Lee stormed towards the deer-wolf. "Are you insane?!"

Ibuki briefly looked in Lee's direction. "Get any closer to me, and I pull the trigger right now."

Lee stopped and growled in frustration. "The hell are you doing, you moron?! Do I even need to tell you what'll happen if someone catches you?!"

Ibuki snorted. "These guys threatened my life. I have every right to be interrogating them."

The deer-wolf turned his attention back to the frightened cheetah. "Tell me the names of everybody in your group."

The cheetah gulped. "J-just Walter and me. Walter's a wolf. He was my friend before this. I've only talked to the other members online."

Ibuki shook his head. "I heard you in the lunchroom. You knew the name of the cougar that tried to murder me. Explain that one."

"E-everyone online was talking about her because of her screw up. They dropped her name 'cause she was going to juvie anyway."

The deer-wolf squinted his eyes and stepped closer. "I don't believe you." He pressed the gun barrel against the cheetah's head.

The cheetah's eyes widened and he started trembling even harder. "P-please! I'm telling you the truth."

Ibuki held out a hand. "Give me your phone. Let me see these people you're talking to online."

The cheetah gulped and slowly reached into his pocket. Lee noticed, however, the feline's irises turned to slits.

Lee shouted. "Watch out!"

The cheetah swiftly pulled his hand out of his pocket and swiped up with his claws towards Ibuki's face, which the deer-wolf just barely dodged.

The feline then shoved Ibuki over, causing him to hit the ground. As soon as he knocked Ibuki down he started sprinting for the door.

The deer-wolf growled as he stood up and pointed the gun at the cheetah.

Lee lunged at Ibuki. "No!" He grabbed the hand the other chimera held the gun in.

Ibuki snarled at Lee. "L-let go, you moron!"

The cheetah escaped through the door while the two chimeras aggressively wrestled for control of the pistol.

BANG!

Lee released the gun and covered his sensitive rabbit ears as they started to very loudly ring from the deafening gunshot.

The other chimera's canine ears were also very sensitive to noise, so he dropped the pistol on the ground and held his head in pain.

Lee growled, knowing that it was just a matter of time until someone investigated that loud bang. So the chimera grabbed the gun and shoved it in his pocket before opening the window. Thankfully, they were on the first floor, so jumping out didn't hurt him.

He motioned to Ibuki to follow him. "Come on!" But the rabbit couldn't even hear his own voice over the ringing. Thankfully, the deer-wolf got the idea and followed Lee out the window.

The two chimeras sprinted down the hill of the school. Ibuki was going top speed, while Lee had to move somewhat slower so the deer-wolf could keep up.

The ringing stopped as the two got to the bottom of the hill.

Ibuki looked confused. "Wh-where are we going?!"

Lee panted. "The ocean!"

They ran through the woods in the direction of the ocean and eventually found themselves on a cliff.

Lee pulled the gun out of his pocket.

Ibuki's eyes widened. "No!"

The wolf-rabbit ignored his protests and chucked the gun as hard as he could into the ocean.

Splash!

Lee turned to face the other chimera. The deer-wolf's fur was standing on end while his tail bristled behind him and he bared his fangs at Lee.

The wolf-rabbit rolled his eyes. "Hey, I just saved your ass from juvie."

Ibuki snarled at him. "I don't need you to save me! What I do is notyour concern!"

Lee shook his head. "I'm not letting someone close to me go to jail for something so stupid."

The deer-wolf scoffed. "Stay out of my business!"

Lee crossed his arms. "Your business ismy business! I'm supposed to be protecting you, remember?"

The deer-wolf stormed up to Lee.

BAM!

Ibuki punched him in the face.

Lee staggered back from the sudden punch and rubbed a hand down his face, wiping off the blood. The wolf-rabbit growled and countered with a punch of his own.

Soon a fight broke out between the two chimeras. Kicking and punching each other out on a scenic cliffside.

Ibuki snarled. "You're such an obnoxious little brat!" He punched Lee in the chin.

Lee reeled back. He punched Ibuki in the stomach. "And you'rea pompous asshole!"

