Edited to fix typos and add/remove some lines
The late year sun hung low as Haru made her way towards the gardening club from one of her final exams, knowing that she'll have to say goodbye to the various flowers she called her children, she paused at the entrance to that building before she moved to the edge, looking past the other club buildings towards where JC's cabin was, a small smile forming
'maybe he will carry on the club in my absence, he and Legoshi are the only one's I've managed to connect with since Louis left'
she turned and headed in and started her slow climb of the stairs, she had gotten used to climbing these stairs, for some reason, they never adapted them to allow small animals to climb, she paused on the landing just below the door to the gardening club, her ears twitched as she heard activity up there, she frowned gently as she ascended and approached the door, opening it slowly, she stared at the various animals tending to the many flowers she had cared for, pygmy elephants gently spritzing water over them while small sparrows were meticulously checking them for insects to remove, Haru silently stepped into the garden, seeing a total of around 12 animals, a moose carried a medium pot to another area, revealing JC talking to a wallaby, directing them to grab some fresh soil to transplant some withering plants into,
"JC?" he looked down as Haru approached him "what is all this?" she asked
"well, seeing as your graduating in a few weeks, I thought that I'd send you off on a positive note" JC explained as he kneeled, looking at everyone working "that, and it's a thank you, for being there to listen" he grunted as Haru hugged him, he gently smiled and returned the hug, a tear in her eye,
"thank you" she said "just make sure that you take care of them"
"i wont" JC said "but we will" Haru looked up at him, then around at the others, who had paused work to look at her "but, to make it official, care to give them a standing order" Haru hesitated before letting go and turning to them
"keep up the good work you're all doing, I appreciate that you're doing this" she said with a smile, they all turned to resume their work, JC stood
"i should get going, the Alder performance is in a week and I need to be there" he explained, Haru smiled
"no need to make excuses JC, get going" he nodded and headed off, Haru turned to guide the new members on how she managed to care for the garden alone.
JC sat on the alcove facing the stage as Kai shone a spotlight onto the practice stage, JC watched with a smile as Juno delivered her line, Pina on the stage with her, JC still wasn't sure what part he was playing, he silently sketched Juno in the alder costume, pausing as Pina delivered his line, a bit more dramatically then what was called for, he frowned as he noticed him delivering a line directly to someone right at the end, everyone staring in silence until Dom spilled a glass of water, snapping everyone out of it, JC slid down the ladder as a 5 minute break was called due to the reaction from the scene, passing Pina as he left the stage,
"that was….a bit much" Juno said as JC joined her,
"i know, but he passion he was exuding was amazing" he replied he walked to where Pina was "it was almost as if he wanted to die for real, but that's just….." his eyes widened as he looked in the same direction Pina was facing at the last part, he saw Riz standing there, staring at the ground, he gently gritted his teeth as he stared at Riz
'Pina, you fool'
"you do realise that you're toying with the devil?" Pina gently chuckled at this as he put his drama uniform into his locker,
"maybe so, but I'm just trying to do something about it because of the action, or lack there of, from Legoshi, but tell me, how do you know about this, JC?" JC frowned gently as he put his fedora on
"Legoshi isn't as tight-lipped to this as you realise" he turned to Pina "but what you're doing is dangerous, you saw what happened to Kibi, and he's smaller then you, just, and Riz is several magnitudes stronger then Tao is, he'd be able to split you down the middle, and I don't mean at the waist" Pina gently started chuckling again "this isn't a joke Pina" JC said, just as Bill and Kai walked in to change, he approached Pina and calmly said "just don't do anything too reckless, or have you already forgotten my warning when you first arrived" JC passed him as he, Bill and Kai watched him go,
"what was that all about?" he heard Kai ask,
"unsure" Bill replied "he seems more aggressive then normal" he didn't hear Pina adding any input as he left the club building, he paused and headed around the side, leaning against a wall he inhaled and sighed,
"didn't take your warning seriously I see" JC opened his eyes and found himself in a void, Jandamarra standing before him,
"no" JC replied "but I can tell that his pride in all of this will be his end, if not by Riz's claw, then by someone else's"
"you'll also have to be careful, I think that he knows that you know, or that he thinks you know" JC nodded silently as he heard his name being called, snapping back to reality, he saw Legoshi approaching
"hey man, you feeling alright?" he asked,
"I'm concerned about Pina" JC said "I'm worried that he'll do something stupid that might get himself killed" Legoshi's expression softened as JC said this
"i see" he leaned against the wall along side JC "are you showing concern for him?"
