Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Amvrosiy, honey, I know you’re nervous about starting at a new school, but your dad and I really think it’ll help you. You and your sister need a bit more of a normal life, you need to get out there and show the world how special you are. You can’t spend all your life cooped up in the market working with grandpa.”

Amvrosiy looks nervously at his mom. He knows she's right, she always is, but he can’t help but feel this is a bad idea.

“But mom, how can I do that when I can’t even hold a full conversation with people outside of work?” he says.

“Well maybe you’ll run into a few friends from work! Legosi goes here, maybe you can get a good start with him!” Lyudmila says cheerfully, flashing her son a wide toothy smile.

“Mom, Legosi and I have never even met. I don’t even know what he looks like!”

“Relax, Rosie!” Zoyechka exclaims as she throws a large arm around him. “Legosi rooms with a buncha dogs. It’ll be easy as pie to spot him!”

She gives him a mischievous grin. “Plus, he’s about as big a bug nerd as you are! You two will get along like peanut butter and crackers!”

He sighs. “Alright… if you’re sure. Also, they’re arachnids, not bugs.”

His sister laughs and pats him on the back.

“See?” Lyudmila says. “It’ll be fun! Maybe you can look into joining a club or two! Now you two have an absolutely fantastic first day! And do make sure to call me and dad when the day’s done to tell us how it went, okay?!”

Amvrosiy nods. “Okay…”

With that, the siblings get out of the car, backpacks and supplies in tow, and their mother drives off.

“Well, bitchface, let’s go put our shit in our dorms,” Zoyechka says.

Amvrosiy can feel all the pairs of eyes looking at him, and it makes him incredibly uncomfortable. Being stared at in the black market is one thing, he's actually somewhat popular and highly respected there, especially by customers he ran into outside of work.

It's probably because of the sleeves covering his arms.

Whenever they leave the market, both he and Zoyechka wear light sleeves that match their fur to hide all the marks on their arms. Amvrosiy normally wears short sleeves when he isn’t wearing his signature jacket, and the uniform is short-sleeved, so he wears the arm sleeves. He dreads the mere idea of someone out here seeing his fur without them, the knowledge that they would most likely call him a freak. He can’t do that to himself, but more importantly, he can’t do that to his sister. She has so much pride in her appearance, and he knows she wants to make some friends here.

He's disappointed that Cherryton’s dorms are separated between males and females. Zoyechka is a source of strength and comfort for him. Maybe they could find a way to sneak into each other’s dorm rooms when their roommates aren’t around?

He finally arrives at his dorm room’s door, room 704. Taking a breath, he takes hold of the doorknob, twists, and pushes the door open, then steps inside.

Within a few seconds of him setting foot in the room, he hears the sound of sniffing. Poking his head up from his phone, he saw a husky, a fox, a gray wolf, a mastiff, and a labrador retriever. They all look at him, before their faces gain expressions of surprise and, to Amvrosiy’s surprise, happiness.

“No way!” the fox cries as he gets up from his bunk. “Sekiro?! The hell are you doing here, man?!”

Amvrosiy winces at the use of his nickname. Quite a few people in the black market called him that, and the nickname is quite infamous among customers at work. But upon looking at the fox for a moment, he finds himself recognizing the young man.

“Nick?” he says confusedly.

Nick’s grin only widens as he turns to his roommates. “You hear that, you guys?!” he exclaims. “He remembers my name!”

“Well it’s likely because you’re one of his most frequent customers!” the labrador, who Amvrosiy also recognizes, along with the wolf.

“Zeke, right?” Amvrosiy says, then looks at the wolf. “You’re Jesse, the mastiff is Raul, and the husky is Kyle.”

“Woah!” Nick says. “He really does have a good memory!”

Amvrosiy decides to tune out the conversation and instead walks over to the only unoccupied bunk. He gently sets his terrarium down on the bed along with his backpack, before opening his bag and pulling out a container of dead insects.

“You’re into bugs, Sekiro?” Raul asks.

“Arachnids, actually,” he responds. “They’re really misunderstood, but they’ll clear out pests in your home. My boss actually has a bunch of pet spiders he uses to keep the place pest-free.”

“What kinda spider is in there then?”

“Wait just a second and I’ll show you.”

He lifts a dead insect, a cricket, from the container with a pair of tweezers and opens the top of the terrarium.

“Here you go, Shelob,” he says as he drops the cricket inside.

In a few moments, a large grayish-brown tarantula crawls out of the little cave. It scuttles over to the dead cricket and starts to eat, causing a small smile to form on Amvrosiy’s face. With his beloved pet fed, he slides the terrarium over to the end of his bunk, then begins unpacking his bag. He takes out a few posters, one for his favorite game franchise, another for his favorite movie, and two more for his favorite bands.

“You listen to Get Scared and Maroon 5?” Zeke says.

Amvrosiy nods.

“They’re my favorite. ‘Animals’ is actually the song my coworkers play when I show up for my shift, as a sort of joke. The customers go crazy for it, though.”

“What’s your favorite song from Get Scared, then? Nick’s is ‘The Dead Days’ from the ‘Dead Days’ album.”

“I’d say… maybe ‘Badly Broken’ or ‘Get Out While You Can’ from ‘Everyone’s Out to Get Me’. I find their music… really relatable.”

A sort of somber silence takes hold of the canines of room 704.

“Er… You, uh… you got a girlfriend, Sekiro? Or a boyfriend?” Raul asks, hoping to break the suddenly dark mood.

The wolf sighs. “No…” he says, a hint of sadness in his voice. “I don’t have any friends, either. Just my family. I don’t think anyone would want to even hang out with me outside of work, much less have a relationship with me…”

He stands up and grabs his bag, making sure his supplies are inside and organized. Once he’s confirmed they're good, he hoists his bag onto his shoulder and heads to the door.

“I’m gonna go get my class schedule, maybe look at a few clubs,” he says. “And if you guys could do me a favor… Please don’t call me ‘Sekiro’ outside the market, okay? I don’t want people here potentially recognizing me for that.”

With his schedule acquired and the lunch period having started, Amvrosiy decides to head to the cafeteria, and hopefully find out how his sister is getting along with her new roommates. He quickly spots her talking to a group of girls, a gray wolf with oddly shaped ears that are more like a dog’s, a zebra, and an angora goat. He shuffles over, quickly catching his sister’s attention.

“Oh, Amvrosiy!” she greets happily. “Come! Sit down! How’re your roommates? Not a buncha assholes, I hope?”

He sits down next to her, trying not to make eye contact with the other girls, and takes a bite out of his soy bean burger. It's pretty good. Not as good as the ones from the little restaurant he visits on occasion, but still good.

“They’re… okay. They recognize me from work. One of them listens to the same band I do.”

Zoyechka growls a little.

“Do we have to worry about them saying something to others?” she asks, a rather threatening and borderline murderous tone clear as daylight in her voice.

“No… I don’t think so. They seem nice. I asked them not to call me, you know…”

In an instant, his sister’s expression goes from “murder-time big sister” to cheerful and somewhat aloof, or in other words, just normal Zoyechka.

“Good! Now, I have some good news for you!”

“What is it?” he asks.

“We’ve both been scouted and asked to join the drama club! I think it will be a good opportunity to get to know people and really have some fun!” she says cheerfully.

“And who are these girls?” he asks, gesturing to the table’s other occupants.

The girls perk up a bit.

“I’m Juno!” the odd female wolf nearly shouts. “I’m on the actors’ team! I look forward to performing with the two of you!”

“Ellen,” says the zebra. “I’m also on the actors’ team. I normally played the second lead in our club’s signature play, Adler.”

“Els. I’m on the club’s dance team,” the angora goat says.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” he says. “I’m Zoyechka’s twin brother, Amvrosiy. I look forward to working with you all as well.”

Chapter Text

Soon, it's time for club, so Amvrosiy and Zoyechka are led to the club room by the three girls. Once the doors are opened, Amvrosiy is nearly blinded by the wondrous sight before his eye. An entire club made up of carnivores and herbivores! The club members are doing their duties and interacting as naturally as one would drink water!

 Els giggles a bit at the wolf’s starstruck expression as she leads him by the hand to a large Bengal tiger.

 “Bill, the advisor scouted these two to join the club!” she says.

 The tiger, Bill, turns his attention from the panther he's talking to, but when his gaze meets Amvrosiy’s, his eyes gain an expression of shock. It's subtle, and really hard to notice, but the wolf has seen similar looks enough that he can fairly easily spot it. But before he can say anything, the tiger dons a somewhat cheery expression and opens his mouth.

 “New club members, eh?” he says. “Well, we’re glad to have you if you want to join! What department are you two interested… in?”

 His face dons a very light hint of fear and surprise as Zoyechka comes up to him. It's reasonable, though, since the she-wolf has just over a head of height on him, and looks like she could easily pick him up and throw him.

 “What departments are there?” she asks. “Juno and Ellen said they’re actors, and Els said she is on the dancer’s team.”

 “Uh… Well, there’s also the production team! We have some really talented designers on costumes. We have only two members on lighting, but they’re the best!”

 “I think I’d like to be on the production team,” she says. “I’ve always had love for clothing design and the fashion industry. Besides, I’m sure they would appreciate the help, since it looks like there are only a handful of members in that particular team.”

 “Alright! How about you go over, introduce yourself, and give it a shot?”

 Zoyechka nods in agreement and trods over to the peafowl currently working on a costume.

 “And what about you… er, I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your names…” the tiger said.

 “The wolf you just talked to is my twin sister, Zoyechka. I’m Amvrosiy,” Amvrosiy responds as he extends a hand.

 “Well, it’s good to meet you two! Name’s Bill. Unfortunately, our club leader disappeared a while ago, so I’m running the club in his stead.”

Bill leans over so his face us close to Amvrosiy’s ear.

 “Just between you and me, I think your sister is wasting her time on the production team. With a body like that, she’d kill it on the dancer’s team!” he whispers.

 The wolf also leans in a little closer and grabs the tiger around the back to pull him in.

 “Say something like that again, and I will make sure you will end up as a nice rug on my grandfather’s floor,” he hisses.

 With that, he releases the tiger and steps back. “Zoyechka believes that if she were to be on the dancers’ team or actor pool, she would lessen this club’s impact because of animals potentially coming to performances solely to watch her. I, on the other hand, am not so easily lusted after, so I would like to try out for the dance team.”

 “O-Okay… Get up on the stage, and I’ll get some music going.”

 Amvrosiy nods and does as told. He notices many of the other members are dressed in shorts and t-shirts, so he assumes that's the standard practice wear for the club. He would have to get an outfit for himself, then, unless the club supplies them, of course.

 A song begins to play, a classical tune that feels soothing to him. In seconds, he's in motion, easily bending, hopping, and twirling as though he's an ice skater. Dancing is second nature to him along with fighting, and it's one of his favorite hobbies.

Mom and grandma are excellent dancers, with grandma having been a professional before she turned to other means of employment until meeting his grandfather. She gave him and his sister lessons throughout and after their childhood, so his balance is incredible.

 He soon hears the music stop, accompanied by the sound of applause. He opens his eye to see several of the drama club members looking at him with what looks like pride and astonishment.

 When he comes down from the stage, he quickly finds himself surrounded and being showered with praise.

 “That was amazing, Amvrosiy!” comes the praise from an anteater.

 “I didn’t think a big guy like you could move like that!” from a panther.

 He can hear the sound of others, but it's rapidly drowned out by an intense feeling of fear. He doesn’t like being mobbed by strangers like this, he only lets his family act this way. His breathing and heartbeat start to quicken, his chest tightens slightly, and–

 “That’s enough, you guys! Don’t just mob the poor kid!”

 Then comes the smell .

  It's all he can smell. It invades his lungs. It begins to crush his ribs as his heart pounds like a war drum. It feels like his heart's about to beat right out of his chest. It feels like –

 “Hey, are you okay?”

 Someone's touching him. Someone that doesn’t feel like Zoyechka, or his parents, his grandparents. He slowly turns his head to see the owner of the offending hand.

 It's a cheetah. It may not be a godforsaken leopard, but it's close enough.

 He can’t take it anymore. He collapses to the floor like a puppet with its strings cut, curls up into a ball, and screams .

Sheila is mortified. This new student, the new club member, took one look at her and is now having a full blown terror-filled meltdown. Is it because of her? She hopes not, shes never met this kid in her life!

 Wait…

 She looks a bit more closely at the wolf on the floor, analyzing his facial features, his body structure. He's a fair bit taller than average, and is about as big as Riz in terms of musculature. But those face scars.

 She had gotten glimpses of a scarred, black-furred wolf a few times around town. And now that she thinks about it, she actually recognizes him.

 Amvrosiy Anatoli “Sekiro” Mikhailov. The One-Armed Wolf of the Black Market. Son of Denko police sergeant Grigori Mikhailov and fashion designer Lyudmila Romanov. He was a customer at that damned club she worked at to help her parents financially.

But somewhere in the back of her mind, she knows him from somewhere else.

 “Give him space!” she shouts. The club members immediately back off, only to get pushed aside by a Dall sheep with a look of concern on his face.

 Before anyone can ask him what the hell he's doing, Pina kneels down next to the now crying wolf, and gently places his hand on his shoulder.

 “Rosie,” he says softly. “Rosie, you’re okay. You’re safe. No one here is going to hurt you.”

 He looks up at the she-wolf, Amvrosiy’s sister–she worked there!

 “Zoyechka, get his other bag!” he orders. The giant she-wolf nods and runs out the doors, not caring that she slams them open. Pina continues gently stroking Amvrosiy’s neck, an action that comes as quite a surprise for the rest of the drama club.

 Before long, Zoyechka comes running back into the room, skids to a halt behind the Dall sheep, and hands him a large bag. He opens it and takes out a large and fuzzy blue spider plush, which he places in the crying wolf’s hands.

 “Amvrosiy!” he says quietly. “It’s Mister Cuddles!”

 Amvrosiy holds the plush to his chest, and soon, combined with the sheep’s gentle stroking, his crying stops. He looks up, eye puffy and red, at Pina.

 “P… Pina? Is that really you?” he asks.

 “Yes, you silly dog, it’s me, your favorite sheep,” Pina answers.

 The wolf shifts to his knees, and with Pina’s help, slowly and shakily rises to his feet. “Thank you, Pina…” he says. He looks around at the club members, all of them wearing concern and worry on their faces like a second skin. “M’sorry, everyone. I didn’t mean to ruin your guys’ day.”

 “It’s alright, Amvrosiy,” Bill assures. “You can’t help a panic attack. What happened, though? We want to make sure you’re okay in the future–that is, if you still want to join us.”

 “It’s… It’s not really something I feel comfortable talking about. Let’s just say some bad memories caused me to freak out…” The wolf, still holding the plush to his chest, seems to close in on himself, as if trying to make himself smaller. “I still want to join. I love dancing, I really do, but… There are a few other issues I guess you guys should know about.”

 Wordlessly, he gives the spider plush to his sister, who carefully places it back in its bag, which looks like it had been purposely designed to resemble a cave or burrow of some sort.  His hand goes up to his right arm, and starts to pull the sleeve down.

 He shudders and closes in on himself further as the rest of his arm is revealed. His arm is missing from the elbow down, replaced with a gray metal prosthetic, and above that… are patches of shining purple scales.

 Everyone except his sister and Pina gasp at what they are now seeing.

 “You’re… a hybrid?” Kibi says.

 Amvrosiy nods. “I figured I was going to have to tell you all sooner or later, what with the standard of wearing different clothes during practice, but… I was afraid to.”

 “Who cares?”

 Everyone’s attention turns over to, of all animals, Legosi, who's approaching from the ladder leading up to the light fixtures.

 “It doesn’t matter if you’re missing a limb, or that you’re a hybrid,” he says. “My mom once told me something important. She said I could be stronger and sweeter than any pure-blooded wolf could.”

 He takes one of Amvrosiy’s hands in his.

