Her shoulders slumped. The girl sagged as if she were a balloon from which the air had been let out, and he embraced her.

"Sorry, Ju."

"But… why?" Juno barely uttered. She really didn't want to cry now, with her eyes and lashes all done up, but tears betrayed her, welling up in the corners of her eyes. Turning her head, the wolf buried herself in Louis's shoulder. He spoke with regret:

"I didn't manage to control it. The paperwork for the Beastar title, for the actual conferring of the rank, it's been going back and forth to the prefecture about twenty-five times. All this back and forth takes time, and Loggs, when he was acting, couldn't even submit the lists, and Malchasin – that is, Dwight – didn't bother with the school at all. He was looking for… ways to make money."

"And the new director simply didn't have time…"

"Yes. I literally found out from Loggs just an hour ago. I decided to warn you in advance so there wouldn't be such a shock on stage."

"Thank you, Louis. I don't like to appear… weak."

"I understand," he grinned wryly, then asked after a long pause, "How are you?"

"A bit better already," Juno sniffled, then said, "You know, I listen to myself… inside, and I think, I used to be so worked up. I mean, missing the Beastar rank used to be a real catastrophe for me. Twelve on the Richter scale."

"And now?"

"Seven. Maybe even six," she smiled, running her fingers across his cheek. "It still hurts, but not fatally."

"The second piece of news – a good one – awaits you after the performance."

"Louis! No! You won't leave me alone with this silly intrigue for several hours, will you?!" She instantly widened her eyes, then stomped her foot, frowning. The deer slyly squinted:

"I'm already leaving."

"So I allowed you to," Juno leaned her hands against the wall on both sides of his head. "Speak!"

"I didn't get it, are you bullying me now?"

"Ha… if only. That's not fair…" the female trailed off. "At least give me a hint!"

"Well… I have a small gift for you. A graduation congratulations. But – not now." Juno breathed out in relief:

"Oh, phew. Good. I have something for you too, by the way."

"Who else among us is the schemer," Louis said ironically, hugging her around the waist. She tilted her head slightly, playfully looking at him:

"That's it. Don't tease me."

"That's what you're constantly doing!"

"How am I teasing you?"

"With yourself, of course."

"Oh… then you'll definitely like the gift."

"You're a wolf, not a vixen, right?.. how do you feel after the exams, by the way?"

"Hmm… confused? Now I don't understand what I was afraid of. Everything went so easily that I was angry at myself for worrying all spring. And part of the summer." The deer affectionately stroked her cheek with the back of his fingers:

"You're just smart."

"Juno, dear, are you coming?"

At this moment, Louis really felt like a schoolboy – he quickly hid his hands behind his back, while Juno's parents – Elizabeth and Kimura – were looking at him expectantly, standing at the entrance to the auditorium. The head of the family vainly tried to hide a smile, but his lips quivered.

"Mom! Have you been standing there for long?!"

"About three minutes," Kimura kindly informed. "We didn't want to disturb you two. But you'll miss the entire graduation ceremony."

Entering the hall, they took their seats – the wolf family closer to the front rows, and Louis at the back, with the teaching staff. He glanced around in search of Legoshi, but no, the wolf didn't sneak into this event. Or didn't want to, or was busy, or was late… his friend was not very predictable when it came to matters not related to one of his long-standing habits like egg sandwiches. However, he would definitely show up for the play. Teachers took the stage, gave farewell speeches, and descended from the stage in a living stream. Luckily, the deer had insisted very persistently in advance to avoid such a fate. Enough television interviews, and even those rare flashes he would cut by a third. But in the end, an animal with sheets in its hand came out, whose appearance he did not expect. A tigress in a light gray pantsuit descended between the rows, and her face was familiar to about five or six animals in the entire hall. Others probably thought she was another teacher.

Rising, the tigress cleared her throat slightly and pulled the microphone closer to her. Her green eyes looked at the hall through the dazzling light of the spotlights, and her quiet voice sounded, amplified by the speakers:

"I am Tracy Gon. Few people know me, I don't belong to the teaching staff of Cherryton Academy and have never dealt with teaching duties, but this spring… my husband died."

There was a slight murmur through the rows, she tilted her head slightly and put aside the sheets with the prepared speech:

"I'm sorry for overshadowing this bright and joyful day, but I don't want to talk about it for long. Actually, I wouldn't want to at all… however, some of you may have known him as the former director of the Academy. And, without fear of this word, after his death, dark times have come for the school. About which very few still know thanks to a few animals. I didn't bring any gifts or awards… nevertheless, I would like to call to this stage the president of the drama club and its main, even only mentor, as well as a member of the board of trustees."

