Chapter 4
Section 1 - Shared Sorrow
Maxwell opened his eyes as he woke up in the early morning. He reached over to his nightstand and retrieved his phone before getting up from his bed and opening the curtains to his private dorm. The amber sunlight basked over his black fur on his tall and muscular body as he walked over to his bathroom to get ready for the day. He stared into his own piercing blue eyes in the bathroom mirror, lost in his thoughts. Where do I even start to look? He continued to think of potential evidence that could lead him to Tem's killer until he finally remembered something significant. He gave his diary to Carl, didn't he?
Maxwell left his dorm with a single goal: getting his hands on Tem's diary. But before he could enter the herbivore dormitory, he felt a hand grab his shoulder. "Hey, wolf." Maxwell turned around to see the source of the voice.
"What is it, Louis?", Maxwell asked annoyed. Louis paused for a few seconds until answering.
"I've reconsidered your offer from yesterday. I think we can help each other out." Maxwell let out a sigh of relief.
"That's good. Is there anything else?" Louis looked around before answering.
"Meet me in my office at 6:00 pm tonight. We will have plenty of time to talk then. Understand?" Maxwell simply nodded, which prompted Louis to walk away. What does that stuck-up bastard mean by helping each other? Maxwell pondered for a moment until he pieced it together. He's only helping because he wants to become the next Beastar! It doesn't matter, I won't let his motivations concern me. All that matters is that justice is served.
Maxwell continued walking until he reached the male herbivore dormitory. He entered the building and went straight to the elevator. Once inside, he pressed the button for the fourth floor and waited. Once the doors opened he scanned the hallway to find the door. 401, 402, 403…404! Maxwell knocked on the door and waited for an answer until an alpaca opened the door and looked up at him. The alpaca froze in terror, not knowing what Maxwell's intentions were.
"H-hey uh wolf, what do you want?" The alpaca said nervously. Maxwell sighed and answered.
"I'm here to see Carl. I needed to ask him about something." The alpaca sighed in relief once he heard the wolf wanted nothing of him.
"Yeah, I'll get him." The door then closed for a few seconds until Carl opened the door.
"Oh, I wasn't expecting to see you, Maxwell," Carl stated. "What do you want?" Maxwell sighed and answered.
"Can we talk in private? I just need to ask something important about Tem." Carl paused to think for a moment, wondering if he should even associate with him. He let out a sigh before answering.
"Yeah, we can talk."
Carl walked out into the hallway and closed the door.
"So, what do you want to know?" Carl asked. Maxwell sighed, knowing what he was asking for might be too much.
"I want to know if you still have his diary. The last time I asked Tem about it, he said he trusted you with it. If so, could you lend it to me? It's important." Carl was a little shocked at Maxwell's request.
"So, you want me to hand over his diary to you. May I ask you why I should even give it to you in the first place? I know you and Tem were close but that doesn't mean you can invade his privacy. Even if he's dead." Maxwell felt fury creep up inside him after he heard Carl. Who the hell does he think he is? Maybe I should… no I need to keep myself composed. I can save this anger for the one who deserves it. Maxwell took a deep breath to calm himself down.
"Alright, I'll give you my reason. I want to find whoever devoured Tem. That diary is one of the few things that could lead me in the right direction." Carl went silent for a few seconds until he said.
"I'll give you it." Carl briefly reentered his dorm before coming back out with the diary, handing it over to Maxwell. "Sorry for how I acted, I've just been agitated lately. If you need anything else, you can come by." Carl then went back into his dorm and shut the door behind him, leaving Maxwell alone in the hallway.
Section 2 - In the Spotlight
"Legosi!" Shouted Collot. The wolf lazily opened his eyes to look at the scruffy white dog.
"What time is it?" Legosi groggily said.
"It's about 9:00 am. You know, the time you asked me to wake you up on the weekends, remember?" Legosi merely nodded, not really wanting to talk early in the morning. He got up from his bed, walked into the bathroom, brushed his teeth, and got dressed for the day before receiving a text from someone. He opened his messages to find out who it was. It was Els.
Els: Legosi, u there?
Legosi: Yeah, what is it?
Els: Wanna hang out at drama club early?
Legosi: Sure, I'll be there soon.
Legosi turned off his phone and put it in his pocket before opening his dorm door. "Where are you going?" A familiar voice asked. Legosi looked behind him to see Jack.
"I was just going to the drama club early to get some stuff done." The golden Lab looked at Legosi suspiciously before saying.
"Alright, see you later I guess." The wolf gave a slight wave to Jack.
"You too."
Legosi opened the doors to the main drama club building and walked in. He scanned the main room until he saw Els practicing her choreography. She twirled around gracefully on one leg until she noticed Legosi watching her. "Hello, Legosi." She said with slight surprise. "I asked you to come here early, but I wasn't expecting you this early." Legosi began to feel embarrassed as he realized how the situation looked.
"Sorry." Els giggled a little before saying.