 “This club’s focus is coexistence and prosperity. The school may preach it, but we really practice it. Carnivores and herbivores working alongside each other peacefully, forming friendships between species, that’s what we're all about. You’re loved and appreciated here. You can hide yourself during school, but in this club? You don’t have to hide. You can show your true self and be appreciated for who you are.”

 Everyone voices their agreement proudly.

 “So what do you say, Amvrosiy? Do you still wanna be a part of our little family?”

 The wolf, with tears in his eye, looks around to see the warm faces of the club members, and looks back at Legosi.

 “Rosie. Call me ‘Rosie’.”

Chapter Text

 LEGOSI: I got a new pet beetle!

 AMVROSIY: Beetles are cool. I really like the ones that throw other beetles, like in that “Begone, THOT!” meme.

 LEGOSI: Rhinoceros beetles? They’re amazing! I had one named Kabu, but he died a few months ago. I miss him a lot.

 AMVROSIY: I’ve had Shelob for a few weeks now. She killed her mate a few days ago. I have a couple terrariums for spiders at home. I would invite you to my home to show them to you, but I live in the black market.

 LEGOSI: I go there to train under this panda doctor. He captures meat-drunk carnivores and rehabilitates them. He’s cool but kind of scary.

 AMVROSIY: Gouhin? He’s pretty cool. I like that he helps carnivores who’ve devoured people instead of turning them in. It’s a lot better than just turning them over to the justice system. They definitely don’t get the help they need while locked up.

 LEGOSI: Do you maybe want to go and get something to eat some time?

 AMVROSIY: I’d like that. Unfortunately my shift starts in twelve so I’ve gotta go.

 LEGOSI: Okay. Talk to you tomorrow.

 Amvrosiy gives a happy sigh as he puts his phone in his pocket. It feels nice, having some people who actually seem to like him outside of the black market. It's really great having Pina there, so at least he has one friend at school.

 “Hey, kid! Heard you had your first day at school!”

 He turns to see his manager, a big Komodo dragon named Clive, entering his room.

 “It was… nice, Clive. Zoyechka and I joined the drama club, she seems to be getting along great with the other members. I started freaking out a little when the club members surrounded me after I was done dancing to try out for the dance team. Then I had a full-blown panic attack when Sheila–she’s the leader of the dance team, by the way–touched me on the shoulder. Luckily, my friend Pina was there, and he helped me.”

 “Sorry to hear that, Rosie,” Clive says. “I’m guessing this ‘Sheila’ is a leopard?”

 “Cheetah, actually. But, you know my brain can’t help but mix them together, what with the spot patterns. I want to try talking to her, let her know the panic attack wasn’t her fault, but… I just can’t bring myself to go near her outside of practicing. I hate it.”

 “You’ll get there eventually, don’t worry! Believe me, talking to girls is hard enough. But mix trauma into the mix? I can’t even imagine what you’re going through. Maybe that sheep friend’a yours can help?”

 “Maybe.”

 “Anyways, it’s about time for your show. I just wanted to let you know there’s a leopard in the crowd, pretty much right in front of the stage. You want me to kick him out?”

 Amvrosiy shakes his head. “No. I don’t want to cost you guys business, even if it’s just a single patron. I’ll just use some medicine and the scent blocker like usual.”

 “Alright… If you’re sure. I just don’t want you having a panic attack on stage and some asshole tries to take advantage of ya. Rex knows your parents would personally skin me alive if that happened, much less your grandparents.”

 He chuckles. “Well, you know how it goes. Gimme a sec and I’ll be out. You got my track ready?”

 Clive nods and leaves.

 The wolf looks at himself in the mirror, making sure his makeup is perfect. It is, as always, his sister is an excellent teacher when it comes to makeup, just like Pina. He opens his desk drawer and pulls out a cartridge, shaking it to make sure it still has some juice inside. When the check is passed, he inserts it into his vape pen and takes a few puffs, holding the smoke in for a few seconds to make absolutely sure the CBD gets into his system.

 Once that's done, he takes the scent blocker out. It's a mixture made by Gouhin to stop certain smells from registering in his brain, and lasts about ten minutes unless he rinses it out of his nose. A bit of water from a bottle poured into his nose would cancel the effect, if he needs to do so quickly.

 He picks up a Q-tip and dips it in the mixture, making sure it's thoroughly soaked, and swabs his nostrils a few times, until he can mostly just smell the sweet scent of fresh mint and pine. Sighing in satisfaction, he puts the mixture away, got up, and grabs his cloak-like veil.

 For his shows, his outfit normally consists of simple white silk lingerie to contrast his black fur, and green wrappings around parts of his torso, arms, and legs to compliment his scales. Sexy white stockings with patches of purple and green ride up his legs, connecting to a garter belt that also has a small pouch for medicine on the left side.

 The lingerie accentuates his muscles, especially his abs and pecs, the former of which are like cinder blocks that patrons just love to worship and lick, while the latter are like small squeezable boulders that protrude about five or so inches from the base of his chest, capped with large juicy nipples that point down just a bit due to his pecs’ enormity. Silver and gold scale-patterned nipple rings hang from them, glinting in the light as they sway a little with his movements. They were a gift from an old coworker of his sister's from her job at a BDSM club. He likes them a lot, and so do the patrons.

 Now prepared, Amvrosiy goes over to his room’s door and opens it.

 ‘My adoring and slutty fans await,’ he thinks to himself with a confident grin, before heading down the hall to start the fun.

Chapter Text

 “And now, for the closing show tonight, we’ve got a little treat for all you dirty little sluts out there! You know him! You love him! You alllll want him to fuck you into a coma! I know I want him too but his old man would probably descale me! Heeere’sss Țepeș !”

 The crowd is already hollering and cheering up a storm, and Amvrosiy hasn’t even gone out on stage yet. But as soon as he does, the crowd goes mostly silent.

 Then his track starts up.

 It's a borderline predatory song sung by a group of deer, which makes the song somewhat controversial because of its predatory sound, but safe because herbivores sing it. But that whole vibe completely changes when Amvrosiy is on stage. The herbivores in the audience–there are a lot considering the wolf’s style–know full well that he could eat them if he wants, but a few of them are weirdly into that.

 It perfectly fits his slutty nature, since he practically eats his partners through sex by completely draining them dry, as if he's devouring their very essence. He revels in the lewd and satisfied moans and grunts from his fans, his worshippers, and because they know just as well as he does that there's very little that would properly satisfy their enormous lust.

 He's aware that some of his fans are in relationships, and he makes sure to let those animals know he's just an outlet for pent up sexual release, whereas their partners are more proper and long-term solutions for loneliness and release. He didn’t like the idea of a customer wanting to be with him when they're already in relationships. But for tonight?

 They're all his.

 He goes up to the gleaming pole in the middle of the stage and begins his sensual routine. The wolf slides his delicate hands up and down the pole as though he's stroking a lover’s shaft, even licking it and rubbing his chest along it, all while making eye contact with the crowd. After a bit of that, he changes position and grabs the pole with both hands behind him, thrusting his hips out a few times while letting his tongue hang out.

 The crowd hoots and moans loudly, and he watches as some of them cum right then and there. Adorable. And he's just started.

 Now, he slowly, carefully, and methodically begins to tense his arms and move a bit closer to the pole. Bending his torso back, he sinks his teeth into the solid rubber piece attached to the pole at the perfect height for his face. With his teeth clamped on, he starts to slowly lift his lower half until his feet are no longer touching the stage, and still raises them higher.

 Wrapping his legs around the cold metal, the wolf removes a hand from the pole and moves it towards his waist, stopping to grope and squeeze his pec along the way. Once it's in position, it comes down hard onto his ass with a loud smack, making those giant luscious globes of flesh wobble and ripple. He lowers himself back down, then starts spinning, eventually crawling up the pole and holding himself horizontal to spin with his crotch nearly touching it, a move he views as a classic in the entertainment industry.

 As he winds down from the spin, he lets go with one hand and starts to fondle his crotch, even thrusting his out again to add to the sensuality of it. When the song goes quiet for a few seconds, he grins, takes a deep breath, and lets out a long, powerful howl in sync with it.

The crowd practically loses their minds, whooping and hollering as some of them even visibly cum in their pants, again in a few cases.

 With a toothy grin and a smirk, he takes out a little vial of lotion, pops the lid off, and pours it over his pecs, rubbing the liquid into his fur as he squeezes and fondles himself. Then, going into a flex, he performs a backflip–just to show off a little–onto the pole, clamping his legs around it and spinning until his head touches the floor. His arms held behind his head, he flashes a grin at the crowd and winks as the track fades out.

 “That was one helluva show tonight, Rosie!” Clive says as the wolf enters his room.

 “Just giving the people what they want, old man.”

 The old Komodo laughs as he takes a sip of tea. “Heh, damn straight. And uh, by the way, there’s a new guy requesting a private session with you.”

 “Oh? Anything of note about him?”

 “He’s a gazelle. Wears a mask. Kinda creeps me out, though. Never seen him around this part of the market before.”

 “And he’s requesting a private session?”

 “Mhm. Asked for you specifically. I figure he’s likely heard how popular you are, wants to see it for himself. He’s willing to pay extra for you.”

 “How much?”

 “Forty thousand.”

 Amvrosiy’s eye nearly pops out of his head. His normal price for private sessions is about twelve thousand yen, a price Clive helped set up due to the wolf’s unique status and need for medication. So for someone to offer over triple his fee just to see him? There's no way he's going to pass this up.

 “I’ll do it. Now I’m curious as to who this guy is.”

Chapter Text

 Amvrosiy enters the private room, and immediately, his senses pick up an odd smell. It doesn’t smell like a gazelle… or even an herbivore. It smells different. Strange. But he finds himself liking the scent.

 “So, you’re Sekiro, right?” a somewhat high-pitched voice says.

 He looks over to the lounge chair to see a male gazelle. He's quite slender, but has a hint of muscle–it makes him smile a bit, muscular twinks are one of his favorites. He's wearing a simple pair of dark slacks and a pink button-up shirt with leaf patterns all over it. Just like Clive had said, a surgical mask covers his face. He wonders why. Maybe he has scars he didn’t want others to see?

 “Yessir,” he says. “‘Sekiro’ is just my nickname. My real name is ‘Amvrosiy’. You are?”

 “Melon.”

 “Like the fruit? I like it. Watermelon’s one of my favorite snacks, so I’m sure I’ll enjoy you~” The wolf gives a lewd wink as he sticks his tongue out a little. He goes over to the gazelle, placing his hands on the couch on either side of him. “So, anything in particular you want me to do for you, hon?” he asks.

 “I can think of a few things,” the gazelle says suggestively. He starts to unbutton his shirt, only for Amvrosiy to stop him.

 “I’d like to have the honor, if you don’t mind. Undressing my partners is my favorite part of foreplay~”

 The wolf begins to slowly unbutton Melon’s shirt, taking it slow in a teasing way, and hums in delight as he reveals the man’s fur.

 “Why, you’re just a big ol’ patch’a melons, aren’tcha?” he jokes as he pulls the shirt down his partner’s arms, revealing even more tattoos.

 He runs his hands through the gazelle’s fur, reveling in its softness and delighting in the feel of dense muscle underneath. Making eye contact, he lowers his head to Melon’s abdomen, and begins to sensually lick along his stomach and chest, even taking a nipple in his mouth and teething and pulling on it a little, drawing a soft gasp from him.

 With a small giggle, he unbuckles the other man’s pants and pulls them down, eying the impressive bulge in the gazelle’s boxers. He puts a hand to it and squeezes, drawing another gasp out of the herbivore. Taking the waistband in his teeth, he pulls them down his hips, and gets bopped on the nose by the rock-hard cock. He looks at it, and realizes… it's barbed. This guy's a hybrid. A feline hybrid. And there are SPOTS on his crotch.

 Amvrosiy looks up at Melon’s face, and watches with equal parts intrigue and dread as he removes his surgical mask, exposing his–

  Teeth. Sharp teeth. LEOPARD mouth.

 His brain starts screaming at him, “Run! Run, dumbass! This guy’s a fucking leopard! ” But he can't. He's frozen. He can’t even speak. So he does the only thing he can. He uses what little strength he has to launch himself away from the hybrid, landing on his back on the floor, but accidentally smashing his head into the small pole stage in the middle of the room, dazing him.

 Melon gets up, staring him down with a look of interest, but there's pure sadism in those eyes. The guy's bad news. He finally gets his legs to cooperate, and he stands up, but he's shaking, both from the fear and the blow to the head. He starts to fall over, but a strong pair of arms catches him.

 “Hey, relax!” Melon says. “I’m not gonna hurt you! I just came here to talk, maybe have a bit of fun!”

 Amvrosiy struggles to escape, and manages to break free. But his right arm is stuck. He squirms and twists, trying desperately to break free, but the twinkish hybrid’s grip is surprisingly strong.

 His prosthetic disconnects.

 He goes flying.

 Then he sees black.

 When he comes to, he sees Clive and a few of the other employees hovering over him.

 “Hey, kid. You okay?” Clive asks.

 “What happened…?”

 “You knocked yourself out trying to get away from that gazelle guy,” one of the security staff, a Komodo named Markus, says.

 The wolf slowly sits up and looks around the room, trying to spot Melon. He does, and the hybrid is currently being strangled by Izuki, a good-natured and humorous dancer he occasionally gets drinks with. The doe is yelling a flood of obscenities at Melon as she chokes the life out of him, but oddly enough, he seems to be enjoying it .

 “Let him go, Izuki,” he says, which the deer obeys. Melon coughs, trying to catch his breath.

 “You guys really don’t mess around when it comes to gumi kids,” he wheezes.

 Clive looked at him skeptically. “What makes you think Rosie’s a gumi member?” he says.

 “He’s normally followed and watched by Dokugumi. They don’t do that unless they’re looking into someone or trying to protect them, and they don’t protect just anybody. He may not officially be Dokugumi, but he’s family to them.”

 “Alright, I’ll give you that. Why’d you want a private session with him? Seems a bit suspect if you pay attention to him being accompanied by Dokugumi.”

 The hybrid shuffles over to his pile of clothes and picks up a large faux leather bag. “I wanted to give him something I thought he’d appreciate. I did him a favor.” He tosses the bag to Clive, who looks at it suspiciously.

 “You really think it’s a good idea to try and have a private chat with someone who’s regularly watched by Dokugumi, then try to give him something? How do we know this wasn’t an attempt on the kid’s life?”

 Melon smirks. “If I wanted him dead, he’d be so already. But, I don’t have any desire to hurt him. He’s clearly a special kid. It’d be a shame to destroy something like that~”

 He gives a knowing grin to Amvrosiy, who freezes in place. He knows. “Open it,” the wolf says.

 Clive unlatches the strap keeping the bag closed and lifts the flap. The distinct scent of leopard hits his nose. The Komodo looks at the contents of the bag for a few seconds, before his expression turns to horrified shock.

“Oh FUCK! ” he yells, dropping the bag and leaping back.

 The bag hits the ground, and something partially spills out of it. Something spotted and furry.

 “That’s a fucking leopard pelt!” Clive shouts.

 Amvrosiy’s eye snaps to Melon. The hybrid gives him a proud, toothy grin. “That one was surprisingly hard to track down,” he muses. “He was fun ~”

 The wolf looks at the leopard pelt. It's a clean cut, clearly the work of an expert. He notices the rough patches of fur, the clear signs of the leopard not having cared about taking care of his appearance despite being a feline, the stains in the fur from drugs and alcohol, the cigarette burns…

 “Oda?! ” he exclaims. The leopard is practically a sworn enemy of his, as Oda despises Amvrosiy for his hybrid status. But more importantly, he's one of Miso’s most trusted confidants.

  And the blood on the pelt is still fresh.

 “A tiger from Cherryton told me where to find him,” Melon says. “I said Oda owed me some money, and he gave me his last known location without a second thought. Man, the guy was naive. For all he knew, I was looking for Oda for owed money and planning on hurting him because of it!”