Louis still helplessly blinked as he found himself on stage. He didn't plan to speak now; the only thing that brought the deer into emotional equilibrium was being next to Juno.

He slightly lowered the microphone, saying smoothly:

"Thank you for the… albeit not very desired word."

Laughter echoed from the audience. Louis shrugged:

"I want to say – I'm not a hero. I didn't save anyone, and in educating students… you know, it's hard to reform sixteen-year-olds and older. Especially when you're only twenty-one yourself. But thanks to Juno's work and the cohesion of our drama club, we managed to get out of a dangerous situation without losses. I couldn't risk the students."

"But you did risk," a mischievous inner voice suggested.

"Someone else is missing here. However, since they weren't invited, I want to personally thank the Cherryton Police Department, some private individuals, and my friend Legoshi for their timely assistance in resolving the situation. And, you know…"

Louis rested his elbows on the lectern, adjusting the microphone once more. He said earnestly:

"I address the parents of the students who participate in the drama club. And to all parents in general. You may still consider them children, damn, yes, and they will always be your children. But it's worth noting that they have grown enough to help society. And I would like to individually thank several students for this – Pina, Tsutomu, Eri, Tao, Goro, Bryson, Kobayashi, Oris and, of course, Juno. Please."

He nodded to the girl, and she took her place at the microphone. She sighed:

"Louis… san talked a lot about working with the younger generation. And in turn, I want to emphasize the unity of our school and some clubs. We may not be an exemplary club since we've been involved in several tragic stories over the past two years… but I want to say that we… can exist together. Herbivores, carnivores, omnivores – these are names that were relevant millions of years ago, before we learned to think and fight our instincts. They are still strong; we are still the same animals who struggle with their emotions and intentions, but we are stronger."

"Where is she leading?" Eri whispered backstage as they gradually prepared for the premiere. Tsu replied in a hushed tone:

"I don't understand yet… although the bit about carnivores and omnivores coexisting, I liked that."

The serval discreetly tapped his arm.

"I received a lot from this school. Knowledge, upbringing… although, as the previous speaker said, it's too late to educate highschoolers. So, to shorten this part, I officially express my gratitude to Cherryton Academy, its administration, and the teaching staff for the education I received. But!" She grinned and subtly flicked her tail. "The biggest gratitude goes to my clubmates, senpais, who have already graduated, and kohais, who will only grow older next year, and to my… mentor, who once taught me to dance."

Juno cast a playful glance towards Louis, saying:

"Because they also taught me not to back down in the face of difficulties and to move forward. And that, I think, is the most valuable life skill. Thank you."

There were somewhat tepid applause from the audience. The tigress, standing to the side, silently approached her and hugged her, then did the same to the deer. He heard a quiet:

"Thank you. And Danica also says 'thanks.'"

Louis pursed his lips mechanically, then lowered his voice and asked:

"Can I hope that information about my involvement won't surface anywhere?"

"Of course," Tracy nodded. "But feeling ungrateful is beyond me."

"Is Danica all right?"

"Recovering. But I believe she'll manage, she's my blood after all." the tigress said calmly, but with a drip of devilish proudness.

"You're a strong woman, Tracy. My condolences for your husband and… try to keep living."

She silently nodded.

Catching up with Juno, Louis heard a quiet and disgruntled:

"I didn't even participate at all! You guys are the heroes, while I sat with textbooks in the evenings and then tried to organize the club and its work…"

"Calm down," he chuckled, gallantly escorting the girl to her seat. "Consider it moral compensation for the Beastars Program glitch."

"Oh, darn, I forgot to mention the play!"

"Loggs will announce it at the end anyway. And all your parents have had their ears buzzing about it from the club members."

Of course, it was worth coming to the play later, but some of the theater families were already here. Some had families, grandparents, siblings. All these animals, despite their buzzing ears, watched the graduation ceremony with interest – probably imagining how their child would stand in a gown like that in a year or two and might even give a graduation speech.

Juno, however, didn't drag out her graduation speech. She had fought for marks until the last minute, studied tickets, and felt she had said everything she wanted to during her first appearance on stage. However, she was entrusted with the honor, and the vixen had to maneuver to avoid repeating the official thanks.

"It's strange to end up on stage for the second time tonight, and those who are waiting for the play know that this isn't the last one," Juno smiled at the audience. "I can't add much – just sincerely wish everyone graduating with me today to find their place in life, and may it be warm, cozy, and worthy of you. Thank you all, and see you in half an hour."

