A feeling that probably reflected on her face, as someone near her suddenly inquired about her mood.
"Hey, Juno, you're ok?"
Juno blinked, not realizing that Tao has been this close to her, his eyes focused on her figure, seemingly aware of her distress. She waved a hand around dismissively.
"No, it's nothing, I'm fine. Huh, thanks for asking." She replied a bit too quickly. The panther frowned, clearly aware that she wasn't being completely honest. Still, he was wary of bothering her, especially since he usually didn't talk with Juno as often as the others did.
"Well... if you're sure, I don't mind talking about it. I-I mean, I also have my own issues, but it's nice to share it with someone... makes me feel less lonely." He replied nervously, shoving his hands on his pockets, his view shifting away from the wolf out of sheer embarrassment.
Juno was about to refuse his offer, but she paused, looking at the apprehensive black panther in wonder. Shiira often remarked Tao with several good qualities, to the point the wolf questioned her if it was a smart move to end up their relationship. The cheetah wasn't doubtful in the slightest, her anger and disappointment at Tao breaking a promise that meant dearly for her was just too much. Shiira did felt a bit guilty for ending things so abruptly, she didn't think Tao was in the wrong for following after his friends, but that he couldn't make his own choices under social pressure was not something she was willing to risk on a partner. Yet, despite the Black Market incident, something that was swept under the rug for now, Tao was really a kind, lovable and sweet person. The wolf has no reason to think any less of him. His visit at the market, while heavily frowned upon, didn't really sway Juno's opinion of his person.
"We can talk later, at the cafeteria." Juno replied quietly, to which Tao was initially surprised, but smiled gratefully nonetheless. He nodded in agreement before their attention shifted back to Shiira.
The cheetah was looking partially upset with the short amount of members available for the weekend, it was clear they would be lacking stage crew, and they could not afford to lose any dances at all at this point. Sanu tried his best to work some parents to allow their children to stay for longer, but some where simply unpersuasive. It was a blessing that Ellen was staying for longer though, usually she would've been long gone at this point, but something managed to kept her around until the end.
That something was carrying a despondent look on his face, while the zebra enveloped around him like a rope and simply wouldn't let go. Shiira snorted, it looked just too funny and rather adorable.
"Legosi, will you be alright to help with the stage in the weekend?"
The aforementioned wolf nodded quietly, his hand gently caressing over the stitched arm, the painkillers provided made him a bit drowsy. Hannah promised him the side effects would be gone after a couple of days. All the other members of the Drama club eyed the wolf with a greater amount of respect than usual. The incredible dangerous stunt he pulled quickly spread among the other members, but thankfully that didn't reach to the rest of the school, the lack of students to gossip around helped greatly on preventing a wider range of people aware of what the gray wolf got himself into.
"Kai and I wil be at ready, you can count on us." He replied after a moment of contemplation.
"Of that I have no doubt." Shiira replied while smiling at him, to which Legosi did not expect. Ever since his daring rescue of Haru everyone has been looking up at him, and not because of his height.
"Huh, will you need anything from us? I don't think we understand much about stage setting." Jack asked, while pointing at himself, Durham and Miguno. Collot and Voss went home earlier this end of semester, which was understandable due how far away they lived from town. It was rather strange to have Jack and Miguno at the club since they didn't really belong there, but no one cared to question it, especially since they were also Legosi's roommates. It's not like anyone ever really bothered with Durham anyways.
"Perhaps, I will be diving the tasks, but I'm pretty sure we will have enough hands to get this through, it's nothing extremely demanding like an Adler show." Shiira replied, her voice becoming softer as she faced the labrador that she adores. "No worries, also I must ask Sanu if we will be getting any new faces next semester, we have a couple of members finishing school."
"We do?" Asked Bill, looking genuinely surprised. It was the first time he managed to get his attention away from Durham and Ellen being smitten to each other, needless to say the tiger was extremely confused that they were an actual item. "I don't remember anyone here being on end of third year at summer."
"Well, I'm actually referring to these members we never see around, but are on the chart somehow." The cheetah explained, briefly exasperated. "We will be lacking our dear script writer though, which we really need to find a replacement."
"I thought Louis was the one that wrote the scenes." Els said, looking amazed to know they actually had an script writer and that it wasn't the deer. Shiira shrugged.
"Sort of. Louis mostly just makes adjustments, he doesn't write it from scratch. Also Louis ain't here, and we have no idea where did he go. It's unlike him to leave early, he never did."
Legosi frowned. An uneasy feeling clamping at his heart at hearing of Louis sudden disappearance.