Amvrosiy just stares at the pelt. He can’t believe it. The speciest prick is dead. Part of him is relieved, but the rest of him is terrified. What would Miso think? Would he blame him? Would he think the Dokugumi was responsible? He couldn’t think that. The Dokugumi primarily dealt in pelts from foreign sources. And why would they target Oda anyways? His pelt was practically worthless, because the alcoholic mess that was a poor excuse for a leopard refused to take care of himself. He would probably have to wait until the Day of Depravity next week to find out.

 The clearly psychotic hybrid nonchalantly begins to get dressed, before walking over to the door. Markus, visibly pissed off, starts to approach him, likely to give him a piece of his mind, only to be stopped with a hand to his chest by Amvrosiy.

 “Let him go, Markus,” he says. “He’s not worth it.”

 Melon looks back at him. “By the way, I left you another present. I think you’ll like it. It’ll give you a bit more energy. You’ll need it, between work and school.” With that, he leaves the room, the only trace of him being the queer scent that the wolf finds both intoxicating… and now unnerving.

 He shuffles over to where the hybrid had been sitting before. He kneels down and spots a briefcase stashed under the couch, pulls it into view. It's unlocked, with a note on top giving the six-number lock’s code. 121715. Another bit of strange knowledge on the psycho’s part.

 He pops the briefcase open and looks inside. Rows of cans lay inside, greenish-blue–cyan, maybe?–aluminum with the brand name in yellow.

KINES.

Chapter Text

 “So Rosie, what’s the story with that arm? It doesn’t look like anything I’ve seen.”

 Amvrosiy turns his attention from his locker to Bill, who has a look of interest on his face. He’s probably eying the tally marks on it. “A friend of my grandparents’ made it,” he answers. “She owed them a favor. It’s been treated to resist Komodo venom, but it can still get damaged if the venom is strong enough. It’s a necessary feature when you live around Komodos.”

 “What’s your family like?” Tao asks.

 The wolf starts pulling his sleeves down. “Well, mom’s a fashion designer, dad’s a police sergeant. Mom’s super sweet, almost unbearably so sometimes. She’s probably one of the most cheerful people you could ever have the pleasure of meeting. Zoyechka and I are really proud of her. She’s managed to become such a big name in the fashion industry despite being a hybrid.”

 “See?” Legosi says. “If your mom can get so far with a so-called ‘limitation’, you can do that too.”

 Amvrosiy smiles. “Thanks, Legosi. I appreciate that. Anyways, dad’s a bit of a hard nut. He’s really caring, but he gets really serious when it comes to family. He once threatened to break a coworker’s knees for making a lewd comment about mom. So he can get pretty scary sometimes. He’d never do anything to hurt us, though.”

 “And the precinct didn’t do anything to him?” Kai says in astonishment.

 “Well, dad really knows his stuff about organized crime. It makes him a useful ally. Besides, the police are a bit shady, in my opinion. They arrest carnivores for devouring rather than help them, talk about the Black Market being illegal,, then go there to eat meat when that’s often what causes that shit?”

 His expression darkens. “They’re a bunch of hypocrites. I’m sure that if an officer were to devour someone, they’d just cover it up. Why wouldn’t they allow a guy with frontline knowledge they could use to keep his job after justifiably getting a little riled up?”

 He puts his club clothes in his locker and starts changing into his uniform, not missing the brief glances Bill and Tao take at his ass. He’s feeling a bit more confident today after last night’s show’s success, so he casually sways his hips side to side as he bends down to pull his shorts up. He also doesn’t miss how all the guys’ eyes widen at the sight of his scars.

 “So what’s the plan for practice today?” he asks.

 Bill shakes his head a bit, snapping out of the trance he’d evidently been placed in. “We’re supposed to go to the city to meet with a guy for some stuff for the next Adler performance. Dom asked me to get some good fabric for costumes, he figured you might have a few connections. I met this guy about a week ago. He’s an old play writer who makes high-quality props.”

 “If Dom wants to use whatever connections I may have, why couldn’t he have asked me himself? And with that being the case, why go to some random shop?”

 “The guy has low prices for good stuff. I thought we should check him out first.”

 After showing his off-campus pass, Amvrosiy is the last to walk out into the very front of the school’s borders. “Are you guys sure you have everything? Phones? Chargers if needed? Money?”

 Everyone nods. “Man, this is gonna be great!” Bill says excitedly. “Not only do we get to go into the city for club, but we get to do it with the new guy!” He looks at the hybrid with a cheerful expression. “There’s this ramen shop Aoba and I go to now and then that sells the best ramen! We totally gotta take you there!”

 “Let’s just focus on the task at hand,” Legosi says. “Then we can go to the ramen shop. I’m honestly looking forward to that part.”

 Bill and Tao give him a pair of surprised stares. “Wait– You … are actually looking forward to something?!” Bill cries.

 “Why wouldn’t I? I talked to Amvrosiy yesterday about getting food together sometime. This is my chance to do so.”

 “Well…” the hybrid in question starts nervously. “When I agreed to that, I was thinking it would be just the two of us. But I’m fine with this setup. We can get food alone some other time.”

 He turns to Bill. “Where are we meeting this guy?”

 “He lives near this place called ‘The Hidden Condo’,” the tiger answers.

 “Okay. Let me just grab my jacket.”

 Amvrosiy trods across the pavement to a pair of vehicles parked outside the building, a motorcycle and a purplish-blue hatchback. The motorcycle was a gift from Izuki when he first started working at sixteen, and the wolf had worked on it for months to perfect it. It’s black with purple and green accents, a beautiful decal of a bunch of roses with vines and thorns covering the gas tank. A pair of saddlebags made from leather designed to look fake sit on the back sides. He opens the bags and digs through them, until he finally finds what he’s looking for.

 He lifts out the old jacket, checking it for any signs of damage. It’s thankfully still in good condition, the few patches across it only adding to its allure. The brown leather bomber jacket is one of his most prized possessions, a gift from his grandfather. It’s made with sheepskin, also designed to look fake to the untrained eye, the hide having come from a sheep who disrespected his paternal grandfather back in Russia. It has quite a number of pockets for storing tools, medicine, and other items, which is a dealbreaker for him, since the jacket has a great practical use.

 Draping it over the seat, he takes out another item, a harness. He slings it over his shoulders and fastens it, making sure it’s tight enough, then he starts loading it. His large combat knife goes in the attached sheath on his right side so he can pull it down and out with his left hand, and his personal handgun goes in its holster, also on the right, once he checks and loads it, with the six spare magazines going in their respective pouches on the opposite side.

  Better to be safe than caught unprepared, especially since the Hidden Condo is near the market.

 He turns around to face his fellow club members, making sure his weapons are concealed under his jacket. “Alright. I’m ready to go,” he says.

Amvrosiy actually somewhat enjoys the train ride. He doesn’t use public transportation much, between preferring his motorcycle and not leaving the Black Market very often, but it’s rather nice. The group steps off the train and starts walking to their destination.

 As they walk, the hybrid can’t help but wonder about the person they’re meeting with. If he lives near the Black Market, surely his goods aren’t as high quality as Bill claims. He had run into too many scam artists to trust some random stranger selling stuff.

 He takes out a can from his bag, popping the tab and lifting it to his mouth. The scent that wafts from the can is sweet, yet a bit… tangy , perhaps? It certainly doesn’t smell like any energy drink he’s tasted before. And that Melon guy is definitely insane. Part of him doubts whether he should drink something a psycho gave him, but the other part acknowledges what the hybrid had said.

  “If I wanted him dead, he’d be so already.” If that’s true, he likely shouldn’t have to worry about the can being drugged or poisoned. So he shrugs and takes a sip, almost immediately coughing at the slightly tart taste. Cherry flavor. Ridiculously strong cherry flavor. Clearly Melon or whoever he got the energy drinks from doesn’t know shit about proper flavor balancing. But … it’s still good. He’d have to add some water to it to hopefully dilute the flavor’s strength.

“Oh, we’re here!”

 Amvrosiy turns his attention to Bill, who’s currently looking down an alley. “This is the place! Just down here!”

 The tiger starts trodding down the alley, not paying attention to his fellows’ unease.

 “Bill, are you sure this is the right place?” Tao asks. “It seems kinda sketchy.”

 Bill snorts. “Oh, come on !” he says. “We’re carnivores! What’s this guy gonna do? We’ve got a Bengal tiger, and two wolves! If something happens, we can just easily overpower him!”

 The panther sighs but follows. Amvrosiy takes the back of the group, making sure to discreetly switch the safety off on his gun.

 The group comes up to a glass door, the name “Fasu’s Stage Emporium” emblazoned on a sign hanging above it. Bill pushes the door open, causing a little bell to go off. The dim lights flicker a bit as the door closes.

 “Hello?!”

 There’s a bit of rattling from the back of the store before a middle-aged deer pops out of a back room. His expression becomes a welcoming one when he spots the students.

 “Ah, welcome! Welcome!” he greets warmly. “You’re the group from Cherryton, I presume?”

 Bill clears his throat a bit. “Yes, sir. You’re Fasu, I’m guessing?”

 The stag nods. “Oh, yes! Now, what can I help you gentlemen with? Here at Fasu’s Stage Emporium, we sell only the best materials for aspiring theatre groups!”

 “You mind if we look around? I told the stage crew I’d let them know what we find.”

 “Be my guest!”

 The tiger goes over to a rack holding bolts of fabric. He inspects them closely, his hand moving along them to get a feel for their textures. The rack is full of silk and cloth of various colors and patterns, but they all look a bit too good for a shop hidden away in an alley.

 The temporary club leader evidently notices this detail, as he turns to look at Fasu. “Hey, not to be rude or anything, but these materials look a bit too high quality for a place like this. Where do you get this stuff?”

 “I get them shipped from all over! Fasu’s Stage Emporium has suppliers all over the country!” the cervid states proudly.

 Tao feels up the bolts alongside Bill, visibly baffled at their quality as his eyes lock on to a bolt of blue stripe-patterned polyester. “I’ve seen this exact pattern somewhere.”

 “Hey, now that you mention it, these do look familiar,” Bill agrees.

 Legosi is at a shelf containing various props, including swords. He picks one up, trying to get a feel for its weight. “This sword is weirdly balanced. It doesn’t sit right in my hand.” He gives it a swing, the prop audibly whiffing through the air, before the fake blade thwacks against a mannequin. The sword snaps, and at the same time, the mannequin’s head caves in and pops off its shoulders from the blow.

 The students all look at Legosi, then at the broken prop, then at the busted mannequin.

 “What the hell, Legosi?!” Bill cries. “We haven’t even been here five minutes and you’re already breaking shit ?!”

 The wolf’s ears flatten. “I didn’t even swing it that hard, Bill,” he defends.

 “Well, unfortunately, since you’ve broken some of my wares, you will need to pay for them,” Fasu says. “I believe thirty thousand will do.”

 “Thirty thousand?!” Bill yells. “What kind of business owner are you?! These props are clearly shit, and you’re trying to charge us that much?!”

 “That mannequin your oafish friend broke was part of the ‘Hamlet’ production by the Forest Greene theatre production in western Europe,” the deer informs. “It was a piece of great theatrical history.”

 “Bullshit.”

 Everyone’s attention turns to Amvrosiy, who’s holding a prop deer skull. His grip tightens on it, and the skull explodes. “Whoops,” he sarcastically mutters. “Even a decent quality prop would have withstood a good squeeze.”

 He starts pacing up to the counter, eyes locked on to the deer. “You just plucked that mannequin from a department store. And the fabric is stolen .”

 He opens his jacket to reveal his shirt, which is the same pattern as the material Tao had been inspecting. “Those bolts of material were created by Chanelle de Loc, one of the head designers for the Summer Chic fashion line by Lyudmila Romanov and Antoine Dorian.”

 “The swords, on the other hand, you just picked up at a supermarket.”

 He places his hands on the counter and leans over, staring Fasu dead in the eyes. “Those bolts normally sell for eight thousand yen, with the silk selling for at least twelve thousand. Someone like you couldn’t possibly afford them. So you stole them . Lyudmila Romanov is married to a sergeant in the police department, and he would gladly bust a scam artist trying to sell his wife’s materials for inflated prices. He’s kind of petty like that.”

 The stag sneers at him “And how would you know that, you mangy mutt?” he challenges.

 Amvrosiy smirks and pulls up his jacket sleeve, showing off his prosthetic arm. Fasu looks at it for a few moments, before his eyes widen.

 “You–You’re–You’re him !” he stammers. “The One-Armed Wolf! But you’re supposed to be dead!”

 “Well, unfortunately for you, I survived your and Oda’s little scheme,” the wolf responds. “And that means you remember who my grandparents are, correct?”

 “I–I’m so sorry , Mister Mikhailov! I can sell you the materials at a greatly reduced price! You and your friends can–Ack!”

 The stag is cut off by a cold steel hand wrapping around his throat. His face is brought closer to Amvrosiy’s, who glares at him with pure hatred.

 “I will be taking those materials,” he states firmly, “to their rightful owner. And then I will call my father and inform him of your misaligned practices.”

 “Amvrosiy, let him go,” Bill says. “The police can deal with him.”

 The wolf looks at Bill. “This man was planning to scam you into buying faulty props, and is a thief. You’re willing to let this go and potentially allow the police to fail at their job?”

 “Listen to your friend, mutt!” Fasu says. “I have cameras around the shop! They’ll have captured you manhandling me! The police will believe an herbivore over a filthy halfbreed, even if you have powerful family!”

 “The police know who I am. They won’t do anything.”

 The cervid stares at him with an almost mad look. “But the Black Devil will likely hear of this! A known gang member assaulting an herbivore? He’ll hunt you down!”

 “Rosie… what is he talking about?” Tao asks.

 “They don’t know… do they?” Fasu laughs. “Your friend here is the Madaragumi’s whore ! A filthy disgrace to Miso!”

Amvrosiy’s head hurts. His veins feel like they’re on fire. He’s starting to get pissed off.

 “I’ll tell Oda you laid your disgusting hands on me! He won’t let a mutt harm his supplier!”

 “Oda’s dead.”

 Legosi puts a hand on his shoulder. “Rosie, come on. We can get the materials somewhere else. He’s not worth it.”

 Pain explodes on Amvrosiy’s face as he recoils from the deer. He feels blood trickle down his face as his hand feels the new cut on his cheek. He glares death at Fasu, who’s now brandishing a knife.

 “Get the fuck out of my shop!” the stag yells. “Or I’ll call the police!”

 A deep, angry growl tears itself from the hybrid’s throat as he stares the shopkeeper down. His blood is boiling, his thoughts are racing…

 He lunges at the older man, dragging him over the counter and kicking his head into the glass display case. Fasu tries to shove him back, only to find his arm caught in the wolf’s jaws. He yells in pain as meat is torn from the bone.

 Bill and Legosi grab onto Amvrosiy, desperately trying to pry him off. But the wolf doesn’t want to let go. He wants to tear this bastard limb from limb for insulting him. He now recognizes the deer as the man who sold out Kali and the others, and that can’t go unpunished. And he’s close friends with Oda. Everyone involved with him needs to DIE.

 Pain explodes across his body as volts of electricity are forced into his system. He releases the deer and has no choice but to let himself be dragged away by his clubmates.

  They found my taser. Shit…

 He finds himself being hauled to his feet, but his legs feel like jelly.

 “Fuck…” he murmurs.

 Fasu has passed out by the time the group exits the shop. Amvrosiy explicitly tells the others to leave the man be, that his wife would be showing up in the next minute or two–a lie, but he doesn’t want the deer to live. He’d get killed anyways for screwing someone over, so why not let him go now? Thankfully, they listen, and the students now find themselves walking down the street, away from the scene.

 “Rosie, what the fuck was that?!” Bill demands. “You can’t just attack an herbivore like that! You’ll get locked up!”

 “M’sorry…” the wolf mumbles. “I don’t know what came over me… I was just… I was just so angry . Fasu needed to pay for everything he’s done.”

