Chapter 2: Pride
The next morning, Legosi headed over to Gohin's office, same as always. The wolf ordinarily works nights, however, he wanted to check on Agata's recovery. He didn't really care about the black lion since he was a member of the Shishigumi, but he figured the sooner Agata revcovers, the sooner he would be gone.
He walked into Gohin's building and went over to room three. When he got there however, Agata was gone, and the room had been cleaned.
"Oh, Legosi, you're really early today," Gohin said as he walked up behind the large canine.
"Sorry sir, I just came to check on that Shishigumi lion," Legosi said as he turned to face his employer.
"He left about an hour ago. I deemed him to be in stable condition and I gave him some pain medicine. I also told him that if he worsened even a little, he was to come back here immediately. He tried to play it off like it was nothing, so I had to have a little 'talk' with him."
"Yea, I'm gonna go prepare a bed for him," Legosi said with a deadpan tone as he walked away.
"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?!" Gohin growled.
"Sir, with all due respect, the last time you had a 'talk' with someone, they spent an extra two weeks in your care," the wolf said as he gave Gohin a look of indifference.
"It wasn't that kind of talk, geez," Gohin said in annoyance. "I gave him a real talk, the kind I have with you."
Legosi's eyes widened. He wasn't expecting Gohin to have a talk like that to a Shishigumi, even if he was around the same age as the wolf. What Legosi knew that others didn't was that Gohin is able to use his knowledge as a psychologist to act almost like a father figure for young carnivores and give them great life advice.
"So… what did you tell him," Legosi asked, still showing his back to Gohin.
"The same thing I told you when we first met. That he was being stupid and that he wasn't invisible. Though, I think he took it a little harder than you did. I straight up said that no matter how strong he was or what gang he was a part of, he was still as vulnerable as everyone else. I even told him that I was stronger than him, but even I wouldn't survive a bullet to the brain," Gohin explained.
"Harsh but true," Legosi said with a sigh. "That describes you to a T."
"Damn right it does, and I don't plan on changing anytime soon," Gohin said with a hearty laugh.
"Well, if that's the case, then I'm gonna head home," the wolf said with a wave as he walked out the door. "See you tonight."
"Alright, take care kid, and make sure you get some proper rest," Gohin said with a wave.
While Legosi was leaving the area of the black market, he saw some lions walking by. Out of instinct, he hid behind one of the buildings before taking a peek. It was just another skill he picked up while working for Gohin.
When he took a look, the wolf immediately recognized the lions as the Shishigumi. Just the sight of them was enough to make his blood boil. He wished that they had disbanded the night he raided their base so he could rescue Haru. Out of all the gangs, they were one of the most influenced and the one he wanted to see burn the most.
As Legosi watched them pass by, he immediately recognized a few of them. They were Free, Dalph, and Miguel. He didn't bother learning their names at first since he thought he'd never see them again, but after he rescued Louis, the deer told him their names. He remembered how Louis explained that they became the new leaders of the Shishigumi after Ibuki died and he left.
From what Legosi saw, the lions didn't seem to notice him. The wolf was relieved to see that since the last thing he wanted was to get into a fight right now. It may have been a year since their last interaction, but Legosi could tell they still harbored a lot of anger and frustration towards.
With the lions gone, Legosi quickly ran towards the train station. He managed to make it without issue and felt a lot safer now that he was among normal civilians again. As he sat down however, he heard something that made his heart freeze.
"Hey, you're Legosi right?" the voice said as the train started to move.
The wolf turned his head and sitting next to him was Agata. The black lion gave the wolf a big smile as he waved his hand.
"I was hoping to see you again," Agata said as he scratched the back of his head. "I know this is late, but thanks for looking after me. I know our first encounter wasn't the best and I was hoping we could talk."
Legosi turned his head and looked down as he waved his hand dismissively.
"You don't have to thank me, I was just doing my job," the wolf answered.
"Even so, I really wanted to thank you, especially since I didn't get to last night," Agata said with a smile.
"It's alright," Legosi said in a slightly embarrassed tone. "How's your wound? If you're here, then I take it you didn't need to get a bullet removed."
"Yea, the bullet went through me and it didn't leave any metal or anything, so I was able to recover without any problems. I'm still a little sore, but it's nothing I can't handle. I'm just glad I didn't get in trouble with my bosses. It would have been hell if they found out," Agata explained.
"I see," the wolf replied in a slightly stern voice as he narrowed his eyes. "If you don't mind me asking, what kind of work do you do?"
"Huh?" the black lion said in surprise.
