Chapter 33 - Would You Kill for Love?

Some time later...

Pain. That's all Louis felt when he opened his eyes. But where? Oh. It was his head. God, his head was hurting. He groaned, feeling his soft husband curled around him. He couldn't focus on the feeling with all this pain!

Legosi smacked his lips in his sleep, dreaming of his previous day at work. There were actually animals that returned from previous presentations! And some even came up to the bugs when Legosi offered! The fortunate events of the day replayed in his head, causing his tail to wag.

Louis groaned again, his hands moving to his head. "Ugh..."

The movement seemed to trigger Legosi's leg to kick, which the deer would have found amusing had he not been in such pain. He sat up, Legosi's arm falling, rubbing his temples. "Hm..."

The impact of his arm against his chest roused the wolf. "Mmm." He opened his eyes, saw Louis, and wagged his tail even faster.

The deer didn't look at him, as he usually did. "Fuck..."

Legosi's ears pulled back. Something was definitely wrong. He sat up slowly, careful not to jostle his husband. "Louis, you okay?"

"Mmnnn...not really..."

The wolf sniffed at him, his canine perception working its magic. "Don't feel well?"

"No...my head..." He whined.

Legosi gasped softly and positioned himself in front of Louis. He brought his large fingers up to his head and kneaded them into his fur. "How does it hurt?"

"It just...it's like pounding..." Louis lowered his head more, groaning. "Ooh..."

"Where does it hurt? Does my rubbing hurt it more?" The canine was careful not to poke the nubs where his antlers were coming in.

"No...no..." The deer sighed.

"Is it one-sided? Does the light bother you?"

"Yeah...the light..."

Legosi looked up and groaned. "We really need to get shades or curtains. Maybe I can find something to cover up the windows." He looked back at his deer. "Sounds like a migraine. Do you get those ever? I don't remember you having one before."

"No...Agh, this killing me..." He continued to hold his head.

"How's your stomach feel? Hungry?"

"I am kinda hungry, but I can't focus on anything, but..." He laid back, groaning.

"I used to get migraines sometimes while working with the lights. Think there was something up there that caused it." Legosi held his finger up, adopting a wise tone and a look of determination. "I'm going to help get rid of this migraine, Louis! If there's anything you need, let me know!"

"Right now, I just feel like dying."

Legosi tucked the covers around Louis and offered him his pillow. "Here, put this over your eyes until I can find something to cover up the windows." He stood up and looked around, whining softly.

"Hey, I'll be okay," the cervid said, grabbing the pillow and covering his face.

"I don't like that you're in pain," Legosi said plainly. He walked over to the empty cardboard boxes they had left from moving, then looked at the windows. A plan quickly formed in his head. He took the boxes and started to break them down with his claws.

"Pfft. I'm, like, always in pain, Legosi."

Legosi stopped what he was doing. "Wh-what? Where?"

"What?" All he could see was Louis' muzzle sticking up in the air.

"You never told me this! Do you have chronic pain?"

"I didn't mean physically. Well...actually...Deer shoulders are stiff sometimes."

The wolf just nodded, even though Louis couldn't see him. "Well, at least you don't have your antlers to complicate it right now." He sighed. "We really need to find that therapist for you soon." He placed one of the flattened cardboard boxes on the table.

"What does that have to do with this?"

"Because you're in mental pain all the time. You said Oguma-san had a therapist in mind, right? We'll ask him about that when we have that dinner."

"I don't want to call anyone right now..."

"I know. Just thinking ahead so we don't forget. You don't have to do anything today."

Legosi got another box broken down, which he then wedged into the window in just a way to block out the light. He took the other slab of cardboard and did the same with the other window, plunging the room into darkness, save from the small, glowing blue around the edges of the windows. "There. That should be better for you, and I'm able to see still." The canine pulled on a quick outfit and stepped toward the door. "I'm going to go buy some pills for you. You don't have any allergies, right?"

"No. Don't leave me alone too long..." Louis smiled under the pillow.

"I won't. I'll be right back." The deer could hear the love in his tone as the door shut, plunging him in solitude and darkness.

Louis groaned loudly. "FUCK!" He had never had a headache like this. It wasn't the worst physical pain he had been in. That was when...Everything happened with Alpha. It was so painful he basically went numb. But this wasn't going numb. It was just pounding. He turned on his side, moaning into the pillow. Legosi would get the pills and he would take them and it would be fine, at least.

Time ticked on, and the pain prevented any sleep for the deer. All he could do was wait. He felt cold and shivered as he laid there.

