Months Later

Trevor's sentence ended and things were back to normal. The bear's hateful demeanor had deteriorated, as had his muscles. He was finally back to his old skinny and friendly self.

Currently, nobody was working on lines, costumes, or props. Instead, everyone was in the process or cleaning everything up, as tomorrow was the day the school year officially ended.

Jolene looked at the clock before addressing the club. "We're done for this school year, everyone!" She smiled. "It's been a pleasure to work with you all. For most of you, I'm excited to see you again after Summer Vacation. But for those graduating this year, I wish you luck in your future endeavors and I hope we cross paths again someday."

The club turned and bowed to Jolene, speaking in unison. "Thank you, Jolene-san!"

Everyone was about to clear out, until all their phones went off simultaneously.

Lee reached into his pocket with a curious expression and unlocked the phone. "Hey, did anyone else get this email?"

Jolene pulled out her phone as well. "Update to school uniform policy?"

Esther shrugged. "Eh. Sounds like boring mumbo jumbo."

Ibuki shook his head as he looked over the email. "I don't know about that. These are some pretty… 'interesting' changes."

Jolene cleared her throat and read the email aloud.

"Cherryton Academy is a place where all students should feel welcome and safe. As such, a new uniform policy is being implemented next school year for the sake of queer and gender non-conforming students.

All new students will be given the option to wear either the male or female uniform. Any student that is currently unsatisfied with their uniform may put in a request to be fitted for one of the opposite gender.

We will also be rolling out a new policy for discrimination against queer students. If a student is caught harassing someone for their sexual orientation, uniform choice, or gender identity then they shall be given one months detention. A second offense is two months detention and a third offense is grounds for expulsion. Physical violence of a discriminatory nature will result in expulsion and potential criminal charges.

We also recommend that students report any faculty that are potentially violating this new policy.

We hope that these new policies will give students a sense of safety and belonging.

Signed, Headmaster Gon."

Jolene muttered to herself as she read it over again. "Is this… is this a real email?"

Olivia adjusted her glasses with a surprised look. "It seems he made good on Esther's demand that he prove his sincerity."

Suddenly, the twins approached and Sebastian giggled. "Looks like I'm not going to be the only femboy around here."

Jolene teared up a bit. "This is incredible… I can't believe this is actually happening."

Ibuki crossed his arms. "I'm sure someone will object to these changes. So we'll have to be ready to combat the backlash."

Jolene grinned. "Well, thisputs me in a better mood today! I hope this means a better future for queer students." She glanced at her phone again. "But for now, it's time to go home. Bye!"

Jolene left, setting her clipboard down on a table.

Everyone changed from their gym clothes to their uniforms for the final time and made their way back to the dorm.

Esther stretched as she left the practice building with his girlfriend. "Thank Godfinals are over. I'm hyped for Summer."

Olivia smiled. "Well, you did very well on them."

The white tiger chuckled. "Yeah, thanks to you." She gave her girlfriend a quick peck on the cheek.

Olivia giggled, but their tender moment was interrupted by the sound of someone sobbing. The two girls curiously followed the noise. At the entrance of the school, they spotted Meredith tightly hugging a male calico cat. Esther recognized him as Meredith's son.

Meredith continued to sob. "I-I'm a h-horrible m-mother! I'm so s-sorry, Adrian!"

Her son patted her on the back. "It's okay, Mom. We can start over."

The female cat sniffled and looked over in the girl's direction. She looked back to her son and whispered something to him before walking over to them.

The two gulped and for a second it seemed like they considered running away.

Meredith took off her glasses and wiped her tears away before putting them back on and giving them a stern look. "I just want to say that regardless of your… preferences, it is still not acceptable for students to be having sexual intercourse on campus." She sighed. "That said, I was given a second chance by Headmaster Gon. So you deserve one too, Olivia-san. The roof is now unlocked and you may resume Gardening Club after Summer Vacation."

Olivia grinned and bowed. "Thank you so much, Meredith-san!"

Meredith turned up her nose and walked away.

Esther patted Olivia on the shoulder. "Guess that worked out after all. Wanna go to the garden?"

The lab nodded and the two made their way to the roof. They went inside the main building and ascended the stairs until they reached the roof. Olivia put her hand on the handle but froze.

Esther looked concerned. "What's wrong, hun?"

Olivia took a deep breath. "I'm just… preparing myself for what I'm about to see."

She turned the handle and walked through the doorway.

The white tiger followed her and her ears drooped as she looked around the garden with a sad expression.

Every single one of the once beautiful flowers had died, their vibrant colors replaced by shades of grey and their full, blooming forms had turned dry and crumbled. It was a very depressing sight to see. Olivia's hard work and passion had been completely ruined by several months of neglect.

