A/N Hey guys, so much for updating my other stories since this one is on my mind and preventing me from focusing on the others, now I'm going to see if I can continue this story for now and I've seen one theory about why Eric had that animalistic defensive reaction but it isn't the reason.
Another hint I can give you is that Eric is no different than Legoshi and Melon now, so I'm sure you know what I mean by that so sit back and enjoy.
Forlorn silence dominates the room as the majority of the drama club and I stood around the bed that had Louis resting on it, the desolate darkness around me not helping in lifting the mood since the sun had set a little while ago and left me with the small lamp beside the bed as my only source of light.
I stood next to Legoshi on the left side of the bed, and if I were to look at it from Louis' perspective, my arms were crossed over my chest in the hopes of suppressing the goosebumps forming on my skin because of the room being cold, but only I seemed to care about that since I was the only one without fur or feathers to keep me warm.
When my disheartened gaze settled onto Louis' stiff unmoving form beneath the stale white sheets of the medical bed, I noticed how dead he looked and the only thing indicating that he wasn't is the barely noticeable movement of his chest while all of us were watching him, hoping that he would wake up soon.
As if someone answered my prayers, Louis finally stirs and struggles to sit up while groaning in discomfort, clearly disoriented from his fall as it got the attention of everyone else.
"Louis!" Sanu exclaimed, which is quickly followed by everyone else echoing the deer's name as I remained quiet and let out a shaky sigh of relief.
'Thank god, all this stress can't be good for me,' I thought as Louis grimaced slightly.
"What did...wait, I remember! What about the audience?!" Louis questioned in alarm as he widened his eyes, and most of the drama club members avoided eye contact with him with the room becoming silent again until Sanu opened his mouth.
"Don't worry, you collapsed after the curtain was fully shut, so they didn't see anything at all," Sanu reassured before Louis exhaled in relief.
"Okay," Louis muttered and I decided to speak up.
"You scared the ever-loving shit out of us by the way so what the fuck were you thinking, you damn idiot? To perform while being so badly injured?" I lectured with a scowl, only Louis didn't respond and was seemingly too stunned by my concern for him to give me an answer.
"Anyway, it's eight o'clock at night and the medical team checked you out but, according to them, you broke your left leg so it looks like you won't be able to take the stage for tomorrow's performance," Bill informed Louis bluntly, causing the deer to look at him in shock while Sanu sent the tiger a look of disbelief.
"Bill, please!" Sanu reproached firmly, and Bill appeared confused.
"What? What good is it to hide the truth and especially for Louis?" Bill pointed out defensively.
"Yes, but even so!" Sanu argued with a frown.
Honestly, I didn't see the point of arguing about this since Bill delivered the news to Louis without sugar-coating it because not telling him honestly would only upset him, though I continued to watch from the side-lines as quiet as ever as the others kept bombarding Louis with questions and whether or not the show could go on.
With every drop of pity, I could see the deer tensing up further and further as the frustration of his weak state starts to overwhelm him while I couldn't help but feel bad for him as the deer started to glare at the sheets.
"So, one broken leg, and now I'm fucking helpless?" Louis spat out bitterly, making everyone shut up as the room started to become thick with tension before Sanu raised his hands to placate the deer.
"Oh, eh, no! Please, we're just-" Sanu tried to explain, but I cut in instead with the hope that the deer would listen to my voice of reason.
"You're not helpless, senpai, but we need to be realistic here because the audience is mostly coming to see you tomorrow but with your broken leg, you simply can't perform and it's just common sense because there'd be a high chance that you'd injure yourself even further, so now we need to find a way to either keep the show going or cancel it completely," I stated with my voice soft, yet lacking any sense of compassion or pity and it seemed to work since Louis didn't argue with me and looked at Bill.
"Bill, you'll be my replacement," Louis said, taking the tiger off guard as he gawked at him.
"Huh?" Bill said dumbly as he looked at Louis with a dumbfounded expression on his face.
"For tomorrow's show, you'll be playing as Adler," Louis clarified until Bill started looking thrilled at the thought of being the lead role.
"Eh?! Are you sure about that?!" Bill exclaimed excitedly, then I had a feeling that I just made a big mistake speaking up earlier as Louis went to say something.
"Yes, of course I am because you've worked harder than any of the other actors, so you deserve it! I admire your boldness in informing me about my injury without hesitation, so you're the one I choose!" Bill quoted as he needlessly swings the practice sword around with the Adler skull on his head while I felt like hitting my head against a wall.
"That's what he said," Bill added as I looked less than happy with this, then Sanu sighed tiredly.
"I'm counting on you, Bill, and we'll rehearse all night if we have to," Sanu said.
'Goddammit, I'm never being the voice of reason again because this is such a mistake and we should've canceled the show! Instead, someone thought it was a good idea to give this boastful idiot the fucking lead role, so I just know that this is going to end in disaster!' I thought irritably while Bill laughs in a certain manner that only annoys the shit out of me.