There was a knock at the door and Louis' ears perked. Legosi was probably back for something. He huffed and got up, pulling on shorts and a shirt, trudging to the door, only to open it and see a well dressed male deer there. "Yes?"

"Don't talk. Take this," the man said, swiftly handing him a letter. "See you soon." And with that, he was off, leaving the aching Louis standing there, confused.

He looked down at the envelope, finding it was blank, besides his name scrawled on the back.

The deer went back inside and shut the door, his head still hammering but his intrigue taking focus.

He went back to the futon, sitting down and laying back, opening the envelope. It was too dark to see so he grabbed his phone and shone the light on the letter, reading it. The whole atmosphere made what he saw all the more horrifying.

Dear Shi,

Meet me at Little Bird's this Wednesday at 9 AM. We have much to discuss. Don't tell Legosi or he'll be killed. See you there.

- Ichi

The first thing Louis thought was that he had been called Shi in the letter, which made his heart sink and his throat go dry. The second thing was that Legosi would be in danger if he found out. He had to hide this. He folded the letter and put it back in the envelope, then slid it into his pillowcase.

He laid back down, sighing, and staring into the darkness. Ichi...That was number 1. Shi. That was number 4. That means...that deer…

He was shivering. This had to do with the black market. Sure, they had been back there when Legosi had gotten hurt, but this had to be serious if...he was wanting to talk to him.

Another thought he had was that the buck had known where he lived and he had known Legosi's name. What did all this mean? Suddenly, his head was assaulting him with pain and he whimpered, curling up with the pillow.

The door opened. "I'm back," came Legosi's soft, yet deep voice. The door closed and Louis heard the rustle of a bag. "I got some pills that should take care of migraines, but you need to take it with food. I bought some instant noodles too since that'll be fast to make."

Louis stood up, a hand still on his head. "Welcome back...I really missed you."

"Hey, I saw a red deer on the way here! Inside the building! I wonder if he lives here, too, but he was dressed really nicely." Legosi rustled through the bags.

"Hey, I saw a red deer on the way here! Inside the building! I wonder if he lives here too, but he was dressed really nicely." Legosi rustled through the bags.

"Oh really? Interesting." Louis nuzzled his neck. "You smell nice."

The wolf giggled. "Wh-what? Since when do you smell me?"

"I thought maybe I should...start." He said, feeling a heavy weight in his chest.

"What do you smell?" Legosi whispered.

"Uh...canine and shampoo."

The dog licked him. "Well, I smell..." He sniffed, and then recoiled slightly.

"What?"

Legosi covered his nose. "A-ah, must be from how close we live to the black market. I can smell a trace of meat, but...maybe I brought it with me."

"U-uh, oh..."

The canine reached into a box of their things and pulled out some air freshener, spraying it all over. "Th-there. That should help."

"What about your instincts? How did they feel when you smelled that?"

"U-um, my heart rate sped up and I'm salivating a little bit." He swallowed. "But I feel okay now." He looked back at Louis. "How about you? How do you feel?"

"Nervous. Just want to make sure you're okay."

"What about your head? You should be laying down! Unless it's better already? Then getting the pills would have been a waste, but not really since it's good to hang onto them anyway. You know, since I get migraines too sometimes, but I haven't gotten one since being out of drama club." Another Legosi ramble.

"No, it's not better at all. It feels worse," Louis grunted.

"Oh!" Legosi reached out and grabbed him as gently as he could. "Here, let me bring you back to bed. I'll prepare some noodles for us, then you can take a pill, and I can massage your head if that feels better."

The deer nodded. "Okay..." He was brought back to the futon and laid down once more, Legosi curling him in the blanket and kissing his forehead. He smiled at him. "Gonna make those noodles?"

"Yeah." His husband didn't budge, though. He moved his body down, laying on top of him gently and hugging him.

Louis hugged back, the letter flashing in his mind. "I love you."

"I love you too," Legosi whispered. He kissed his love on the head over and over. "Mmm. I'll be back." He got up and moved toward the kitchen area.

The deer laid back, smiling. He tilted his head. "How was it out there?"

"Um, it's a nice day out," the dog called back. "Morgane hopes you feel better."

"Mmm." Legosi would be fine...It would be fine.

The cups of noodles were prepared and put in the microwave, the wolf tapping his foot as he waited.

Louis continued to think about him. This wolf wanted to take care of him. He wished he could stop focusing so much on the headache and focus more on him.

The microwave beeped and Legosi came over with the two steaming cups, chopsticks resting on top of them. "Are you okay to sit up and eat?"

