Chapter 6
Rob took a seat next to a large and simple white desk placed in the middle of the empty interrogation room while Detective Rudy sat on the perpendicular side. There were no windows and the walls were a simple, chalky white. The only thing of variety that could be seen were several photographs and documents pinned to a bulletin board and a small camera nestled in an uppermost corner of the space.
On the table were two large, white bowls covered by a lid, glass cups, and a pitcher of water. From what Rob could surmise from the scent emanating from the gaps of the lids, they were filled with some sort of curry dish. Sure enough, the sloth bear removed the both covers to reveal good-sized portions of rice drenched in creamy yellow-orange curry filled with potatoes and an assortment of vegetables.
"I'm assuming ya hadn't had lunch yet. Ya hungry?" asked the detective.
Rob gulped, swallowing the saliva that was already filling his mouth—thanks to the smell of curry and array of spices wafting from the steaming bowls.
"Guess I'll take that as a 'Yes!'," Detective Rudy guffawed as he saw the young lion greedily eying the meal.
He then slid a bowl with an accompanying spoon in front of Rob. Normally, he wouldn't be able to eat while he is really stressed, but the tantalizing smell and color was unlike anything he had been eating for the past week.
"Old family recipe! Hope ya enjoy," the bear said proudly with a wink.
"Um, yes. T-thank you for the food," Rob responded without taking his eyes off the bowl.
He then filled the spoon with a good amount of rice and curry and took a bite. It was the first time he had such flavorful curry. Rob sighed as the creamy liquid spread throughout the top of his tongue, but then recoiled as it was assailed by a sudden burst of heat.
Rob grimaced while he quickly chewed and swallowed, and let out a loud gasp. Detective Rudy bellowed with laughter as he watched the distressed carnivore pour a glass of water to quench his fiery mouth.
"Haha, sorry 'bout that, kid! Totally slipped my mind to ask if you were good with spicy stuff!" the sloth bear exclaimed.
"Haah! No, it's f-fine. I just… t-took too big a s-spoonful," Rob wheezed. It was certainly the most delicious—and excruciating—curry the young lion had ever tasted.
…
Both bowls laid empty on the table along with the water pitcher three-quarters empty. Detective Rudy assured Rob that he didn't need to finish the dish, but the young lion insisted, saying it was still very delicious and appreciated the sloth bear feeding him. Though, now his tongue has become numb.
"Well, now that our bellies are full, how 'bout we get started?" said Detective Rudy.
"O-okay," Rob answered.
"Alright… Well, I already know yer a student at Cherryton. What year are ya in?"
"Third year, s-sir."
"Mmhmm. An' judgin' by those muscles of yers, I'm guessin' yer into some kinda sport?"
Rob looked down bashfully. "Um, no. N-not really. U-Uncle… Uncle just g-got me into weight training and...m-martial arts, is all."
"Ooh," the detective said as he raised his brows.
"I-I have pretty b-bad anxiety, so lifting...and t-trai—training helps r-relieve a lot of s-stress."
"Huh, still pretty impressive, though," the detective said, as he rested his shaggy head on a propped up hand. "What kinda martial arts ya learnin'?"
"B.M.A. U-Um, bighorn… m-martial arts. Uncle t-trained me," Rob answered sheepishly.
"Haha! I did think that uncle of yers looked like the type that can kick my a$&!" the sloth bear remarked mirthfully. "So, yer learnin' from a veteran."
"W-well, yeah… Kind of."
The carnivores' conversation continued rather innocuously. Rob talked about his adoptive family members, his various hobbies, and his dreams of becoming a physician. It was actually kind of fun for the young lion to speak with the friendly old bear, who was listening with great interest. It was then that their chat began to center towards his school life.
"So, ya part of any club, or..." Detective Rudy asked.
"W-well, I'm a p-part of the school d-drama club…"
"Oho! An actor, huh?"
"Oh, n-no! No," exclaimed Rob as he frantically waved his hands in front of his face. "I suck at a-acting. I'm just part of the backstage crew. Y-you know, props, stage set-up, a-and stuff."
"Hm, alright. Bet ya still get pretty close to the action, right?"
"Yeah, s-sometimes."
"Hmhmhm. So, who're the stars of the stage?"
"Well," the young lion began to recall as he glanced upwards. "Th-there's Louis, a red deer who's the m-main actor. He's...r-really incredible on s-stage, and the t-top student at our... s-school. He's a-also the top c-candi—candidate to be the next B-Beastar."
The sloth bear whistled in amazement.
"T-There's also B-Bill, the bengal t-tiger. He's…w-well, umm…a really f-friendly guy. And another...g-good actor."
"Mmhmm."
"T-Then there's...A-Aoba, E-Ellen, Kai, Tem—"
Rob stopped abruptly at the alpaca's name as the sloth bear's expression became a bit more serious, yet still calm.
"T-Tem was… he w-was supposed to play the w-water spirit n-next week," Rob whispered as his hands began to quiver.
"Is that right?" Detective Rudy said, slowly closing his eyes. "That was the same kid they found ya with, yeah?"
The young lion grasped his still-quaking hands together, curling his upper body inwardly a little. He could already hear his own heartbeat pounding in his flattening ears as it grew faster.
Rob then noticed long claws gently grasping at his knees as the sloth bear detective knelt in front of him.
"Rob," Detective Rudy began mildly. "I get you've been through… a lot in yer life. And after chattin' with ya, I can see yer a great kid with a bright future ahead of 'im, despite all that."
He paused, taking a short breath before continuing. "Nowadays, it's still pretty easy fer carnivores to get convicted if they get it in their heads yer guilty of eatin' someone. That's why…I need ya to be honest and tell me what happened that night so we figure things out and get ya back home with yer folks. Think you can do that fer me, pal?"