Similar to universities, the animal students didn't throw caps in the air, and they didn't have any caps anyway, just dark shiny gowns. However, the graduates still received their share of triumphant music, after which they all threw up their school diplomas with transcripts and scattered from the stage, heading to their seats.

The concluding speaker – and some were already noticeably yawning – was Richard Loggs. He pledged allegiance to the "glorious traditions of Cherryton" and dryly promised to "continue the work of the previous director in educating worthy members of society and providing them with a school education." And in the end he briefly announced the play "Pygmalion" by Bearnard Shaw.

Louis was quite proficient in bureaucratic language himself, but the English dog's speech was arguably the worst example of it. Emotionless, standard, as if he was fulfilling a duty. Humming to himself, he remained seated, waiting for the families of the graduates to clear out. They probably weren't planning to linger, but the director's skillful speech just now likely convinced the wavering ones.

Among all the other assorted figures, familiar horns flashed by quite literally. Rising, the deer called out:

"Pina!"

The ram turned his head and waved his hand in greeting. Louis mouthed "What's up?" to which he received an extended thumb. Odd. He's unusually silent today. And this black sweater, thin as it was, but in the middle of summer?

The director stood up and began to push through the departing crowd. Going backstage and passing by the others a little further, towards the inconspicuous white door, he found Dall the ram in the room they were planning to use instead of the dressing room. Pina briskly arranged his brushes, shadows, and other belongings – there was an agreement that he would slightly age the characters' appearances so they looked older.

"So… what's the matter?"

"Hello, Louis-senpai," the ram said in a hoarse voice. "Seems like I lost my voice a bit."

"In July? Did you go to the ocean at night again?! Rex tear your ass… what do we do now?"

"Play it as it is. A phonetics professor with a slight hoarseness – that's sexy."

Louis frowned:

"Pina, that's not just a slight hoarseness. You sound like an athlete after a marathon. Alright, come here."

Ignoring the protesting hoarseness, he pulled the ram by his collar and presented him to the club's community. Kibi raised an eyebrow:

"If you wanted to show us something new, Louis-san, we've seen this already."

"Oh, great, Legoshi. Finally." raised his hand Tao.

"Is everyone here?" the wolf, who had burst in behind the curtain, asked worriedly, breathing heavily. "Oris?"

Gibbon, sitting on the bench with his legs stretched out in a relaxed manner, also saluted. Then Legoshi noticed Pina, whom the deer was holding, and his eyebrows shot up:

"Pina? Louis, what happened?"

"This piece of sheep managed to catch a cold somewhere."

"But I didn't catch a cold," Pina still hoarsely replied, freeing himself from the deer's grip. "Just lost my voice a bit."

"Not just a bit," Tao echoed, adjusting his shirt.

"Are there any methods to quickly get the actor back to normal?"

Yuki timidly suggested:

"I heard that real theaters use medical throat freezing…"

"First time I've heard of it," Louis shrugged. "And we don't have anything like that here."

The panther smirked:

"If Bill was here, he'd say that good exercise helps with any illness…"

"Exactly," Legoshi said eagerly. "Physical exercise! Pina, can you do push-ups… well, as many as you can?"

The ram grumbled:

"Do you want to kill me?"

"Come on, come on," Louis commanded. Legoshi nodded in approval. With a look as if he was being led to the execution, the ram pressed his palms against the floor and began to slowly do push-ups.

"Seven… one more! Eight…" counted Legoshi, but on the eighth push-up, the ram collapsed to the floor and lay still for a few seconds, breathing heavily. Then he got up on his knees and finally straightened up, coughing spasmodically. With irony, he asked:

"What's next? Dissection?"

"Better, but not by much," Louis assessed. Someone exclaimed from behind, there was a rustle, then Eri appeared among the sympathetic and curious crowd with a silver blister. She took out a yellow semi-transparent tablet and handed it to Pina:

"Sorry, totally forgot I had these. Herbal, soothes the throat."

"Why didn't we start with this right away?" the ram grumbled hoarsely. However, he took the tablet and silently began to dissolve it.

"Alright. Goro, Tsu… who else? Fumiko – all three of you, to Pina for makeup. Pina, for heaven's sake, stay silent until the start of the play."

With dissatisfied gestures, he indicated that he had tried his best to remain silent.

"How much time do you need for each?"

Three fingers raised upwards. Then a fourth one added. The deer nodded:

"Alright."