"Mhm." He moved into a sitting position. "Thanks for doing this for me."

"Of course! Why wouldn't I?" Legosi dug into his noodles.

Louis grabbed his chopsticks and began eating. "You always would."

"I'm surprised you've never gotten a migraine before, Louis. I guess there's a first time for everything."

"We've had so many firsts, huh?"

"Yeah." Legosi chuckled. "Oh, I'll go get a pill for you." He stood up and retrieved the bottle. "I think one should work for you since you have a smaller body mass."

"Look at the instructions, just to make sure."

The large animal looked at the bottle. "I made sure to get one safe for you, but I think it depends on the pain whether you take one or two." He skimmed the back. "Well, let's start with one first."

"But it's like a niiiine," Louis whined.

"Hm?" Legosi cocked his head. "Oh, you mean on the pain scale?"

"Yeah."

"Alright, I'll give you two." The wolf shook the pills out and held his hand out. "How well can you see?"

"Not...really at all. I'm just following your voice. Can you put them in my hands?"

Legosi deposited the pills into Louis' outstretched hand. "They might take a bit to take effect. You should finish up eating and then lay down."

The deer popped the medicine in his mouth and swallowed them, then nodded. "What about you?"

"I'll do whatever I can to make you comfortable." He paused to gesticulate, but of course, Louis couldn't see it. "I was thinking maybe spooning you and massaging your head, either with my hands or my tongue, but that depends on what position is most comfortable for you to lay down in."

"That sounds wonderful..." The buck blushed. "How did I ever survive without this?"

"Well...you weren't doing very well before all of this. And you still need help, of course, but I remember our first talk at the fountain still. You were suffering so much."

"I always think about that. How couldn't we?"

"Couldn't we what?" Legosi asked.

"Think about it. It's like...the beginning of all this."

"Ah, yeah." Legosi finished up his noodles and set them aside, waiting for Louis to do the same. "I can't believe it hasn't even been a year yet."

"Feels like forever. But...it doesn't feel too fast, either. I mean, being married and all." He took another bite, letting the warm soup run down his throat and comfort him.

"Marrying you was the smartest thing I've ever done." Legosi gently wrapped his arm around him. "What kind of ceremony do you want, when we have it?"

"I want all of our friends and...Whoever we consider family, there," Louis said. "Hopefully, Oguma will be included in that."

"I hope," Legosi agreed. "It's a lot of animals, actually. We have a lot of friends..." The wolf smiled and nuzzled Louis.

"I...I'm more excited for our honeymoon. Imagine it. You and I...on the beach."

Legosi smiled more and leaned into the smaller animal. "Sipping drinks...wearing...beach clothes."

"Or not," Louis teased.

Surprisingly, Legosi caught on. "Ah, a naturalist beach then."

"I wish it was a private beach, still..."

"Maybe Oguma has connections?" The carnivore suggested.

"That's what I was thinking!" Louis gasped.

"We really need to make a good impression, then." Legosi pulled away and started to take off his clothes.

Louis sat back. "Well, I'll contact him soon so we can set up dinner, then."

The canine stripped back down to the nude, as was usual for him. He looked back at Louis. "Hey, did you get dressed while I was gone?"

"Yeah, I put on a shirt and shorts."

"Ah. Trip to the bathroom?"

"Yeah. Hard, considering my head..."

Legosi moved back toward him. "Well, you can get undressed whenever you like. It'll feel better when we cuddle."

"You can see...How about some help? Plus my oh so aching head..." The last part was meant to sound dramatic.

"Of course." Louis soon felt those large hands reach the hem of his shirt and pull it effortlessly over his head, thanks to the lack of antlers. He clawed gently at the waistband of his shorts, eventually pulling them off and revealing he wasn't wearing underwear underneath. The wolf peeked over at the status of the deer's noodles.

Louis couldn't see, but he reached to feel Legosi's leg, hopefully. His hand landed right in the long fur above the wolf's crotch. His brows perked. "Ooh. I know this feeling..."

Legosi scooched closer and laid down, the deer's hand still buried in the forest of fur. "Gonna lay down, too?"

The buck did so, laying close to him, his fingers moving and curling around the fur above his mate's crotch. Again, the letter rang in his mind. How could anyone think to even want to kill such a beautiful creature? Carnivores...Carnivores were beautiful creatures.

"Um..." Legosi snickered. "Guess you'll just be petting me there." He reached over and started kneading the deer's head. "Does that feel good?"

"It always does..."

"But, for the headache, I mean."