 “Selling faulty shit and stolen goods for stupid prices doesn’t justify almost attempting to devour an herbivore !” the tiger hisses.

 “It’s not that. He’s involved–or at least used to be involved –in a livestock ring. But that’s not important right now.”

Chapter Text

 Amvrosiy is a bit nervous about taking his clubmates into the Black Market. Sure, Legosi goes there to train with Gouhin, he’s seen Bill there a few times eating meat, but the only time he’s seen Tao there was when he, Bill, Aoba, and Legosi accidentally came across the place a few months ago.

 “Rosie, why are we heading into the Black Market?” Tao asks.

 “I told you, getting materials for the stage crew and having a safe place to talk,” he answers.

 People going about their business notice the group, and many of them smile when they see the hybrid. They wave at him and say hello, causing his clubmates to look at him strangely.

 “You come here often, I’m guessing?” Bill asks. “These people sure seem friendly with you.”

 “No. I live here.”

 Bill gawks at him. “What?! You mean–”

 “Oh, would you look at that? We’re here.”

 Amvrosiy guides the three into a shop with a sign that reads “Romanov Fashion Do’s: The Best Choice for Fashion in the Black Market!” The bell rings as he pushes the door open, causing the store’s occupants to look up.

 A middle-aged female lioness smiles when she sees the group. “Welcome to Romanov Fashion Do’s!” she greets warmly. “How can I help you gentlemen today?”

 “Hey, Masa,” Amvrosiy says. “Is Mom here?”

 Masa’s face brightens considerably upon noticing the wolf. “Oh, Amvrosiy, dear! It’s good to see you! Lyudmila’s in the back! I can go get her for you.”

She turns around and walks into the back room, coming out a few moments later with a cheerful-looking female wolf, who lets out a high-pitched squeal upon seeing the group.

 “ Rosie !” the wolf yells happily, lunging at Amvrosiy and pulling him into a strong hug. “How was your first day, dear? Did it go well? Who are these three? Are they friends of yours?”

 Amvrosiy chuckles. “Easy does it, mom,” he says. “They’re clubmates from school. The tiger’s Bill, and the panther’s Tao.”

 Lyudmila lets him go and turns her attention to his clubmates, nearly ramming into Bill in her excitement. “‘ Clubmates ’, you say?! What club?!” The wolf is practically vibrating now, and Bill’s starting to look a bit uncomfortable.

 “Uh… Well…” The tiger stammers a bit, clearly confused by the situation. “We’re part of Cherryton’s drama club,” he says. “Amvrosiy led us here in the hopes of getting some good fabric for our next performance. We went to another guy, but… things got a bit… rough .”

 “Who was it?” she asks.

 “An old deer named Fasu.”

 The she-wolf’s expression immediately darkens. “ Oh . I’m guessing that good-for-nothing stag stole some of my fabric again?” She puts a hand to her forehead, shaking her head and muttering something in Russian. “I should really have Dad deal with him. Rex knows he’s just going to hurt more people doing stuff like that...”

 “I honestly think Fasu would rather be devoured than even be in the same room as Grandpa,” Amvrosiy muses. “But enough of that. Bill, what did Dom say the stage crew needs?”

 “Um, I have a list right here,” the tiger responds, pulling out his phone.

 Lyudmila looks over the list, humming a bit as she closely analyzes it. “Okay! I can have it all delivered by tomorrow morning!” she says.

 “How much do we owe you?” Tao asks, to which the wolf scoffs.

 “Oh, I’ll give you a discount!” she exclaims. “You’re doing me a serious favor by taking my little Rose and his sister in! Let’s say, oh, eleven thousand?”

 Bill and Tao’s eyes look like they’re about to pop out of their heads. “ Eleven thousand ?!” they yell.

 “You can’t possibly be thinking of giving us all that stuff for such a cheap price!” Bill says.

 “Consider taking my baby boy in as the rest of the payment,” she replies nonchalantly. “Giving him a chance to make friends and have a good life is worth more to me than you can possibly imagine.”

 The tiger looks at her like she’s crazy. “I can’t do twelve thousand. That’s too cheap for something of your quality. At least take fifteen.”

 “Hmm, I think I’ll do eight.”

 Bill’s eyes widen. “Oh, fuck no. Twelve thousand, I insist .”

 “How about nine thousand?” Lyudmila offers, a cheeky expression on her face.

 “Ten! At least .”

 “Alright. Ten.”

 “I’m not going to take ‘no’ for a–wait, ‘Alright’?!”

 The wolf claps her hands together. “Excellent! Now, why don’t you boys go get something to eat.”

 “Thank you, ma’am,” Legosi says. “I’m sure the stage crew will greatly appreciate this.”

 Lyudmila looks at him. “I’m sorry, but Rosie didn’t introduce you. You are?”

 “Legosi, ma’am.”

 Her face brightens further. “Oh, Legosi! I remember now! How’s that rabbit girl? I heard there was an incident involving the Shishigumi.”

 “Haru’s fine, ma’am. I got her back without a scratch.”

 “That’s great!”

 An alarm goes off in her pocket, prompting the woman to pull her phone out, which caused her to sigh. “I don’t mean to be rude, but I would suggest you boys leave. I have a client coming very soon, and I’m sure having you here would make things a bit awkward. She has some personal matters to discuss with me.”

 The boys nod. “Of course. We wouldn’t want to be in your way.”

 “Well, you boys have an absolutely wonderful day!” she says cheerfully. “And do come back any time!”

“You didn’t tell us your mom was Lyudmila fucking Romanov!” Bill complains. “She’s a fucking legend in the fashion industry! Pina doesn’t shut up when he gets to talking about her! It’s kinda annoying!”

 “I didn’t want to risk sounding like some egotistic ass because I have two well-known parents,” Amvrosiy replies.

 “We don’t care who your parents are. But now that we know, Zoyechka’s sewing skills and attention to detail suddenly make a lot more sense,” Tao says.

 “Zoyechka’s always taken after mom. I kinda take after Dad more, but I mainly kinda take after my grandpa.”

 “What’s he like? Your grandpa?” Legosi asks.

 “He’s a great guy. Really serious, doesn’t take shit from anyone. He makes sure to keep his friends in check, keep them and the family safe. When Zoyechka started dating a guy she met at a cooking class, Grandpa was the main one to give him ‘the talk’. Threatened to put him through a grinder if he hurt her.”

 “What happened with the guy and your sister?” the panther asks.

 “He cheated on her with another girl. So Grandpa broke his jaw and both his legs, then castrated him for good measure.” An omission of facts–Grandpa had left Mel to suffer for two weeks, then skinned him and hung his pelt as a warning. The guy was Okamigumi, anyways, not like anyone would miss him.

 The guys all wince, looking at the hybrid with haunted expressions. “Holy shit. Your grandpa sounds like a terrifying dude,” Bill says.

 “He can be at times, but he’s a family man at heart. Komodos are really family-oriented, especially since they’re discriminated against by most of the population.”

 The tiger looks down at his phone, then at the group’s surroundings. “Shit. It’s getting late. I completely lost track of time. Amvrosiy, you know your way around here. What’s the fastest way to the train station?”

 “From our current position, by the time we get to the station, it’ll be too late.”

 “ Fuuuck . So we’ll have to find a place to stay for the night. I’m pretty sure all the decent places to stay aren’t even close, and I don’t like the idea of staying in this place.”

 Amvrosiy thinks for a moment, absentmindedly pacing as he does. He could probably ask his parents about letting his clubmates stay the night, but that means they might learn things he doesn’t want them to know. Maybe he could call Dad and ask him to hide some of his stuff? But he also doesn’t want him to go through his room. That would be awkward. His dad had seen a lot of crazy things in his life, and he’s fully aware and supportive of Amvrosiy and his sister’s work, but he doesn’t exactly like the idea of his old man seeing some of his more… risqué collections.

 “Rosie? Earth to Rosie?”

 He snaps out of his train of thought to find Bill, Tao, and Legosi staring at him.

 “Hm?”

 “Geez, you really get absorbed in your thoughts,” Bill teases. “I was asking you if you know any good places nearby we could stay in for the night.”

 “Um… Well… I could… ask my parents…?” Amvrosiy says nervously. He pulls his phone out to pull up his contacts, quickly finding the one labeled “DAD”. It rings for only a few seconds before picking up.

 “ Zdravstvuyte? ” Hello? Formal at first on the phone, a good practice.

 “Hey, Dad,” the wolf greets. “Um, I just got done talking to Mom with a few guys from Drama club about getting some materials for the stage crew. We realized it was too late to head to the train station to go back to school, and the guys don’t know any places close by we could stay at for the night.”

 “ So they asked you if you know of any such places, and you thought to call me? I’m flattered that you would be willing to introduce me to your new friends so soon. ”

 “I, uh… I don’t know about that , Dad. We hardly know each other, we just met yesterday.”

 “ Bring them over. I’d like to meet these people. ”

Chapter Text

 Amvrosiy nervously leads the guys to his home. He notices how they all look around at their surroundings, and that they don’t miss how many Komodos are around. They’re in Dokugumi territory now, and he hopes they wouldn’t run into any of the gang’s members, he doesn’t need that kind of potential stress.

 Then he notices him. Fuck .

 A Komodo dragon wearing the signature mask of the Dokugumi stands in front of a building, watching the group closely.

  Please don’t come over please don’t come over please don’t come over.

 But Rex evidently has other plans, and those plans involve making the hybrid’s life as stressful as possible. The Komodo begins to approach the students, casually analyzing them and looking for potential threats.

 “Amvrosiy,” he says. He looks at the wolf’s companions. “Associates of yours?”

 Amvrosiy manages to make himself meet the lizard’s gaze. “Fellow members of Drama club at school. I’m just taking them to my place since we didn’t have time to make it to the train station. We talked to Mom about getting some stuff for club.”

 “Isn’t Miso’s kid in that club?”

 “I… I don’t really remember, Smog. I can’t tell you her name or what she looks like. It’s been a while since I last saw her. Zoyechka might be able to tell you. She actually has a functioning brain.”

 The lizard’s expression falls. “Don’t call yourself stupid, kid.”

 “I know… Anyways, does Dad have anything going on at the moment? He didn’t say anything over the phone.”

 Smog eyes the other kids. “The boss is at the house. Wanted to talk to you,” he says quietly. Fuck . He starts to turn around. “I’ve gotta pick up a few things. Have a good night.”

 Once he’s gone, the wolf turns to face his companions. They’re all looking at him with confusion clearly written on their faces.

 “Who was that?” Tao asks.

 “A friend of my parents. Come on. We’re almost there.”

Amvrosiy is somewhat amused by his fellow students’ reactions to seeing his home. It’s rather modest, but still has an air of importance. Between Mom’s fashion career, Dad’s work on the force, Grandma’s savings from her old job and her work at a restaurant, and Grandpa’s stubborn insistence on getting his daughter and son-in-law a nice place to live, the Mikhailov family is situated in one of the nicer parts of the Black Market, with good security and lots of space.

 The wolf swipes his keycard on the front gate and pushes it open, allowing the group to enter the premises. The scent of several types of flowers meet his nose, calming him down a bit. Mom is rather fond of plants, and his love of spiders allows her garden to remain pest-free.

 They come up the stairs to the front door, and Bill comments on the web-patterned welcome mat. Legosi seems to be hypnotized by the trough containing more flowers, as the canine watches with great interest as ladybugs and a few beetles crawl around.

 He knocks on the door, and it opens a few moments later, revealing a very tall and muscular gray wolf. Grigori Mikhailov is an imposing man in terms of appearance, and at times has the personality of an angry wasp, but he’s incredibly sweet when it comes to family and friends–in all honesty, it could be a little overwhelming at times, but that’s Russian hospitality for you.

 Grigori’s mouth splits into a wide grin when he sees his son. “Amvrosiy!” he exclaims, throwing his arms around the young man and easily pulling him off his feet. “It’s such a treat that you introduce your classmates to your mother and I on only the second day!”

 “Y-Yeah, it’s good to see you too, Dad!” Amvrosiy says. “Could you let me down, please? You’re kind of crushing my ribcage.”

 The older man immediately complies, then turns his attention to the other three males. “And who are these three handsome men?! Don’t tell me you decided to bring them home for a fun night!”

 “Ahah, like I said, Dad, we came out here for club and ended up losing track of time.”

 Bill is the first to approach. “Bill Schroeder. I’m on the actor’s team,” he says. “Your son has a lot of talent.”

 Grigori laughs and claps the tiger on the shoulder, nearly causing him to fall over. “Ha! Only his second day, and my son is already entrancing his classmates!”

 Tao is next to introduce himself, but before Legosi can do so, he has the large canine’s full attention. “You are Legosi, yes?” he asks.

 “Y-Yes, sir,” the wolf answers. “You know who I am?”

 “Of course! Gouhin told me about you! Not to mention I heard about your little raid on the Shishigumi’s mansion a few months ago! Free wouldn’t stop bitching about it for weeks !”

 “You… know some of the Shishigumi members?” Legosi asks, clearly confused.

 The older man nods. “Free, Dolph, and I occasionally go out for drinks. Honestly, I don’t like the way Free treats women, but that’s between him and his boss to handle.” He smacks his forehead and mutters something under his breath. “Oh, how rude of me. Please , come in! Make yourselves at home!”

The group obliges, and they quickly find themselves seated in the living room, where a large Komodo dragon is lounging in an old armchair.

 “Amvrosiy!” he greets. “How was school? Are you enjoying yourself there?”

 “It’s going okay, Grandpa,” Amvrosiy replies. “A few members of Drama club and I came out to the city to get materials for the next performance.”

 The lizard looks at Bill, who’s currently staring somewhat wide-eyed at him. “Is rudeness something inherent in felines? Speak up if you’ve got something to say, boy.”

 “You’re Amvrosiy’s grandpa?” the tiger asks.

 He narrows his eyes and leans forward, looking the feline dead in the eyes. “Is there a problem with that?” he says darkly.

 “N-No, sir,” Bill stammers. “I’m just surprised. You and Grigori seem very different from him, that’s all.”

 The Komodo leans back in his chair, visibly satisfied. “My daughter has significantly softened Grigori up in the time they’ve been together. Twenty-four years with twins will do that. But he’s still a fighter. Zoyechka may take after her mother, but Amvrosiy is his own man. I have my boys keep an eye on him, though, just to make sure he’s safe–not that he exactly needs the protection, but more so because I don’t want anyone to take advantage of him.”

 “Um, what is it that you do for work, if I may ask, sir?” Legosi asks. “And I’m afraid we didn’t get your name.” It’s an innocent question, but the wolf clearly knows the answer.

 “I’m Savon. It means ‘Soap’ in French. Such an ironic name for a venomous race, isn’t it? I’m a businessman at heart. I trade goods with foreign buyers and sellers, create poisons for pest control, dispose of waste, and do a bit of demolition work. My brother’s in construction, so that last one’s a bit of a mirror for siblings, I think.”

 “You have a lovely home, sir,” Tao comments, clearly nervous.

 “Thank you. I made sure my daughter and her husband got a nice and big home to raise their kids. Only the best for my family.”

 Savon looks at his grandson. “Amvrosiy, why don’t you show your associates your room?” he suggests, noticeably emphasizing “associates”. “Maybe show Legosi your spiders.”

 The wolf nods and stands up, gesturing for the others to follow.

 The quartet comes up to a door at the end of the second floor hallway. A sign reads “BEWARE OF SPIDERS! SPECIFICALLY KATYUSHA!”, and has a picture of a large long-legged spider. Amvrosiy opens it and steps inside, allowing the scent of pine to wash over the teens.

 There are a couple terrariums scattered around the room, a desk against the back wall is littered with papers and various parts and tools, a large mahogany wardrobe sits in the back left corner. A king-sized bed rests in the opposite back corner, while a dresser with a console on top rests under a wall-mounted flatscreen television against the opposite wall. Posters of various games, movies, and bands are spread all over the walls, with the wall the bed’s headrest is up against holding a rack containing several prop weapons. Displayed proudly from the ceiling is a banner that read, “WELCOME TO THE LSSG’S BASE OF OPERATIONS”.