"What are you worried about? I know all the lines and all the staging too, so if I were you, I'd be more worried about..." Bill trailed off before everyone else looked at Legoshi, who lowered his head while his back was turned.
From what I knew about the guy so far, he's never been on stage before and I didn't blame him since he was a complete introvert, but I couldn't help but feel bad for him as I saw that his ears were flattened slightly and his tail was motionless while Kai placed a box on the table that was in front of the wolf.
"Why the hell are you acting so down? I'm the one who wants to perform but can't," Kai complained as he went to walk away, making me shoot a glare of disapproval at him while Legoshi looked at the mongoose.
"That's not the problem," Legoshi grumbled as Bill approached him from behind and rested an arm on the wolf's shoulder, invading his personal space.
"You'll be fine, and even if you screw up, it won't affect the rest of the performance since it's a minor role, after all," Bill said with a grin, and Legoshi made a face at that.
"Then...why don't we eliminate it?" Legoshi muttered uncomfortably and Bill playfully shook him.
"Come on, Legoshi!" Bill teased and I felt sorry for the poor wolf, who just wanted to mind his own business like any other anti-social person.
Since Bill had been chosen to play as Adler, his role was left without an actor and only two out of the three antagonist roles were already cast, meaning that someone had to fill that role but the actor's team and dance team were working at full capacity so the production team was the only one with spare members.
Legoshi was the one who was chosen for the role because of his predatory status as a gray wolf and because his stature is similar to Bill's, though his costume would have to be fitted and changed slightly in order to fit the reformed character.
That's where I come in since Dom figured it would be a good chance to give me some work, so I got the job of redesigning the antagonist's costume while he would get the measurements from Legoshi and that leaves me with my new sketchbook since the drama club had plenty stashed away while I sat at the only table in the room and observed the rehearsal as I analyzed Legoshi's posture, movements, and appearance.
While Bill's costume had been mostly in teal, green, and yellow colors, Legoshi's would need to be more concentrated and neutral but because of his neutral gray fur coloration, too many vibrant colors would make him look ridiculous.
Furthermore, Bill's costume enhanced his powerful muscular build while Legoshi's body is lithe and, although he's built to be strong, a wolf's physique is more fit for speed so a small smile appeared on my face as I came up with a plan after studying Legoshi in just a few seconds without realizing it.
Unfortunately, I'm interrupted by the rough sound of wood hitting wood as it startled me slightly and glanced up from my sketch, staring at the rehearsal that didn't look like one anymore and I was more than worried by what's going on.
'Are they...really just rehearsing? Goddammit, why is everyone in this school so fucking aggressive?!' I thought in disbelief as I witnessed Bill swinging viciously and Legoshi struggling to block the nasty attacks, leaving the two carnivores to stare menacingly at each other while Bill chuckled darkly.
"Whoa, look at that! Now that's what I'm talking about!" Bill growled eagerly before the fight continues, growing more and more feral as I was mesmerized by it.
At that moment, I realized that this wasn't a fight between two students anymore but between a wolf and a tiger with changed circumstances as their growls and snarls echo around the room while I glanced at the herbivores, who looked pretty freaked out by what's happening.
"You're enjoying this?" Legoshi snarls as he struggles to push back Bill's weapon with his own.
"Of course I am, I get to show all my acting training on stage! It's what I've worked for!" Bill exclaimed gleefully before shoving Legoshi back, and I considered stepping in to put a stop to this but I didn't know if that was a good idea as Sanu looked at Aoba.
"They're just rehearsing, right?" Sanu asked uneasily.
"And venting," Aoba answered, not reassuring me in the slightest while the practice swords hit one another as the two carnivores dominate the stage.
"Hey, Legoshi, whoever said that us carnivores can't be the ones to shine in the spotlight, huh? Tomorrow, I finally get to show everyone just how it is for an animal as powerful as me to exist in this world!" Bill roared while I visibly sweatdrop, and as Legoshi growls before pushing the tiger away, my right eye started twitching.
"It's wolf versus tiger, so when it comes to our battle scene, there's no need to pretend!" Bill added, then I was finally done with their antics and slam my sketchbook onto the table with my body shaking in annoyance.
"Okay, that's enough!" I shouted irritably and despite their biological advantages, Legoshi and Bill both flinch at my outburst as I stood up and started to approach the stage with a tickmark appearing on me until I stopped a few feet in front of it and crossed my arms with a scowl.
"Are you two done now? Have you gotten that stupid testosterone out of your systems or do I need to come up there myself and whack you both over the heads with those practice swords? I don't know if you've noticed, but this isn't some fucking dick-measuring contest because we're in a school play and you're in the middle of rehearsing so behave yourselves.
If you do this again tomorrow, then so help me god that I will kick both of your asses so bad that even your grandchildren won't be able to sit properly," I scolded until what I just did hit me, then I swiftly turned around and quickly walked back to my table while freaking out internally but, before I could sit back down, I noticed that everyone was gawking at me and I sighed stressfully.