"I'm trying to ignore it, but it's proving quite the challenge."

"Just try and relax and let the medicine work." Legosi moved to his side, careful not to dislodge Louis' hand. He kneaded in harder, rubbing with his thumb on the side of his temple.

Louis exhaled. "Your fur is so soft and soothing."

Legosi chuckled. "Maybe rubbing it will help relax you and get rid of the headache." He grunted softly as he moved closer, accompanying the rubbing with licks.

Louis made content noises. "Mmmh..."

The dual massage continued, and that, coupled with the pills, actually seemed to be taking the edge off the migraine. Legosi pulled himself closer, little by little, as he continued his work.

The deer felt bliss. It was all stuff he...he did deserve. He had suffered enough. He deserve to be happy. He wasn't sure when it happened, but Legosi managed to squeeze under him, and he now rested with his back on the wolf's chest.

Legosi licked the center of his head while both of his thumbs worked the sides. Their legs intertwined below.

The buck breathed softly, moaning in comfort. "Wow...have you done this before?"

"Well, in 701 this was our method for dispelling headaches. Not this intimate...of course." Legosi nuzzled down and sniffed Louis' fur deeply.

The deer rubbed his legs against his husband's. "Of course...That would be quite interesting..."

"What would be interesting?" Legosi asked, before licking again.

"If it was this intimate."

"Mmm, canines are close-knit, so I don't really see it as intimate. Any other animal might, though." The canine nuzzled him. "I never really asked you about deer stuff, but I guess I always figured you weren't too in tune with it?"

"Not really. Remember, I roomed alone. No friends, no anything."

"Yeah..." Legosi sighed. "I miss the Cherryton room. Mostly the bathroom being so close. But this is still more rewarding."

"We can do this," Louis said. "Your legs feel amazing."

"Like how?"

"So soft and warm...I guess that's all of you, though."

"I love being your big radiator." Legosi brought his arms and legs up to wrap around the deer while he dipped his snout down to rest over his shoulder.

"Forever..." Louis swallowed, feeling nervous.

"You okay? How's the head?"

"It's...hurting, but less."

Legosi quickly brought his hands back up to his head to rub. "Maybe we should be quiet and just relax."

"I bet you have a concerned face right now."

"...When don't I?" Louis wasn't sure if the wolf was joking or not.

"When you look at me, I can tell you calm down."

"Always." Legosi moved from his thumbs to his knuckles, rubbing them in harder.

"Hrrrnnghh..."

The dog stopped what he was doing after hearing that. "...Louis?"

"Y-yeah?"

"What was that sound? Are you okay? Did I hurt you?"

"I-I'm fine, Legosi..."

"Sh-should I keep doing that?"

Louis sighed. "Maybe...don't do that."

"Ah, I'm really sorry. " Legosi returned to using just his thumbs.

"It's okay, my love. I don't know what's up with me today."

"You have a migraine is what's up. " The massaging and licks returned to normal.

"We need to do more massages..."

Legosi hummed his agreement and continued his all-out assault on the migraine.

Louis moved his hand to feel the wolf's crotch fur again. Should he tell Legosi about the letter? It said...He'd be killed...

"What should we have for dinner tonight?" Legosi mumbled between licks.

"Wolf butt for me, deer butt for you," Louis joked.

The carnivore groaned, softly. "That won't work if your head still hurts. And I'm serious. If you're not well enough to make something I'll have to."

"Thought I would lighten the mood..."You can make noodles again, honestly."

"Well, I only bought those two cups. Maybe we could just order takeout." The wolf readjusted himself beneath the deer. "And what's wrong with the mood?"

"Oh...uh...Nothing. I don't know why I said that."

"We could get noodles from Bebebe again. I liked that place." Legosi moved his fingers up to rub Louis' ears.

"Legosi..." His mate gulped, looking down.

"Louis..." The wolf sighed, contentedly.

"The pillowcase..."

"Hm? What about it?"

Louis completely lowered his voice now. "There's something inside it you should see..."

Legosi froze, both in motion and in temperature. He gulped and reached beneath his partner's head. Sure enough, there was a piece of paper in there. He brought it out and noted the meat smell from earlier. He fought the urge to throw the letter across the room.

The buck stayed silent, still looking down.

Legosi slowly read the letter. Then he read it again. Then again. He felt dizzy. "L-Lou...honey...What is this?"

"I...I don't know."

"...What are you going to do?"

"You're going to pretend we never talked about this...And I'm going to go."

Legosi stiffened. "O-okay. Promise me you'll call the police if it's something bad." Louis could feel the wolf's heart racing beneath him.

