Time for more Louis. I love and dislike writing for him because he makes me think of cooler things to write for other characters when I'm writing for him.

Enjoy.

-MalMetal

CHAPTER 33: Refresh and Regret

"I don't think I really knew what I was doing with all of this but I have to keep going. This can't be all for nothing. It can't be. I couldn't… face them."

"Hey, Louis." A hand waved in the deer's face who was working on some homework. All around them, windows of soft orangish, yellowish light bathed the classroom.

"I can see you, Tem. I saw you come in." The alpaca stood back from his friend, he was dressed in Cherryton Academy School uniform, and Louis in his green blazer. Tem smirked as he always did and sat down next to his friend.

"Had to make sure, I heard deer can freeze up when shocked sometimes. What are you doing in here all alone? Just because we don't have a club today doesn't mean you have to be a loner."

"I'm doing what I want, and I want to be alone." Louis gave Tem a playfully, angry look that he always did. He squinted and his mouth was completely closed. It was the look of a disappointed parent because he got it from Ogma.

"Stop looking at me like that seriously, you remind me of my mom. Speaking of parents, how come I never see your dad?"

"He's busy and doesn't have time to do much outside of work."

"That's pretty bad parenting."

"And none of your business." Louis scribbled away on his assignment without making eye contact.

"Sorry," Tem apologized lightly before sighing to himself. "Buuuuut, you should get out of this room and go see Haru."Louis' pencil tip broke.

"Eh- How do you know her name?"

"Figured it out from asking around. I got a whole bunch of bad looks for it but I told them I wasn't doing anything weird with her but they might not have believed me. If Riz hears about this he's gonna tease me until I die. Crap. Els hears about this, my chances with her are gonna go down." Tem pouted to himself.

"I've told you to mind your own business, this is what happens when you don't." Louis pulled out a sharpener from his bag before getting back to work.

"Can't you spare me some sympathy? Please, this is serious!"

"So is my work and my personal life. I'm asking you nicely, stay out of it." Louis stopped, finished his homework, and put his pencil and work in his bag.

"Before you go I wanted to ask if you could take it easy on the carnivores in the club. I know you're not a fan but with the way things are going now I think you should treat them better." Louis' eyebrow raised. Tem stepped closer and raised a hand to the deer's shoulder. A warm sensation familiar to a hand yet, hotter than it touched him, looking down he saw. Blood.

"Tem-" The alpaca's face had splatters of blood on it, staining his pure white wool. Louis reached out to his friend whovanished into dust when he touched him. The room still kept its gentle glow as a strong feeling of anguish built up in his chest.

"Louis?" Haru's voice sounded from his left. He no longer knelt in the classroom but awoke in the bed of the garden club's shack. "Are you okay? You're shaking."

"I'm fine, it was just a bad dream." Louis grabbed Haru's hand and kissed it softly. "But I think I'm better now." Haru'sears perked up before they fell to the sides of her head.

"Can we talk? I know you've been having a hard time but coming back to this isn't easy for me. You haven't been here for the last month and a half. All you've done is avoid me and ignore me. I really needed you and you weren't here. I want to forgive you and move on with all of this but I know we can't. I can't. I'm sorry Louis, this isn't right for me anymore." Louis couldn't move as Haru spoke. "Goodbye, Louis. I loved you." Haru leaned to give him a kiss that pushed him back into a metal wall. His school uniform dressed his body. He knew this place, it'd never left his memory even after all this time.

Just underneath his muzzle, a boy stared at him. He had no antlers to see, only a white pair of pants, a shirt, and no shoes to shield his feet from the cold rusted metal floor. His eyes were fixed on his older counterpart dressed in a green blazer, red tie, white dress shirt, brown loafers, and beautifully grown antlers. Round disgusted eyes stained the elegantly disguised Beast. The elevator took them up and up but not once did they ignore the presence of one another. After what felt like an eternity, the elevator gates opened to complete darkness. It awaited, it hungered and howled for something to feed it.

Louis watched his younger self walk into the darkness, feeding it far too willingly. From that pitch black, a crimson-red liquid leaked from its maw to cover the elevator's floor. He stood there, allowing his blood to stain Louis' shoes' bottom. The gates closed and ascended to reveal the city's light. All Louis could feel was the sun burning him as it did the first time in his childhood. With one last breath, he opened his eyes to the lights above his bed. He rubbed his face, sat up, saw an IV in his arm, and felt pain in his torso. He sighed aloud as he remembered everything from last night.

