Chapter 12

It was no surprise that the school was already abuzz with excitement the day after the second showing of "Adler". Thanks to the bloody altercation between Bill and Legoshi, along with Louis' subsequent appearance, it was the only thing anyone would talk about. The school newspapers that covered the event were practically sold out and helped further animate the student body.

Even the cafeteria was a bit louder than usual. Each table discussed and recounted the final act of the play, never seeming to grow weary of it as time went on. It was especially true for the four female bighorn sheep of varying species, sitting together while taking turns pouring over the article.

"Uuugh! I can't believe I totally missed yesterday," groaned the dark-furred stone sheep, who was almost scrunching up the newspaper in frustration.

"Carly! Don't take it out on the paper! I didn't get my turn yet," exclaimed the snow-white dall ewe, snatching the article out of her hands.

"Boy, that play sure was wild," commented the more subdued, longer-horned desert bighorn sitting across from them. "Pretty crazy they actually rehearsed the whole thing. Don't you think, Mars?"

"Hmm, yeah…I guess." Maria frowned as she looked at the front page photograph in the dall sheep's hands, which showed Louis, Bill, and Legoshi—who was sporting a particularly awkward grin. She wished she could share in her friends excitement, but it was difficult after witnessing everything herself from the front row. The ewe had a much clearer view of the grey wolf's face and knew right away that that rage in his eyes was genuine.

Legoshi reminded her of Rob in so many ways that she couldn't help but worry for him, and wondered what made him so agitated.

"Hmm, I wonder how they got the tiger and wolf guy to fight so hard?" asked the white sheep. "It looked so real."

"Can't imagine it being that hard for them, Rin. I mean, they are carnivores, after all," the desert bighorn said matter-of-factly.

"Yeah…you got a point."

Maria's brow furrowed slightly hearing the exchange. There's just no way it could be that simple, even if he is a wolf.

She then looked up, as Rob caught her eye while he walked by. Noticing her glance, the young lion smiled shyly as he gave a small wave, with Maria smiling in return.

"Ooooh… You don't think he was looking at us, do you?" the stone sheep mumbled timidly.

"Ugh, I hope not," groaned the desert bighorn.

Maria twitched at her friends' comments.

The dall ewe hid her face as she eyed the young carnivore making his way towards a vending machine. "Hey, Zoe? Isn't that the giant lion they said ate that one herbivore?"

"Let's see…super tall, white mane with a little brown mixed in, ugly scar… Yep, that's him, alright."

"I knew it. Seriously, what are they thinking, letting him roam free like that?"

"I heard it's because someone bribed the police to keep things quiet," Carly whispered.

"No…! You think his parents are rich?"

"Hmph. Sounds about right," Zoe scoffed, folding her arms in indignation. "I bet he's gotten away with plenty of illegal stuff: drugs, extortion, hunting other animals..."

"...Y-you make it sound like he's actually part of the mafia, or something," Carly stammered as she glanced fearfully at the young lion, who was crouching down to grab a dispensed beverage.

"Well, he sure does look the part," Rin chimed in. "It wouldn't surprise me if he ended up joining 'that' group, if he hadn't already."

"Woah, a mobster that's still in high school? Scary stu—!"

"Un-believable."

The three friends suddenly turned their heads towards the last of the bighorns.

"Are you listening to yourselves right now? 'Bribe?' 'Mafia?' Give me a break. How do you know any of that's true?"

The girls all looked at each other, not knowing what to make of her sudden annoyance.

"Mars, we're just saying. I mean, look at him. Besides, he's a—"

"I KNOW WHAT HE IS!" Maria snapped, slamming her palms on the table and making everyone jump.

"...S-sorry." She slowly retracted her hands onto her lap, averting her gaze.

"Hey…Maria? Do you know that giant lion?" Rin asked carefully.

"I…" Maria began to fidget somewhat as the girls' eyes fell on her "He's…someone who's in my class. I've talked with him… several times before and he just doesn't seem the type that'd be that would hurt anyone…"

Each of the ewes' eyes grew larger in different degrees.

"Woah, you actually talked to that guy?" the dall sheep gasped.

"...I wish I was that brave. I'd probably faint in an instant if a lion walked up to me," said Carly.

"Heh, you forget who it is we're dealing with here. Remember how she told off that one lioness a few months back?"

"Oh yeah! That was crazy! Maria didn't back down for a second, even though that carnivore was royally pissed," Rin exclaimed excitedly.

D*mmit, why'd they have to bring that up now? Maria grumbled silently, pursing her lips. She was still feeling some guilt and shame from that day.

On that day, both Rob's ex and Maria bumped into each other in the hallway, which could've easily ended with a simple apology or "excuse me" from both animals.