"What are you guys waiting for? We have work to do," I suggested in annoyance, though everyone surprisingly obeys and went back to their duties while even Bill ends his fight with Legoshi before attempting to lighten the mood.
"Hey Legoshi, come tomorrow, it's going to be a hell of a show so we got this," Bill reassured as I sat down and went back to work while hoping that nothing else happens.
Thankfully, the next few hours went by without any further incidents as the actor's team continues rehearsing and everyone else resumes their given duties until I eventually stretch in my chair and cringe as I heard my joints crack and pop while it felt like I've been sitting for ages, though to be fair, I've lost track of time a while ago.
Fortunately for me, I'm finally finished with the new costume design, and to be perfectly honest, I'm kinda happy with the results since nothing was perfect but the design should be more than acceptable for the play and it was the best I could come up with.
Legoshi's costume had a more rugged look to it to match with the wolf's fur since I had imagined a white blouse-like shirt that would go perfectly with the blood-red shoulder cape I envisioned while the shirt and the shredded pants complimented Legoshi's neutral fur coloration and enhanced the aggressive, menacing hue of the cape.
The costume as a whole should make the wolf appear even taller and imposing so if I could get him to ditch his usual slouch, then he'd make a near-perfect antagonist so I hoped Dom would share my views as I went to find him.
It didn't take me long to locate the peafowl and show him my idea before explaining it to him, though he was a great listener and a great person to work with on the project as I tried to hide my red face after he praises my work and, being the flamboyant bird that he is, he only praises and compliments me further after seeing me blush.
"Alright, that means we only have to make the costume now and we got more than enough people to work on it tomorrow morning, though we should at least gather the materials to save time so would you mind go looking through the boxes in the storage area backstage?
There should be some red fabric in there and you can go back to your dorm room after that since you've done enough for today," Dom told me as he points to the back where the storage area was until I nodded.
I thanked him with a small smile and went to the back area, seeing that it was dark in here and even turning on the lights didn't help much while I had trouble making out any details on certain things with the lights giving off an ominous and creepy vibe while I started searching through a box to find what I need.
'I swear to god, if there's a zombie around the next corner, then I'm officially gone and they can write 'death by undead asshole' on my gravestone,' I thought dryly just before the lights flickered off for a few seconds, startling me as I flinched and found myself cutting my left hand on something sharp inside the box I was searching through.
"Ow, fuck!" I yelped in pain as I yanked my hand out of the box and shook it, then the lights came back on and I saw the damage as the cut was deep and bleeding excessively with the blood dripping onto the floor.
"Goddammit, if this crap keeps happening, then I won't have any hands left by the end of this shit!" I hissed while I quickly grabbed the nearest fabric, which is the size of a small hand towel, and tightly wrapped it around my hand before I looked back at the box and saw the red fabric I was looking for while it was resting under a piece of metal that was digging through the side of the box.
I scowled since it was like someone is trying to kill me a second time, but I looked at my injured hand and saw the fabric getting soaked in my blood as I mentally let out profanities since I needed to get to the nurse, but I was uncertain about going through the practice room to get to the exit because of my hand bleeding and it was sure to put the carnivores into a frenzy.
'Fuck it, I'm making a run for it!' I thought as I grabbed the red fabric and carried it over my shoulder before speed-walking back to the main room.
"Guys, we have a problem over here! Carnivores, I think it's best if you cover your noses right now!" I called out urgently as I entered the practice room, causing the others to gasp in shock when they saw my injury but the carnivores had thankfully listened to me and covered their noses before I entered until Dom hurried over to me with a look of worry.
"Dom, here's the fabric you needed and don't worry about me, I'll make a quick run to the medical wing," I said as I handed the peafowl the red fabric.
"Please be safe," Dom told me in concern.
I nodded in response and as I was leaving, I gazed back at Legoshi while his shirt was covering his long muzzle and my heart swells as I could see the worry in his eyes and his ears flattened against his head before I smiled to reassure him and went to the medical wing of the building.
Later on, my new wound is finally disinfected, cleaned, stitched, and wrapped up while I wanted to go to bed at this point and was completely unmotivated for the amount of work tomorrow will bring, and who wouldn't be?
The odds that nothing would go wrong wasn't exactly in my favor and after witnessing that so-called rehearsal earlier this evening, I'm already mentally preparing myself to rip someone's head off after the second performance.
Was this normal? I don't know if any human schools I might've gone to was different than this one, but Cherryton is responsible for giving me more stress than I could possibly handle, and it makes my current situation with my amnesia like a walk in the park while exams haven't even started yet, so I'd hate to imagine what exams would be like if everyone is aggressive even on a regular day.
The medical wing had been mostly empty, except for a few nurses on the night shift but just as dark and sinister as the shadowy hallways while no noises could be heard except for the occasional sound of woodwork or the slight wind outside brushing against the glass of the windows.