"Go back to sleep so I can finish my sketch." Louis turns to see a lop-eared bunny wearing a red and white track seat. A brown fur surrounded her eyes, nose, mouth, and ears. The rest of her head and neck were covered in a light cremé color fur.

"Nine?" Louis was completely dumbfounded.

"It's Kyuu now. Because of how the number nine sounds. Your name's Louis now right?"

"Yeah, what about three?"

"He goes by San now. He couldn't believe that you were alive, he would've been here but he had to do some work at that old place we used to live." Kyuu moved her pencil about her sketch paper, stopping because a tear hit her drawing. "You know after all these I didn't think I'd cry when I saw you again."

"Me neither." A flood of tears ran down Louis' face.

"You can express yourself. Looking stoic while crying is creepy." Louis wiped his eyes with his blanket.

"Don't talk down to me. We both haven't had a stable childhood so we know how to express ourselves during fits of intense emotion."

"You grew up in a big house. I thought you'd be well loved."

"Not everything is as grand as you think. My life recently has been a complete mess by my own doing."

"Leading a bunch of carnivores in this place will make anyone's life like that. After everything we've been through I thought you'd gain an instinctual deterrent from ever coming back here."

"I've accepted being devoured twice since back then so I'm not afraid of anything in this place, especially with how society has changed a lot over these past fourteen years. Playing nice even in the Black Market is commonplace now."

"Still a hellhole for any herbivore." Kyuu leaned back in her chair. "When I heard you were leading the Shishigumi I wanted to be angry so bad but I was happy to know you'd lived to reach a point where you could make difficult decisions for yourself. I wanted to beat the shit outta you and make you quit so you could go back to living a peaceful life that me and San weren't able to get. Tell me why. Why would you do this?" Kyuu's question made Louis maul over his memories.

"I did it for a rabbit I fell in love with. I turned my back on her when the Shishigumi's Boss was going to devour her. I couldn't bring myself to try and save her but two rebellious carnivore underclassmen of mine ended up going to save her instead. Despite my decision, I ended up going after them, I killed their Boss then I took over."

"Who helped you?"

"I'm not sure exactly but he was… something I can't describe. A carnivore and herbivore but not either at the same time."

"What did he look like?"

"His eyes were a piercing blue color, horns with rings around them like a gazelle and spots under his eyes." Kyuu's eyes turned to her sketchbook again. "Do you know him?"

"Hm, maybe but I can't be too sure. Anyways, Gohin left me in charge of watching over you and he wanted me to give you a message. "To leave the Black Market before the end of this month. If you stay here you'll die and your death will be on my hands." That's what he said and I agree after that attack last night your grace period is over." Louis' somewhat stressed look made him easy to read.

"This is the path I chose so I'll walk it to the bitter end."

"Grow up. You don't belong here anymore and worse yet you joined the beasts who tried to eat the love of your 're not some hero, you're a kid who's scared to face what he's left behind."

"I'm not scared of anything anymore."

"You were scared of losing her, weren't you? That's why you did what you did." Kyuu stopped any of Louis' objections in one breath.

"Can you stop looking through me like a window?"

"Then don't be transparent," Kyuu smirked while reaching into her pocket. "Gohin! Where are my Smokie Bears!" Kyuu yelled down the hall.

"You finished your pack last night! Didn't I tell you to stop smoking?!"

"Bite me, Panda!"

"How about you take some Nature's Best off my hands? I don't have enough mouths to smoke 'em all!"

"Nobody smokes that shit brand but you, I'm leaving to buy more!" Kyuu closed her sketchbook and put away her pencil. Louis realized she and Gohin had a daughter, father dynamic that was completely opposite to his and Ogma's. Louis thought of his father and the first time he ever called him that. Ogma asked him to call him father again and again. All of his memories kept making him think of his childhood, bitter and sweet memories shrouded his mind. Those experiences had seasoned his mind into the deer today.

"Egh. You two are too loud."

"Shut up. Before I go I'm supposed to tell you, you're healed enough to leave but for the next few weeks don't run around or do any strenuous exercise. Running, lifting heavy objects, crying like a female you know." Louis gave Kyuu an annoyed stare and she responded with an equally cheeky smile.