Esther approached her girlfriend with a concerned look and placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry, Liv."

Olivia sighed but smiled. "It's okay. I'm looking forward to when we go back to school. I'm ready to start over and see what comes of it."

She turned around and tightly hugged her girlfriend. "I love you, Esther."

The tiger smiled. "I love you too, Liv."

When Ibuki returned to his dorm, he saw the door was wide open and the two men that brought him his TV were leaving the room with it.

The deer-wolf smiled. "Thank you for your help, gentlemen."

They both nodded and spoke in unison. "Thank you, Ibuki-sama!" With that, the two left the building to bring the television back to his penthouse.

He went inside and saw his roommates chatting. Jiro turned his head towards Ibuki. "Hey, Ibuki-kun. Excited for summer?"

Ibuki nodded. "Yeah. You and your mom should come to my place sometime." He looked at the rest of his friends. "All of you should."

Gil smiled. "I can't wait!"

Lucas grinned. "Yeah, same here!"

Katsu chuckled. "It's been great living in this dorm. I'm glad I got to stay with you guys."

Simon vigorously nodded his head.

Jiro jumped down from his bunk and turned to Ibuki. He took a deep breath and covered his mouth, trembling.

Finally, he moved his hands, revealing a smile on his face. Not on paper, this time it was the real thing. "I'm so glad I got to meet you, Ibuki-kun. You've done so much to improve my life. I'm lucky to have a friend like you."

Ibuki chuckled. "I'm lucky too. Thank you, Jiro-kun."

The fox's smile vanished and he gave a loud sigh of relief before rubbing his face and groaning. "Oww… That hurt waymore than I thought it was going to."

The deer-wolf laughed. "You didn't need to do that for me."

Jiro shook his head. "Nah. It felt like the right thing to do. And it was a relief to actually smile for the first time. I wish it wasn't so painful, just so I could do it all the time."

Ibuki smiled and nodded. "I appreciate you letting me see your first smile. Thank you, Jiro-kun."

The fox crawled back into his bunk with a wagging tail.

Ibuki could not be more glad to have the vulpine artist as his roommate.

Esther made her way back to her room to see her roommates packing up.

Ceci grinned when she saw her. "Hey, Esther-chan!"

The white tiger waved. "Yeah, hey."

Hikari smiled. "It was wonderful meeting you girls. Let's keep in contact over the summer, eh?"

Mila bowed to Esther. "Th-thank you for teaching me how to be myself. I'm so glad I don't have to hide anymore."

Esther nodded. "I'm glad I could help."

Ceci giggled. "It was sofun being in Drama Club with you! I can't waitto perform together again when Summer's over!"

Lin chuckled. "You're a really cool gal, Esther-chan. It's been great." She blushed. "And uhh… thanks for introducing me to my boyfriend."

The white tiger grinned. "Yup! I'm glad I met you and your brother, Lin-chan."

Esther was a little sad to be leaving this dorm. But she made some great friends and was excited to be with her parents again.

When Lee returned to the dorm, he spotted Oscar and Alfred conversing about something as they stood not too far from the door.

Lee's ears stood up as he suddenly had a great idea. He pulled his phone out and took a photo of the harlequin rabbit.

Oscar's ears twitched as he heard the sound of the camera click and he turned to face the wolf-rabbit.

The chimera approached with the gallery app open. On the screen was the photo Lee shared with his mom. In it, a much more round and pudgy Oscar was reading a manga in his bed, his elbows resting on his massively oversized belly.

Lee swiped the phone screen, switching to the picture he just now took.

Oscar's jaw dropped. He was significantly skinnier than he used to be. His once gigantic gut was half its original size, and his double chin had mostly vanished.

The chimera gave him a curious look. "What was your last weigh-in?"

The harlequin rabbit looked up towards his friend. "F-fifty-five kilograms."

Alfred smiled. "You were eighty when we started training. So you lost twenty-five kilos in less than a year."

Oscar's lip trembled and he was clearly trying not to tear up. "Th-thanks so much, Alfred-kun. You've done so much to help me."

The zebra chuckled. "It was my pleasure. Let's meet up for the summer too. I won't be satisfied until I can see your abs."

The lagomorph nodded with a determined look.

Eli smiled and sighed as he placed his guitar in its case. "I'm glad I met all you guys. You rocked."

Stanley grinned as he put all his movies in a paper bag. "Thank you all so much for watching my movies with me! It was truly wonderful finally having friends to enjoy them with."

Theo put his laptop away in his bag. "It was awesome knowing you guys. I'm glad I was able to help you with the Coffee Club and Meredith situations." He walked up to Lee and whispered. "And thanks for keeping my secret."

The rabbit nodded with a smile and whispered back. "You're very welcome."