However, the lioness began acting indignant and proceeded to criticize and berate the ewe—acting as if she was trying to crash into the carnivore. Maria was willing to apologize and walk away, not wanting to cause any trouble for Rob—him being her boyfriend and all. But, when the lioness started talking down to Maria—all while calling her a "common goat"—her blood finally boiled over.

She snapped back in anger—much to the other students' surprise—exchanged some very harsh words, and finally pushed Sara to the point of striking her with her hand.

It was at that moment that Rob appeared and grabbed the enraged lioness' wrist before landing a dangerous blow. The young lion ended up breaking up with her soon after.

He claimed that their relationship was already getting pretty strained, and that it probably would've ended sooner or later. The young smiled as he spoke, but was clearly holding back his tears and grief—making the ewe feel lower than stool for being the catalyst for the split.

He didn't have to go out his way to do that, she thought. I'm not exactly worth the trouble.

"Hey, Maria?"

"H-Huh? Yeah?" Apparently, the rest of her friends continued speaking whilst she was lost in her thoughts.

"We all know how tough you are," Rin began. "But, you still gotta be careful. They're called 'predators' for a reason. And that alpaca got killed by one of them."

Don't you think I know that?! the bighorn ewe silently cried. But, Rob is innocent. He's too pure a guy to just give in to—to…

"...I'll keep that in mind. Thanks."

The snow-white dall sheep nodded, seemingly satisfied. "Still, Louis' pretty tough, too, right? It was amazing seeing him send that tiger packing off stage."

"Yeah. Gotta admit: that was pretty sexy," Zoe replied while flushing slightly.

"Oh, don't say stuff like that! It's hard enough already picking the most attractive man."

"Aren't you in love with, like, every member of the B.M.A club?" Rin playfully questioned her stone sheep friend.

"Hey, I still managed to narrow it down. Joe is still at the top of the list, though." Carly hugged herself as she swooned. "Just thinking about his big, manly horns, those rippling muscles, and that handsome smile makes me wanna melt... I know he's Maria's brother, but any time he takes off his shirt before a match, I just—oooooh!"

"Should we stop before she 'melts' all over the floor?"

"Nah, let her. It'll be funny," Zoe chuckled. "Besides, I'd like to hear your top picks."

"Oh, my gosh! So, have you seen that dall sheep freshman? That boy is gorgeous! I swear, he's like a prince straight out of a fairy tale."

The three ewes kept chatting and gossiping about their favorite male classmates, failing to notice that Maria hadn't joined in their conversation.

She just sat silently, her ears drooping down as she glanced at the young lion sitting with his boar friend a few tables down.

Why couldn't I have at least told them his name?

The final bell rang, and everyone hurried out of their classrooms to their various activities. Rob bumped into Baako again on his way out and the two decided to walk together for a bit.

While chatting about this or that, the boar briskly tapped on his laptop set upon a portable desk harnessed around his shoulders.

"Hmm… Now, let's see…" Baako remarked.

"Hmm? W-what is it?"

"Oh, nothing. Just accessing some school records."

"...H-Huh? How come?" Rob asked, tilting his head slightly.

"Well, I got to thinking: after what happened with that wolf and tiger on stage—and the fact that that 'Bill' character was doping himself up on blood—there's a pretty high chance that it was at least one carnivore in your club that did the alpaca kid in."

"Oh, I guess t-that would make s-sense. Wait… Y-you mean you h-hacked into the s-scho—?!"

"Sssssshhhh! Dude! Not so loud!" Baako whispered harshly.

"Oop—! I-I mean, w-why hack t-there?" Rob asked in a much quieter voice. "I-is that even l-legal?"

"Eh," the boar shrugged nonchalantly. "It's for a good cause. Besides, I needed to check on the specs of the new CPU and GPU I ordered recently by putting them through a couple of test runs, anyway."

The young lion knew how much of an expert his friend was with programming and computers, but wasn't sure how he felt about him hacking into the databases of different companies, businesses, and schools just for the thrill of it.

"Huh, that was easy," the tech-savvy herbivore mumbled with an unsatisfied frown. "Looks like the school board's been skimping on funds towards an up-to-date security system. Ah, well. Now, let's have a little look-see…Drama club…"

They were still walking at the same pace, but amazingly enough, Baako was easily able to concentrate without worrying about bumping into anything.

"Order: Carnivora...Aoba, squeaky clean… Bill, caught with a girl in his dorm room at fourteen…that's it? Lame…"

The young boar continued to quickly sift through the records."Boring… Boring… Dull… Oooooh, 'dominatrix?!' Rawr, spicy!"

Wait, what?! What exactly is he reading?!

"Adopted by hyenas? Cool… And how about… Noooo… Seriously?" Baako eyes immediately became twice their normal size. "Woah, get this! It says Legoshi's actually a—?!"

The laptop suddenly snapped shut from a heavy hand, with the small boar barely pulling his fingers away in time.