"not for him, no, but I don't think the school can survive, united, if there is another devouring" JC said, sighing gently "you saw the backlash from when Kibi was injured by Tao, I'm just worried that they might have to separate everyone"
"i know" Legoshi muttered "before Tem's murder, the drama club was the only place where herbivores were able to feel safe around carnivores, it feels as if the year is in a downward spiral"
"I'm gonna fight it Legoshi, I'm going to fight against this school becoming segregated, even if I end up being the last guy to do so" Legoshi nodded before the 2 walked off towards the school building, planning to spend a bit of time together, discussing the upcoming performance later that week before Legoshi had to leave to train with Gohin.
"for my whole life, I felt that I could take on the world, like I was invincible"
swords clanged together as their wielders duelled one another
"i fought many battles, slaying many opponents, all for the opportunity to become known, but then"
a cry of pain as a swordsman plunged their blade through the chest of another
"my wounds were deep, I felt my life fleeting, I was ready to meet the grim reaper, allow them to take me from this life, but, they never came, and my life, now full of pain, continued, years I spent wandering this world, seeking one who'll grant me death, my memories of who I once was fading, only being replaced by the desire to be free of my undying curse, and I believe that I have found the one"
JC watched Juno performing before the students of Cherryton, having finishing his monologue, something that Fudge wrote up several days ago in order to explain to the audience why his character was after a duel with Adler, he kept his glance away from the audience the whole speech, partially conveying that he was a mysterious character, but mentally not wanting to face the sea of faces watching them, even though he had met many people during the summer, that was more in his element, this was only something he came up with to help spice up the production, wanting to show everyone of the drama club that he was worth something
"this is my last performance for the year" he muttered to himself, knowing the entire school was watching "Sanu had pulled some strings to get the performance out early, so lets make it go over with a bang" he readied himself and stepped forward for his scene with Juno, the 2 of them exchanged sword blows as scripted, but he felt a bit of hesitation at one point, Juno brought her blade down as rehearsed, expecting JC to block, he blinked and instantly got out of his daze and slid back, not only shocking Juno, but most of the backstage crew and the audience
'what's wrong with me? Why am I hesitating, this never happened in rehearsals, maybe it's just jitters, knowing that the whole school is watching, instead of around half, but I need to focus on this'
JC lunged forward, swiping at Juno who managed to avoid the attack, resuming the regular fight, the blade-lock dialogue and quick catch went off without a hitch, as Juno delivered her line, JC glanced to sides and almost did a double-take, there, sitting in the front row, was Haru, he gave a gentle smile before delivering his line to Juno before pulling her up and finishing the scene, leaving the stage, pausing before leaning onto a box,
"you alright there big guy?" JC panted as he looked at Aoba "that ad-lib you made on stage before was impressive"
"that was no ad-lib Aoba" he admitted "i don't know why, but I hesitated for a moment, as if I was scared, I can't explain it"
"don't worry about it" Sheila said as she approached, readying herself for another dance number "we all had similar situations in our lives, it's nothing to worry about"
JC stared at her, he had heard that she and a sheep named Peach had gone out for girls day out together and her outlook on herbivores had changed, she mentioned how it had opened her eyes
"thanks guys" JC said as he moved to remove his costume, Bill stopping him
"hey now, no way you're getting out of this curtain call" he said "the incident with Louis is understandable, as was your mental state when me and Legoshi fought, but now, nothing is stopping you from staying this time, especially when Sanu requested we do a performance to end the year as part of the protest"
"i guess" JC muttered "just so used to being in the shadows"
"well you don't have to be anymore" JC's eyes widened as he looked up at Riz who walked over, he was thankful that he did have his mask on, so that they wouldn't see the fear in his eyes, Riz smiled and patted JC's shoulder, he could feel the strength behind it as he passed them
'still keeping up his illusion I see, well, hopefully the training Legoshi has been doing will soon pay off'
a short while later, the performance had ended, JC was escorted out back onto the stage by Bill as he and the rest of the main cast stood there as the curtains rose, the applause was overwhelming but he bowed with the rest of them, as he looked up, he spied Gon approaching the stage
