The Curse of Beasts (BEASTARS)

Human Among Wolves

A week had passed since Alan's return to the Drama Club, along with Louis' departure. By then, he started to really feel the effect of the deer's absence. The passion was still there, but it was lessened in a way. It seemed to affect Legosi a lot, the wolf sometimes glancing in a random direction in silence. If he were being honest, Alan never saw him interact much with the deer other than when they first met and during the Adler performance. Although, there was the fact that Louis seemed close with Haru, and Legosi had feelings for her. Maybe that caused a wedge between them? It didn't really matter now with the deer gone for some unspecified time...

Territory Day had arrived, as always, and Alan felt the need to enter the wolf room. It felt like months since the last time he went there, and possibly longer since he actually thought to himself. The wolf room was comforting for him, something to help him recharge (as was the purpose of Territory Day). It wasn't so much the room itself, though, but the conversations he had with Legosi whenever they went in together. Most were courteous, of course, but it did make them good friends. It wasn't until his secret came out that he stopped going, and it ultimately faded from his mind until now.

He made his way down the stairs slowly, remembering the first time he went in. It was so awkward at first, he even sat to the side to avoid interacting with anyone. It honestly felt kind of gloomy, if not for the artificial moonlight. That was the only upside, other than the slight chill. If not for Legosi listening in on him talking to himself, he probably would've never gone back. He sighed as he made it to the indented door.

Just like before., he thought to himself. Keep to yourself, don't cause trouble.

He went in and was hit with the familiar chill, but also something else. The wolves were...talking to one another? The atmosphere felt brighter, more open to the human as he stood in surprise. At other times when he came in, everyone kept to themselves and just sat in silence. They were even smiling! The human couldn't help feeling a small shiver roll down his spine briefly, his mind trying to process the strange picture.

"Hey!", one of the wolves actually noticed him. "You're...Alan, right?"

He shook off the instant wave of anxiety and nodded, "Y-yeah."

"So is it really true? Are you really part-wolf?", another wolf jumped in with his head tilted.

Alan shifted a bit and chuckled, "Guilty as charged."

"No way! You don't even have claws or a tail! Do you have any wolf features?"

"Well, my nails can grow pretty sharp, and I can hear and smell better than other humans.", he said thoughtfully. "There really isn't much other than that."

"What kind of wolf are you?", the first asked. "Are you an arctic one? A grey one?"

"Well...my dad's a black wolf, actually.", he said with a sideways glance.

"Seriously?! I thought they were rarely seen! I heard they're actually like grey wolves, just with a different fur color."

"That's true. They say it's a mutation in the genes of grey wolves, and there aren't that many around."

"Wait, so...if you're part-wolf, that means you like the moonlight, right?", the second one asked.

"I wouldn't really be here for any other reason.", the human smirked. "By the way, this place seems more vibrant than before. Did something happen?"

At that moment, the door opened, making Alan look over to see Juno and Legosi. They looked surprised, probably just as shocked as he was with the change in the room. Seeing Juno made his heart pang a bit, though he didn't show it outright. Instead, he just smiled at the two and gave a small wave.

"Hey, you two! Things are pretty different here, huh?"

"Alan-san?", the female wolf asked. "You're here, too?"

"I wanted to relax a bit. This is new, though."

"Oh, it's Juno!", the two that were talking to Alan turned their attention to her.

"I wanted to talk to you! You did a great job at the Meteor Festival!", the shorter of the two said.

"I don't know the details, but you gave a speech about a male wolf who saved two students' lives, right?", the second one asked as Legosi seemed to glance up at the light with either tiredness or annoyance. "That's awesome! We're moved by you!"

Alan blinked, They're like this because of her?

"M-moved?", Juno seemed surprised as well. "What do you mean?"

The two and a few other wolves looked at each other for a few moments before smiling.

"Herbivores are seeing us in a better light.", one said.

"Their faces don't change when I get within one meter of their space!"

"It's gotten me less stressed, too.", a larger one added. "It's because you showed them what a carnivore can really do."

"You even have your own fan club, which is 30% herbivores."

One of the wolves grabbed Juno's shoulder firmly, "It's all thanks to you! Thank you!"

Alan felt his smile relax a bit, becoming more genuine. He could still remember her speech, standing above the crowd with Legosi as an example of what carnivores are capable of. Even now, it pained him whenever he thought of it. He wanted to believe in her, to see that she could bring a great change to the school. In the end, though, he just couldn't bring himself to agree.

He suppressed a chuckle, I guess I'm the villain in the story now...

"Hey, Legosi-senpai...", Juno's voice broke his thoughts. "You said that we were similar in that we're both overbearing, right? I'll admit that I'm stubborn..."

She raised her head with a small smile, "But there's no one more overbearing than you are."

The human was confused at that. Legosi is overbearing? He never really saw the wolf that way, not when they're together. If anything, he's more submissive most of the time. Well, that is until he's backed into a corner and forced to lose control. It didn't really matter all that much to him, though. Legosi didn't seem to mind it, as his tail didn't stop wagging.

Alan smiled and took a seat to the side, Looks like she's found her path. As for mine, though...

His thoughts went back to when Todd returned from the break, along with his plans for researching human history. He hadn't gotten around to doing so yet, with Louis appearing again and his coming back to the Drama Club. Seeing Juno becoming an inspiration to the wolves made it clear, though. She found her path because of what she did at the Meteor Festival, and she's moving forward with it. Meanwhile, Alan didn't have a path, only walking blindly with no clear goal in mind.

Now was the time to start looking for one.