 Curiously, hanging above the desk is an array of prosthetic arms, each of which look like they have different purposes, or are perhaps made specifically for cosplay.

 “This is a pretty cool room you got here, Rosie,” Bill comments.

 “Thank you,” the hybrid replies a bit quietly. He gestures for them to sit down. Tao sits in a bean bag chair across from the bed, Bill plops down into a comfy armchair, and Legosi pulls the chair from the desk over towards the bed, which is sat in by the room’s occupant.

 “About what happened back with Fasu…” Amvrosiy starts, “I’m not really comfortable talking about it. Fasu is a close friend of Oda, a high-ranking member of the Madaragumi, one the gangs here in the Black Market. The deer is his drug dealer. I heard rumors he’s involved in some sort of trafficking ring, but I’m not sure.”

 “What’s the deal with this Oda guy?” Bill asks.

 “Were you in the Black Market yesterday?”

 The tiger freezes. “Um… I…”

 “Just answer the question. Were you in the Black Market yesterday, and if so, did you talk to a weird gazelle?”

 He sighs. “Yes…” he admits. “That gazelle guy was really weird. He wore a mask, I wasn’t sure if he was sick or something. He asked me where Oda was, I told him I had just seen him enter a bar. When I asked why, he said Oda owed him money. I figured it would be better to not get involved or ask any more questions. I saw him a bit later entering a club with a bag and suitcase he didn’t have earlier. Why?”

 “What club was it?”

 “I think it was called, uh, ‘Salacious Scales’?”

 “What were you doing in Dokugumi territory?”

 “I was just passing through to get to– Hey ! What’s with the third degree?!”

 Amvrosiy huffs. “That gazelle killed Oda, said he was doing me a favor. Oda was one of the people who hurt me and my family.” He glances at his bedroom door. “If that gazelle hadn’t done it, my dad or grandpa would have. The Madargumi’s boss might have, as well. He was an insult to their pride. Everyone in the Black Market knows it.”

 He notices Legosi looking at a picture on his nightstand.

 In it is a pair of animals. A younger Amvrosiy is with a male leopard. The leopard’s holding him in a dip, and both of them look proud and happy as they look at the camera, but they’re also partly staring into each other’s eyes. Amvrosiy noticeably still has his arm and right eye, and is showing his scales off with pride. The photo’s lighting catches the glint of gold on their fingers.

 But there’s something odd about the leopard. Legosi recognizes his face–or at least, it seems just slightly familiar. Maybe he knows someone who looks like him? But he can’t put his finger on where he might have seen a person like that…

 “Bill, could you do me a favor and grab my headache medicine out of my drawer? It’s the small dresser behind you. I can never keep track of what drawer it’s in, though. Mom moves my medicine between drawers every week or so when she does laundry.”

 The tiger nods and stands up to open the drawers. The top one is evidently not the one with the medicine, as he closes it and moves to the next one. This one’s apparently stuck, since he seems to be having a bit of trouble opening it.

 “Tao, could you give me a hand?”

 Tao obliges and gets up to help.

 “Okay, on three. One, two, three !”

 The pair yanks the drawer open, but they must have done it a bit too hard, as the drawer comes all the way out and falls to the floor with a thud. But to their and Legosi’s confusion, piles of sealed envelopes come tumbling out along with the requested medication. They start picking the envelopes up to put them back in the drawer, but Bill is clearly curious about what they are.

 “What’s up with all these envelopes, Rosie?” he asks, reading the name neatly scrawled on them. “Who’s Tatsuo?”

 The wolf seems to shrink himself down, refusing to meet anyone’s eyes. “My husband…” he mutters, almost inaudible to the others.

 “You’re married?” Tao says, just as surprised as his friends.

 “Mhm… When I was seventeen. But I haven’t seen or heard from him in almost two years…”

 “Did he disappear, or something?” Bill asks.

 “No… He just said we needed a break, that I needed time to get better. I begged him to stay, but he said I was sick and that he was part of the problem. But I’m not sick…”

 “What a dick!” the tiger exclaims. “He calls you sick and just abandons you ?! What kind of person does that?!”

 “Tatsuo will come back for me! He promised !” Amvrosiy cries desperately. “It’s just… I’ve tried writing him letters, to see how he’s doing, to let him know how I’m doing… but I can never muster up the courage to send them… I don’t want to bother him… I don’t want to be a burden…”

 “ Amvrosiy Anatoli Mikhailov , you are not a burden .”

 Everyone turns to see an older female wolf standing in the doorway, looking quite displeased, but also concerned. She marches over to the young canine, sits on the bed, and wraps her arms around him.

 “That fool of a cat was never worthy of you, dear boy,” she says. “Your grandfather should have shot him the moment he walked away from you.”

 “But why would he want to stay with me when I’m like this, Grandma?” he mumbles.

 The older woman tsks. “Amvrosiy, look at those boys,” she instructs. Amvrosiy does so. “They accepted you into their club. They invited you to come with them for a club project. They got you out of that bastard deer’s den of lies. They had a pleasant encounter with your mother. And now, they’re sitting in our home, perfectly content with you how you are, and wanting to get to know you.”

 She cups the young wolf’s chin in her hand and tilts his face to look at her. “That sounds to me like good company. They want to be your friends.” She looks at the boys. “You three. Go to the kitchen. Dinner is ready.”

Chapter Text

 Bill, Tao, and Legosi come out to the dining room and sit down at the dinner table with Grigori and Savon. Lyudmila is there too, and her face brightens considerably when she sees the boys.

 “Oh, you three!” she exclaims with a smile. “Rosie invited you three to dinner? I’m so happy to see you!”

 “We realized we were kind of stuck here in the market, ma’am,” Bill says. “So Amvrosiy invited us to stay the night.”

 “How sweet of him! I know he and Zoe are trying to have a new start, so I know he was nervous about having friends–sorry, associates –from school come to his house. That’s already great progress for him!”

 “Savon used that word earlier when referring to us. Does Amvrosiy have a hard time making friends?” Legosi asks.

 The woman’s face falls, but only slightly. “A bit. Hybrids aren’t really as hated here in the market, mostly thanks to Dad. He likes to educate people on their mistakes when they discriminate against his grandkids. Rosie managed to befriend a few of his coworkers, along with his boss. Izuki’s a nice girl. She’s really protective of him. Clive told me she actually almost killed a customer last night over Rosie. Really fiery for a deer.”

 “Reminds me of Louis,” Bill remarks. “He was the previous leader of the Drama club.”

 “Where does he work?” Tao asks.

 “He’s an entertainer at a club in the market,” Grigori answers proudly. “Really popular with the crowd. He’s like a completely different person at work. Gets his silver tongue from me.”

 The older female wolf emerges from the hallway with Amvrosiy. The young canine sits down at the table while she goes into the kitchen. She soon walks out holding a tray of bowls, which she begins unloading with practiced ease.

 In the bowls is what look like a red soup filled with cabbage, sliced carrots, and potatoes. Once the bowls are served and glasses are placed and filled, she sits down herself on Savon’s right.

 “Grigori told me we were having some guests for dinner, so I cooked up a little extra,” she says, her accent thick and giving off a loving grandmother vibe. “This is borscht, a traditional soup from the Motherland. It is made primarily of beetroot, which gives it its deep red coloration. You boys dig in and tell me what you think. I haven’t made it in a while.”

 They oblige, picking up their spoons and dipping them into the soup. Their eyes all widen at the flavor.

 “This is amazing!” Bill exclaims. “Thank you for the food, Mrs. Mikhailov!”

 The older woman smiles. “Thank you, young man. And please, call me ‘Milunka’. ‘Mikhailov’ is my son-in-law’s surname. ‘Romanov’ is my family name.” She takes a spoonful of her own soup. “So tell me, how did you meet my grandchildren?”

 “They joined the Drama club yesterday,” Tao answers. “Zoyechka joined the stage crew, specifically the costume department, and Amvrosiy’s on the dance team. They’re doing pretty well so far. I’m guessing Amvrosiy’s talent comes from his job?”

 The wolf in question noticeably stiffens. Milunka smiles.

 “My grandson’s talent came from me. His work only refined it. I was a ballet teacher back in Russia, and became one again part-time here after retiring from my old job.”

 “What did you do for work between then and now, Milunka?” Legosi asks.

 “I was a hitwoman. It was how I met Savon, actually.”

 The three teens freeze.

 “Uh… So you… killed people for a living?” Tao says uncomfortably.

 “Only people who deserved it,” the woman answers bluntly. “Corrupt politicians, gang leaders, corporate heads, mainly those in positions of power who were abusing it to the detriment of those in poorer fortune. I guess you could call me a ‘vigilante’ of sorts. Savon was my final target before retiring. During my reconnaissance, I ended up falling in love with him. He wasn’t using his power to hurt people, only help and discipline. So I killed the man who offered the job, took his money, and eloped with Savon. End of story.”

 The rest of the family looks at her.

 “What?” she says. “He asked me a question, and I answered. I see no point in lying.”

 “Perhaps you could have phrased it a bit more gently,” Grigori suggests.

 “So Amvrosiy,” Lyudmila starts, clearly trying to change the subject, “how is club going so far? Are you enjoying it?”

 “It’s okay, I guess,” the young man says.

 “Is there a problem?” Milunka asks.

 “He had a panic attack on the first day,” Legosi says. “He was getting mobbed a little by the other club members, but when Sheila tried helping him, he freaked out. It was just a bad situation.”

 The doorbell rings, causing Lyudmila’s face to light up. “There he is! I was wondering when he was going to show up!”

 She walks over to the door and opens it. “Miso!” she cries. “So good to see you! How are things?”

 The leopard on the other side chuckles. “Things are good, Lyudmila.”

 She leads the man in and over to the dinner table, where Amvrosiy catches sight of him. As soon as he does, he freezes like a deer in headlights and tenses.

 “Amvrosiy,” Miso greets. “Heard you got enrolled in Cherryton. How’s that going for you?”

 The hybrid stays silent.

 “Is something wrong, kid?” he asks.

 “Something happened at his job last night,” Savon answers. “Long story short, a new customer scared him and Oda’s dead.”

 “I was wondering when that idiot was going to get himself killed,” the leopard grumbles. “I was just about to throw him out.”

 In that moment, Bill’s mouth decides to act up before his brain can stop it.

 “Do you have a kid that goes to Cherryton?” he blurts out.

 Miso gives him a puzzled look. “What makes you ask that?”

 “A friend of Grigori’s stopped us on the way here and talked to Amvrosiy. He mentioned you, asked him if your kid goes there.”

 Tao kicks the tiger under the table, quietly telling him to shut up.

 “I don’t think that’s any of your business,” the man says. “But let’s say I did. What would that have to do with Amvrosiy?”

 Milunka looks at the boys. “I think you boys should get some sleep.” It isn’t a suggestion. “The guest room is down the hall, first door on your left.”

 They stand up and do as told. Amvrosiy starts getting up to join them, but the older woman grabs his wrist. “Not you, Rosie. We need to talk.”

Chapter Text

 “You guys think Sheila might be that guy’s kid? I mean, the dude was pretty evasive about it. That Komodo from earlier specifically mentioned Drama club. Sheila’s the only one in the club that could match that question.”

 “But Sheila’s a cheetah ,” Tao says.

 “Maybe he adopted her. Or she’s a hybrid. I mean, Kai was raised by hyenas. And besides, we don’t really know anything about Sheila’s family.”

 “I guess that makes sense, but it’s really none of our business,” Legosi says. “I don’t think you should have questioned Amvrosiy about his husband. It seems like he has a lot of pain because of it.”

 “ Obviously ! The guy just abandoned him ! Of course he’d have baggage because of it!” Bill retorts.

 “I do think it’s weird that Amvrosiy’s family seems to be friends with that leopard guy,” Tao theorizes. “He seems pretty sketchy. Fasu called Amvrosiy ‘the Madaragumi’s whore’ and ‘a disgrace to Miso’, like the two were connected. Maybe Miso has connections to them?”

 “He’s their boss,” the wolf says. “Savon is the boss of the Dokugumi. So Grigori has criminal backing. That’s likely why he’s an expert on organized crime. The thing is, the gumis don’t like each other. So the leaders of the Madaragumi and Dokugumi acting chummy is weird.”

 “How would you know that?” Bill asks.

 “This old panda doctor told me about the gumis. He’s the one who helped me save Haru.”

 “That fucking deer sold them out! I couldn’t let him live!” Amvrosiy shouts from the other side of the wall.

 Bill presses his ear to it.

 “Amvrosiy, calm down,” Miso says. “Fasu and Oda are dead now. Maybe now you can start to heal. I think Sheila’s a good place to start.”

 “I never mentioned her name. How did you know she’s the one in Drama club?”

 “You said yourself your memory isn’t the best, Rosie,” Milunka says. “She’s Miso’s daughter. She was at the wedding. She’s the one who gave you those rings you like to wear at work.”

 “But she just reminds me of Tatsuo… I don’t know if I can do it…”

 “I know. And if she ever gets her hands on the little shit, he’ll never hear the end of it.”

 “Tatsuo will come back!” the hybrid cries.

 “I doubt he will at this point, son. It’s been almost two years. He wasn’t loyal like you,” the leopard says.

 “Wha… What do you mean?”

 “He didn’t really talk about you like he truly loved you. You were, unfortunately, just a showpiece for him.”

 “Because he was proud of me! He wasn’t good at showing affection!”

 “ You lost your fucking arm, Amvrosiy! He could have helped you, but he didn’t ! ” Lyudmila yells.

 “He was scared , Momma! He would have gotten hurt or worse if he tried to help me!”

 Bill turns away from the wall. “You guys think that gazelle Amvrosiy was asking about had something to do with what Savon said about him getting scared last night?”

 “What makes you think that?” Tao asks.

 “Think about it. That gazelle apparently killed this Oda guy, I saw him enter that club, Amvrosiy’s apparently an entertainer at a club. His dad said a new customer scared him at work. So he very likely works at that ‘Salacious Scales’ club.”

 “Bill, even if that’s the case, it’s not something we should be sticking our noses in,” Legosi warns. “It’s late. We should get some sleep. Then we’ll head back to school in the morning.”

 The group returns to Cherryton very early the next morning without incident. Lyudmila seems sad to see them go, but invites them to visit any time. Grigori gives them a ride there, since he has to go to work.

 “Your family’s pretty cool, Rosie,” Bill says as they walk up to the school.

 Amvrosiy stops and looks at him with a serious expression. “I know you were eavesdropping on me and my family. Dad has the guest room bugged for when we have important conversations. What all did you hear?”

 The tiger recoils a bit. “Just something about your husband not helping you when you lost your arm, you leaving Fasu to die because he sold someone out–which is really fucked up. You lied to us!”

 “Because it’s none of your business ,” the wolf hisses. “The school already knows about my family. The Drama club advisor does too. And now you three know. At this rate, how long before the whole school knows?! My sister and I will have to drop out, and my parents’ money will have gone to waste.“

 “I’m sure the school would kind of have to know about your family for you to get enrolled here,” Tao says. “Maybe not the specifics, but just that you come from a hybrid family. The Drama club is pretty good at keeping secrets. They couldn’t torture what we know out of us.”

 “ Please don’t say that…” Amvrosiy whines.

 “What Tao’s trying to say,” Bill says, lightly elbowing the panther, “is that we won’t tell anyone what we know about you. You were kind enough to take us to your mom so we could get materials for our next performance. We won’t betray that kindness.”

 The wolf gives a small smile. “Thank you.”

 “Don’t mention it.” The big cat grins. “Now let’s get some sleep.”

Chapter Text

 Amvrosiy is glad he has classes with his sister. She’s an excellent note taker, which helps him because he has trouble retaining information in class sometimes. She also makes sure to remind him to take his meds, and asks teachers detailed questions. It’s honestly a wonder she isn’t part dog with how smart she is.

