Chapter Text
Louis attempted to micromanage the debacle the best he could. He had his guards escort them towards the back so that they could leave posthaste. He willed himself to forget the feeling of Juno's lips on his, banishing the thought from his brain. Everything he worked so hard for was falling apart, everything they worked hard for.
Louis was furious at Legoshi for bringing attention to them, to himself anyway. Juno did a fine job of that. Legoshi simply made it worst.
Big dumb dogs.
He couldn't stay too mad for long as they were the only friends he had left. Though, they certainly didn't make it easy to want to keep them. He'll never abandon them, regardless.
"Yahya-sama is going to be pissed," Louis hissed beneath his breath as he ushered Legoshi and Juno into his ride.
"Frankly, I don't give a damn what Yahya has to say. I just want to go home," Legoshi bemoaned. His words were slurred by a lisp due to the injury his tongue sustained.
Normally, Louis would disagree. "I ought to take you both home," he said. "It's been enough of a night."
The whole time Juno stayed silent.
Legoshi would be dropped off first, stumbling up into his apartment with a hand over his stomach. The gashes weren't that deep, fortunately. Nothing that a little stitching and pain medication won't fix.
He looked up at the sky as the stars twinkled overhead. There would be a full moon soon. Legoshi decided to take it as a good omen. He then lumbered up the stairs and entered his home. Haru had fallen asleep on the couch. Cress was presumably in her room, fast asleep. The TV was on and to Legoshi's relief, it was only playing the weather channel. Haru never displayed interest in meteorology like he had, so he questioned the sudden change.
She was simply getting closer to him through his hobbies while he wasn't around.
Oh, Haru.
Legoshi knelt down beside her, gently rousing her out of her sleep with a touch. "Haru..." he said softly, "I'm home."
Her eyelashes fluttered. "Oh, Legoshi." She yawned. "I had a great time with Jackie."
"Huh?"
"Don't act like you didn't set that up with Jack."
Oh, right. "Haru, I gotta tell you something. It's... Not about that. Something else."
"Why're you talking so funny?" Haru pulled at the ends of Legoshi's lips, exposing his teeth. She then pried open his jaws. The flesh of her hands were being poked by his fangs. It would have been extremely tempting to close down on them had he been a lot younger and less experienced. "Your tongue..."
There were teeth marks marring the sides of his tongue as well as some small nicks were some chunks were missing. It would heal in time, though it was still concerning.
"Turn on the light," said Haru, "I want to see you."
Legoshi obliged and flicked the switch. Immediately, Legoshi was bathed in the warm yellowish lighting. It exposed his injuries to Haru, leaving him feeling vulnerable.
"It's time I told you the truth," Legoshi said. "The full truth." Haru looked at him with her brows drawn together, prompting him to continue. "I've been... I've been doing Beastar work again. Unofficially, of course. Just now I got back from some undercover mission. It was a disaster really. I got hurt. B-But not that hurt!" Legoshi started to see the concern in her eyes. "I'll be okay, really. I'm upset about the suit, it got torn up." He then rubbed the back of his head. "Where was I going with this... I'm sorry for lying to you Haru. It's a really long story."
"So then explain it to me."
"Okay, well—"
"Wait." Haru slipped off of the couch and grabbed Legoshi's hand to make him follow her to the bathroom. He stood awkwardly on the tiled floor, watching as she gathered a wash bin and a cloth as well as the first aid kit. "You're too tall," she said, pointing her finger at the ground. "Sit."
He promptly planted his bottom onto the floor.
"You may continue."
"Okay." Legoshi braced himself for the stinging pain of his wounds being cleaned. If he could reach, he would have been licking them himself. Though, he did like it when Haru looked after him like this. Her dainty hands were pleasant. "There's a lot of interspecies couples being murdered again. It's not Melon because he's still in jail. But... This new killer, they're taking the children of those couples. Yahya asked me to help and Haru, I had to. I wanted to tell you, but everytime I thought about it, I thought you would be safer not knowing. Th-That you would tell me to stop or quit before I got started. I know I can't sit idkt by, not anymore. That's not who I a—"
Haru stopped him by holding a finger to his lips. "I know." Her voice sounded dry. "If I had known, I probably would have said all those things. Still, you're a jerk for not telling me and you'll get yours. But I understand why you did it. I'm your wife, that's gotta be included in the fine print of the vows somewhere. I won't tell you to quit, only that you bring that bastard down. That's all I ask." She leaned in a planted a small kiss on him before pulling away.
Legoshi smiled, a huge weight off of his shoulders. "Thank you, Haru."
"Oh don't thank me yet," Haru warned him. She pulled out the needle and thread from the first aid kit. "This is going to be your punishment."
Legoshi puffed out his chest with pride. "For you," he boasted, "I'll take any punishment."
"Good." Haru smiled. "Because this is going to hurt."
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The next day, Louis invited Juno over to discuss what happened that night. At first, Juno was unsure on how to dress. Since her confession, Louis conveniently skirted around it. He never mentioned it, he made no reference to the kiss, nothing. Granted, Legoshi's scuffle with the wolfdog did cause a huge distraction for everyone at the event, the two of them included.
She opted to dress casually, but cute. A lacey top and a throw sweater ought to do the trick.
When she arrived, she was directed to go to his office by his servants. She could hear LJ playing in one of the bottom rooms and felt a twinge of regret.
Oh what was I thinking? Even if everything else goes right, LJ might not even accept me as one of the family.
Juno pinned her ears back in shame as she strode towards Louis' office. It used to belong to Oguma, his father. Juno never met the stag, but she imagined he was a lot like Louis, only staunchier.
Before she could knock, the door swung open and Louis pulled her inside.
"How did you know that it was me?"
Louis scoffed. "You carnivores have heavy footsteps. I could hear you from down the hall."
Juno pretended to not be offended. In all honesty, it had something to do with predator and prey dynamics. She sighed. "Look, I know that this is probably about the kiss. I just want to say that whatever happens, I'm ready to face the consequences. The bad ones and... The good ones, hopefully. I think."
"You don't think, that's the problem."
Her heart sunk.
"You just take whatever you want with no regard for others. Who could stop you, really? You're the Beastar. You only made it this far by taking what you want. You act on impulse, even now was the grown she-wolf that you are. You've changed a lot, Juno. But in many ways you have remained the same. I too, have changed in some ways."
Juno hadn't realized that she had been backed into a wall. As Louis spoke, he took steps towards her until her back was pressed against the door she entered from.
What is this feeling? Is that what prey feel like?
Juno broke out into a sweat. In all his berating, Louis never lied. It was true. When Juno had her heart set on something, she was sure to get it. She may have been older now, but she was still young.
Young and devastatingly lonely.
She swallowed hard. "I'm sorry."
"Quiet."
Louis was so close now. The height difference between them was more apparent than ever. Back at Cherryton, it was obvious that Juno had gained an inch or two over Louis. But his antlers still towered over her. Now, Juno had to actively look down at him to maintain eye content. She felt herself shrinking, sliding down ever so slightly until they were level. Louis placed his hand beneath her chin, slipping his fingers into her mouth. He pulled up on her upper lip to reveal her teeth. "I thought that they were sharper than before," he murmured. Pulling his hand out, Louis crashed his lips into hers.
Mixed feelings fired off in Juno's synapses. As always, Louis managed to vex her. She thought she finally understood him and yet again, he undermined her expectations. The roles were supposed to be reversed! She was the dominant one. Regardless, she came here to talk about the whole thing, not avoid it.
Juno couldn't will herself to do it, however.