I said my goodbyes to the medical staff, perfectly aware that I would now have to go back to the drama club to get my backpack so, hopefully, everyone hadn't already left because I had pretty much everything in there while an exhausted sigh left my mouth as I push open the door to the medical wing, expecting to see a dark empty hallway.
Instead, I walk straight into a hard chest and glanced up to see the familiar dark eyes of Legoshi before we both stumble back in embarrassment and to create some distance between each other, though we stood a few feet apart.
"L-Legoshi, the hell are you doing here?" I asked, surprised at the wolf's sudden appearance while he fidgets with something in his hands.
"O-Oh, uh, I noticed you left your bag when you went to the medical wing, and I-I wasn't sure how long you'd take, so I thought that maybe I should...bring it to you," Legoshi explained as he handed me my backpack with shaking hands, and I gladly took it while sending him a thankful look.
"Thank you, that was really thoughtful of you so I appreciate it...wait, how long did you have to wait for me?" I asked before Legoshi scratched the back of his head nervously.
"Uh, I think...maybe around twenty minutes," Legoshi said, and I felt like facepalming since I felt so embarrassed about this.
"Oh god, I'm so sorry about that but you didn't have to stand out here in the dark for so long, especially not alone! Don't get me wrong, it's very kind of you to bring me my backpack, but I don't want you to put yourself in danger because of me," I groaned in embarrassment while Legoshi widened his eyes at what I said.
"Huh? Wait, are you worried about me? But, I'm a carnivore-" Legoshi tried to say and I cut him off.
"Doesn't mean your safety's any less important, you big lug," I interrupted while playfully hitting his arm before letting out a sigh of relief and adding, "Well, nothing happened thankfully, so thank you again for bringing me my backpack...and waiting for me."
I smile and for a short while, we just stared at each other while unbothered by everything around us until I managed to snap out of it and started blushing slightly as I looked away and cleared my throat.
"Anyway, we should head back to our dorm room since Jack and the others are probably wondering where we are," I suggested before it also caused Legoshi to snap out of it.
"E-Eh, sure," Legoshi said shyly, causing me to smile at him until I started walking to the exit with the large wolf following closely behind.
"So...what happened? I feel like I've asked you that question already," Legoshi pointed out, making me chuckle and I noticed his tail wagging at my warm laughter.
"That's because you have, which is why I really need to stop injuring myself so damn much...anyway, there was a pretty big piece of metal sticking through the side of a box in the storage area and I needed to get that red fabric that I gave to Dom earlier for your costume and when I was going through that box, the lights went out.
Naturally, it startled me and I accidentally cut myself on that same piece of metal, so it wasn't pretty and...how do I say this without sounding rude...well, I didn't want to take any risks and that's why I called out to you all so that you could cover your noses and at least be a little less sensitive to the smell," I explained sheepishly, then it was quiet for a moment and I glanced at Legoshi before frowning when I saw his ears were lowered.
"Hey, you alright?" I inquired in concern as the two of us stopped walking.
"Are you afraid of me?" Legoshi asked suddenly, turning to me with a distant look as the question took me off guard.
"Not really, so why do you ask?" I questioned curiously.
"But you are scared of me, even just a little bit?" Legoshi inquired, causing me to chuckle nervously since I didn't know where this came from but I decided to answer anyway.
"Well, kinda, but not for the reason you're thinking of because while I am cautious around other people, even the large-breed carnivores, it's more because of their douchebag personalities so I'm wary of screwing up and pissing people off, I'm scared of becoming a fucking laughing stock, and I'm scared of...I'm scared of being alone so I don't want people to hate me.
I know you wouldn't hurt a fly despite your biological status, but I'm scared of every person I talk to because I'm afraid that they'll...see me for what I am and realize that I'm literally a nobody in their eyes because of my amnesia and then they'll leave me.
That's why I'm scared of you because I'm afraid you'll leave me and if that happens, I-I'm afraid that it'll hurt because...you've become one of the only people who's made my situation more bearable to the point where it feels more comfortable having you around, and I enjoy talking to you," I admitted while sounding grateful, then Legoshi's eyes lit up with childish joy and I think that this is the first time I've ever seen him smile.
"I enjoy talking to you too, Eric," Legoshi says softly and my smile only grows while ignoring the butterflies in my stomach until I saw his tail wagging.
"Oh look, your tail is wagging again," I teased before Legoshi started blushing.
"H-Huh?! Y-Yeah, it does that s-sometimes," Legoshi stutters, and I suppress a sly smirk as I hear his voice crack slightly in embarrassment.
"Come on, let's go," I said before we continued walking to the exit and left building three, beginning our walk back to our dorm until the side door opened and I looked to see that it was Els as she saw us and perked up.
"Legoshi, Eric!" Els called out, causing Legoshi to look before he saw her.
"Oh, hey Els," Legoshi greeted as Els approached us while I waved in acknowledgment.