 Zoyechka also compares and shares notes with a yellow labrador, who’s happy to help the twins. His name is Jack, and he’s apparently Legosi’s best friend from childhood. Jack is friendly, and even invites them to have lunch with him and his roommates from 701.

 The pair approach the table the labrador is at, which also has a hyena, a coyote, a large and familiar English sheepdog, a fennec fox, and Legosi. The large canine looks happy to see them.

 “Amvrosiy! Zoyechka!” he greets, his tail wagging like a fan blade. “How are you?”

 They sit down next to him. “Things are normal, Legosi,” Amvrosiy says. “Jack’s been helping Zoy-bean and I with a few of our classes. He’s been a godsend.”

 “It’s nothing, Amvrosiy,” Jack says. “I’m just glad you’re having an easier time in classes now.”

 “Who are these two, Jack?” the coyote asks.

 “Oh!” Legosi perks up a bit. “This is Amvrosiy and his twin sister Zoyechka! They’re the new club members I was telling you guys about!”

 “Oh yeah. A dancer and fashion geek. I remember you saying the stage crew could probably use a bit more help.”

 “Rosie, Zoyechka,” Legosi begins, “these are my roommates. Voss, Collot, Durham, and Miguno.”

 “It’s a pleasure to meet you all,” Amvrosiy says, bowing his head a little.

 “What made you decide to really start talking to him, Legosi?” Durham asks.

 “Amvrosiy and I actually have a bit in common,” Legosi answers.

 “Like what?”

 “Amvrosiy likes and collects spiders, similar to how I like bugs. He actually uses some to keep his mom’s garden pest-free. We aren’t very social, either.”

 “That’s not much, yet you seem to be pretty friendly with him.”

 “It’s not, that’s true, but he’s a nice guy.” The large canine gives Jack a small look.

 “How are you enjoying Drama club, Rosie?” Miguno asks.

 “I only let close associates call me ‘Rosie’,” Amvrosiy says, his tone unintentionally slightly cold. “Club has been okay so far. Zoyechka’s enjoying working with the stage crew and putting what our mother taught her to use. I’ve been putting what our grandmother taught us along with my expertise from my job to use on the dance team.”

 Classes are over, there’s a bit of time before club, and Amvrosiy needs a smoke. He’s heard about a gardening club on the roof, and figures that it’s a good place to do it. He could have a nice view, be surrounded by plants, and have some peace and quiet. So he asks around, noticing the weird looks he gets when he does, but he chalks it up to people thinking he’s just weird. Whatever. He isn’t in the mood for that kind of shit.

 He opens the door leading to the rooftop and is greeted by a beautiful garden.

  This club could give Mom a run for her money. Maybe I can ask for some gardening tips.

 The smell is wonderful, and it’s already having a calming effect on him. But he needs some of his medicine if he’s going to try and interact with Sheila today. He wanders over to a relatively secluded area of the garden and sits down, opening his backpack to dig out his CBD cigarettes. The very simple action of lighting up a cigarette is itself calming to him, so he’d decided to procure some smokes from Gouhin.

 He sticks one in his mouth and digs out his lighter. It’s a cheap thing he purchased at a convenience store, but it would work. He flicks it a few times, only to quickly find himself growing frustrated when the damn thing won’t cooperate. Amvrosiy grumbles and shakes it a little, but to his shock and further annoyance, it slips out of his hand and falls off the roof.

 “Fuck…” he mutters. He looks around. Empty. Good.

 With a sigh, he slips the sleeve off his right arm, neatly folding it and putting it in his pocket, and pulls out his utility knife. The wolf flicks the little switch at the bottom, and a small bar pops out. He grips the knife like a pen in his finger so the blade end faces him, and moves it to a seam on his prosthetic. Once the tiny pry bar is wedged under it, he starts to wiggle it until the plate comes off, revealing a small storage space.

 In the storage space is a four-pack of batteries, a clip holding some money, and an ornate silver-plated flip lighter. The lighter was a gift from Walls when he was formally inducted into the LSSG, and is decorated with the group’s symbol, a spider breathing a laser onto a city like Godzilla.

 Amvrosiy is about to flick the lighter open when he hears a noise. He scrambles to put the lighter back in his arm, puts the plate back on, and covers his arm. He looks to his right to see a white dwarf rabbit staring at him.

 “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” she says. “What are you doing up here?”

 “You’re… You’re her,” the wolf blurts out dumbly.

 Her expression falters. “Oh… So you’ve heard the rumors…”

 “You’re the rabbit who was kidnapped by the Shishigumi. Haru, right?”

 The rabbit’s face becomes confused. “You know my name?”

 “Legosi mentioned you.”

 Haru seems to relax a bit. “How do you know Legosi?”

 “We’re in Drama club together. I’m Amvrosiy, by the way.”

 “It’s nice to meet you, Amvrosiy. What are you doing up here, if you don’t mind me asking?”

 “I heard about a gardening club, and I needed to use some of my medicine, so I thought I’d take a look. It’s beautiful.”

 She smiles. “Thank you. It’s hard work, maintaining this garden alone. The other members graduated a few years ago.”

 Amvrosiy whistles. “All by yourself? You could give my mother a run for her money. I help her a little bit, mostly with my spiders. I’m not very good with plants.” He hums a little as a thought crosses his mind. “Just thought I’d let you know, the Chief of the Shishigumi is dead. You don’t have to worry about them anymore.”

 The rabbit tilts her head. “How do you know for sure?”

 “My dad goes drinking with some of the lions on occasion. They told him. They’re not bad people, just stuck in a bad place. Now that their boss is gone, they can start to be better.”

 “You have high hopes for a yakuza.”

 “There’s an old saying in my family. ‘No matter how far you’ve strayed off the beaten path, you can always find your way back.’ You can always get yourself out of a bad situation.”

 He laughs a little. “You know, I’m not normally this chatty. Maybe you’re the Wolf Whisperer.”

 Haru giggles. “You’re funny.”

 The wolf stretches. “I wouldn’t worry about those rumors. You’re with Legosi now. People who have a problem with you can fuck off.” He looks at the rabbit. “Would you mind if I smoke a bit? It’s medicinal. My therapist gave it to me to calm my nerves.”

 “I don’t mind.”

 “Okay. Could you, uh… turn around for a second? I need to grab my medicine, and my lighter’s…”

 “In your arm? I noticed you as I was coming out of the shed.”

 Amvrosiy freezes. If she saw his arm, then she likely saw his scales.

 “Don’t worry. I won’t tell. You have your reasons for covering your arm.”

 He sighs in relief and takes his lighter out, taking some comfort in the way the insignia reflects the sunlight. He lights up a cigarette and takes a drag, holding it in for a few moments so the medicine can more efficiently work its magic.

 “That’s an interesting design,” Haru says.

 He exhales and turns his head to look at her. “What?”

 “Your lighter. You must really like spiders.”

 “I do. It was a gift from an old friend.”

 “What does ‘LSSG’ stand for?”

 He winces. “Promise you won’t laugh?”

 She smiles reassuringly. “I won’t. You have my word.”

 The canine takes a breath. “It stands for ‘Laser Spider Supremacy Group’. The people I was in it with were obsessed with the idea of spiders that breathe lasers. We used to joke around and ramble on about how we would create an army of laser spiders and take over the world, then wage war on centipedes.”

 “We even built little spider robots that could breathe fire and stuff. It got me into engineering and working with machines. Helped a bit when I got my motorcycle, helped even more when I lost my arm.”

 The rabbit sits down next to him. “That’s kind of cute.”

 Amvrosiy takes his cigarette in his left hand and presses the smoldering tip to his right’s palm. Once it’s out, he takes out a little plastic bag and dumps the butt and ashes inside, putting it in his backpack, then stands up.

 “I should get going. Club is coming up real soon.” He looks back at Haru. “Like I said, I wouldn’t worry about those rumors. I’m sure they’ll die out soon enough.” He gives her a small smile. “It was nice talking to you, Haru.”

 “It was wonderful meeting you, Amvrosiy. Feel free to come up here again. Maybe we can get Legosi up here, too.”

 His smile grows a little more. “I think I’d like that.”

Chapter Text

 “So girls, what’s your verdict on the new guy?” Ellen asks.

 “He seems nice,” Els says. “He’s a little strange, but who isn’t in this club?”

 “‘Strange’ is right. Have you seen the scars on his face? He’s gotta be involved in something shady.”

 “Don’t talk about him like that, Ellen,” Sheila scolds. “It’s not nice to gossip about your fellow club member.”

 “Well what are your thoughts on him, then?” the zebra retorts.

 “He’s a sweet guy. He seems to get along well with Legosi. That wolf could really use someone to talk to. The two of them must be pretty lonely.”

 “Yeah, Legosi seemed to be pretty close with Tem. Outside of his roommates, he probably barely has anyone to talk to,” the goat agrees.

 “Amvrosiy has been through a lot over the past couple years. I think having some people to talk to will really do him some good.”

 Ellen looks at the cheetah quizzically. “You know him personally?”

 “Not really. He used to date my brother. I actually haven’t seen Amvrosiy or his sister in almost three years. I kind of recognized him when he joined, but I properly remembered him when my dad talked to me last night.”

 “Tatsuo?” Els questions. “Didn’t he sleep around a lot?”

 Sheila winces. “Um… yeah. He did. But he stopped when he started seeing Amvrosiy. I… I honestly wasn’t the most supportive of them. Amvrosiy was kind of sensitive, and I didn’t really trust Tatsuo to abandon his ways. I didn’t say anything to them because I wanted to have some hope that my brother was actually going to change.”

 “What’s Tatsuo doing now?”

 “I haven’t seen him in nearly two years. He disappeared shortly after an… incident.”

 The zebra leans forward a bit, clearly interested. “Maybe Amvrosiy was violent towards him and he needed to get away?”

 The feline’s eyes widen. “No! No no no no no! Amvrosiy isn’t like that! From what my dad told me, Amvrosiy would sooner go through hell again than hurt Tatsuo!”

 “What do you think happened?”

 “Look, I’m not gonna gossip about Amvrosiy, Ellen. And don’t try asking him about it, either. Like I said, he’s sensitive. And you’ll likely have to go through his sister first.” The she-wolf in question isn’t present today, as apparently she had a family emergency to take care of.

 Ellen shrugs and looks over at Juno. “You’ve been quiet so far, Juno. What do you think of Amvrosiy?”

 The wolf returns the herbivore’s gaze, but right as she opens her mouth, something crashes into the door.

 Els, having finished changing, goes up to the door and opens it.

 “Um, hi, Els,” Amvrosiy says nervously. “I tripped and banged my head on the door. Sorry if I startled you.”

 “It’s okay, Rosie,” the goat assures. “The girls and I were just talking.”

 He nods and turns to go to the male locker room.

 “Anyways, Juno, what do you think of Amvrosiy?” Ellen asks.

 Juno looks at the zebra. “I’m not sure. Like you said, he and Zoyechka are really sketchy. But I feel like I’ve seen them somewhere…”

 “Maybe in the Black Market? They seem like the type to go there often.”

 “I’ve never been there, so no.”

 “Could you girls stop gossiping about him, please ?” Sheila says.

  “Relax, Sheila. It’s not like we’re saying anything bad . We’re just saying those two are a bit weird.”

 The feline huffs and storms out of the locker room. She spots Amvrosiy talking to Pina and goes over to them.

 “Amvrosiy?”

 The wolf jumps at his name being called and turns to face her, anxiety clear in his expression. “Y-Yeah, Sheila?” he stutters.

 “I just wanted to let you know Ellen and Juno were talking about you. I tried to shut them down.”

 “What were they saying?”

 “That you and your sister are sketchy. It’s rude.”

 His face falls a bit. “Oh. Well, I guess they’re a little bit right. I mean, I am a hybrid, after all.”

 “They don’t know what they’re saying,” Pina says. “You’re not ‘sketchy’, just odd. But everyone is odd. They’re probably talking about your scars and thinking you’re in some sort of bad dealing.”

 “I mentioned that you used to date Tatsuo, but that I haven’t seen him since… you know… Ellen suggested you hurt him in some way, but I shut that down immediately.”

 Amvrosiy’s face twists into a look of rage, the hybrid baring his teeth and a low growl coming from his throat. Pina puts an arm around his midsection.

 “If Ellen says that again, I’ll have to have my grandparents educate her about her ignorance,” he snarls.

 The cheetah’s eyes widen considerably. “T-That won’t be necessary!” she frantically assures. “She just doesn’t think about what she says!”

 “I don’t give a fuck . Tatsuo left me because he was causing me stress just by being around me. I’d rather relive losing my arm again than hurt him. She doesn’t keep her fucking mouth shut, she’ll regret it.”

 Now it’s Pina’s turn to look shocked. Like Sheila, the sheep knows what he’s talking about, and he doesn’t like hearing him say that one bit . In moments like these, Amvrosiy really takes after his father, and it terrifies both of them when those moments happen.

 “Hey, Rossi!”

 The trio turns to see Bill, who’s looking rather cheerful. Amvrosiy gives him a look that says “Really?”.

 “‘Rossi’?” he says.

 “It makes sense,” the tiger replies. “The second half of your name sounds like it. I can just use your name and ‘Rosie’ if you don’t like it.”

 “No, it’s fine. It’s just that… it reminds me of a friend of mine. He used to call me that. You remind me of him.”

 Bill cocks his head. “Really? What’s he like?”

 “Loud. Confident. He was really open about his sexual escapades like you. But he was really supportive of interspecies relationships. We had quite a few herbivores in our friend group. We were all a bit weird, so I was surprised to see that this club is like my friends. Makes me happy.”

 The feline chuckles a bit. “What’s his name? Maybe I know him.”

 “Nolan. If you want to visit him, you can go to a little garden between Salacious Scales and a small bar. He hangs out there.”

 “I might stop by. Maybe visit him with you, if that’s alright.”

 The wolf gives him a small smile. “I’m sure he’d like that.”

 Amvrosiy dances on the stage alongside Sheila and the others on the dance team. He’s glad he decided to use the scent blockers, and that the cheetah keeps her distance from him for now. But he feels uneasy. Ellen and Juno are staring at him a lot. The zebra seems to be judging him, but the she-wolf looks like she’s trying to figure something out. Does she know him from somewhere? He’s not sure. He’s never seen her before he joined the club. He doesn’t know anything about her other than her not so subtle crush on Legosi.

 If Zoyechka were here, she would put a stop to the staring immediately. Ellen doesn’t seem to like carnivores very much. Legosi told him she was the first to accuse the carnivores in the club of devouring Tem. From the way he talks about him, he was likely very close to the alpaca. He also seems to be really fond of Louis.

 Does Legosi know about him? Does he know what the potential Beastar is doing? What would he say if he knew? What would he do? Is it a good idea to tell him?

 Amvrosiy has seen the Horned King a few times doing business. The deer seems to be interested in him, judging by the numerous times he’s seen members of the Shishigumi lurking near his work.

  Why not just come to me directly, or ask to meet me? I respect him a lot. He’s done a lot of good for the Black Market.

 But he’s probably going to regret that thought. The deer kind of scares him. An herbivore that radiates a killer’s self confidence. He’s not very familiar with the members of the Shishigumi, with Agata and Ibuki being the two he knows best. He gets along well with the young Congo lion, with their interest in video games and similarity in being close to an herbivore, Agata having Louis and Amrosiy having Pina.

 Free’s a bit overwhelming. He’s loud and very confident, a lot like Kali. But Dad says he’s a decent guy and a good drinking buddy, so he doesn’t complain. He doesn’t know Dolph, Dope, Hino, Miguel, or Jinma, but Sabu seems cool. Really quiet, rarely takes off his mask. He does think Hino is pretty, though. He takes almost as much care of his appearance as Pina. Maybe he could introduce them to each other? Rex, they’d probably talk for hours about what products they use and different ways of styling fur and wool.