Ibuki charged forward and tackled Lee, pinning him against a tree. "I hatethat smugattitude of yours!"

Lee shoved him off and hit him with a right hook. "I'm smug?! You alwaysact like you're better than me!"

Ibuki kicked Lee in the shin. "That's a laugh coming from someone that likes to beat people up so he can look tough."

Lee grabbed Ibuki by the arm and tossed him on the ground. "I beat people up when they deserveit!"

The two dueled it out until both of them were bruised, bleeding, and panting. Lee grappled Ibuki, but the two were out of energy and just collapsed next to each other.

The two were lying down on their backs, staring at the sky as they breathed heavily.

Lee finally caught his breath and chuckled. "Our dads would be so pissed if they saw that."

Ibuki laughed. "Yeah. No doubt."

The two stared at the orange sky as the sun started to set.

Lee turned his head towards Ibuki. "Ready to tell me why you started hating me?"

The deer-wolf sat up and looked out at the ocean. "I dunno. It's tough to say."

The wolf-rabbit laughed. "We can be honest at this point, right? I can tell whatever you refuse to admit to me is hurting you. I'm not gonna stop getting on your nerves until I finally get an answer."

Ibuki sighed. "It took me a while to even figure out what it was. And I really didn't like the answer."

Lee groaned. "C'mon, just say it. I've been waiting years for this."

Ibuki scoffed. "It started in middle school. Puberty was hard on everybody. But there was something about you that started to piss me off. I didn't know what it was. I just hated looking at you and being around you. Your presence made me feel pain and I couldn't figure out why."

Lee chuckled. "What, are you allergic to me or something?"

Ibuki sighed. "Since I came to Cherryton, I finally figured it out just a couple days ago. It was something really hard to admit to myself. I figured out that I had been lying to myself for years about why I disliked you. I thought it was your smug attitude that pissed me off. But it was never about you. It was about me."

Lee sat up. "C'mon, enough with the riddle talk. Be straight up with me."

Ibuki pushed himself into a sitting position. "I… have to take over the Horns conglomerate one day. I need a wife so my father can have a grandson and I could carry on his legacy. But I realized something just now, about why I believed I hated you." He looked at Lee with sad eyes. "I've only been attracted to men my entire life. I never had a single female crush and it was killing me. The thing that changed wasn't you. It was how I felt about you."

Lee looked shocked when the pieces fell together. "O-Oh…"

Ibuki groaned. "I couldn't admit it to myself. So I think I turned my affection into hatred out of fear. A fear that if I stayed around you I'd fall in love with you and never have a child. So I started treating you like garbage because I was being a coward over my own emotions."

Lee looked at him with concern. "You had a crush on me?"

Ibuki shook his head. "I stillhave a crush on you. But even worse, I never found a female I was interested in. Everybody I've been attracted to has been male."

Lee scoffed. "Dude. There's nothing wrong with being gay."

"There is when you need to have children. It might be okay for youto like men, but for me, it's a huge problem."

The wolf-rabbit raised an eyebrow. "You know your dad was adopted, right?"

He nodded. "That was because Oguma couldn't have children of his own. I don't have that excuse. I need to carry on my father's bloodline."

"Did your dad say this to you?"

"He doesn't need to. I owe it to him."

Lee glared. "Shouldn't you at least talk to him about it?"

Ibuki looked confused. "Huh?"

Lee rolled his eyes. "What if he doesn't even wantgrandkids? I can guaranteehe wouldn't want them if it meant you marrying someone you didn't love."

Ibuki scoffed. "It's not all about me."

Lee rolled his eyes. "When it comes to love it is absolutelyall about you! You don't even know if that's what your dad wants! If you marry a woman justto have a child, youwon't be happy, shewon't be happy, the kidwon't be happy, and your fatherwon't be happy! Everybodyloses."

Ibuki bit his lip. "B-but…"

Lee shook his head. "Talk to your dad. I know he's busy but he'll find time for his son. You need to sort this out."

Ibuki stared off with a contemplative look before sighing. "Fine. I'll arrange a lunch with my father."

Lee smiled. "It's up to you, man."