"I'm asking, what kind of work do you do?" Legosi said with a bit of malice in his voice, trying his best to hold back his growl. "You said that your job made you tough, so I assume your job involves a lot of physical labor. You may have recovered, but depending on what you do, you might have to take a day or two off."
"Crap, what do I say?" Agata thought to himself. "If I tell him I work for a gang, the Shishigumi no less, I might scare him off. Come on Agata, you gotta think about something fast."
"I'm uh… I'm a security guard!" the black lion said with a big smile.
"Seriously Agata, that's the best you can come up with!" the black lion screamed in his head as he started to sweat. "I mean, it's technically true, but still!"
"A security guard, huh? That must be pretty tough," Legosi said as he crossed his arms and looked at Agata with piercing eyes. "Maybe you should take a day off."
"No, no it's fine, it's not that hard," Agata said with an awkward smile. "I mostly stand by the door and keep an eye on everything. Sometimes I'll get called to stand by the meeting room door, but that's it. I'm really there for show for the most part."
"So, were you on duty last night when you got shot?" Legosi asked with a raised brow.
"No, I was on my way home at the time," Agata answered.
"So you work near the black market then?" Legosi asked. "Or were you just in the area?"
"Oh, I was just in the area, haha," Agata said nervously.
"What the heck, why do I feel like I'm being interrogated?" The black lion wondered.
"What were you doing at the black market?" the wolf asked in a more serious tone. "You say that you were just in the area, but I don't think that's the case. The alley I found you in was pretty deep inside the market for you to just be passing by. I don't like to make assumptions, but after everything that happened, I think it's safe to say that you were there buying meat. Is that right?"
Agata's eyes widened. He was completely taken aback by legosi's deductions to the point where it left him speechless.
"A-Are you a cop?" the black lion said nervously, as his ears folded back.
Seeing Agata become submissive triggered something in the wolf. He couldn't explain it, but he felt like he was in complete control of the situation, as if he knew that Agata couldn't disobey him. This caused him to lean in until he was uncomfortably close to the black lion's face, as if he was asserting his dominance.
"No, I'm just a doctor's assistant who knows exactly what goes on in the black market," Legosi said in a deep and intimidating voice as he stared straight into Agata's eyes.
"Because of your job, right?" Agata asked, trying his best not to appear as terrified as he was.
Legosi, feeling strangely satisfied, backed away from the black lion. He then put his hands behind his head as he leaned back into his seat and spoke.
"Yes," the large canine answered. "Like I told you last night, Gohin and I take care of carnivores in the black market. So obviously, I need to know what's happening just about every night."
"Yea, that makes sense," Agata said in a more relaxed tone. "Though, if you don't mind me asking, have you ever eaten meat before?"
Legosi gave Agata a stern look before looking down at the train floor.
"I did, and I hated it," the gray wolf answered.
"Did it not taste good?" the black lion asked.
"No, it was actually the best thing I've ever eaten, and that's why I hated it. I only ate it once, but it still took me a long time to recover. After I ate it, all I did was crave it, the taste of herbivore flesh. I would go crazy as I tossed and turned in my bed. I kept thinking, just one more bite. It even got to a point where I almost saw my friends as food," Legosi explained.
"Whoa, that's the first time I've heard of a reaction like that," Agata said with widened eyes. "What happened that made you try it? Did a friend of yours take you out one night so you could see what it tasted like or were you just curious?"
"Neither, I never wanted to eat meat," Legosi answered in a frustrated tone. "But I had to in order to stop a maniac from killing anyone else."
"Mania? Killing? What are you talking about?" the black lion asked.
"About two years ago, a friend of mine, an alpaca named tem was murdered and devoured by a carnivore, a student carnivore," Legosi growled. "To make it even worse, that student was Tem's best friend."
"What," Agata said in a surprised tone, trying his best to stay in his seat.
"His name was Riz, and he was a brown bear," the wolf said with a thoughtful look on his face. "He managed to hide himself for a while, but one night he tried to attack me and that was his biggest mistake."
"I managed to get away with only a few scrapes and bruises before returning to Gohin, who had already taken me under his wing. I won't go into specifics, but on the night I confronted him, I ate raw meat, which made my body grow and caused me to go feral." In the end, Riz was left a bloody mess on the floor and I was injured pretty badly."
"I don't really remember what happened next, except that I woke up in a hospital bed. Riz was arrested of course and I was able to heal, but it wasn't exactly a happy ending. I suffered so much because I ate meat and it took months for Gohin to help me. On top of that, my friends who were there with me got hurt by Riz and some of them are still in therapy even now."