Tia, the Vietnamese pig, timidly remarked:

"Louis-san is just like a dentist…"

"What do you mean?" he looked at her in surprise.

"First, he tells you to be silent, then he starts asking questions you can't answer with 'yes' or 'no'," Bryson chuckled with a muffled laugh, continuously adjusting his uniform and coat over it.

"Take off your coat for now, you'll roast," Kibi rightfully pointed out. The buffalo looked at him in confusion, then realized and took off his street clothes. He even unbuttoned his uniform, revealing a cheerful t-shirt with cartoon characters. Tsu snorted and quickly looked away.

"Kibi, is everything okay with the props?"

"Everything's in order," the anteater nodded importantly. "Space behind the curtain is limited, but we've managed to arrange everything so that even from the front row it won't be visible. Columns here."

He nodded sideways, where against the wall stood four cardboard columns, skillfully painted to resemble reddish-gray street marble. Dave and Mokichi did a great job with the paints, and Kibi himself reinforced the initial structure with tape, a stapler, and expressions not entirely acceptable in school.

The deer walked to the stage and peeked outside, checking the clutter behind the curtain – the animals were supposed to go in different directions, and it was necessary to provide them with enough space to hide from the audience's view. And Juno and the four performers of various episodic roles had to change their costumes as well. Finding the situation satisfactory, he looked into the hall. Minus one fear – the seats vacated after most of the parents left were now occupied again by two-thirds, and new animals were coming in. Club members' parents were gradually moving to more comfortable seats for viewing, someone was fiddling with a digital camera, and some were sitting and scrolling through something on their phones, waiting for the play.

In the front row, Louis noticed a couple of herbivores who, seemingly, didn't match each other at all – she, the Dall's sheep with extremely well-groomed wool, in a beautiful airy summer blouse, a light skirt resembling office wear but more casual, and sandals. And he – bulky, clearly strong, in a cap with a silly square visor, a vest with lots of pockets thrown over a dark t-shirt, and jeans. Blue-eyed. Heavy twisted horns sticking out through the cap. His face adorned with a couple of visibly unpleasant scars.

However, then the red deer saw how this rough-looking guy gently squeezed her delicate fingers, and decided that it was, after all, none of his business.

He'd seen even less suitable for each other pairs.

It had been just over five minutes, but the hustle and bustle behind the scenes didn't subside. Beasts occasionally peeked out from behind the lowered curtain, Goro stood by the wall nervously rubbing his hands.

"Everything okay?" Louis asked him, once again passing back and forth. Thinking they might have suddenly forgotten, the deer didn't immediately notice the predator's emotional state.

"Fine…" the lion sighed, running his fingers through his mane. Louis immediately briskly removed them – there was a gray streak, skillfully added by Pina to his already white mane, which remained unharmed. "It's just… the first performance. And my father's in the audience."

"I'm nervous too, to be honest," Tsutomu, who was approaching them, noted without showing any signs of nervousness. "Especially after Pina temporarily switched to sign language and said something strange to me. It was either 'you'll do fine' or 'you're a cross-eyed fool.'"

"You're a cross-eyed fool," Eri lightly nipped at his neck. "And, of course, you'll do fine. Remember the words?"

"Well, yeah…"

"And your voice will make the females squeal, I guarantee it."

"And what about the voice of a sick ram?" Louis asked rhetorically with a sigh. Bryson also sighed, but didn't say anything.

"Stop shaking, ya mighty ox," Tao muttered quietly.

"It's easy for you to say, you've been in the club for so long!"

"With a year's break, Bryson-kun. With a year's break…"

"Everyone come here," came the voice of once the most shy club member. Legoshi twitched his ear in puzzlement, as almost instantly, most of the drama club gathered around him. Even the play director approached with curiosity. Nevertheless, in his typically calm manner, he said:

"Remember not long ago we had an assistant director working with us? Practically just for food."

A couple of chuckles. The wolf continued:

"She had a method to deal with stage fright… and pretty much anything else, to be honest. Come here."

Spreading his arms with carefully trimmed claws, he embraced the animals nearest to him – by strange coincidence, it turned out to be Juno and Gadzmir, who promptly broke free with a disgruntled look, barely avoiding scratching the wolf by his spines. In his place, Nora slipped under the wolf's arm, rubbing her head against his fingers as if by chance. Juno held Philip with her free hand, somewhere between the girls, Ryu squeezed in, fortunately keeping quiet – it seems Fumiko's upbringing had paid off for him – and so they all ended up in a large, uneven, multi-height circle. The panther had it the worst – he found himself between his friend Kibi and the equally short Tia, but Tao gracefully solved the problem, knightly bending his knee.