"as usual a great performance by the Drama club" he said as he turned to them "now I present to all of you, our highest ranking Beastar candidates" there was scattered applause and murmuring when Gon said this, JC has heard that it's been a while since Cherryton had selected a Beastar candidate, and he was one of them and Juno was another "Juno, JC, please step forward" JC looked to the side as Juno stepped forward, removing the hat and skull as she went, JC followed, hesitating at first, but then removing his hat and mask
"these fine students have managed to stand out in society and unite us animals in their own unique ways" JC frowned slightly at this, he knew that Juno was more active in that then he was, but didn't say anything to oppose that decision "if either of you have anything to say to everyone, you may do so now" he and Juno glanced at each other, he saw that Juno didn't have anything to say, so JC stepped forward, inhaled and sighed,
"this year might've been my first, and I might've been apprehensive to try and fit in, considering what species I am, but over time, with the help of my closest friends" he cast a glance towards the Drama Club "i have found my place amongst all of you" he paused for a moment, some applause was heard "but" he added, waiting for it to die down before he continued "this whole year has had one terrible incident after another, the devouring of one of our peers, the kidnapping of another" he glanced towards Juno when he said this "the disappearance of one of our best, only for him to return, and to say that he was leaving, an accident that left another of my peers in the hospital, but then, the most terrible, horrible things happened not to long after that" he paused for effect, then glanced at Gon "the talks of having this school segregated" murmuring within the crowds and the rest of the Drama Club were heard "well, I'm not going to stand for that, I will fight this segregation, even if I do it alone, even if all of you are against me, for you see, it takes one light in a sea of darkness to signal some hope, so even if I am the only one to fight, I will not back down, I will see that Cherryton will remain united, even if it costs me everything I know"
JC sighed and left the stage, hearing the scattered applause uniting and becoming a booming roar, he removed the cape and puts everything onto a box and left the auditorium, knowing that many would try to come after him to find the reason behind what he had said back there, he paused and looked back at the door before heading off
'i need some time alone to think, I know I said that I would fight it, but honestly, I don't know how to fight it'
he stopped and looked towards the city
'but I think I might know someone who could help me, if he was willing to help'
night had fallen as JC headed into the black market, looking around silently, pausing when he saw 2 lions in suits standing vigil in front of a store, he approached them
"can we help you kid?" one asked as JC approached
"yes" JC replied, doing his best not to sound afraid "i wish to speak with your boss" the 2 chuckled
"really?" the other said "and what makes you think that he'd want to see you?"
"tell him that the cursed one is still waiting for the reaper to claim him" the 2 lions glanced at each other and one headed inside, not 20 seconds later, Louis stepped out and looked at JC, smiling gently as he spoke
"i figured it'd be you"
a short while later, JC, Louis and a lion he heard was named Ibuki were sitting at a bar
"so, that's the score huh?" Louis summarised after JC had finished talking, sipping a glass of gin "not only are you a 3rd generation of hybrid, but you are also a Beastar candidate"
"that's right" JC replied, sipping on his gin and gagging a bit, the taste burning his throat a bit "that's why I came to you Louis, you were the top candidate for Beastar, so I need advise on how to fight the segregation that's going to take place" Louis stared at JC silently as is pondering something
"Ibuki, leave us for a moment" the other lion stood and left without question "you know, Legoshi told me the same thing when we found him pilfering elephant tusks from the docks a short while ago, saying that the school needed me or something, but I know is well in yours and Juno's hands, you need to lead them to a brighter future" JC sighed
"that's just it Louis, I'm no leader" Louis' eyes widened a bit "a leader doesn't pass out whenever they see or smell blood"
"you know, I figured out that you saw the aftermath of Tem's devouring the night when I collapsed on stage" Louis said, JC looked at him "but I knew that you'd find a way to get past that, and you did, I've seen you here twice and you look the same as you did the first time you came into the Drama club, and on that day, I knew that there was something special about you, something I didn't think that you would see at the time" JC stared for a moment before looking into the cup in front of him "i don't give advice often, but believe in the abilities that you have, no matter how minor and use them to lead the students into the future"
JC nodded, downed the cup in one go and sighed "you're right Louis, I have to get over this the same way I got over my PTSD and the relapse I had, thank you Louis" he smiled gently as JC left, Ibuki rejoining him
"so boss, what did he want to know?" Ibuki asked, Louis gave a small smile
"just a pep talk to boost his confidence"