Turning the page quickly, nearly ripping it off, Hiroshi continued to read the newest installment in the Super Sleuth Francis book series. It was a nice surprise to see the newest Super Sleuth Francis novel in his backpack, a gift from his mom no doubt. As soon as Hiroshi saw the gift he made a mental note to call her the next day to thank her. Hiroshi contemplated starting the book at night, because he knew that if he did, he would most likely stay up all night reading it. Hiroshi did decide to read it though, but he immediately decided to limit himself to only a couple of chapters.
Hiroshi finished the chapter he was currently on, and turned on his phone to look at the time.
1:00 A.M.? But I only read four chapters!
Looking back through the chapters he read, Hiroshi realized why it was so late.
Each chapter I read was 30 to 35 pages. And the print of this book is pretty small. Dammit! And here I thought I was limiting myself!
And to make matters worse, Hiroshi had stopped at a cliffhanger chapter. Detective Francis had just found the animal who he thought was the killer, dead, murdered in a room locked from the inside.
Should I really keep reading on? If I do, it will almost be 2 in the morning, and I need to wake up early to get ready for school.
As Hiroshi pondered his late night reading dilemma, he heard the sound of sheets being rustled, feet hitting the ground, followed by heavy footsteps. Hiroshi looked up from his novel, closed it before setting it down, and inched towards his closed curtain.
Who's getting up at this hour? Does someone have to go to the bathroom?
Out of pure curiosity, possibly from the Super Sleuth Francis novel he'd been reading, he took the curtain in his paw, and slowly pulled it open so only a sliver of the outside was visible. Focusing his vision on the darkened, nearly pitch black room, he saw that Legoshi's bunk curtain was open, revealing an empty unmade bed.
Hiroshi opened the curtain further, being careful to not make too much noise, and examined the room further. Aside from Legoshi's unoccupied bunk, the room was ordinary, with the quiet breathing of Collot providing a calming tranquility to the area. The sound of the dorm room door quietly opening made Hiroshi tense up. Seconds later, the sound of the door shutting, with someone trying to make the sound deliberately silent, followed.
Hiroshi let go of the curtain and sat in his bed, thinking.
Why did Legoshi just sneak out? Is it for drama club again? But none of the others seemed to know he was leaving, so it doesn't seem like it was planned.
Resting his head on his right hand, he continued to think about Legoshi's mysterious absence. Was he really just leaving for drama? Was it a secret rehearsal time for Adler? Did he forget a homework assignment and was simply going to the school building to retrieve it? These questions flitted through Hiroshi's mind as he sat with his legs crossed, his left paw on his new Super Sleuth Francis book.
Why does Legoshi always have to cause me worry? Is he just peculiar and awkward, or is he sinister and dangerous?
Hiroshi moved his hand from his novel and covered his face, letting out a muffled sigh.
How did no one else hear him leave? I guess I've been awake this whole time.
Collot's breathing continued to be the only sound Hiroshi heard as he thought about Legoshi's strange behavior. Hiroshi was disappointed that he was back to being suspicious of Legoshi, when earlier that night Legoshi had complimented him on his amateur detective skills.
Hiroshi laid down, covering himself with his bedsheets in the process. His head hit the pillow gently, the material felt good on Hiroshi's head, the softness of the pillow made him relax a tiny bit.
Even after laying down in his bed, Hiroshi did not feel sleep coming to him, that tiny spark of relaxation could only do so much. In order to ease his mind of his Legoshi worries, Hiroshi thought about some less concerning reasons as to why Legoshi had left.
He's probably just getting an assignment he forgot for one of his classes. A really important assignment, like a marine language paper.
As soon as that thought entered Hiroshi's mind, he regretted trying to reassure himself. He was brought back to the marine language class earlier that day, and he remembered Legoshi's piercing gaze, the gaze that made it seem like Legoshi was staring into his soul. And he remembered how Legoshi hadn't said anything to him except for that "hey" when he sat next to Hiroshi.
In fact, as he was now thinking about it, Hiroshi found it odd how Legoshi did not acknowledge the staring that had occurred in that seaspeak class.