Bryson firmly grasped Goro's shoulder, saying:

"Let's show them, guys."

"Thanks, Colonel, but could you release my shoulder?"

"Oh, right," Louis said happily, seeing how everyone joined in the general embrace. "For the next five minutes, communicate only as your characters."

Pina silently raised his hand.

"Except for you, of course."

"Well, do you feel the shoulder of your clubmate?"

"I felt Bryson's hand," grumbled Goro. The buffalo slapped him on the back:

"At least the bad thoughts are gone!"

"All thoughts are leaving me right now, stop waving your arms!"

"Sorry, sorry."

"Don't forget, Colonel, you're talking to a gentleman and father of two not very lucky children."

"Why not very lucky?" Tao protested, standing up and stretching his arms. Goro replied with a stone face:

"Because one leopard has too much melanin, and the other is a bandicoot. I suspect Mrs. Mandrill didn't tell me everything…"

The school troupe laughed and finally scattered into individual animals, pairs, and trios.

Louis approached the curtain again, smiling quietly. There were about three minutes left.

"Still pulling towards it?" Legoshi asked.

"Not anymore. I've done my part, all that's left is the love for theater and the desire not to misquote Adler. Are you going to help Oris?"

"He'll manage. I've trained him well, and he has his own agility, naturally. I think he's already handling the spotlights more skillfully than I ever could. But admit it, you're drawn to it too…"

"Maybe. If I were to step on stage completely, not as a discounted item, battered and bruised. If I had both my legs there instead of one. Although… Sisu has made the life of a cripple almost normal. Except for the fact that I can wiggle my fingers when I unstrap the prosthetic – that's scary."

"Yeah," Legoshi chuckled. "Well… if you want, both your legs can be on stage."

The deer slowly turned his head, simultaneously widening his eyes. He searched for words and couldn't find any. Finally, he shook his head incredulously and smiled:

"All right… I've been feeding you terrible jokes all spring. It's only fair."

Legoshi noticed:

"But you're smiling."

"It's a smile of awkwardness and politeness," Louis stretched his lips even wider, not wanting to hold back.

"So I thought…"

"Better tell me, where's that shy wolf who's afraid of social interaction? Where did you hide him?"

"He's sitting inside and afraid," Legoshi replied with a barely noticeable shrug. "But now – of me."

The deer snorted:

"You're not scary at all."

"And that's good. I shouldn't be scary to my best friends."

"Third bell," Louis said, looking at his watch. The wolf perked his ears up:

"What?"

"Well, they don't give us those… I mean, it's time to go to the audience hall. But don't judge us too harshly," the deer winked at him. "It's our first play after a long break." Legoshi nodded understandingly and left the sacred territory.

The sets were ready. The sound guy froze in place, the animals took their starting positions between the columns, and their invisible and inaudible gibbon – just like the wolf once did – was presumably somewhere up high.

"It's time," Louis nodded and pressed the curtain lift lever himself.

"Pigmalion" began.

From the first lines, the audience cautiously listened to what was happening – few people these days read classical plays, even such light ones with a touch of satire as Shaw's "Pygmalion." And they relaxed a bit when they saw a truly wet cat – Tao had slightly miscalculated and splattered not only the bottom of his pants and the sleeves of his shirt but also his face, and smeared the rest of his clothes. Laughter erupted.

However, the rest of the play was more serious than humorous. Thank goodness, Pina had managed to recover, and now spoke with that slight hoarseness that his epithets usually implied. Juno, on the other hand, burst into the scene vigorously, naïvely, energetically, slightly mispronouncing words, as befitting a simple flower seller. Her imitation by the ram's words elicited more sympathy from the audience, and when the colonel showered her with a handful of coins and didn't take the flowers, brief applause echoed from the audience. The she-wolf inspired the spectators.

As if there were no bad news he had told her before the graduation ceremony.

Tao, in turn, wasn't a drama genius, but he convincingly handled the role of Freddie, indecisive yet in love with Eliza unrequitedly. The action in Professor Hedgehoggins's study also went well, albeit less dynamically. But Alfred truly shone – Tsu was less nervous than the others, and at the premiere, he seemed to have revealed himself in a new light. The lowborn creature, cunning yet maintaining genuinely gentlemanly dignity, was demonstrating both of his best and worst sides, as he was essentially trying to profit from his own daughter. For which he was named a moralist by Pina and released with five pounds.