Lee put his phone on the charger. He had no reason to text his parents tonight. Why bother when he's seeing them tomorrow? He was excited to finally go home.

The next day, everyone was all packed and made their way to the parking lot. One by one, vehicles would show up and students got in, happy to see their parents again.

A long black limo appeared and the door opened up, revealing Jolene was already inside. She bowed. "Are you ready to go home, Ibuki-sama?"

The deer-wolf nodded before passionately kissing his boyfriend. "I'll see you soon, hun. I love you!"

Lee blushed as Ibuki loaded into the car. "I love you too, Ibuki!"

The limo drove off as Lee waved after his boyfriend.

A dark green car pulled up and Bill jumped out, practically tackling his daughter. "I'm so h-happy to see you again, Esther-chan!"

The white tiger chuckled. "I missed you too, Pops."

A black car rolled up and Jack stepped out. "Hey, Olive! Ready to go?"

Olivia smiled and nodded.

Esther wiggled out of her father's hug and kissed her girlfriend. "I love you, Liv."

The black lab blushed. "I love you too, Esther."

Olivia got in the car and Jack waved to Esther. "Thanks for watching out for my daughter, Esther-chan!"

Esther nodded and waved back. "See you later, Jack-san!"

The car drove off and Esther got into her own, waving goodbye to Lee as it left.

The chimera waved back.

Eventually, a broken-down white car rolled up the hill. Oscar smiled as he walked towards it.

The passenger side door opened and a female harlequin rabbit stepped out. Just like Oscar, the right half of her body was black while her left was white. Lee deduced she must be Mizuchi. She eyed her son up and down. "I supposeyou've made decent progress in your weight loss."

Oscar nodded. "Yes, Mother!"

Mizuchi glanced up at Lee and squinted at him. Then, she had a shocked expression. "Oh, God! She didreproduce with a wolf! How vile!"

Oscar scowled. "Hey! That's my roommate! He's my friend!"

The female rabbit looked appalled. "They put you in the same room as thatthing? Do they wantyou to be eaten?!"

Lee scoffed. "I may be half-wolf but I aman herbivore. I don't eat meat and I sure as hell wouldn't eat my friend."

A familiar blue car pulled up behind Mizuchi, but she didn't seem to notice.

Mizuchi glared at Lee. "Don't even speakto me, you monster! You're a filthy abomination from the womb of a wolf-fucking whore!"

A familiar female voice came from behind her. "Don't talk about my son like that."

Mizuchi turned around to see Haru crossing her arms and glaring daggers at her.

The female harlequin rabbit scoffed. "You don't deserve to speak to me either, you scum! First, you try to take my boyfriend from me, and now you made a half-breed monster."

Mizuchi's husband stuck his head out the driver's side windows and waved to Lee's mom. "Hi, Haru-chan!"

The female harlequin rabbit glared at her husband, which made him shrink in terror back into his car.

Haru smirked. "Nice marriage. I'm sure you two are very happy together."

Mizuchi growled. "Listen here, you little slut! I-"

She was interrupted as a massive shadow started to entirely cover her. She trembled and looked up to see Legosi staring down at her with hateful eyes. "You shouldn't talk about my wife like that."

Mizuchi screamed and jumped in her car. "Drive! Drive!"

The engine of the car sputtered to life and quickly sped off.

Oscar ran after it. "W-wait! M-Mom!"

The car moved way too fast for him to catch and Oscar was left there, holding his bag as his ears flattened against his head.

Haru, Legosi, and Lee watched in shock as Mizuchi just abandoned her son in front of their eyes.

Oscar stared off into the distance as his eyes teared up.

Haru sadly frowned. "Oh, Oscar-san. I'm so sorry."

Legosi scratched his neck nervously. "I didn't mean to scare off your mother. I can't apologize enough."

The harlequin rabbit sighed. "It's not your fault."

Haru placed a hand on his shoulder. "Do you know your address? I can take you home."

Oscar nodded sadly and sniffled. "Thank you, Haru-san."

Lee could not believe that just happened. His entire body shook and he clenched his fists as a burning rage took over him.

Legosi put a hand on his son's shoulder. "Calm down, Lee. Take a deep breath."

The infuriated wolf-rabbit growled but then followed his father's advice, slowly calming down.

Haru smiled at Oscar. "I've heard great things about you from Lee, Oscar-san. I'm glad you're friends with my son."

Oscar nodded. "I'm happy to finally meet you, Haru-san."

The harlequin rabbit got in the car and Lee gave a frustrated groan. The moment was completely ruined by Mizuchi's cowardice.

He sighed as he got in the car. At least he was going home.

The car started moving and Lee watched Cherryton disappear over the hill. It was a rough year, but Lee was still able to think of fond memories that made him smile. Despite the negative aspects, he was happy he came to this school.