"If you're gone by the time I get back, I'm glad we got to see each other again."

"Kyuu, when we see each other again I want you two to tell me everything that happened after I left."

"The organization that held us went bankrupt so every kid went their separate ways. San and I lived there for a few months at least I think before Gohin found us and took us in. That's that."

"I know there's more but go and get your Smokie Bears, personally I like Paruboro."

"Those are good too. I'll bring you some next time we see each other, Shi. Sorry, Louis." Louis smirked.

"I like that name. If you put the kanji together, add an n to the end of Shi and it's shin-sa-ku which means "Go Forward" fitting for us isn't it?"

"You always paid attention to the smallest things. I'll see you next time." Kyuu left on that note. Both waited a few seconds before letting tears fall from their eyes. Gohin walked in the room to Louis who quickly dried his eyes.

"I'm surprised to see Shishigumi's Boss to be some preppy punk from the same school as Legoshi," Gohin said.

"Legoshi? I get it. Seeing you in person I can understand why those lions feared you. A Ursidae of your stature is quite imposing."

"At least you know that much. I thought I'd be too busy to tell you myself but I've got time. You're going to call a meeting with Savon, Miso, and Ten. You'll give them your territory and leave. Like Kyuu said, your death will be on my hands if you stay."

"If I don't leave then those three will tear me apart."

"An herbivore led gang has never gone well before. Carnivore gangs overpower them and devour them or they get devoured by their members. You're lucky to have lasted this long in the first place."

"If I refuse?"

"I guess I should kill you myself here and now." Louis knew Gohin wasn't messing around. What was the answer for what lay before him? He couldn't know unless he found out for himself.

"I'll make my decision by tomorrow. Will that be fine?" Gohin nodded.

"Now get out of my clinic. I don't want to see you or Shishigumi around here ever again." Louis stood on his feet and grabbed the clothing next to his bed.

"I never want to see you again either. Thank you for your treatment." Louis left the doctor behind, and a nurse ushered Louis to the elevator. He called Ibuki who was relieved to know he was safe and informed him that it'd been a whole day, so the weekend was basically finished by now. He brought a car close to the clinic along with some fresh clothing. Louis got changed during the ride in complete silence; both knew the end was near and a drastic decision had to be made. The moon had shone overhead by the time Louis arrived at Cherryton Academy it was rather late but not still before curfew. Ibuki parked out of view of the front gates but the herbivore dorms were still in view overhead.

"Louis." Ibuki stepped out of his car. "Are you sure you'll be alright?"

"You've taken care of me for a long time now, Ibuki. I can walk back into my dorms by myself."

"I was talking about what happened last night. Your wound."

"Oh, yes I'll be fine. Stop worrying so much." Louis looked at Ibuki who couldn't stop his worry from showing through his soft eyes. His heart had become burdened by this life coming to a swift end.

"Last night when I smelled your blood I wanted to eat you. I had to resist that urge, I had to stop myself from licking my hands clean of your blood. Despite us being the same, despite looking out for one another. I couldn't shake these instincts that consume me still. Knowing that I still don't want this to end. For some reason, you've made me realize that there is something beyond a life of fighting. That there is peace to be found in this horrible world of beasts. That even an herbivore who eats the flesh of his own kind to appease carnivores can still hold his head high proudly." The moonlight revealed Ibuki's somewhat glassy. His small, black, slanted iris' made him hard to look at. Those soft, honest eyes weakened Louis, so he followed his gut. He wrapped his arms around Ibuki.

"You've been the only light in that place. Although you want to devour me I think I wouldn't mind it all that much… because I risked my life for you after all." Ibuki restrained his instincts to hug Louis back.

"You shouldn't say such horrible things. You've got too much life to live, so much so that you shouldn't surrender your life to a damaged lion like me. If you were older I'd accept your offer willingly." Ibuki's response made Louis grin. The two broke about and wished one another a goodnight, using his keycard Louis got back onto Cherryton grounds and jogged to his dorm before the security guards came out to patrol.

"I should be a real photographer," Pina said to himself looking over the photos he'd taken from his one animal room window. His lights were out, and the only light source was his camera. Each photo he'd taken was a play-by-play of Louis and Ibuki's departure. Pina snickered to himself before writing more in his notebook, his profile on Louis was nearly complete.