"That's why I hate meat so much! It took nearly everything away from me, almost destroyed everyone I love and caused my classmate to kill someone who was important to us. So whenever I see one of those crazed carnivores in the black market, my blood boils and all I wanna do is see them suffer."
Agata was once again left speechless. He didn't know how to process all this. In the five years since he's joined the shishigumi, he's eaten plenty of meat and not once has he had a reaction like that. Even when he goes a week without having any, he's usually fine.
"Wow… just, wow," Agata said as he looked down at the floor. "I don't even know what to say to that."
"Yea well, don't take what I said too seriously," Legosi said as he let out a sigh. "I'm just stating where I stand in all this. I learned a long time ago that I can't and shouldn't force my beliefs on others. If you wanna keep eating meat, then go for it. I don't have any right to judge."
"Well, I for one always felt proud of it," Agata said as he looked up at the train's ceiling. "I'm a lion and I'm proud of that. I've always tried to embrace my nature as a carnivore since it made the most sense to me. Like, what was the point in lying to myself, you know. I'm a lion, a carnivore, and a big animal, so doing things like eating meat and using my strength just came natural to me."
"I'm not trying to convince you to eat meat again. After all, everyone is different and maybe you're just one of those animals that gets really bad reactions to things. You know, like when you get an allergy or when you get a shot and you end up getting sick because of it. Your body reacts to it in an extreme way."
"I don't know. I'm probably not making any sense, but I just figured I'd give you my two cents on. You trusted me enough to tell me your story, so I thought I'd say my piece. I'll admit, as scary as your story is, I don't think I'm gonna give up on meat, not yet anyway."
"Don't get me wrong, I'll definitely be more careful after what you told me, but I don't think I can change my ways just like that, you know?"
"Yea, I understand," the wolff answered as he looked at his travel companion. "But, you should understand something too. If you ever go feral, I won't hesitate to put you down if I need to. I'd prefer not to since I'd like it if you got the help you need, but if things get too bad then I won't have a choice."
"Hahaha, well if anyone was gonna put me down, then I'm glad it'd be you," Agata said with a laugh. "Better to be taken out by someone you know than a complete stranger."
"Really?" Legosi asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Sure, if it's someone you know, odds are they'll make it quick," the black lion answered. "Meanwhile a stranger would probably prolong it, even if they didn't mean to. For example, if some guy was robbing me and they shoot, odds are they'll run away while I'm left bleeding out and in pain."
"I… think I get what you mean," Legosi said in a confused tone.
"Well that's just how I see it," Agata said with a smile as he shrugged his shoulders.
At that moment, the train began to slow down as the voice told the name of the station they arrived at.
"Oh, looks like we're at my stop already," the black furred feline said as he looked up. "Well, I gotta go, but hey, if we see each other again, would you wanna talk some more?"
"I guess? I mean, if I'm not too busy," Legosi answered hesitantly.
"Great, see ya around," Agata said before disappearing into the crowd.
Sigh "What have I gotten myself into, Legosi asked himself with an exhausted look on his face.
It was 8:30pm and Agata was standing by the door, same as always. As he was keeping watch, he couldn't help but think about what Legosi had told him on the train. He never really thought about the carnivores who had gone crazy after eating meat, but after what the wolf had told him, he couldn't help but question it all.
Why would meat cause carnivores to go crazy? Why would a panda of all animals look after them? Why didn't he know about the back alley doctor? Are there other carnivores like Legosi who suffered so much just because of meat? It was all just so confusing for him.
As he thought about this, Agata heard someone call his name.
"HEy AGATA! YOU LISTENING OR NOT!" the voice yelled in anger.
The black lion jumped from the scare before turning his head. That's when he saw Free looking at him in frustration.
"Agata! Are you just gonna stand there or are you gonna answer me?!" Free said with a look that said he was about to punch the younger carnivore.
"Oh, sorry sir, I was just a little lost in thought," Agata said as his ears folded back.
"HA! Since when do you think?" Free said with a laugh. "Anyway, I came to get you cause it's time for dinner. SO hurry up, I'm starving!"
"Sure, that sounds good," Agata said with an awkward smile.
Agata followed free to the dining room where all the other shishigumi members were waiting for them. After he sat down, Agata was given a huge, juicy sirloin steak. The meat was beautifully prepared and it smelled like heaven.
"Wow, this looks even better than usual," Agata said with a big smile. "Is there some kind of occasion going on?"
"Of course not, don't be dumb," Free said as he sat down. "In fact, that's why we're having this. Things have been so quiet that we have been able to do whatever we want."