'Was it my fault? Because of our fight? Maybe he just don't want to see any of us until the next semester.'
"Speaking of replacements, Juno?" Shiira asked, looking towards the quiet female wolf. Juno blinked, seemingly surprised at having her name mentioned. "Would you mind of taking the lead role for the show? Louis ain't here, and I'm starting to think he won't be here at weekend either. We will need someone to deliver the speech, you're fit for the job better than anyone."
"Oh, huh, thanks?" Juno replied, genuinely stunned that she was being picked for that specific role. "I will do my best, do we have a decor for it?"
"Not really, just a simple stage, nothing too extravagant. Feel free to use whatever light clothes you want, the rest of us will be using matching sets. Ain't that right, Ellen?"
"Mmmmm." Was all that came from the zebra, who was just invested on burying her facing on Durham's neck. The coyote flushed at how awkward her reply sounded. Shiira snorted, placing a hand over her mouth on a desperate attempt to contain her laughter.
"These two are getting way too comfortable with each other." Kai said, looking at them with a worried expression. "You don't think anyone of the school will give them trouble because of it?"
"Nah, they are fine. Don't worry. Why would the school, that preaches to equality between Carnivores and Herbivores, be upset by a mixed couple?" Aoba replied, looking somewhat content with the scene he was witnessing. "Durham didn't look anywhere near aggressive towards Ellen, so they seem to be working just fine."
"I don't mean the school, I meant the other students." Kai explained with a deadpanned look. Aoba scratched the back of his head, seemingly unsure.
"Of that I really don't know. Still, Ellen is a friend of mine, if anyone tries anything towards her, they will be hearing from me." The eagle boldly concluded, to which Kai had no argument against.
The rest of the reunion went smoothly, much to Shiira's relief. It was far easier to manage the club when there weren't that many people to grab the attention of. She made sure give clear instructions to what everyone would be doing during the Festival, also granting them free will once the show was over. It was an occasion for many couples to gather or flourish, to which the cheetah herself wanted to take the opportunity to spend time with Jack.
The labrador stood quietly during the entire morning, looking decided to give off a first good impression to the other members of the club, not that he really needed to do anything to stand out. Jack was well known among most senior students, his proficiency on classes a famous mark to most of the teachers. His success at his studies earned him a respected status in the school. Yet, he wasn't the most popular person around simply due his inability to get involved with other students that not his roommates.
Of course that quickly change once it became known of his newfound relationship with Shiira, the few students still at Cherryton Academy were dumbfounded once the news reached their ears, many not believing that such a nerdy teenager landed with one of the most attractive girls of the entire school. Lately Jack was gaining himself many questioning looks from few of his classmates still present, none of them finding the idea of him dating the cheetah even remotely believable.
At least it was easier to believe on his relationship than Durham's. It was unavoidable that the coyote dating Ellen would become a known fact. Yet, strangely enough, it has been widely ignored for all that came to know of it, except for the members of the Drama and Sports club. Durham still kept in touch with his athletic friends, of which many were still upset by his removal from their activities. The coyote was surprised that none of the Sports club questioned his decision to date an Herbivore, or perhaps it was the occasion that he introduced Ellen to the group that changed their minds. Durham never faulted his friends for being a bit dense when it came to girls, but even then he could not deny that one of them, Matsue, a tall and lean Husky, made a rather loud and insensitive comment about Ellen's curves.
Durham wondered if Matsue finally recovered from the broken jaw. Ellen may not have the strongest legs, but she sure has a good reach and good aim with them.
Speaking of tempered Zebras, the coyote was trying his best to keep his own temper in check. Ever since the eventful occurrence from yesterday, Ellen simply wouldn't let him go. It has become nerve-wrecking and was driving him to insanity. She was never this touchy before, and it scared him somewhat. She's treating him like he's a plushie. It didn't make sense, but also he could guess why.
Truth to Juno's suggestion, his experiment with Ellen turned out to be... correct. At least he never once felt the alien desire to hurt her or anything of the sort, but other things transpired and he would rather never talk about them again, unless with Ellen of course. Durham wasn't sure what the next step was, and he pointedly ignored Ellen's suggestions about keeping their experiment consistent, as a way to make sure it wouldn't happen with time.
Well, he would ignore it as long she didn't trap him somewhere with unspeakable dark intents. Suddenly he was starting to question who was truly the prey in this kind of relationship. Her public display of affection was mind numbing, he felt cornered as the zebra swooned all over him. He had no idea how to make her stop, nor if he should tell her to stop either.