The two chimeras went back to the school and went their separate ways as they avoided detection. Along the way, Lee could see red and blue flashing police lights and several officers investigating the lab where Ibuki accidentally discharged his weapon.

Lee kept his head down as he tried to sneak back to the dorms.

Ibuki returned to his dorm feeling mentally and physically exhausted. He took a deep breath as he contemplated what the hell he just did. Was this an improvement in the two chimera's relationship? Lee knows about his crush on him. Is honesty always a good thing in a relationship? If anything, things felt more complicated.

He was somewhat relieved to have it off his chest but was now terrified about what spawn from this. How will his father feel? How would Legosi feel about it?

The chimera clutched his head, feeling a new kind of terror. Why did this happen to him? He felt like he lost all control of his life. In a perfect world, the deer-wolf would be friends with Lee while having a wife he loved and children. He already didn't get to choose to be a hybrid. He didn't get a choice in his sexuality either. Why did life deal him such an unfair hand?

Jiro stopped drawing when he spotted Ibuki. He pulled out his notepad and flipped to a concerned face. "You seem upset, Ibuki-kun."

Ibuki sighed. "I don't want to talk about it."

Jiro flipped to a sad face but nodded. "You can always talk to me if you change your mind."

The frustrated chimera crawled into his bed and pulled out his phone, dialing his father.

"Hey, Ibuki. Need something?"

"Can we talk? I need to tell you something face-to-face."

"Uhh… Lemme see here… Yeah, I'll be free for lunch tomorrow. Want me to pick you up?"

"Yeah."

"Okay. Everything going alright, Ibuki?"

"Not really."

"I see. You can tell me more tomorrow."

"Thanks, Dad. Good night."

"Good night, Ibuki."

When Lee got back to his dorm, he took a deep breath, happy he didn't get caught. And since Ibuki's gun was in the ocean, he had no concerns about either chimera leaving behind DNA evidence or fingerprints.

Lee's phone started to ring. When he saw it was his mother he went out into the hallways to take it.

"Hel-"

His mother started shouting through the phone. "Lee! Are you okay, sweetie?!" His mother's loud voice somewhat dazed the chimera. For someone so small, she sure had some strong vocal cords.

He shook off his sudden disorientation. "Y-yeah. Why?"

"I heard there was a shooting at your school. What happened?"

Lee's eyes shifted nervously as he thought up a lie. "Uh… I don't know what happened. I heard a bang and the cops showed up. Apparently a gun got fired in one of the labs but it didn't hit anybody. There was just a bullet in the wall and no blood."

Haru gave a sigh of relief. "I'm glad you're not hurt. I was really worried."

The chimera chuckled. "I guess I can't blame you. I'll talk to you later, I should do some homework."

"Okay, sweetie. I love you."

"Love you too, Mom."

The chimera hung up and gave a sigh of relief. If his parents found out what happened in that lab… well, he would be less concerned about himself and more for Ibuki. Lee's parents wouldn't be happy about him trying to wrestle the gun away, but at least the wolf-rabbit didn't bring it to school. He couldn't imagine how much trouble Ibuki would be in with his parents.

When Lee went back to the dorm, everyone was minding their own business. He decided to check in with Theo.

The chimera walked over to the angora sheep's bunk. Before he could say anything, Theo looked up at him with a smirk. "I've got info on that cheetah. His name is Thomas. He's on the track team."

Alfred, who had been stretching, looked at Theo with a shocked expression. "Tom-kun?!"

Oscar tilted his head at the zebra. "Kun? Are you friends?"

Alfred looked a little conflicted. "I mean, we're teammates. He seemed like a cool guy, though. I can't imagine him wanting Ibuki-san dead."

Eli, who had been tuning his guitar, looked up at the zebra. "Don't think of it as turning on your teammate. Think of it as saving someone's life."

The zebra crossed his arms and sighed. "I'll see what I can find out."

Lee nodded. "Just be subtle. Don't make him suspicious. Who knows what he'll do."

Alfred scoffed. "Don't worry about that. We trust each other on that team, this'll be cake."

Lee, tray in hand, was about to go to sit at the same lunch table as Oscar. But he stopped when he realized that cheetah would probably be spooked.