He just didn't want to make a scene in front of everyone, after all, everyone was in the dorm.
Hiroshi turned over on his side, letting his Legoshi suspicions take hold of him. Despite letting suspicion bubble up inside of him, Hiroshi still wanted to believe that Legoshi was simply doing something for the drama club, or getting an assignment that he forgot in a classroom. He did not want to believe that Legoshi was a sinister, scary wolf. There was something in his compliment that made Hiroshi less intimidated by him, the compliment had made Hiroshi feel great and less ashamed of his lack of strength.
Well there's nothing I can do right now. What am I going to do, follow him outside? I'll just wait until morning to see if he did anything weird.
With that thought Hiroshi turned over again, now facing the curtain, and closed his eyes.
I really need to sleep right now. I can't stay up late worrying about my roommate when that'll result in me being tired and more likely to fall asleep during my classes.
Hiroshi took a deep breath and cleared his mind of all the Legoshi worries that had taken over his mind. He exhaled and instantly felt more relaxed. Sleep came to Hiroshi quickly afterwards, and his quiet, even breathing, combined with Collot's breathing, added to the peaceful atmosphere of the dark dorm room.
Sunlight filtered in through Hiroshi's still half opened curtain. The sunlight created a slim line on Hiroshi's pillow that caused him to wake up. He sat up slowly, the sleepiness still present in his body. He picked up his phone that was next to his pillow and turned it on.
6:45 A.M. I got almost six hours of sleep. I hope that'll be enough to get me through the day.
Hiroshi had never enjoyed waking up in the morning. He preferred to sleep in until his mom or sister practically had to pull him out of bed. While he missed being able to sleep in, he did not miss the yelling followed by physical dragging out of his bed (courtesy of his sister or mother), that occurred whenever Hiroshi didn't want to wake up.
Pulling his curtain back, Hiroshi saw the dorm room, now bathed in a gentle morning light. None of his other roommates had woken up yet. Hiroshi saw that Legoshi's curtain had been pulled back, preventing Hiroshi from seeing inside. He focused his hearing and knew Legoshi was in his bed sleeping, judging from the quiet, even breathing that filled Hiroshi's raised ears.
So Legoshi came back while I was sleeping? I'm still wondering what he was doing last night, or I guess I should say this morning.
Hiroshi thought about whether he should ask Legoshi what he had been doing this morning once he woke up, but decided against it. Once Legoshi woke up, his other roommates would no doubt follow him, and he did not want to make a scene, since Hiroshi's other dorm mates didn't know about Legoshi's temporary absence from the dorm.
Maybe he could ask Legoshi about it during seaspeak. Hiroshi also dismissed this thought pretty quickly.
He'd probably just stare at me with that uncomfortable gaze and not respond. Or he would realize I'm onto him and would threaten me.
Hiroshi silently laughed at that last part. Despite being very wary and kind of scared of Legoshi, Hiroshi still did not want to accuse him of suspicious activity. Even though smelling blood on a carnivore on his first night at Cherryton did instill some fear of Legoshi.
Hiroshi quietly got out of his bunk, being careful not to make too much noise, and headed towards the bathroom to get ready. Now that he was walking around, the sleepiness that previously dominated Hiroshi's body was starting to drift away, which made Hiroshi relieved.
He entered the bathroom and immediately realized that he needed to pee. Hiroshi quickly went to the toilet, and after urinating, went to wash his hands. He was about to brush his teeth, when he realized that his toothbrush and toothpaste were still in his suitcase that had been sitting in his personal closet since he had arrived.
Exiting the bathroom Hiroshi saw Jack standing next to his bunk.
"Morning Hiroshi," the golden retriever said, being careful to not let his voice become too loud, yet still having a cheerful tone.
"Good morning Jack." Hiroshi replied, smiling.
"You were the first one up? Wow, usually I get up first, then I act as the alarm clock for everyone." Jack laughed quietly as he said this.
"I'm honestly surprised I was able to wake up so early. I stayed up late reading a Super Sleuth Francis novel and I lost track of time." Hiroshi scratched the back of his head and smiled sheepishly.