"Long day, huh?" Els inquired before I chuckled.
"Yeah, you can certainly say that again," I replied while we all started to walk together.
"I know it's been crazy, but I'm sure everything will be fine," Els said, her voice as soft and chirpy as ever.
"I think so too, Bill's fantastic," Legoshi agreed, making me send him a weird look since I didn't see the tiger in that manner.
"Well, so are you...listen, Bill's running around acting tough and all, but I know that he's actually really nervous," Els stated, then Legoshi and I hummed in response as I considered what she said.
'Huh, I haven't thought of it like that before but it makes sense in a way, doesn't mean we'll get along or anything like that since his boastful attitude annoys me a little bit,' I thought as I frowned slightly.
"Legoshi, he's going to need your support tomorrow so just remember that, okay?" Els told Legoshi, and the wolf appeared to ponder her words before he smiled down at her.
"You're right," Legoshi agreed and Els started beaming.
"Wow, so you do smile!" Els exclaimed happily, then I chuckled at the friendly banter while Legoshi's gaze went from me to Els and back.
"What? Of course I do," Legoshi mumbled, clearly looking confused.
"Don't worry, we're just messing with you," I reassured warmly.
"We're going to give our best performance tomorrow, so goodnight," Els said as we stopped in front of her dorm.
Legoshi and I said goodnight to her as she went into her dorm, leaving me and the gray wolf alone as we continued our stroll back to the male carnivore dorm and went inside the building until we made it back to our room and stood next to each other awkwardly as we looked at one another.
"Before we head to bed, I just wanted to...uh, t-thank you again for waiting for me and bringing me my backpack, so I'll see you in the morning," I said nervously, then Legoshi looked bashful as he nodded slightly.
"Y-Yeah, see you in the morning," Legoshi replied before we went inside our room, making sure to stay quiet so that we wouldn't wake Jack and the others by accident.
Before I knew it, I had stripped down to my shirt and boxers before laying down in my bed and staring up at the ceiling of my bunk while I had my hands behind my head as I was lost in thought, wondering why I'm feeling weird around Legoshi when I thought back to the possibility that I was gay and feeling an attraction towards the wolf until I let out a quiet groan.
'Dammit, I don't know how to react to this and it's frustrating me, so I'm not sure what to do since I don't remember experiencing something like this before and it's annoying,' I thought, feeling irritable now since this was starting to drive me crazy so I decided to get some sleep and hope tomorrow would take my mind off it.
The next day comes quicker than I realize and breakfast is uneventful, as it should be and the real work begins once I entered through the doors to the drama club while, like the day before, everything is hectic and rushed as people are worried about important and unimportant stuff with a few suffering from stress like anyone else.
Despite Dom's protests, I managed to convince him to let me help with the costumes, and even though both my hands are bandaged up, I actually did a pretty good job at sewing and the costume is done in no time thanks to the help of the other members of the stage crew until I examined the costume and imagined that it should look pretty good on Legoshi.
Either way, I will mostly be tasked with fixing the costumes with Dom during the performance and other related matters, nothing too exhausting while Kai and some of the other stage crew members would be handling the lights, though I didn't mind since it was pretty cold up on that catwalk.
As usual, time passes by quickly and before I knew it, it was twenty minutes until the curtains went up with Legoshi is sitting in a corner as he went over his lines again while Dom and Kibi go over some of the plans of the club duties.
As for me, I'm helping MIna and Moro set up the stage for the first scene and it's the only thing that helped take my mind off of how I'd feel odd whenever I'm around Legoshi, though I'm still understandably nervous since there were a lot of people right outside those curtains, about to judge my work but I somehow found myself calming down and becoming more focused while I didn't know why until I was finished with the stage and went to stand at the table next to Dom.
I was more than confused by what just happened since it was like I just calmed down on my own without realizing it, then I started frowning as I theorized how this might be connected to my automatic reactions just before Bill arrived, already dressed in his Adler costume as Sanu perked up.
"Nearly showtime, so did you sleep well?" Sanu asked as he approached the tiger.
"Sure, why not?" Bill replied confidently, just before I saw Legoshi start sniffing the air.
I was wondering what caught his interest since it seemed like he picked up some scent that grabbed his attention, then Legoshi looked back to stare at Bill while the tiger appeared unsurprisingly creeped out.
"Huh? What is it?" Bill questioned in confusion, only Legoshi raised a brow and Bill chuckled nervously.
"Louis and I were just down the hall gossiping about you, nothing bad," Bill reassured, but Legoshi stood up and walked over to Bill with a suspicious look on his face before beginning to aggressively sniff him, which weirded me out slightly.
'The fuck is he doing?' I thought in complete confusion, though I started to pick up a coppery scent in the air and it grew more distinct until I discovered that it was coming from Bill while I was dumbfounded by what's happening.
"Whoa, hey, you're making me nervous, pal," Bill said uneasily as he leaned back slightly from the invasion of his personal space until Legoshi narrowed his eyes and looked up at the tiger.