Lee leaned down towards Oscar. "I can't eat here today. But if you see that cheetah, try to listen to his conversation." The Harlequin rabbit nodded and Lee decided to head to the roof instead. Perhaps Olivia would like the company.

Lee snuck out of the lunchroom and made his way up the stairway to the roof, tray in hand. He opened the door and walked over to the shed.

He reached for the handle but froze when he looked inside. His brain tried to process what he was seeing. The lab was being pinned to the wall by Esther, who was very deeply and passionately kissing her.

Olivia seemed to be very much into the kiss until she opened her eyes and spotted Lee. Her eyes widened in shock and she slapped the white tiger on the back. Esther removed her tongue from the lab's mouth and turned around to spot the chimera.

The two very quickly separated and Olivia ran over to the door to let the chimera in. When she came to the door, she looked incredibly flustered. "H-hello, Lee-kun!"

Lee blushed. "S-sorry to interrupt a private moment. I can go eat somewhere else."

The lab grabbed him by the wrist and pulled him inside. "Nonono! We should be studying anyway. It's a good thing you interrupted us."

The tiger scratched the back of her head with a huge blush on her face.

Lee sat down to eat his lunch. The lab turned her head towards him. "Do you have any new info on the people that attacked Ibuki-kun?"

Lee told them everything up to him tossing the gun in the ocean. However, he left out the fistfight, and Ibuki confessing his feelings.

Esther growled. "He brought a gunto school? How stupid can you get?"

Olivia adjusted her glasses. "I have to agree. Not the best course of action. But I certainly am interested in this online circle the lot of them seem to be involved in. Perhaps Theo-kun would know how to get more info."

Esther smiled. "Yeah, I bet he can, like, hack them or something."

Olivia rolled her eyes but then chuckled. It seemed the tiger's quirks had become endearing to the lab.

Lee grabbed his tray and stood up. "That's all I got for now. I'll see you guys later."

The two gave their goodbyes and Lee made his way out of the shed. Out of curiosity, he took one last glance through the glass door and saw the two were very quickly getting back to kissing. He smiled.

Lee was happy to see a romance bloom between two friends that didn't always get along. Although, the fact it was a same-sex relationship got him thinking about Ibuki's confession. He wondered if it was possible not just to mend their friendship, but maybe explore the idea of a romantic relationship. While the wolf-rabbit found the deer-wolf to be attractive, the years of antagonism made him somewhat averse to the idea. Perhaps if the other chimera was honest from the beginning, they could be dating right now.

Lee's thoughts were interrupted when Esther started groping Olivia's left breast and shoving a hand up her skirt. The chimera turned red as a tomato and decided that was his cue to leave.

Meanwhile, Ibuki was eating lunch at a fancy restaurant across from his father. The atmosphere of the restaurant was brilliant with classical music over the loudspeaker, well-dressed beasts chattering at their tables while eating expensive food, and a chandelier glistening over their head. However, the air between the father and son was simply awkward.

Louis, the red deer took a bite of his salad. "So what's on your mind?"

Ibuki gulped. "I… Umm…"

Louis looked at his son. "You can be honest with me, Ibuki." The deer smiled. "Whatever it is, don't be afraid to say it."

The chimera cleared his throat. "I…" he started. His heart was hammering. He knew the words but his mouth refused to let them out. He could practically feel them getting caught in his chest as he started to sweat.

The deer-wolf took a deep breath as his father looked at him expectantly. "I... I 'm gay."

Louis's eyes widened in surprise. "Oh. That's… interesting."

The chimera shifted around uncomfortably. " Are you upset?"

Louis tilted his head. "Why would I be upset?"

Ibuki looked away in shame. "I know how much the company means to you. It's just… I couldn't have kids if I was in a relationship with a man. And I want to continue our family's bloodline."

Louis raised an eyebrow. "I didtell you I was adopted, right? I'd like you to have grandkids, but that doesn't mean you have to makethem."

The chimera fidgeted with his hands. "So you don't care if I date another guy?"

Louis chuckled. "I should probably tell you about Azuki-san."