Alfred Dallittle, indeed, evoked mixed feelings, but that's how it was intended. But in the third act, Juno caused a mild furor. The theatergoers who loved to attend all premieres usually sought a certain specific magic in the performance, capable of satisfying their refined taste. For the schoolchildren and their parents, however, the magic of transforming from a commoner into almost an aristocrat proved to be sufficient – the she-wolf now impeccably observed manners and presented herself as if born a duchess.

However, the professor continued to consider her an experiment. Even for a bet. And whatever poor Eliza did – argued, threw household rags at him, appealed to the justice of his new acquaintance, Colonel Piggering, his own mother – Pina stubbornly behaved like a ram. But after the ball scene, where Goro in the background vainly tried to get acquainted with noble ladies of any kind and title, the clouds slightly thickened. The last words in the dialogue with Alfred, where he arrived already in the guise of a gentleman and began to accuse Hedgehoggins, Pina barely managed to finish hoarsely. He was saved only by the dance, during which the audience laughed much more than at previous moments – Tsu's awkwardness came in very handy, as did the contemporary melody.

And after Pina's scene, he whispered hoarsely behind the scenes:

"I'm done."

"Think of what to do," Ellie looked around helplessly, massaging the yet unborn star's neck with her fingers. "I've already given him the third pill, it doesn't help anymore."

"And I can't do any more push-ups," the ram whispered under his breath, with a wry smile. Tsu said uncertainly:

"Maybe tea? Grandpa always gave me hot tea when I caught a cold…"

Louis frowned:

"That's a temporary measure. Pina has a lot of lines, he'll definitely lose his voice by the third act."

"Wait," the she-wolf touched his shoulder. "Don't we have a scene at lady's home? With servants and all that?"

"Yeah…"

"Then we can bring tea right onto the stage! Let Mr. Pierce bring it out, and Pina can drink and speak."

"It might work," he murmured.

"Where can we get hot tea between acts in three minutes?"

Fumiko thoughtfully said:

"I saw an electric kettle at the warden's of the female carnivore dormitory. She always has it full."

"Too bad there's no cheetah… or Legoshi," Louis said regretfully, the cat waved her hand:

"There's a serval. I'm already done with all the dancing, I'll go now."

And she dashed off.

"Do servals run well?" Kibi asked in surprise. The flying fox thoughtfully replied, lovingly stroking the dark green cauldron:

"Well, her legs are strong… so I guess she runs well."

Kibi stared at him silently. Gradually, all eyes turned to Tsutomu, who desperately blushed and lowered his gaze, muttering hoarsely:

"I meant about the dances. Don't think anything weird."

"And what about during the salute?"

"There was nothing," the fox stubbornly repeated.

And "Pygmalion" rolled on. Pina, who had undergone a session of recovery by all means possible, spoke again, fortunately not too expressively – he was lucky with the words at the beginning of the fifth act. But then a panting, heavily breathing cat rushed in and showed a kettle, a couple of tea bags, and even a small neat cup with a golden rim. Louis said excitedly:

"Alright… find something similar to a tray."

He approached the edge of the curtain and snapped his fingers twice. It was a signal for Fumiko's line.

"Mr. Pierce, dear, bring us some tea," the skunk said softly but with a condescending aristocratic tone. The gavial came out with a tray in his hand and carefully placed it on the table, the steaming drink was clearly visible to the audience. He asked:

"Anything else, Mrs. Hedgehoggins?"

"No, thank you."

And after a little improvisation, the scene went smoothly. Without any affectation – his behavior as a absent-minded scientist justified it – sipping tea, Henry Hedgehoggins came to life and energetically engaged in the dialogue. And after he was left alone on stage, thoughtfully jingling coins in his pocket, the curtain began to slowly descend. But that wasn't all. From the left side, Bryson placed one of those chairs that had been used in the previous scene, and Oris turned on a spotlight in the opposite corner. Soft amber light distracted the audience's attention, and then proceeded across the entire stage to the chair where Louis was already sitting. With a book. He wanted to put on glasses, but decided that they would introduce unnecessary nuances into the character. After all, Shaw, according to contemporaries, didn't wear glasses even in old age.

"This being the state of animal affairs, what is Eliza fairly sure to do when she is placed between Freddy and Hedgehoggins? Will she look forward to a lifetime of fetching Hedgehoggins's slippers or to a lifetime of Freddy fetching hers? There can be no doubt about the answer. Unless Freddy is biologically repulsive to her, and Hedgehoggins biologically attractive to a degree that overwhelms all her other instincts, she will, if she marries either of them, marry Freddy.