"So… we are celebrating?" Agata asked.
"Come now Agata, you should know by now not to take what he says seriously," Dolph said as he took a bite of his food.
Agata let out a small laugh before biting into his own steak. It was a very tender dish that practically melted in the black lion's mouth. The flavor of the juices washed over his tongue as he chewed it up, making him smile with sheer joy.
"Man that is good!" Agata said happily.
The Shishigumi members continued to enjoy their meal until they were interrupted by Free.
"Hey Agata, what were you thinking about earlier anyway?" he asked.
Everyone put down their forks as they all stared at Agata. They knew Agata was a lion of action, so it was very rare to hear that he had something on his mind.
"Oh, nothing really," the black lion answered. "My mind just wandered a bit. Things have been so quiet lately that I just short of spaced out.
"Are you sure about that?" Miguel asked in an intimidating tone. "You aren't the kind of person to 'space out' as it were, especially when on guard duty. So surely you must have been thinking about something important."
Agata, seeing that he was backed into a corner, let out a sigh and spoke.
"Well, it's just that I ran into this guy on the train. We had a nice talk and all but, there was something about him. He had this… gaze. I can't really explain it, but it was like he could see right through me. It was like I was wearing the toughest armor ever made, and he pierced it like it was nothing special. Which is funny because his eyes were so soft looking," Agata explained.
"Wow, a guy with soft eyes but with a gaze that could kill, I'd love to meet him," Free said in a very interested tone.
"You said he could see right through you. Do you think he figured out you were one of us?" Dolph asked.
"I wouldn't go that far," Agata answered. "He figured out that I'm a regular at the black market, but that's about it. Other than that though, he seemed like a really cool guy."
"Really?" Miguel asked skeptically. "And what species is he?"
"He was a wolf, and a huge one at that," Agata answered.
"How big?" Free asked.
"He was taller than any of us and he had the muscles of a pro wrestler," the black lion responded. "Which is kinda strange since wolves don't usually get that big. I didn't think much of it at the time, but looking back, it is a little weird."
"If he's eaten meat, it's possible that made him grow larger than the average wolf," Free said before taking another bite. "Just look at the carnivores in the black market. They're a lot bigger than the normal civilians. Hell, we're bigger than most of the lions you see walking around the city."
"That's the thing though, he said he's only eaten meat once and that he hated it," Agata said.
"Wait, he hated meat?" Dolph asked.
"Well, yes and no," the black lion answered as he scratched the back of his head. "He loved the taste of it, but it made him go nuts. He craved it so much that he became restless, stressed out, and even got dark thoughts. Like, that one bit of meat made him want it so much that he even thought about eating his friends."
"Sounds like he had a serious case of withdrawal," Dolph said as he crossed his arms. "I've heard of carnivores like that. How they needed to go to specialists because of their reactions to meat. It's not a very common occurrence, but I wouldn't call it all that rare either."
"Most of the time they just keep eating meat as a part of their normal diet and their bodies settle down. What IS rare however is a carnivore giving up on meat completely. It takes a lot of willpower to do that after being exposed."
"Did he tell you what kind of work he does? If it's an occupation that involves a lot of physical strength, that could have also played a role in his growth."
"He said he was a doctor's assistant. See, the doctor he helps is one who specializes in helping carnivores with their meat addictions. The doctor is also a psychologist who helps carnivore's with their mental issues," Agata explained.
"Really?" Dolph said with a raised brow. "Well, there goes that theory then. I highly doubt a doctor's assistant would have that kind of muscle mass."
"Oh, this one is different though," Agata said in a somewhat excited tone. "See, that wolf goes around the black market and searches for any carnivores that have gone crazy or feral because of the meat. When he finds one, he wrestles them to the ground and knocks them out so he can bring them to the doctor. From what he said, he's basically a modern day gladiator."
"If what you say is true, then it's obvious there's more to both this doctor and his assistant," Miguel said in a serious tone. "If I had to guess, the doctor most likely has formal combat training and experience. If that's the case, he probably passed on that knowledge to this wolf so he could take down the crazed carnivores while the doctor himself can focus on the treatment."
"What are you getting at?" Free asked.
"What I'm getting at, is that it would be wise for us to keep an eye on these two," Miguel answered. "Agata! It seems like this wolf trusts you, so I want you to get as much information out of him as possible. Find out where they work and see what you can uncover."
"Um, sure I guess," the black lion said in a confused and somewhat hesitant tone. "But wouldn't it be weird if I just showed up there and started asking questions?
"I thought you would have learned by now," Miguel said in disappointment. "I always have a plan.