Ibuki looked at him with a curious expression.

Louis cleared his throat. "Azuki is my ex-fiancé. I was arranged to marry her for the sake of the Horns Conglomerate." The deer looked somewhat embarrassed. "I tried to have sex with her and… vomited… on the hotel floor."

The chimera looked surprised. "Vomited?"

Louis nodded. "I couldn't force myself to do it. I had fallen in love with your mother but didn't want to admit it." His smile returned. "I ended up breaking up with her. Both of us were grateful. Two people that don't love each other shouldn't be married. We'd only make each other miserable for the rest of our days."

Ibuki pondered this for a moment. His father also wanted an unorthodox relationship by pursuing one with a wolf. Perhaps it was a tad absurd for the deer-wolf to think his father would disapprove of a same-sex relationship.

Louis pushed his plate away, having just finished his meal. "Just out of curiosity, Ibuki. Are there any boys, in particular, you're interested in?"

For just a moment, Ibuki considered naming Lee. However, his father was well aware of the feud between the two and it might have complicated things to admit to having a crush on the son of his dad's best friend.

"N-nobody specific."

Louis shrugged. "You'll find the right man someday. Is there anything else you'd like to discuss?"

The father and son conversed about a variety of things from the attempted murder to Ibuki's homework. Eventually, Louis and his son got in a limo and returned to Cherryton.

The red deer hugged Ibuki. "Stay safe, Ibuki."

Ibuki nodded. "Bye, Dad."

Louis got back in his limo, which drove off.

Ibuki gave a sigh of relief. Despite how nervous he was about telling his dad about his sexuality, he suddenly felt incredibly relieved. A massive weight was off of his chest. Maybe now he can be honest with himself and everyone else.

He sighed. Perhaps it's time to be honest with Lee as well. Maybe he can fix the damage he's done over the years.

Esther and Olivia were lying in the Gardening Club shed's bed together, completely naked, cuddling under the blankets. Olivia faced the wall while Esther held her from behind, her arms crossing over the lab's prodigious breasts.

The white tiger was somewhat amazed by the situation. She just lost her virginity to her tutor and the daughter of a friend of the family. In fact, now that she thought about it, that was a little fast, wasn't it? They've only been dating for a couple of days and they already had sex. She should be happy about this, right? It's not that she didn't enjoy it. It was amazing, honestly. But isn't this supposed to happen later?

Suddenly, the tiger was starting to seriously question her decision. Did this mean their relationship had less meaning? Did she unintentionally pressure Olivia into sex? Or is she just overthinking this?

Esther looked somewhat remorseful. "Liv-chan?"

"Mhm?"

"Why did we do that?"

"Do what? Have sex?"

"Yeah. Isn't this, y'know… a little soon?"

Olivia sat up in bed with a concerned look. "Did you not enjoy it?"

Esther looked confused. "O-of course I did!"

The lab shrugged. "Then what's the problem?"

Esther sat up as well. "It's just… the first time is supposed to be special, right?"

Olivia glared at her. "Oh. So that wasn't 'special'?"

The white tiger flinched. "I-I-I didn't mean it like that! Of course it was!"

Olivia scowled. "Sure doesn't sound like it."

Esther gulped. "I just didn't think you'd want to do it so soon. We haven't been dating for that long."

The lab scoffed. "Says who? If I'm ready, I'm ready. If you weren't ready why did you say 'yes'?"

Esther looked conflicted. "I dunno. I didn't think about it before. I just…" The tiger held her head and groaned. Why does she always say stupid things?

Olivia bit her lip angrily before taking a deep breath. Suddenly, her smile returned. The lab reached up and lightly tugged on the tiger's ear. "You reallyneed to start thinking before you talk."

Esther blushed. "I-I'm sorry, Liv-chan. Did I ruin the moment?"

Olivia giggled. She wrapped her arms around Esther and gave her a deep kiss on the lips. "I didn't regret it. I just hope you didn't either."

Esther smiled. "I didn't. I mean it." The tiger checked her phone. "I guess I should go."

The lab smiled and gave her girlfriend one last kiss. "I'll see ya later, hun."