And that is just what Eliza did."

He stood up and slowly walked along the stage, holding the book in his hands. The spotlight inexorably followed him.

In reality, the deer had reread the afterword so many times that he had long since memorized it. However, the audience needed to create exactly such an impression, mood, reflection of the main characters in the mirror of an impartial observer.

"She knows that Hedgehoggins does not need her, just as her father did not need her. The very scrupulousness with which he told her that day that he had become used to having her there, and dependent on her for all sorts of little services, and that he should miss her if she went away (it would never have occurred to Freddy or the Colonel to say anything of the sort) deepens her inner certainty that she is "no more to him than them slippers", yet she has a sense, too, that his indifference is deeper than the infatuation of commoner souls."

Thoughts suddenly buzzed like an angry swarm of bees. Never attempting to compare, he might overlook the most important thing – his relationship with Juno. More precisely, their very beginning, over a year ago. His pedestal of pride and her unrestrained emotions.

Fortunately, their play clearly intended a happy ending. Louis continued, looking over the book at the quiet audience:

"She is immensely interested in him. She has even secret mischievous moments in which she wishes she could get him alone, on a desert island, away from all ties and with nobody else in the world to consider, and just drag him off his pedestal and see him making love like any common animal. We all have private imaginations of that sort. But when it comes to business, to the life that she really leads as distinguished from the life of dreams and fancies, she likes Freddy and she likes the Colonel; and she does not like Hedgehoggins and Mr. Dallittle. Galatea never does quite like Pygmalion: his relation to her is too godlike to be altogether agreeable."

For a moment, the thought of Nobu and the Slaughter, of the offspring of darkness and light, flickered, but the deer dismissed these foolishness almost instantly. It seems the past remained in the past.

He elegantly closed the book and, in the fading light of the spotlight, pushed aside the lowered curtain and disappeared.

The light went out completely. And then, again, it flared up, but now the entire row of lighting flooded the heavy fabric rising up.

Applause erupted – at first timid, then, like a drumbeat, someone from the back rows began to clap mercilessly, and when the faces of the actors who came out for the bow finally appeared, the hall applauded vigorously. Some even stood up. A couple of camera flashes flickered.

"We did it," Juno said with the corner of her lips, smiling. Pina nodded silently and almost imperceptibly. Then he whispered:

"Yes, we did it. You have great talent."

"Honestly, you too…"

And, taking each other's hands, they bowed together – as did the whole chain of characters.

The applause didn't stop, on the contrary, it intensified. The animal actors didn't quite understand what to do, many of them encountered a full house for the first time, applauding to them. Some, if not personally. Louis saved the situation, smoothly lowering the curtain again, but some had already jumped down – with jubilation and happy faces, to ask for the opinions of parents and friends.

The deer wanted to find Pina, who had disappeared somewhere, but a pair of wolves blocked his way, Elizabeth embracing a rather embarrassed Juno in a lavish Victorian dress. Kimura stood a little apart, talking on the phone with someone.

"Louis-san, I must tell you… if this was your idea, it's brilliant!"

"We agreed to just Louis, Elizabeth-san."

"No-no," she shook her head, "I cannot show any less respect to someone who creates such art."

"So, all the credits to old Bearnard. And for the acting efforts, you should thank your daughter," the deer smiled. "Juno, I'll take care of the props, the reviews, the school journalists, and we'll meet at the park by the old maple tree. Okay?"

"Fine," she warmed him with a loving gaze. "Mom, how about ice cream?"

"Good idea. And you did great. Both with your grades and with the theater. Maybe you want to apply to drama school?"

"I'll think about it," the young wolf lowered her gaze. "And I need to talk to Dad."

"Kimura is too important animal to participate in family scenes, you see," her mother said ironically, though a playful and kind note was evident in her mind.

As promised, he systematically dealt with all the urgent matters. A couple of scenes surprised Louis, although he didn't show it – for example, the fox family surrounding jackal Kobayashi and clearly treating him like a relative. Or Tia, who suddenly found another ten or twelve almost identical siblings of various ages.

However, what raised his eyebrows was the street scene.

The ram was heavily clapping, not just clapping, but simply beating his fragile offspring on the back with his strong palm. Pina dodged, it was evident that he didn't enjoy the approval procedure.

"Dear, don't cripple him, please," the ewe finally intervened for her son. The head of the family muttered awkwardly:

"I… just… you're doing great, son! Maybe they'll offer you some role on TV."