"P-please, can we s-stop?" Rob begged, his face becoming slightly flushed. "I d-don't think I can h-handle hearing a-anym—hearing anymore p-private information."

Baako sighed. "...C'mon, dude. Don't you want to find out who ate Tem while practically setting you up to take the fall?"

"...Well, y-yeah but…I-Isn't there a better way th-than…peeping at everyone's s-secrets?"

"Not really." The boar opened his laptop and continued scouring unabated. "But, if it makes you feel better, I can just search for relevant info while keeping the more…'sensitive' stuff to myself. Sound good?"

Rob thought for a minute, and then nodded.

"Well, guess I know what I'm doing after school. By the way, since your club is basically on break today, what are your plans?"

"Mmm… f-flowers."

"Oh, got another girl on your mind?" Baako smirked.

"S-sort of. It's a… s-special day, today...th-their anniversary…"

The boar's smile decreased somewhat, becoming a little more solemn. "Gotcha. I'll leave you to it, then. Say 'hi' for me, okay?"

Reaching the end of the hallway, and after a final farewell, the two animals went their separate ways.

Hmm, I wonder what she'll have me do today? Rob mused to himself.

The young lion was finally in front of the entrance leading to the school's roof. Even before turning the handle, Rob could already smell the myriads of fresh flowers and plants behind the door. Tentatively, he stepped through and sauntered into the rooftop garden.

As always, the flowers' colors shone brightly in the sunlight, the plants swaying ever so slightly from the sudden breeze. Every now and then, Rob would crouch down while lightly brushing his fingers against their small petals. The carnivore could sit for hours admiring the beautiful verdant displays while breathing the fragrant scents, if time permitted him.

"—ouis? Here already?"

Rob's ears twitched as a quiet voice came from around the corner of the small shed. He turned to see a diminutive female rabbit with unblemished, snow-white fur appear. She flinched at the sight of the large lion as he stood back up.

"Oh, H-Haru...Is th-this a bad time?" Rob timidly asked.

The dwarf rabbit squinted quizzically at the carnivore until her dark-brown eyes grew wider in realization. "Wait a minute… Rob? Is that really you?"

"U-um…" He fidgeted, already feeling a little embarrassed.

"What happened to your mane? And that scar…"

"It's… a-a long story," he responded, rubbing the back of his neck.

Haru sighed as she folded her arms. "I bet. Thought it was weird how you suddenly disappeared. You're…not exactly hard to spot in a crowd, you know."

"Y-yeah. S-sorry I didn't t-tell you I was coming. Should I c-come back l-later? It sounded l-lik—sounded like you were w-waiting for s-someone else…"

"N-no, you're fine. It's still pretty early," Haru said hurriedly, slightly flushed. "Anyway, you're here for the usual?"

"Mmm-hmm."

"All right, then. Come with me around back." The small herbivore disappeared around the corner and then soon after popped her head back into view. "Oh, yeah. You should probably take off your vest. And shirt. It's going to be a little messier than usual."

"O-oh, okay...y-you mean, now?"

"C'mon, no use being all bashful now," she chuckled. "I'm really gonna need that hulking body of yours to do this quick enough."

Rob blushed at the idea of undressing in front of a girl—even if it's just his shirt—but quickly composed himself, not wanting to keep Haru waiting and began unbuttoning his blue vest.

The young lion spent about half an hour shoveling, carrying, and pushing wheelbarrows of soil and compost. Haru was running a little behind in turning and replenishing several box gardens, so she took the opportunity to commission Rob to handle the heavy stuff.

He still wasn't very knowledgeable about the intricacies of proper gardening—even though the dwarf rabbit explained certain details to him now and again—but he was able to learn a lot about the different flowers and how to take care of them.

"Okay, last one. I'll tell you when to stop pouring." As per her instructions, the young carnivore proceeded to pour the large bag of soil evenly across the breadth of the raised box. After reaching a certain level, she motioned him to cease.

"Good! A little bit of tilling and we'll be all set," Haru exclaimed with a satisfied smile.

"Alright, Robbie. You can go ahead and wash up. I'll handle things from here."

"R-right."

Rob then proceeded to set the bag of leftover soil in a corner with the others and brushed off the dried dirt from the fur and extended mane on his chest and stomach. After washing his hands and face, he then collected and put back on his white shirt and vest, and returned to where Haru was finishing tilling the soil with her small hoe.

"Phew, done... You're a lifesaver, big guy," she said cheerfully. "It would've taken me a few days to get these beds ready for the little ones by myself. Kinda wished more guys would be as willing to help out."

"Y-you're welcome. Glad I c-can help," Rob responded sheepishly.

"Now, time to hold up my end of the deal…You got any specific flowers in mind?"