She's so happy. Smiling more than he ever saw before, his heart ached at the idea of telling her to let go off him. It didn't feel right to think of saying such thing. It was his duty as a love partner to make her happy, spoiling the moment for her would be criminal. He wants her to be happy, and if it means he will have to deal with being cuddled in public, aside other things, he will need to get over his own selfish pride.
Still, the sight of everyone from the Drama club gawking at them wasn't making the situation any better.
"Hey, Ellen?" Durham asked quietly, the zebra was laying her head atop of his, her eyes closed as her arms kept a tight leash around his chest.
"Hmmm?" She replied, looking far too comfortable to bother looking at anything at this point. The sound of her voiced echoed in his ears with strong resonance.
"Say, you don't mind us being like this? In front of everyone else?"
"Hmmm." She replied back, her hum sounded heavier, to which Durham had to guess that it was a negative remark. He sighed.
"Okay... so, about what happened yesterday..." The coyote started, feeling a rush of heat forming on his face, to which he felt Ellen's body shaking lightly. She was giggling madly but quiet enough for only him to notice. His deadpanned look went by without her noticing. "Huh, you think that worked? I mean, we don't really know if that will be enough to make sure I won't go crazy."
Ellen didn't reply this time, one of her hands raising up to the side of his head, her hand gently caressing at his ear. He couldn't help the involuntarily twitches that such gesture caused.
"We have time, just let's enjoy ourselves while we can."
Durham wasn't sure that's the answer he wanted, but he couldn't really find any way to keep that conversation afloat without ruining the mood. He accepted her affections without further questioning, for once deciding to let go of such worries and just enjoy the moment. At least until Miguno decided to enter the scene.
"Oh, hey, you two." The Hyena started, sounding rather awkward at introducing himself. Miguno never really spoke to Ellen before, and from the few that he heard from her it was understandable that he has been avoiding any sort of interaction. "So... nice to meet you, huh... Ellen, right?"
"Yes." She replied, a tone of annoyance that Durham understood completely. She was not interested on talking with anyone right now.
"Hey, be nice. Miguno is a really good friend of mine. I've been neglecting my time with him because of you, Stripes. At least give him some of your time, he deserves that much." Durham chastised, but the humor in his voice made it clear that he wasn't upset. Ellen finally opened her eyes, although they remained half lid and she glanced at the hyena.
"Fiiiine, but just because he's your friend." She said, looking pained from having to socialize. "Anything you want to know about us?"
"Well, I guess Durham must've a good reason to be going out with out, but it's not like I would know what it really is from a simple talk." Miguno seemed very wary of his words, as if being extra careful to not upset her somehow. Ellen shrugged, to which the coyote felt her whole body shift. Durham's eyes widened as he realized that Ellen's chest was glued to his back, and that any movements she made cause him to feel specific prominences of her body.
'This is going to be a long morning.'
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"So, what do you want to talk about?"
"Hmm, how about some ice cream? Any specific flavor you like?"
"Tao, is there a reason you invited me here aside ice cream?"
"Well, yes. Even so, it's really hot today, and it's not the greatest feeling in the world to feel fur sticky with sweat."
"... I want coconut."
Tao nodded as he made his way to the counter with the only present kitchen staff for the day. The lower amount of students didn't require the cafeteria to work at full as it would be the usual, something about a more vacant place to eat was attractive to Juno, which made the panther's offer hard to ignore. She wasn't sure why she accepted anyway, but Tao was a member of the club she had very few interactions with, it wouldn't really hurt to get to known him better.
So far he behaved rather admirably, for which Juno assumed was how he usually presented himself to any other student. She could tell the panther has a bit of a shy side to him, being very modest and easy going during their short trip to the cafeteria. Not to mention a bit of a gentlemen as he held doors for her to go by, to which she found a rather rare gesture of courtesy. If he was trying to impress her somehow, well, Juno had to admit he was doing a good job so far.
He came back a few minutes later with the ice creams, Juno wasted no time on sipping hers, desperate for some relief of the increasing heat that was becoming more intense as days went by. Tao chuckled at how desperate Juno clasped her cup away from his hand, taking his time to sit across her, his own ice cream untouched. A pensive look on his face persisted as the feline searched for words to build up a conversation.
"So, how are you liking the club so far? We didn't see you dancing yet, but I'm sure you will do plenty great at the Festival. Sanu and Shiira have quite a good amount of faith on you." He started, feeling more at ease now that he managed to get the words out. Juno paused, looking unsure for a moment as she evaluated her short time in the club.