"Just not in one of those terrible series of yours, Jack…"

A hoarse objection quickly followed:

"Dad, theater is a high art! It can't be compared to some daily show…"

"Listen, lil'horn, I'm not saying anything. But on TV," he winked cunningly, "they pay more."

Seeing that Louis was looking at them, Pina made a scary grimace. Like, if you tell anyone – I'll ram you. Especially about "lil'horn".

Smirking, the deer took off his jacket and threw it over his shoulder, turning away from the tight family circle. Even the evening already felt hot, there was no point in formal wear. He headed to the park.

Not far from the spreading maple tree, already in casual clothes, the she-wolf was waiting for him. Her eyes sparkled mysteriously, but Juno assumed an extremely modest posture. Like a misbehaving student in front of a teacher.

"What a modesty," Louis kissed her cheek. "Did you wait long?"

"Just got away from my overenthusiastic mom. Sometimes there's just too much of her…"

"I sympathize. So… who goes first?"

"What? Ah! Gifts… completely slipped my mind!"

"I do have some experience as a manager," the deer chuckled. "So?"

"Let's start with you."

"Okay. Honestly, I was also upset about your status at Beastars."

"Forget it," she grimaced with annoyance. "It didn't work out, well, forgetting and moving on."

"But no one will take that away from you," Louis said, taking the jacket off his shoulder and pulling out a wide, thick piece of paper from the inner pocket. Golden letters and some stamps caught Juno's eyes, her own name… but the inscriptions swam before her eyes, and she couldn't find any keywords. Perhaps it was the excitement after the performance, so the girl had to ask:

"What is this?"

"It's a certificate for courses at the Kiryu Masukawa Flight School. It's three hundred miles away, but they have dorms… and, honestly, it's the closest thing I could find. The closest decent thing."

"Flight… school…" Juno repeated and almost dropped the certificate from her disobedient fingers, but then she pressed it to her chest, crumpling it slightly.

She had told him about it only once. Or twice. That someday she dreams…

In just a few short seconds, wet trails had already traced their paths from her eyes. The she-wolf threw herself into Louis's arms, he had to step back to avoid falling and embrace her, stroking her and not even trying to decipher her words, because the girl's speech had temporarily turned into a series of incoherent sobs. Then she pulled away from the embrace and, tilting her head, gave him a long and passionate kiss. Shaking her head, she stepped back:

"You remembered…"

"Isn't the point of loving someone to know something about their passions?" the deer raised an eyebrow. Juno chuckled, wiping away tears:

"It's not a passion, silly deer, it's a dream…"

"The certificate is valid for five years, the course lasts only six months. You can finish college calmly, and there will still be time left. Or you can go now. It's up to you to decide. Or you can take additional courses later, for the other air vehicle class. Or even…"

"Don't rush things. I… hardly can decide anything right away."

Her voice sounded quietly, almost subdued, yet her tail was wagging like crazy. Louis smiled. He guessed right with the gift.

Juno jokingly complained:

"Now I don't even know how to respond properly."

"I've already told you that…" the deer began, but she placed a finger on his lips and opened a small purse. Rifling through her pockets, she said,

"It's not even entirely for you… nevertheless, I really wanted you to enjoy it. To hold it in your hands, appreciate it… use it."

Use it?

Louis raised his eyebrows in surprise, but he froze completely when she pulled out an item in a small case made of flashy black velvet. In the light, a red strip of some soft yet quite thick material with a silver buckle appeared. The deer was stunned, not by this, but by the inscription.

In dark letters without any embellishments, but retaining a certain playfulness, some unknown craftsman had embossed on the collar:

"I belong to Louis"

"Seems like you wanted to say 'hide this quickly'," Juno teased him. Louis slowly spoke, not taking his eyes off the inscription:

"But why? I mean, why with these words… and… with this?"

The female lowered the strap back and wrapped her arms around his neck. She said earnestly, looking into his eyes:

"Because I wanted to. Because sometimes, when we're alone, I want not only to love and bring pleasure, but also to belong to you. Not just in words, but with a symbol, a sign…"

Her voice grew quieter - and hotter. Louis shook his head, trying to hold onto some thoughts, and touched the lips of the she-wolf, then said:

"As I am to you."

Their bodies pressed against each other. Louis tossed his jacket aside towards the bench, but it missed – and there was no one to reprimand him for his carelessness. They fled from the fading celebrations of the drama club, from all the parents, and no one was now a witness to the full, sincere, fiery passion of the scene.

The only one who might have objected was the park lamppost, steadfastly serving nearby, but it was quite apparent that it didn't mind at all.