Esther scratched her head awkwardly as she blushed. After putting on her uniform, she returned to her dorm.

Lee was watching a movie with all of his roommates save for Alfred. The group was patiently awaiting the zebra's return to discuss what he learned from the cheetah. Theo continued to research this group online, trying to see if he can at least pull a single screen name.

Finally, Alfred came back, gym bag in hand. Everyone looked at him expectantly and he sighed. "I tried, but he just clammed up on me and stormed off."

Everyone gave a disappointed frown. Lee shrugged. "You tried."

Theo rubbed his head in frustration. "We'll never get info on these guys. They've been really good about keeping their identities hidden."

An idea came to Lee's mind. It's a longshot but he was curious to know if his father ever had a run-in with hybrid hating groups. It wasn't widely known, but Legosi's grandfather was a Komodo Dragon, making him somewhat of a hybrid. It made him curious to know if his father had faced this kind of discrimination himself.

Lee pulled his phone off the charger.

Lee: "Dad. How many people do you know that hate hybrids?"

Legosi: "Why do you ask?"

Lee: "Just curious about what I could be dealing with. Know anybody?"

Legosi: "Well, there's Kopi Luwak, but you don't see them outside the city much."

Lee: "Who?"

Legosi: "Pure-blood supremacy group led by a civet cat. I'm blanking on his name."

Haru: "Isn't that the breed of cat that has nice smelling poop?"

Lee: "WTF?!"

Legosi: "Yes. And 'Kopi Luwak' is a coffee that uses it as an ingredient."

Lee: "Okay. That's disgusting."

Haru: "I've heard it's really high-quality coffee."

Lee: "Mom, no."

Legosi: "They named their group after the coffee for some reason. They like to experiment on hybrids all the time and seem to hate them."

Legosi: "I take it you have no interest in drinking Kopi Luwak."

Lee: "Of course I don't want to drink coffee made of cat shit."

Legosi: "Good. The coffee may taste good but it does weird things to carnivores. Makes our senses go crazy."

Lee: "Thanks for the info."

Legosi: "Anytime, Lee. Anything else you need?"

Alfred started loudly coughing. The zebra made a wheezing noise as he walked over to his gym bag. He opened a zipper on the front and reached inside. However, nothing came out. He started pulling clothes out of the bag. The more he pulled out, the more frantic he looked.

The zebra coughed and wheezed loudly again as he dumped the entire contents of the bag onto the floor. The equine was in a state of great panic as his wheezing started getting worse and worse.

Lee stood up. "Alfred-kun? Are you okay?"

Alfred started clutching his chest. "Inhaler… gone… Can't… breathe…."

Lee's face turned pale. "Oh shit."

Everyone looked confused. Eli looked at Lee. "What's happening to him?"

Lee turned to the rooster. "He has asthma, but can't find his inhaler."

Oscar shot up and grabbed his phone off the ledge, dialing in a few numbers. "I'm at Cherryton Academy, room six seventeen in the herbivore dorms. My roommate has asthma and can't find his inhaler. He's having trouble breathing."

Eli, Theo, and Stanley all started frantically searching the room. Likely trying to find the inhaler.

Lee placed a hand on the wheezing zebra's back. "Calm down. Take deep breaths."

Alfred clutched his chest harder, looking like he was in incredible pain. It seemed the chimera's advice wasn't working as he continued to breathe less and wheeze more. The zebra's eyes bulged and looked somewhat bloodshot as he clawed at his throat. "C-c-can't… breathe…"

Alfred fell over, looking barely conscious. Lee grabbed his shoulders. "H-hey! Alfred-kun! Don't stop breathing."

Oscar started to tremble as he held the phone. "He needs help fast! He can't breathe at all! Please get here soon!"

The zebra's eyes started slowly closing.

Lee shook his side. "Alfred! Alfred!"

Tears started to well up in Oscar's eyes. "P-please get here fast! He's dying!"

The chimera was entirely at a loss. He didn't know what to do in this situation at all. Was he supposed to do CPR? He didn't know CPR.

The zebra's eyes closed completely as his breathing stopped.

Lee shouted. "Alfred! Alfred!"