"...I can't promise that," the deer said. "This has to do with the black market."

"I know," the dog sighed. "Maybe Gouhin-san would know something, then."

"I'm...afraid. Y-you know how I feel about the black market."

"I know." Legosi wrapped himself around Louis once again. "When did this letter get here?"

"While you were gone. He must have been waiting for you to leave, or something. It can't be a coincidence."

"And the numbers..." Legosi swallowed hard. He stroked Louis' cheek. "Shi..."

"Ichi..."

"Louis...I'm scared."

"I...I know. We can only hope it's nothing too bad..."

"You'll bring your gun, right?"

"I will. I won't let him lay a finger on you."

"Or you!" Legosi reminded. He could start to feel his own head hurt. Just as they had gotten past one hardship, another threatened their new life.

Legosi gripped harder. "It can't. We need each other."

"Even if it comes to...killing?"

The wolf paused. "I...I would kill anyone that tries to hurt you."

Louis wrapped around him, using his voice to help him do so. "I saw how you fought Riz..."

"Maybe I really should start working out and training," Legosi mused. "I noticed that I got a bit bigger after the fight with Riz."

"Whatever happens, we can't let this deer find out that you know about him. Your life depends on it."

"O-oh! So that red deer...is Ichi?"

"Well, yes. I...shared a cell with him when I was 5 years old. He has a 1 on his right foot. That day Oguma bought me...I protected him."

"Oh...well...I don't see why he'd want to do anything bad. It's just the whole...killing me thing that's really weird."

"Yeah..." His ear twitched. "You would...Really take someone's life for me?"

"If I had to. I'd try to knock them out or incapacitate them first, but...if I had to."

"I have a feeling Ichi's intentions aren't...pure."

"Yeah..." Legosi swallowed. He had the conviction, sure, but he wasn't sure if he was able to raise a claw to an herbivore. Especially if that herbivore looked like Louis. But what if he threatened Louis? What would he do? The wolf's breathing began to speed up.

"Why else would he threaten to kill you? Because he wants to come over and play board games?"

Legosi managed a small laugh, but his breathing still picked up. "H-here, let's move." He turned to his side and slid Louis off of him so they were spooning again, only this time, he wrapped around the buck almost completely, covering as much of him as he could.

The deer smiled, curling his legs up. "What if he plans to kill me right there? It could happen."

"Not in the middle of the cafe. That'd be crazy."

"You never know! We don't know what this deer is planning."

"Well, you'll have your gun," the wolf assured. "I could be nearby, too, but that might be too risky. I wonder how they think they would kill me."

"We shouldn't even be having to deal with this."

"I know. It's like the world is trying to prevent us from having a normal life." Legosi groaned and his head dipped down to rest on top of Louis' cheek.

"...I'll kill for you too."

The wolf knew he should have said something to dissuade the deer, but the warmth and safety he felt just from hearing that was too great. "...Okay. Thank you."

"Remember...No matter what, we're what matters. If Ichi has dark intentions, then we'll deal with it. I am never ever giving you up again."

Louis was saying all the things Legosi wanted to hear. His tail thumped against the floor. "Thank you. I'll always be here for you. I'll always support you and I'll always love you."

"Unless we're completely alone, you don't know about Ichi from now on."

Legosi nodded. "Got it."

"If you die...I'll...Join you."

Now that gave the wolf pause. "H-hey! I don't want that! There are still so many other animals that love you..."

"It's what I would want."

"This is like the Riz thing all over again, huh."

"Because I fucking mean it! Like you said! I can't live without you anymore! I have a bad feeling you would do the same if I died."

The wolf grew quiet. "I...I really don't know."

"Do you?"

"I...wouldn't want to hurt my grandfather like that. But...it'd hurt me to live without you."

Louis sniffed. "Yeah."

"We have to be really careful then." Legosi's ears folded back. "W-wait, he knew my name. Do you think he can hear us? Are we being spied on? M-maybe he's listening right now." A cold fear gripped his heart. Maybe it was already too late.

"I don't know. We'll need to search the house when I'm better. If it's too late, then...We'll have to get ready to fight again."

Legosi tried to slow his breathing. "O-okay, Lou. How's your head?"

"It's killing me still, but I'm trying to focus on you."

"M-maybe if it gets serious, we could leave the city or something. I don't know where, but maybe Oguma has a place somewhere." Legosi was desperately searching his brain for ways out.

"Well, come Wednesday, we'll find out. For now, let's enjoy what we have."

"Yeah...okay."