"Bill...you-" Legoshi says with his voice sounding cold and demanding, only I found it oddly attractive as Bill cut him off from saying anything else.
"Oh, I got to hit the bathroom real quick!" Bill shouted suddenly, then he quickly left backstage and into the hallway before Legoshi turned his attention to Sanu.
"Uh, excuse me for a second," Legoshi said before he chased after Bill urgently while Dom reminded him to hurry since we didn't have much time.
My gaze follows the two carnivores with a rising suspicion as the coppery scent disappears once Bill and Legoshi were gone, not to mention that Bill seemed to be hiding something as an uneasy feeling rose up in the pit of my stomach.
'What the hell are they doing and what the fuck was that smell that came off of Bill?' I thought as I bit my lip and tried to understand what that was just now, only I didn't have an answer to what happened and started feeling anxious as we all waited for Legoshi and Bill to come back.
After a short time, Bill and Legoshi came back but I noticed that something seemed really wrong with the wolf since his posture was tense and he looked a bit pissed for some reason as he glared at Bill, though he managed to put up a stoic front and I felt a bit concerned for him as Dom and Fudge took Legoshi to the changing rooms so that he could put on his new costume.
I waited for them to come back while feeling anxious about how it was going to go as I sighed and scratched the back of my head before checking my watch, seeing that it was two minutes until the play started while Kibi was with me.
"Eric, you look tense so are you doing alright?" Kibi asked, then I looked at him.
"Not really, the play's about to start in two minutes and I have no idea what's taking them so long since Legoshi should be ready by now," I admitted nervously.
"Don't worry, Eric, I'm sure Dom and Fudge know what they're doing so they should be out any second," Kibi reassured before I grimaced.
"I know, it's just that I can't help but feel anxious with how it's going to turn out so I hope they're-" I said and was cut off from saying anything else.
"We're done!" Dom announced, causing me to sigh in relief and already started to calm down as I went to look at him, Fudge, and Legoshi.
"Thank god, thought I was going to..." I started to say as I turned around, only to trail off once my gaze landed on Legoshi.
I was frozen stiff, unaware of Dom calling my name and the only thing I could do was goggle at the tall wolf dressed in the antagonist costume as heat began to bloom in my core while I couldn't help but see how attractive he looked in the outfit.
"Eric!" Dom shouted, causing me to snap out of it as I shook my head to clear the cobwebs.
"Yeah?" I asked while Dom stared at me in confusion and also looked weirded out.
"You're supposed to see if everything fits the way it's supposed to before we send him out onto the stage, remember?" Dom reminded me before I nodded quickly.
"Yeah, sure," I said at a slightly fast pace before the peafowl sighed at my reaction and joins the rest of the club members standing by the stage entrance until the show began.
From what I could tell, Bill was clearly anxious but he's doing a good job with the role of Adler, though he doesn't capture my attention the same way Louis does when he's acting and it wasn't all that bad since the tiger's well above average when it comes to acting skills as I stood next to Legoshi, forcing my eyes to stay focused on the play.
"Uh, Eric?" Legoshi spoke, his deep voice close to my ear and it made me jump slightly as my face felt hot and I looked at the tall wolf, who points at the play and it takes me a second to realize what he means.
"Sorry, I was too focused on the play," I said sheepishly and fully faced the wolf, checking his costume for any issues.
The wide cut white shirt exposes the upper part of his chest and gives him an elegant but dangerous appearance while his dark rugged pants create a stark contrast to the clean shirt while his feet were bare, revealing his sharp claws and the blood-red cape drapes flawlessly across his shoulders as bandages cover his right eye until it felt like my head was about to explode from the amount of blood rushing to it because of how everything looked too perfect.
"So, uh, does it feel uncomfortable anywhere?" I asked hesitantly, and Legoshi shakes his head while the bandages were loosened from the sudden movement and it drew a chuckle out of me while I gestured for him to lower his head.
As I wrap the bandages back around his head a little more secure this time, I noticed his rapidly wagging tail and I held back a chuckle at how adorable it was until I glance back up and noticed how close Legoshi and I were.
He was bent down a little so I could reach his head a little easier, only our bodies are barely half a foot apart and his eyes were focused on mine while my heart started racing, then I made the mistake of looking down while basically coming eye to eye with his broad cream-colored chest.
I couldn't help but picture what it would be like to run my hands through that fur of his since I was still a hormonal teenager with amnesia and I wondered just how far that cream color went when Legoshi suddenly shook my shoulder.
"Eric, are you okay?!" Legoshi asked frantically, already getting me a tissue and it confused me at first until I noticed something wet slowly running down my upper lip from my nose and my eyes widened when I realized that I was having a nosebleed for some reason.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine because I'm just anxious is all," I evaded while feeling mortified about what happened and wanting to die so that I could escape such an embarrassing moment.