"It's alright. I wanted you to check my choreography anyways. Would you do that for me?" Legosi's tail lazily swayed before he answered.
"I will."
"One two three. One two three. One two three." Legosi repeated in a rhythm while Els was dancing. Legosi looked at her in awe as he watched her twirl and slowly lower her body. She eventually stopped and looked over at Legosi for confirmation. He nodded, which prompted her to continue dancing. Legosi continued with his rhythmic clapping until she finished her dance and walked up to the tall gray wolf.
'How did I do Legosi?", she asked him.
Legosi hummed before he answered. "Hmm, you did good," Legosi answered kindly. "You'll be great in the play." A smile slowly spread across her face.
"That's good," Els said with relief. "Thank you for your help, Legosi." Legosi's tail began to slowly sway before he said.
"You're welcome, Els"
Section 3 - Revisiting the Past
Louis patiently waited in his office with his hands clasped together. What is taking that mutt so long!? It's ten minutes past eight, and he still hasn't arrived. As if on cue, he heard a knock on his office door. "Come in." He said with slight agitation. The door then opened, revealing Maxwell.
"Sorry I'm a little late," He apologized. "I had to make some important calls. I'm sure you can understand." Maxwell then walked over to Louis's desk with Tem's diary in hand and gave it to him. A smirk grew on the Stag's face as he pulled off the diary's rubber band and opened it.
"Not bad, wolf," Louis said snarkily. "This is a decent piece of evidence for this investigation." The prideful stag handed Tem's diary back to the scarred black wolf. Maxwell took a deep breath before opening the diary of his deceased friend.
…
-Diary Entry 1-
April 3rd, 2011, 1:00 pm
I lost everything today, and I'm now alone in the middle of a vast field with a sprawling oak tree in the middle. I sit under the oak tree and begin to sob. Tears stream down my face as I try to figure out what I could even do.
April 3rd, 2011, 3:00 pm
I've been sitting under this tree for a few hours now, still unable to figure out what I should do. Why did they have to die? I can't live without them.
April 3rd, 2011, 6:00 pm
The sun has begun to set and I've lost all hope. There's nothing I can do. I think I'll just sit here and die.
April 3rd, 2011, 6:28 pm
I sat there, under the same tree I have for hours, with my eyes closed until I heard His voice.
"Are you okay?" He asked as I looked up at him. He was a Tall Black Wolf with a scar on the left side of his lip. I would've felt fear if I were to have seen him a few days ago, but at that moment, there was nothing for me to live for. Figuring that it didn't matter,
"No, I lost everything." I finally answered. The Wolf gazed at me for a few seconds before he said.
"I'm sorry, is there anything I can do?"
When I heard him ask this, I felt something grow within me. Hope. "Yes. Could you get me some water please?" I asked him. The wolf nodded before he held out his hand for me. I reluctantly grabbed his hand, which prompted him to pull me up from the ground. I tried to stand, but I was too weak, so I began to fall. But before I could collapse to the ground entirely, he caught my fall.
"Wrap your arm around me." He said. "Use me as support."
So I did, and we walked until we got inside his family's mansion. He led me to his massive room with intricately carved wooden walls. Before I could think of anything to say, he said.
"Wait in here while I get you some water. I'm not entirely sure how my father would react if he saw you without an explanation."
At first, I felt a little disappointed, but after thinking it over, I didn't want to cause trouble, so I simply nodded. He stared at me for a few more seconds before leaving the room. After a few minutes, he came back with a pitcher full of ice water and a full glass. I quickly grabbed the glass of water and chugged it down. I placed the glass on a nightstand next to his bed and wiped my mouth before pouring myself a new glass. After drinking about five glasses of water, I finally felt refreshed. "Thank you," I said with gratitude. "I don't know what I would've done without your help."
"You're welcome. I also had a talk with my father about you. He said you can stay here if you don't have any family."
At that moment, I leaped forward and deeply embraced the wolf with tears streaming from my eyes, tears of joy. The wolf embraced me back and asked. "What is your name, brother?"
"T-Tem," I answered. "T-that's my name, and I want to know yours."
"My name is Maxwell. Welcome to your new family."
What was once the worst time of my life ended that day.
…
Louis stared at Maxwell in confusion, wondering why he had been silent for the past few minutes. "Are you there, wolf?" The stag said, trying to evoke a response. To his surprise, he didn't at all. Growing more irritated got out of his chair and walked over to Maxwell until he noticed the expression on his face. The wolf looked as if he was almost at his breaking point. For the first time, Louis felt slight concern for him. "Maxwell?" He called while grabbing onto his shoulder. He finally broke out of his state of mind and met Louis's face.
"Sorry about that," Maxwell calmly said. "I got carried away." Louis glared at him for a few seconds before asking.
"Have you found anything yet?"
"No, not yet." The scarred wolf answered. "But I'm sure I will, once I analyze this diary further."
"You better."