"It's been quite... exciting is not really the world I'm looking for, more... huh, engaging than I could've hoped for." She said, looking mirthful for a brief moment. Her smiled faded as she recalled the setbacks from recently. "Still, I hoped it could be better, I guess I got my hopes up too quickly."
Tao nodded, he imagined that the girl was referring to her failed attempts towards Legosi, something he could relate somewhat. Getting in a relationship with Shiira was extremely difficult, the cheetah would never bother to give him any time of the day. It was simply though sheer persistence that he managed to break thought her shell. In hindsight, it wasn't really a good sign of a healthy relationship, which comprehensively culminated on an end, mostly due his own misbehavings.
"Yeah, I feel you. I felt really odd when I first joined, I was a bit distant from everyone, but Bill and Aoba kinda helped get along better. Still, I prefer my place in the backstage, being in front of crowds makes me really nervous. If I need to perform at stage I would rather do a character that uses some kind of masks, it makes me feel more comfortable."
"Stage fright?" Juno questioned with a sympathetic smile. Tao chuckled, looking sheepish all of sudden.
"Nah, just... well, a bit? I dunno, I just don't feel okay being the center of attention. Something I feel that Legosi doesn't like either." The panther pointed out, to which Juno frowned slightly.
"Yeah, I imagined as much. Still, he shouldn't let that stop him being someone even greater than he is. Hiding away won't do him any good." Juno said, her voice carrying a certain amount of annoyance. Tao shrugged, not really interested on debating what motivates Legosi or not.
"Huh, I guess. I mean, he doesn't really mind the stage as much as I do, which was surprising. He did pretty great during Adler's act two. Even if he and Bill, well..." Tao let that phrase die out. That incident was still fresh on his mind, he would never go at such lengths to hurt someone like these two did with each other.
"Speaking of other people... I'm sorry about you and Shiira." Juno said, seemingly regretful for bringing that up. Tao merely nodded.
"Don't be. She's right. I messed up big time. I should know better than to let the likes of Bill dictate my actions. I just... he's a friend of mine, but Legosi was the odd one of our club. I wasn't really convinced about whatever Legosi said about meat, but... I see that he's been the better of us. Heh, Aoba saw that sooner than anyone else. Which I'm glad he did, at least I know Aoba can maintain some standards, unlike me..."
Tao looked downcast, to which Juno couldn't help but feel sorry for him.
"Hey." Juno said, awaiting for him to raise his eyes up again. To which he did timidly. Juno blinked, realizing that his eyes were of a deep shade of amethyst, just like hers. "Don't be hard on yourself. Everyone makes mistakes, ain't that the truth? Especially at this age."
"I suppose." Tao replied, his voice struggling to gain confidence. "Say, what do you think of Ellen and Durham? You think it's a good thing for them to be that close?"
"Errr, I... I'm not really sure. Durham... is complicated, but Ellen is not easier to handle either." Juno said, unsure of how to feel towards the mixed couple. Tao smiled, nodding in understanding at her clear confusion.
"Ellen always despised us, to the point she was reluctant to be on acting scenes near us, but after Tem..." Tao paused, frowning at the fate of one of the very few Herbivores to ever befriend him, aside Kiby. "She just was having none of it. I still don't understand how Durham got to her during such delicate time. I'm... honestly impressed, even if a bit worried."
"Because of..."
"Yeah, that curse we all have."
They fell into silence afterwards, neither exchanging any more glances until they were finished with their cups of ice cream. They resumed their conversation towards less controversial topics, to which the girl found herself enjoying it greatly. Juno, despite the few awkward moments during their talk, felt a lot better after the conflicting club reunion of the morning, it was somewhat refreshing to talk with someone she wasn't used to. Tao was really good at keeping the conversation going, even if changing it to more delicate topics.
"Say, this wasn't so bad." Tao said as they both left the cafeteria an hour later. "How about we catch up some other time? We won't get much more freedom like this until the next end of semester." Juno didn't hesitate this time around.
"Sounds good to me. Huh, maybe we should plan this instead of doing it from the blue. Here." She said as she presented him with a piece of paper. "You can add my number and call me whenever you feel like talking. I don't really have many contacts anyway."
"Huh, thanks?" Tao said, puzzled that she was giving him her number so easily. "I guess we better get going, Shiira only gave us a couple of hours before we start the rehearsing. Which means crew stage making sure they remember what to do, and dance crew not screwing it up." He added with a smile. Juno chuckled at his remark.
"I ain't screwing up my dance, just you watch."