Rob lifted his eyes, meeting Detective Rudy's. Behind those glasses, the young carnivore could glimpse a similar fatherly tenderness he was so accustomed to seeing growing up—eyes that almost compels the young lion to give his trust to completely.
"O… okay," Rob mumbled. The old bear smiled gently and, with a final pat on the knee, rose from the floor before lifting his chair a few feet in front of the young lion.
"Alright, kid. Now, there's no need to rush. Take all the time ya need," he reassured.
Rob sat there for about a minute or two, taking several deep breaths while mentally solving more equations until his heartbeat became more stable.
"I… I had just come out of the l-library after studying for med school e-entrance exams…The school I w-want to go has a really hard test, s-so I want—so I wanted to cram a little bit every n-night to get ready for it..."
As he slowly conveyed everything to the detective, the young lion could already see the wide, moonlit halls stretching out in front of him.
He let out a huge yawn, feeling ready to flop on his bed. He always lost track of time when cramming late into the night, and his body was already sore from his early evening workout at the school gym.
He barely turned the corner before he heard a loud yelp further down the hall. Rob froze in his tracks, his ears also picking up frantic footsteps receding from where the scream originated. Curious and concerned, he trotted towards the general direction and then caught the faintest whiff of blood. Though his nose was not as sharp as a canine's, it was still strong enough to detect the small splatter on the floor, as well as a small trail proceeding ahead of it.
Rob's stomach churned and his muscles began to stiffen at the sight. He started backing away in a panic, but then furiously shook his head while smacking the sides of his muzzle.
Snap out of it, he ordered himself. I can't be a doctor if I keep letting a little blood scare me off! C'mon, I have to at least do something to help someone that's injured!
The young lion took a few deep breaths and began sprinting forward, following the trail of blood. When he saw the drops leading down the stairs, he leapt down two flights, catching himself just in time before falling face-first at the bottom. Rob then frantically looked to either side of him to see where to go next.
Suddenly, he heard a very large crash to his right—almost like a door was broken into—and ran towards it without a second though. It turned out that some heavy doors leading to a lecture hall were bashed into. One side was almost off its hinges and there was a large crack on the small viewing window.
Rob gulped, and tentatively peered through the opening. With the moonlight peering in, there was plenty of light for his mirrored feline eyes to catch and see inside.
"Eep! A-another one?!"
Rob recognized that frightened voice immediately as well as the silhouette of the young alpaca with whom he's spoken with on plenty of occasions. He also noticed a much larger outline next to him, but was too focused on the blood he was smelling from the small herbivore to worry about it.
"Tem? T-Tem, are you okay?" Rob immediately trotted down the stairs to the two figures. "I-I saw the blood and—"
It barely took more than a second before the much larger silhouette bounded up towards him—it's eyes reflecting a yellow glow. Before he could react or see the other animal's face, he felt several sharp claws tearing across the left side of his face. The force from the assault toppled him down the rest of the stairs, his body bouncing off the sides of desks like a rag doll.
Rob ended up on his side when he came to a stop at the bottom, and saw two small feet in front of his immediate view. It felt as though the whole side of his muzzle was ripped open and he began to taste his own blood running into his mouth. He tried to prop himself off the ground, but felt a large hand grab the back of his curly mane.
"Ahh! N-no, let go of—"
CRACK!
Rob was effortlessly dragged across the floor and suddenly felt a very sharp blow to the side of his head. He could feel his brain rattling a few times within his skull as the world around him became blurred and growing much darker than before. Before his consciousness completely sunk into oblivion, he could barely make out a large set of legs slowly lumbering towards Tem while hearing a low, menacing growl.
"...All of you carnivores are MONSTERS!"
Those were the very last words he heard from the whimpering alpaca before slipping into a dreamless sleep.
Rob woke up the next morning dizzy and disoriented, with various levels of pain radiating from his head and muzzle. That was around the time the two police officers burst in through the doors and ordered the young lion to show them his hands.
It was also when…
"Hey. Hey, kid!?"
There was just so much blood on the ground.
"Woah, woah woah! Rob, stay with me!"
Again. It happened again. Someone got killed in front of him again!
"D*mmit, kid, BREATHE!"
Rob found himself back in the interrogation room once more, his whole body toppling out of his seat while detective Rudy frantically tried to hold him upright. The young carnivore desperately gasped for air as his limbs began to seize up.
"C'mon, kid. In an' out, in an' out!" the sloth bear cried. "S$#%. Grr, what—Oh! Right, uh… 70 times 53!"
"GAAAASSP—Haaaah…! Th… th-th…"
"That's right…! Slowly, now."
It took a bit of time, but the detective was finally able to get Rob breathing normally again. He even managed to set the young lion back upon his chair while hugging him.
"D-dad…" Rob moaned.
"What's that, now?"
"Th-they… killed him…!" He then gripped the front of the bear's shirt tightly as tears streamed from his clear-colored eyes. "Just l-like D-Daddy… They killed…h-him. I c-couldn't… I… *hic* couldn't s-stop th-th-them… from—"
"Easy there, Rob," Detective Rudy soothed as he patted his back. "It's okay, now. It's okay. "
The young carnivore sobbed quietly into the old bear's dress shirt for quite some time afterwards. Even though he was relieved to get the testimony he needed, having to subject children to questioning or interrogation always left a bad taste in his mouth.
Author's Note
Not gonna lie, I was close to crying when writing this chapter. He may have PTSD, but he's no Batman. :/
Hmm, come to think of it, what species would Batman actually be in the Beastars world? And would the bats there find it offensive for some random animal to run around in a costume of them? Haha!