Gently, Legoshi holds the tissue against my nose, which soaks up the blood as Dom tapped me on the shoulder to signal that it was almost time for the fight scene to begin soon, then the peafowl urged Legoshi forward before throwing a suggestive look back at me with wiggling eyebrows as Legoshi's slouch had suddenly disappeared while the wolf rose up to his full height completely.
"Hey, good luck out there," I whispered, causing Legoshi to look back before he nodded and settles his gaze back onto the stage, but I noticed something was wrong when his body language changed to a feral rage, and his posture tensed up while he watched Bill.
"Ellen, if you're the thorn of the rose I desire to seek, even I, the shinigami, would give up my life! It's okay, there's nobody after you now!" Bill proclaimed while standing alone on the stage.
I saw Legoshi move forward and was confused by what he's doing as I started wondering that he might be ready to jump out and get that scene over with, then I realized that he's planning to walk past the curtain and onto the stage before I followed him.
'What the hell is he doing? Dammit, he's way too early!' I thought in disbelief as I went after Legoshi in the hopes of stopping him, just before the wolf started to pass by Sanu and Sheila.
"Huh? H-Hey, Legoshi?" Sanu protested quietly to try and stop him, but Legoshi didn't listen and went out onto the stage while I stopped next to the club president and Sheila just as Bill noticed the tall wolf making his appearance.
"You must be the last demon!" Bill yelled dramatically, drawing his sword and ready to face his enemy.
Unexpectedly, Legoshi dropped the prop sword in his hand and sprinted at Bill before decking him hard across the face, knocking him a couple of feet away while I was stunned by what just happened since this definitely wasn't part of the script and knew that this was going to get seriously ugly soon while Bill managed to get back up and hold his hands up in surrender with his eyes wide in alarm as Legoshi walked over to the tiger with a throaty growl.
Bill whispered something to Legoshi frantically, probably to try and reason with him but the tall wolf wasn't listening as he ran over to tackle the tiger to the ground before Legoshi raised a fist and silently growled something at Bill, then Legoshi struck Bill in the face while I was flinching at the nasty hit.
'Holy shit, is he out of his fucking mind?! What the hell is wrong with him?!' I thought incredulously as Sheila frantically looked at Sanu.
"S-Stop them, now!" Sheila urged in alarm, though Sanu looked too scared to go out there and break it up.
"Why don't you try?!" Sanu argued nervously just before the Adler skull was knocked off of Bill's face, sending it flying until it lands into my line of sight with a sickening crack.
"Uh, I-I don't think so," Sheila stuttered while I was horrified by what's happening.
I was trembling as Legoshi kept brutally beating Bill while the wolf's grunts turned into screams of rage and frustration, seriously frightening me since it was terrifying to witness a kind and gentle person completely lose their shit in such a manner just before my head started throbbing and I quickly clutched it with a grimace.
Before I knew what was happening, there were flashes in my mind of a ship's deck, two gunshots, and agonizing pain as I was feeling a crippling migraine that caused my legs to give out and I started to collapse, causing the others to check on me while I was groaning in pain and holding my head that was pounding while it was hard to think.
All of a sudden, the sounds of violence ceased and I mindlessly glanced at the stage while I didn't respond to the others asking if I was okay, seeing that Bill had stopped Legoshi's hits with his hand that engulfed the smaller canine's hand.
Bill whispered something to Legoshi as he stood up, the two of them struggling while my blinding headache started to disappear before Bill quickly overpowers the wolf and traps him in a threatening embrace as Legoshi's face was illuminated by the spotlight.
Bill had resumed his lines, but I noticed that something was seriously wrong as Legoshi started looking like he was in immense pain until I saw familiar red drops hit the stage, making me pale in horror as I realized what was going on and quickly stood up while it startles the others.
'Shit, he's hurting him!' I thought in alarm as more and more blood drips onto the wooden surface until Bill eventually lets Legoshi go, then the wolf swayed for a short time with a dazed look on his face before he collapsed.
"Pathetic wolf, surrender to your fate!" Bill declared as he picked up his prop sword and leaned down at the wolf menacingly.
I couldn't tell what he was whispering to Legoshi, but he roughly places his boot on the wolf that earned another pained wheeze from him while I saw the twisted grin on the tiger as the feline raises the sword, making my eyes bug out in horror since the hit would most definitely put Legoshi in the hospital as pure panic hit me.
Not thinking straight, I ran forward before anyone could stop me as I went out onto the stage and picked up Legoshi's prop sword, causing the audience to gasp at the sight of me while I ran at Bill and swung Legoshi's sword to knock Bill's out of his hand before I sent a swift kick into the feline's side.
Bill was sent crashing to the ground by the force of my kick, dumbfounding me since I wasn't expecting to be that strong since it wasn't possible for a human to knock down a large tiger with a kick, so I assumed that he was knocked down because some of his weight wasn't fully on the stage as I aimed the sword at Bill and went to come up with a way to make the audience think that this was part of the show.