 Ibuki’s a good man, practically like a second dad to him. He remembers the older lion talking about the old Chief, how much he hated him. If it wouldn’t have potentially kicked off a turf war because of the lions loyal to the bastard, Amvrosiy would have torn his throat out himself.

Chapter Text

 When club is over, Amvrosiy goes to the locker room and starts changing. His mood is in the abyss right now, he can’t wait to get out of here.

 He heard what Ellen was saying about him while he was dancing, and part of him wants to break a few of her teeth for it. But the other part knows she’s right, even if the zebra doesn’t know it. He’s pretty sure she’s got it wrong, though. He can’t remember.

 His left hand idly goes up to his head. There’s a small dent on the back. He’s sure he just fell down the stairs again that day and smacked his head. He had broken his leg the same way. And his arm. He was just clumsy like that.

 He smiles a bit when he sees his beloved husband’s face in his mind. He was a bit drunk, the wolf was high, and they had had a bad day. Amvrosiy had lost one of his plushies, and Tatsuo had had a rough day at work.

 But for just a second, the leopard’s face twists into an angry snarl as he washes his hands in the sink. There’s blood on them for a moment. Maybe he had gotten into a fight? He did that a lot. He’s definitely limping, and his face has a few cuts and claw marks.

 “Amvrosiy?”

 He shakes his head to clear his mind and looks at Bill. He looks concerned.

 “You okay?” he asks.

 He nods. “I’m fine, Bill. Just a bit tired. I’m visiting some friends tonight, in that spot I mentioned.”

 “Okay. Just making sure. You seem kind of upset.”

 He looks at Legosi. “Hey, Legosi?”

 The wolf returns his gaze. “Yeah?”

 “Do you think Haru’s still up in the garden?”

 “She should be. Why?”

 “I wanted to ask her something. But it’s a bit personal.”

 The wolf smiles a bit. “When did you meet her?”

 “Before club. I had to use some of my medicine. I had heard about the gardening club, and thought that seemed a good place to do it. Have a nice view and be surrounded by plants.”

 Amvrosiy opens the door to the gardening club. In the moonlight, it’s even more beautiful, like a garden of Eden. He goes up to the shed’s door and knocks. After a few moments, it opens to reveal the club’s sole member. She smiles upon seeing him.

 “Hi,” she greets.

 “Hi, Haru.”

 “Can I help you with something?”

 He shuffles his feet a bit. “Um, yes. I was hoping to get some flowers. I can pay.”

 “What for, if you don’t mind me asking?”

 “I’m visiting some friends. It’s our, er, anniversary.”

 The rabbit steps out of the shed. “Okay. Anything in particular?”

 The hybrid looks at his phone for a few seconds. “Um… Let’s see… Uh, purple irises, white roses, white carnations, and chrysanthemums.”

 Haru’s eyes briefly widen, which doesn’t go unnoticed by the canine, but she quickly goes back to normal.

 “I can help you with that. But you have to do something for me first.”

 “What is it?”

 “You have to let me treat that scratch on your arm.”

 Amvrosiy is confused. He looks at his arm, and sure enough, there’s a scratch on his arm. He awkwardly rubs the back of his head. “Oh. I, uh, must have scraped my arm on something.”

 Before he can say anything else, he finds himself being dragged into the shed. Haru sits him down on the bed before rummaging around in a small dresser. She pulls out a first-aid kit and sits down next to him. She opens it and takes out a bottle of disinfectant.

 “I can take care of it myself,” he says.

 “Nonsense. I’m giving you some of my precious children. This is the least I can do in return.”

The wolf sighs and gives her his arm. She takes it in her hand and pours some of the disinfectant on it. He winces and nearly rips his arm away, but manages to stay mostly still.

 “You have a lot of scars,” Haru says. “Do you get in fights a lot like Legosi?”

 “I’m sure I get into fights a lot more than him. It’s a given where I live, especially in my line of work.”

 “Where do you work?”

 He immediately regrets saying that. Sure, she’s close to Legosi, so she can probably be trusted, but she also had a run-in with the Shishigumi a few months ago. She might have overheard them talking about him. Agata and Free are frequent clients. But now for some reason, he feels obligated to tell her. He’s heard the rumors about her, so maybe talking to someone in a similar situation could help her feel a bit better.

 “I’m a sex worker in the Black Market,” he admits. “I dance for people at a club, I do escort work, I even do porn on occasion.”

 The rabbit stares up at him. “I wasn’t expecting that. I can’t judge, though.”

 “I know. I’ve heard the rumors. I don’t give a shit about them.” He looks into her eyes. There’s a bit of sadness in them, but also hope. Maybe she’s hoping for some words of comfort? “Why did you do it? I’m curious. I won’t say anything, I promise.”

 Haru sighs. “Other animals see me as weak and defenseless. They offered to help me, but it felt patronizing, like they were treating me like a child. I hated it.” She dabs the cut with some cotton balls and tosses them in the trash nearby. “There was this jackrabbit. He didn’t smile when he talked to me, and eventually, he confessed that he liked me. We ended up sleeping together, and it was the first time I finally felt ‘equal’ to another person. So I kept doing it.”

Amvrosiy gives her a reassuring smile. “You seem like a wonderful girl, Haru. An old friend of my grandpa believes all lives are equal. Even the mayor himself is just as valuable as a mouse. In my eyes, you and Legosi are equals, both equally significant in this life. You should never have to sleep with someone to feel equal.” His ears droop a bit. “You’re actually more worthwhile than me…”

 She looks at him with genuine care and concern. “You don’t think you’re valuable?”

 He shakes his head. “I’m broken. I’m missing an arm, I lost one of my eyes. I’m damaged goods,” he murmurs. “My coworkers and boss, my family, some of my associates, they beg to differ. Sex leaves two people vulnerable, but also connects them. But it doesn’t do that for me. Some people pity me, but I don’t want that.”

 “Surely you have friends to support you? From the way Legosi talks about you, you must be really special.”

 “Everything ‘special’ about me was taken from me along with my arm,” the wolf mutters, his tone a bit voltaic. “I can’t even feel equal through sex anymore. That philosophy of equal life doesn’t apply to me anymore.”

 Once his arm is bandaged, he stands up. “I’m sorry, but I’m in a bit of a rush. If you could get me those flowers, I would greatly appreciate it.”

 Haru just stares at him, shock clear on her face. She clearly feels horrible for him. He doesn’t want that. He just wants to get what he came here for and get the fuck out .

Chapter Text

 Amvrosiy approaches the club with flowers in hand. He’s swaying a little bit. He had a few drinks before walking the last block through the Market. He needs it right now. People look at him as he passes by, some even try to say hello or talk to him. But he doesn’t acknowledge them.

 He slips into the crevice between the club and the shop, moving a pallet out of his way before placing it back. Despite being behind a strip club and a bar, the area is kept extremely clean. Clive makes sure to keep it that way, and several animals help out to do the same. He appreciates it more than they know.

 He walks up to the tree in the center of the circular garden. A collection of seven stone markers surround it. Taking a breath, he kneels down.

 “Hey, guys,” he greets softly. “I know Pina and my family say I need to stop visiting, that it’s not healthy, but I need to keep doing this. Because I can’t give up on you all.”

 He sets the flowers down on the first grave. “I did it, Will. I dealt with Fasu, just like I said I would. Mom and Dad actually enrolled me in Cherryton. Zoyechka and I are in Drama club. Legosi’s in it, too. Same with Sheila.”

 “I get along well with Legosi, just like Mom said I would. He takes after his old man.”

 He looks at the second grave. “Hey, Nolan. There’s this tiger in Drama club named Bill, he’s the club’s leader. He’s loud and confident just like you. You would have liked him. He’s friends with this panther on the actor pool, Tao. Yesterday I went out to the city with them and Legosi. We met with Fasu. He cut me, and I ripped up his arm–his right one, too.” He chuckles a bit. “Ironic, isn’t it? After that happened, I took them to meet my mom to get some stuff for the stage crew. She likes them.”

 “I brought them home with me. They met Dad and my grandparents. Grandma even told them about her old job. Turns out Legosi knew who Grandpa was and told Bill and Tao. But they seem cool with me being the grandson of a yakuza leader.”

 He opens his backpack and takes out a wood carving of a spider, placing it on the shrine amongst the bouquets. “I met this guy the other day. He killed Oda and skinned him–did a pretty good job, too. He’s part leopard, part gazelle. Name’s Melon. Bit of a psycho, but maybe he’s not all like that. I can’t even really smell leopard on him.”

 The wolf takes out his LSSG lighter and a small plastic bag. He opens it and pulls out a wrapped paper tube, then puts it to his mouth and lights it. “I also met Legosi’s roommates. One of them’s a big English sheepdog, actually the same one your dad sells weed to, Cain.” He takes a drag and exhales. “One of the herbivores on the actor’s team, zebra named Ellen– huuuuge bitch, by the way–was apparently talking shit in the locker room. She was suggesting I hurt Tatsuo before he left.”

 “I… I don’t think I did. I hope not. Apparently I hit my head on something a few weeks before he left, so my memory’s all fuzzy.”

 He listens to the idle sound of the Market in the silence. “Sky’s beautiful tonight. You guys would like it.” The wolf opens a bottle and takes a swig from it.

 “I’m sorry,” he says. “I wasn’t strong enough. If I had gotten out of there sooner, maybe you guys would be alive right now, sitting here with me and plotting to take over the world. But I wasn’t. It wasn’t all Fasu’s fault. I was the one who sent you to that fucking tower. I was the one who trusted that fucking deer. I was the one who decided to follow Ryu and Hiro. I lost my arm because of it, along with my dignity. But your families lost good kids. All because of me.”

 He takes another drink and puts a hand into his jacket. A second later, he’s staring at cold metal. “I can’t tell you how many times I’ve sat in my room and thought to myself, ‘Just pull the trigger. It’d be so fucking easy .’ But I wouldn’t want Zoyechka, my family, or Rex forbid, Pina to walk in on that. I already had to put you down, Cain. I don’t want to put someone else through a mess like that.”

 He looks at the gun. It’d be easy. Just a bullet through the head. He’s in a secluded area.

  But Izuki comes out here to smoke and pay her respects. I don’t want her to find me in a mess.

 Amvrosiy sighs and puts the gun away. He’s fucking crazy. And selfish. He’s just a waste of space, time, and money. Therapy hasn’t done shit, three fucking doctors and one of them is likely in the Sublime Beastar’s carrot farm, another’s in a grave somewhere for trying to help him, and the third has considered just sending him back to Stonebrook. Maybe going through so much in one night and experiencing hell over the course of a week just broke him, and he was on the course to becoming some sort of psychopathic mass murderer. It wouldn’t be too much to expect from a brain damaged hybrid with mental issues.

 He turns his eye to the tree itself. It has a shrine against it, with a familiar fake carnivore skull.

 “Mom enrolled me and Zoyechka in Cherryton, Artyom. We joined the Drama club. I’m on the dance team, Zoy-bean’s on the stage crew. I don’t think anyone in the club has made the connection between us. I wish you could have seen Legosi on stage. I know it wasn’t exactly acting with that particular show, but man, he was just as fierce as you. I think I’ll let him know about you, that you played that same role when you were in Cherryton.”

 There’s movement behind him. He starts to stand up, but something smashes into the side of his head, knocking him down. Before he can recover, he feels a slight pain in his neck. Amvrosiy tries to get up, only for a foot to crash into his stomach.

 His assailant plants a foot on his shoulder and turns him onto his back. He gets down on his knees, practically straddling the wolf as he stares into his eyes with hatred.

 “Your little stunt fucking ruined us,” Hiro snarls. “I told Oda to just kill you and get it over with. But nooo , he wanted to have his fun first. Then your fucking pals go and blow up his trafficking ring, and next thing we know, fucking Dokugumi are swarming our hideout.”

 Amvrosiy punches the leopard in the face, but the man only laughs. He starts hitting him repeatedly with his left hand, trying desperately to get him off. But when he goes in for another blow, Hiro grabs his wrist, applies pressure in a way that causes the wolf to unclench his fist, and bites down on his hand. He screams in pain and rips his other arm out from under his attacker’s leg.

 “None of that, you little whore!” the leopard yells, his voice muffled a bit because of Amvrosiy’s hand, grabbing his head and slamming it into the ground. The wolf manages to rip his hand free from the cat’s maw, but stares in horror as blood flies from the remnants of it.

 Hiro pulls a knife from his pocket, flicking the blade open. He raises the knife up, a mad glint in his eyes. “I’m gonna pay you back in full for that shitshow. I’m gonna send your pelt to your old lady and watch as she breaks.”

 He twitches a bit, he’s likely on something, and he’s drooling a lot, too, but before he can go in for the kill, a slender yellow hand comes up to his front from behind, holding a switchblade. Another hand grabs the leopard’s head and tilts it back, and the blade is driven into his throat. Hiro gurgles and tries in vain to scream as the blade is dragged across his neck, causing a waterfall of blood to flow from the new opening and rain and spray down on Amvrosiy. His body spasms violently as the deed is done, until he falls silent and stops moving.

 His lifeless body is roughly pushed aside off of the hybrid. Amvrosiy tries to focus, but everything’s blurry. He feels tired. His body’s like lead. He can barely feel a pair of fingers press to the side of his neck. The last thing he sees before everything fades away is a pink leaf-patterned shirt…

Chapter Text

 Everything’s fuzzy when Amvrosiy wakes up. The first thing he realizes is that his prosthetic is gone, and his hand is bandaged. He’s missing pretty much half his hand, and only has his thumb and index and middle fingers left, with only the first section of his ring finger remaining. But his wedding ring is gone. He turns his head to look at his surroundings, and freezes.

  He’s back in the bunker.

 He sits up, but does so too quickly, and he ends up falling back onto the couch.

 Wait…

 … Couch?

 There wasn’t a couch in here last time. And now that he looks around again, he notices quite a few decorations. Decorations that hadn’t been there before. His memory might be bad, but he had been locked in this place for a week, and tried for hours to find a way out. The whole area was burned into his mind.

 As his other senses start coming back to him, he smells blood. He sits up again, slowly this time, and realizes he’s shirtless. He notices a can on the small coffee table alongside his wedding ring and grabs it, opens it, and takes a sip. He almost immediately starts coughing at the strong taste of green apple.

 “Fucking Rex, this is like those Sour Patch Squids energy drinks,” he mutters. “Hoooly shit… But this is pretty good. Green apple’s the best kind of sour.”

 He hears movement and turns his attention to the doorframe. His eye widens when he sees who’s standing there.

 “ Melon?! ”

 The hybrid smiles at him, his face fully on display. He’s not wearing a shirt, showing off his slightly muscular frame and tattoos, and he’s also covered in blood.

 “You’re awake. Good. You’ve been asleep for almost two days.”

 “ Two days?! ” the wolf cries. “Oh fuck , my family’s gotta be worried sick!”

 “Your phone pinged not too long ago. Maybe they figured you were busy with school until now?”

 “Izuki, one of the staff, or one of the Dokugumi likely went to pay their respects earlier and saw the aftermath of Hiro jumping me. So they probably checked the security footage behind the club.”

 Melon starts approaching him, slowly and carefully. There’s something familiar about him. He vaguely recognizes his scent. He remembers smelling it on Artyom a lot.

 “Why did you bring me here?”

 “Because it’s the last place Oda’s men would think to look for you. You’re safe.”

 “My family is likely going to kill you for essentially kidnapping me, you know that, right?”

 “They might, but I don’t think you’ll let them.”

 Amvrosiy sighs. “You’re right. You saved my life. The least I can do is make sure you don’t die.”

 The hybrid crosses the last few feet, and to both animals’ surprise, the wolf doesn’t try to move away.

 Melon looks at his bandaged hand, then at his face, as if asking for permission. He nods, and his savior gently takes his hand in his own and unwraps it. He looks it over for a few moments before nodding in satisfaction.