"L-let me think. Umm…m-maybe some carnations? Th-the pink kind. And, u-uh, roses. W-what else…" Rob paused as he rubbed his chin. "Oh, and d-do you have yellow z-zinnias?"

"Hmm…so today's that anniversary, huh?"

"Oh, y-you remembered?"

The white rabbit chuckled. "No, but I did teach you all about the flower language, so it was pretty easy to figure out what you had in mind for them."

Haru then beckoned the young lion towards her so he could find and pick out the best kind for his special arrangement. The two animals spent a short time perusing over the different flora while making short conversation.

"Pretty crazy we're already in our last year in school, huh?" said Haru.

"Y-yeah. I-It is. Makes me k-kinda sad I won't be a-able to come back here… a-after next year."

"Heh, well you've had four years since you first came up here to visit. But, I guess you've been busy with club and your med school stuff."

The dwarf rabbit carefully cut the bottom stem of a couple of roses before continuing on. "So, remind me again which school you're shooting for?"

"Sh-Shibe. Shibe M-Medical."

"Wow, isn't that, like, the best medical school in the district, or something? Pretty ambitious. So… What made you decide on becoming a doctor?"

"Well…" Rob began as Haru moved on to the zinnia flowers. "I guess i-it all started… with m-my mom. R-remember how I told y-you she was s-sic—was sick with cancer?"

"Yeah. I remember. It had to do with big cat hybrids being prone to more health issues, right?"

"Yeah, th-that. The d-doctors were working round the c-clock…to make her w-well again. Dad was a-also asking… and b-begging them to heal h-her every time he'd t-talk to one of them."

"Hmm…"

"I r-remember that I asked… m-my dad to take me to the b-bookstore one day t-to get a c-children's ana—anatomy book I once saw. The n-next time we visited her, I r-remember telling Mom th-that I was going to s-study the book super hard…s-so I can c-cure her myself and n-not let her, or D-Dad, feel so s-sad anymore."

"Aww…" Haru exclaimed with an endearing look.

"Y-yeah… Mom was really t-touched—saying she was f-feeling better already—and Dad looked s-so happy… and p-proud that I wanted to be a d-doctor. I th-think it was the first time I-I've seen him with s-such a—such a big s-smile."

The young lion couldn't help but smile fondly as he recalled the laughter and his father's affectionate—and slightly painful—noogie. Those few years he could remember with his parents felt like living in a happy fairy tale.

"S-so, I guess that's w-why I'm set...on g-going to med school—to help m-make everyone else happy, too. I-I-I know it's a little s-silly, but…"

"Oh, I don't think so," Haru interjected. "I think it's nice to have such a beautiful dream to work towards. It actually makes me a little jealous…"

"...Hmm?" Rob's ear twitched as he noticed the sudden twinge of sadness laced in the small rabbit's tone as she spoke. Why was that…?

"Anyway, I'm pretty confident you'll do great in med. Getting fourth or fifth place every year during midterms is nothing to sneeze at, after all."

"Oh, uh… Th-thanks."

Adding the newly-cut carnations to the large bouquet, Haru gathered the flowers in simple wrapping paper before handing it to the young lion.

"W-whoa! Is it r-really okay f-for me to h-have these?" Rob asked, his face in utter shock. "Th-there's so many…"

"Of course, it's okay," Haru laughed. "I only was able to grow this much thanks to all your help. Plus, I'm feeling a little…generous, this time. Go on."

Rob simply stared for a minute, but grabbed the beautiful bouquet soon after, carefully cradling it in his arms.

"Th-thank you s-so much, Haru!" he said, bowing graciously. "I'm p-positive my parents will l-love these."

"Anytime…"

The young lion smiled and then suddenly remembered about the sad tone he had heard. "S-so, uh, is there a-anything else you… n-need help with? Anything a-at all?"

"Hmm? Not…that I can think of from the top of my head. Why do you ask?"

"W-well…" Rob wasn't exactly sure what to say, since it was so subtle. "J-just…tell me i-if you need a-anything. E-even i—even if it's not g-gardening. O-okay?"

Haru ear flicked curiously at the carnivore's offer as she folded her arms once more, and then smiled. "Alright, Robbie. I'll keep that in mind. Thanks."

The large hybrid bowed one more time and bid the snow-white rabbit goodbye as he exited the rooftop garden's door.

Finding herself alone, Haru chuckled. "So, he wanted to cheer me up, huh? That guy is way too easy to read. Unlike that wolf from the other day. Still…" She then turned towards the little shed. "He seems just as sweet…"


Author's Note

I know I published this a little later than usual, but I like to be thorough while editing. :)

I'm sure everyone's noticed the new cover art I made. I chose the kanji—which means "pride" or "dignity"—to fit the overall theme of the story. Plus, the design was a good way to allude what*s gonna happen in Robbie's journey!