"Enough, you shall no longer hurt this poor wolf, imposter!" I shouted firmly, then Bill stood up with a look of shock while my heart's racing and I felt lightheaded.
"W-What-" Bill tried to say but I cut him off.
"You are a disgusting creature, impersonating the true Adler and flaunting his name around but no more because you will learn a painful lesson for your transgressions against the true shinigami!" I declared as the audience whispered in astonishment and excitement, just before I heard footsteps and Louis appeared right next to me with the skull in his hand while I noticed that his crutches weren't with him.
"You're having way too much fun," Louis stated and the audience started cheering in amazement before the deer looked at me.
"Quickly, hand me the sword and play along," Louis whispered, prompting me to hand him the object in question as Louis went to put the skull on.
"Unfortunately, you're going to have to play the villain now," Louis said, and in one smooth movement, he slips the skull on and aims the sword at Bill.
"I know who you are!" Louis declared loudly as he swiftly attacked the tiger, intentionally missing him as the audience squeals in excitement while Louis and I circled Bill until we stood next to Legoshi.
"Let us show you, imposter, who the real shinigami is!" Louis continued as I subtly looked at Legoshi.
"Legoshi, leave the rest to Louis and don't let the audience see your back," I whispered as Louis forced Bill to back up.
"Back down if you're not prepared! The many sins you've committed, I know about them all so why don't you drink my blood too? That's how you'll become a true shinigami, now leave because I have no time for imposters!" Louis demanded as Bill staggers back until the feline scowls and leaves the stage with his cloak swishing behind him like a shadow.
After that, only the three of us were on stage and it was ironic that the prey and the herbivore-considered omnivore saved the predator, the two of us standing tall and mighty above the injured carnivore even though I felt anything but tall and mighty right now as the spotlight focuses on us.
"Now, you'll disappear along with the morning dew, along with the withering me," Louis added as he and I turned to look at Legoshi, and the deer leaned forward to offer him a hand.
"It's okay, you're alright now," Louis reassured, then Legoshi took his hand and the deer pulls him to his feet until we stood before the cheering, applauding audience while I knew Legoshi was going to hear it from me later.
Surprisingly, seeing as Louis had been sent back to rest and recover after he and I saved the performance, Sheila and Sanu had taken to scolding the two carnivores that were now being treated for their injuries as Dom was currently wrapping up Legoshi's back and Dolph treated Bill's battered face.
"Are you two out of your minds?! What were you two thinking, to go out there and to...rip each other apart like savages?!" Sheila shouted lividly.
The female carnivore did most of the talking, far angrier than I was since I was simply exhausted from what happened and just wanted to go to bed at this point because of how fed up I was with Bill and Legoshi's antics while I knew Louis was also going to let them hear it tomorrow, possibly kick them out of the drama club for what they did.
"In front of the entire school? In front of your herbivore classmates?! In front of Eric?!" Sheila continued as she pointed at me while I was sitting at the table, sipping a cup of tea to calm my nerves before Bill and Legoshi widened their eyes to see how gaunt and miserable I looked.
My eyes were bloodshot and my skin was pale, my hands shaking slightly as Legoshi's ears lower even further onto his head while quiet whimpers started to leave his mouth at the sight of a drained, distant look in my eyes.
"He was having what appeared to be a full-on panic attack because of you and I tried to help him, but he wouldn't even respond when I spoke to him or even touched him, so do you know how horrible it feels to see someone looking almost catatonic after they just grab their head and collapse to their knees? Not fucking good, I'll tell you that much!" Sheila screams, causing Bill and Legoshi to flinch at that.
She would've kept going, but I set my cup of tea down and hop off the table before stabilizing myself with the help of Sanu, who offered me his hand before I sent him a short smile until I returned to my exhausted neutral expression.
"Eric...I-I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to-" Legoshi tried to say, only I cut him off by holding my hand up.
"Just don't ever fucking do shit like that again, understand? God, what the hell were you thinking, you damn airhead?" I questioned bitterly, causing Legoshi to look like a kicked puppy and I felt a little guilty at that.
"I'm sorry," Legoshi mumbled, then I sighed before I started glaring at him and Bill with my arms crossed.
"You know, you guys are so lucky because I would've kicked both your asses all the way to the fucking moon, so you're cleaning this shit up by the way," I said irritably before I went back to the table and downed the rest of my tea.
"I don't know about you guys, but I'm going to bed after the stressful day I just had," I stated as I walked away with an ugly scowl on my face, wondering how long it would take for me to die from the stress alone but at least the gardening club helps make things easier as I went back to the dorm.
A/N Hey guys, I'm sure you're all surprised by how Eric was able to knock Bill down with a single kick but it has to do with the hint I gave you at the top of this chapter, so I'm interested to hear more theories of what Eric is since it's looking more and more likely that he's not fully human.
Well, let me know what you think of this chapter and stay tuned.