"Super Sleuth Francis? I read a manga with that same title! It was pretty good, though some of the characters felt a little flat."
"What are you talking about? All of the characters in the books are written fantastically, they almost feel real!" Hiroshi half-shouted, before covering his snout, remembering that half the occupants of the dorm were sleeping.
"Maybe the manga was a bad adaptation, Jack said, shrugging, "I guess you'll have to show me how good the books are." Jack grinned.
Hiroshi smiled, happy to know that another beast was somewhat familiar with Super Sleuth Francis.
After Hiroshi and Jack's Super Sleuth Francis conversation, Jack started to wake everyone up. His good mornings were met with tired groans and yawns. While Jack was waking everyone up, Hiroshi retrieved his toothbrush and toothpaste and returned to the restroom to brush his teeth.
Soon Jack came into the bathroom to get ready, followed by the other roommates. While everyone was getting ready, Hiroshi noticed Legoshi among the waking up crowd. He noticed that Legoshi looked strange, he looked exhausted, yet jumpy at everything around him. When Hiroshi greeted him, Legoshi nearly jumped and his eyes widened, as if someone had scared him.
Now I definitely won't be asking him about where he was this morning. He'd probably jump out of his fur and scream.
The whole morning Hiroshi took note of Legoshi's paranoid behavior. He went about his morning routine shakily, yet he also seemed satisfied, like his jumpiness didn't come from fear but rather something else. Jack also took notice of Legoshi's behavior, constantly looking at him with a worried expression.
Eventually the group finished getting ready and headed down to the dining hall to eat breakfast. Legoshi continued to act very oddly, seeming satisfied but also anxious. Legoshi's behavior made Hiroshi worried, since he believed that his odd behavior was associated with whatever he had been doing earlier that morning.
I'll worry about Legoshi later, right now I should try to enjoy the morning.
Hiroshi focused on Jack and Collot's morning conversation, which Durham and Miguno occasionally chimed into. This calmed Hiroshi's worries a little bit, but worries about Legoshi were still present in his mind.
"So Hiroshi, tell me what makes the Super Sleuth Francis novels better than the manga." Jack's words pulled Hiroshi out of his worried thinking.
"Well, the first thing is that the novels always have fast paced openings. You are intrigued right from the first paragraph, and want to see what happens next," Hiroshi paused. "And the mysteries themselves are always engaging, they are hard to figure out, but make sense if you think about them."
Hiroshi continued to talk about his favorite series of detective novels, surprisingly enjoying every minute of it. Usually Hiroshi never liked being the focus in a conversation, but when the topic of conversation was mystery novels, he reveled in it.
Jack listened to his mystery focused ramblings eagerly, nodding his head and giving surprised looks when the moment called for one. Hiroshi appreciated having someone to talk Super Sleuth Francis with, even if Jack had never read one of the books (which was something that Hiroshi was going to change).
The group arrived at the dining hall and got in line for their trays. Hiroshi continued explaining why Super Sleuth Francis was phenomenal even as they waited in line. By the time he was done explaining, everyone had obtained their trays and had found a spot to sit.
Jack was about to contribute his own thoughts to the conversation, when the voice of principal Gon came on the intercom. Gon sighed heavily before speaking.
"I regret to inform the academy that last night, an herbivore student named Tem was murdered. We send our condolences to his friends and family. Police are investigating the circumstances behind Tem's death. In the meantime all classes will be suspended, and counselors will be available for students who wish to discuss this unfortunate event."
With those words the intercom shut off, and an uproar sounded throughout the dining hall.
"Tem was murdered! I can't believe it, I was just talking to him yesterday!"
"Oh my god, this is horrible!"
Hiroshi did not hear any of these voices, however. As soon as he heard the announcement of Tem's murder, he sat quietly, his paws on his kneecaps. The uproar around him became muffled, as Hiroshi sat in shock. The shock did not come from the murder, but rather the circumstances of the murder. If principal Gon was correct, then Tem had been murdered while Legoshi took his peculiar leave from his dorm room.