 “Your hand looks okay,” he says. “Hiro swallowed your fingers, but when I cut him open, they weren’t salvageable.”

 “At least I’m alive.”

 “Are you feeling alright?”

 Amvrosiy sighs. “I think so. I mean, Hiro attacked me in Dokugumi territory, behind a popular club owned by the Dokugumi and run by a close friend of my grandfather, and in the garden I created with Artyom and Mom that turned into a shrine for him and my friends. If he was willing to do that, who’s to say the others won’t try something else?”

 Melon nods, as if contemplating that answer. After a few moments, he stands up. “Wait here. I have to grab something.”

 “Not like I can move much,” he replies humorously. “My head’s swimming. I’d probably brain myself just trying to get up.”

 Melon laughs and leaves the room. Amvrosiy decides to go back to his drink. He’s feeling a little hot now, and he’s all of a sudden very glad Melon removed his shirt. He also notices he’s not wearing any pants. But he finds himself not concerned. If the leoparzelle (he’d have to tell that one when his host gets back, he’s feeling a little loopy right now) killed Oda and Hiro specifically for him , then that means he has standards. He chuckles a bit.

 “So that ‘Professionals have standards!’ meme applies to killers, too,” he muses.

 He looks at his hand. It seems like Melon really knows what he’s doing. The stubs of his missing fingers have been cauterized and properly treated. He likely has medical training, but this? This level of care and precision? He’s gotta be a surgeon or something.

 He looks up to see Melon coming back with medical supplies. Without words, he lets the man rebandage his hand.

 “Club, school, and work are gonna suck now,” the wolf mutters. “I’m left-handed.”

 “I talked to Yuriko yesterday about making something for your hand. I showed her pictures of the damage, and she said the project should be finished by tomorrow.”

 “You didn’t have to do that,” he says.

 “But I did. You love your work, and I’m sure you’re enjoying school. You should be able to enjoy your life to the fullest.” Melon smiles. “Besides, I’ve seen the knife tricks you do. Can you really say you’d be able to do that with half a hand?”

 Amvrosiy smiles back. “Who are you?” he asks with an almost teasing tone.

 “No one of importance.”

 The wolf gives him a playful smile. “I must know.”

 Melon stares back at him with an amused twinkle in his eyes.  “Get used to disappointment.” He grins. “Just kidding. I’m Melon. Practiced therapist, cold-blooded killer.”

 “Well for one, you can’t be cold-blooded since you’re not a reptile, and two, you can’t be cold-blooded if you chose to save my life.”

 The hybrid laughs. “I promised Artyom I’d look after you before he died.”

 His eye widens. “You knew my brother?”

 “‘Knew’ is a bit of an understatement.”

 “You fucked my brother?!” he shouts incredulously.

 Melon looks at the room he was in earlier, than at his guest. “Can you stand?”

 “I’ve had a little time to recuperate, so probably, yes.”

 Amvrosiy doesn’t try to run as Melon pulls him to his feet. He didn’t know why earlier, but he feels safe with him. But now that he knows about his relationship with his brother, he figures that’s probably why. And now he knows why he recognizes his scent. If Artyom had apparently left an impact on Melon to the point he made such an important promise, and Artyom trusted him so much as to let him into his life at such an intimate level, then his death must have been devastating for the half-gazelle. So there was no way he could be a bad guy.

 He lets his host lead him into the other room, a rather stocked kitchen. Once the wolf is seated again, Melon turns to the far wall and, to his surprise, opens up a small hidden door. He pulls out a really large case, which he sets down on the table.

 “I’ve kept these safe for the last year and a half,” he says. “Artyom would want you to have them.”

 He slides a key over, which Amvrosiy takes. With great anticipation, he puts the key into the lock, turns it, and slowly opens the case. When he looks at the contents, his eye widens so much they look like saucepans.

 The first item is an ornate and masterfully crafted curved sword, forged with the finest steel from Novosibirsk, fitted with a hilt made from the bones of a bear his grandpa killed for insulting his daughter, and a beautiful cord made from silk. The hilt is covered with authentic bull leather designed with a scorpion motif, and wrapped right above the pommel with the bracelets of his paternal great-great-grandfather, which his family believed to have been stolen from the treasury of the Dragon of Wallachia himself.

 The weapon is larger than a usual saber–it’s really more of a hybrid between a two-handed curved falchion and a short zweihänder, even having the extra grip past the hilt and a second crossguard, making it huge to the point where it would be almost unusable for an average wolf.  Unfortunately, the sword is snapped in half, a result of Artyom’s effort to save him.

 The blade waves along its length like a flamberge, and has small bits of metal sticking out and curling towards the hilt and the tip, and others angled slightly towards the cutting edge or the spine. They’re like that on purpose, though, to snag on wounds and make it so that whoever the blade was planted in would practically be unable to pull it out, while also making the wound borderline impossible to stitch up. Stitching the wounds would be pointless, however, as anyone who met the blade would very shortly be dead.

 A brutal message of no escape.

 The weapon, as beautiful as it is, is that of a killer, a great warrior. But moreso, it is the blade of an executioner.

 The second item is a sleek red metal arm engraved with a depiction of a massive black horse on a chair, with a cloaked wolf wearing a wide-brimmed hat at its side, a large revolver in its right hand, and a familiar sword in its left, the head of a lion impaled on it. The artwork is covered by an extremely durable glass casing, which could apparently even withstand a sniper rifle, from what Yura had told him back then. Supposedly she had his aunt test it once, but he had never heard about it.

 “The Devil’s Right Hand,” Amvrosiy whispers in shock.

 The third and final item is a white metal arm engraved with a depiction of the same wolf protecting a gazelle from both herbivores and carnivores. The same revolver is aimed at the ground, but poised to flick up towards the enemy. Just like the other arm, the artwork is protected by the same glass cover.

 “The Hand of Rex…”

 The wolf stares at Melon. “Where did you get these?” he asks in a haunted whisper.

 The hybrid looks back at him. “After the Dokugumi rescued you, I broke in a week later to look for them. Oda’s men had fled, so the place was empty. But they hid Artyom’s belongings. I found them stashed in a hidden safe under the carpet in that room.”

 Melon doesn’t have to elaborate. He knows what room he’s talking about. Oda’s men probably hid them so his family couldn’t find them.

 “Artyom’s death must have hit you hard,” Amvrosiy says.

 “It did, but I’m managing.”

 “By killing yakuza?”

  His savior gives a cheeky smile. “I didn’t say I’m managing in a typically healthy way.”

 The wolf smirks. “You’re kind of crazy, you know that?”

 “That’s what my therapist says. She keeps trying to get me to become a ‘normal member of society’.”

 “But you can’t exactly do that being a hybrid.”

 Melon grins. “Exactly! Finally , someone who actually gets it!”

 Amvrosiy gently lifts the Devil’s Right Hand out of the case. Once Melon retrieves his prosthetic-harness and he puts it on, he puts the arm up to the connector and presses it on, twisting it a few degrees so the locks click into place in the prosthetic’s base. He bends his arm and watches as the fingers flex, then tests the hand by picking up the can he’d brought into the kitchen with him.

 After taking a small sip from it, he looks back at his host. He opens his mouth, but whatever he’s about to say is cut short by a loud bang from one of the other rooms, followed by footsteps. Amvrosiy grabs a knife from the kitchen’s knife block and aims it at the room’s entryway, only to be surprised by the new guests.

 “Mom?! Dad?!” he cries. “What are you doing here?!”

 Lyudmila, who’s currently holding a pair of garden shears split in two like a pair of big knives, immediately drops her weapons and rushes at him, wrapping him in her arms tightly. “Amvrosiy! We were so worried!” She pulls back to look at his face and inspects him with a hand. “Are you okay? What happened?”

 Grigori’s eyes lock on to his left hand. “What the hell happened to you?!” he shouts.

 “Grigori? What’s wrong?” his wife asks.

 “His hand!”

 Lyudmila grabs his wrist and brings his hand up, and shrieks when she sees the damage. “Oh Rex! Sweetie, what happened to your hand?!”

 “I was visiting Artyom and the others, and Hiro attacked me,” Amvrosiy says. “Melon here saved me and brought me here to treat my injuries.”

 His parents look at the hybrid. “Who are you, and why did you bring our son here?” his father asks, raising his handgun.

 “I was in the area and heard the commotion.”

 “Bullshit,” Grigori snarls. “I want the truth, boy. Don’t think I won’t blow your head off. For all we know, you could be working with Oda’s boys.”

 “I’m the one who killed him,” the younger man says. “He didn’t put up too much of a fight for a wannabe warlord.”

 Amvrosiys grabs his father’s wrist and lowers the gun. “He’s a good guy, Dad.”

 The older canine sighs and steps back. “Why are you covered in blood?”

 “I was finishing up a project when Amvrosiy woke up.”

 “‘Project’?”

 Melon nods and darts into a side room. He comes back out a few moments later holding a fur rug. “I know the Dokugumi deal in the pelt trade, but that they might want to keep the pelts of anyone associated with Oda as trophies,” he says. “So I took the liberty of skinning them and cleaning up the pelts. This is Hiro’s.” He hands the rug over to Grigori, who holsters his gun and takes it in his hands to inspect it.

 He hums a bit. “This is very good work.” He looks up. “I’ll have to show this to Savon. Perhaps you could be a partner or beneficiary to him.”

 Lyudmila takes the rug from her husband and looks it over, then looks at Melon with sparkling eyes. “Would you have any interest working in a clothing store?”

Chapter Text

 Amvrosiy returns to school the next day around noon with an excuse that he had been injured and needed a few days to recover. Headmaster Gon and the dorm mother, upon seeing his hand, are satisfied with the excuse, with the tiger being sympathetic, telling him that he could take it easy for a bit. But Amvrosiy doesn’t want to fall behind in his classes and still wants to participate in club, so the feline relents.

 He’s immediately surrounded by the members of Drama club when he walks in, but thankfully, Zoyechka gets them to back off. He’s bombarded with questions if he’s okay and where he was, but ignores them in favor of talking to his sister.

 “What the fuck happened to your hand?!” she yells.

 “I got attacked while visiting the guys,” he answers. “Remember that guy I told you about? The one who scared me at work? He saved me.”

 “Where’s the bastard that did this to you?” she snarls. “I’ll rip his fucking head off.”

 “He’s dead. The guy saw to that.” He looks down at his right arm. “Also, he, uh…”

 He pulls the sleeve off his arm to reveal the gleaming red prosthetic. Zoyechka looks at it for a moment, before her expression becomes haunted and tears start to fill her eyes.

 “Is that…?”

 He just nods.

 His sister collapses to her knees, gently grips the arm in her hand, and breaks down. Amvrosiy pets her head to comfort her, trying not to break himself.

 Zoyechka was the one to put the engravings on Artyom’s prosthetics with help from Yuriko, and the one to patch him up when he came home after a fight. She was the one to find Artyom’s body, and she was the one to bury him.

 Eventually Zoyechka calms down and stands back up. The other club members are looking at them with concern.

 “Are you okay, Zoyechka?” Dom asks.

 “Yes, Dom,” she answers, wiping her eyes and sniffling a bit. “I’m just glad my brother is okay.”

 The peafowl smiles. “It’s good to see you’re alright, Amvrosiy.”

 “Mostly,” Amvrosiy says, raising his hand for the club members to see. They all gasp when they see the damage.

 “What happened?!” Els gasps.

 “Long story short, I was attacked while visiting some friends. The guy who saved me killed my attacker and treated me. I was unconscious for nearly two days.”

 “What’s with that arm, Amvrosiy?” Ellen asks, narrowing her eyes.

 “This arm belonged to my older brother, Artyom. He used it and a few others to fight crime where we live.”

 “That reminds me,” Bill says. He goes to the office and comes out with a bag. “Someone dropped this off outside the club room with a note saying to give it to you.” He hands the bag to Amvrosiy.

 The hybrid opens it and reaches inside, and pulls out a series of metal bracers connected with sturdy straps. It has a number of straps and latches on one end, and on the other end is what looks like an exoskeleton glove with only two fingers and a sort of half gauntlet to replace the missing part of his hand.

 He shucks off his shirt to show the harness system connected to his prosthetic, then slides the braces up his arm and raises the limb to fit the glove onto his hand. The prosthetic fingers are hollow at the base to fit the remnants of his fingers into, and with some help from his sister, the shoulder end of the sleeve is connected to his harness.

 Amvrosiy moves his arm around to test its fit and finds it snug like his main prosthetic’s sleeve. Melon must have studied it while he was unconscious and used notes to help Yuriko figure out what was needed. Finally, he raises his hand, looks at it, and moves his fingers. To his glee, the prosthetic fingers move just like his real ones. The fake appendages are somewhat rough and skeleton-like, as if they’re made from recycled tools, which he rather likes. The wonders of engineering at its finest, indeed.

 “Awesome,” he says with a wide grin.

 “I guess that answers my question as to what the item inside was,” Bill says.

 “Thanks for delivering it to me, Bill.”

 The tiger smiles. “You’re welcome.”

 “What’s with the design on that arm, Amvrosiy?” Aoba asks, gesturing to his prosthetic.

 “Like I said, my brother was a sort of crime fighter. Some people thought he was a demon sent from Hell to punish evil people, so he had this arm made to reflect that. The Devil’s Right Hand. Criminals were scared of him to the point some would actually take their own lives or even turn themselves in to the police rather than face him.”

 “Just what kind of things does he do to cause that kind of reaction?” Ellen asks with suspicion in her eyes and a bit of acid in her voice.

 Amvrosiy returns the glare.  “The kind that would take their heads with the spines still attached and mail them to the police as a message that they weren’t doing their jobs right.”

 “That’s disgusting!” Bill cries.

 “The Sublime Beastar begs to differ.”

 “YOUR BROTHER WORKS FOR THE SUBLIME BEASTAR?!”

 His ears flatten and he winces a bit at the noise. “Fuck. Shouldn’t have said that. Should not have said that,” he mutters irritably. He looks around. “Where’s Tao?”

 “He accidentally tore off Kibi’s arm and is temporarily suspended from Drama club,” Sanu answers. “Kibi is recovering in the hospital, and his arm should be back in working order soon.”

 The wolf gives the others a sympathetic look. “That’s unfortunate. I hope he’s doing o–Wait, the doctors reattached his arm ?!”

 “Medical science has advanced a lot over the last year,” Els informs. “Doctors can reattach limbs as long as the damage isn’t too great.”

 “You didn’t know that?” Kai asks.

 Amvrosiy’s ears droop. “I… haven’t been out a lot in the past two years.”

 “Maybe I should pay him a visit,” Riz says.

 “Great idea!” Dom says. “I’m sure he’d love that.” His expression turns sad. “You know, it’s not fair Tao got suspended. He messed up, but an accident’s no reason to keep him from school.”

 “They did what they had to. You’re right that it was an accident, but Tao still gave Kibi a serious injury. Being so careless around an herbivore is one of the worst things a carnivore can do.”

 Several animals jump a bit when a loud metallic and glass crunch fills the room.

 “Do you even hear yourself?!” Legosi yells. He stands up from the spotlight he’d been cleaning and stomps up to Riz. “Well in that case, Riz…” He grabs the bear by the upper arms and looks into his eyes with pure anger. “What’s the worst thing a carnivore could’ve done?”

 Zoyechka goes up to Legosi and pulls him away. “Chill out, Legosi,” she says. She looks at Riz. “Sorry about that.”

 “It’s okay, really.”

 Amvrosiy taps Bill on the shoulder and leans in once he has his attention. “Something’s going on between those two,” he whispers. “I’m gonna find out what.”

 The feline just nods and gives him the go ahead. The wolf grabs his fellow canine and looks at Riz. “Come with me.”

 The trio outside the building and Amvrosiy has Riz stand against the wall.

 “Something’s going on between you two. What is it? Legosi’s not the type to get that upset over someone just pointing something out like you did, so whatever it is, I’m guessing you did something to seriously rile him up.”

 “It’s nothing, really,” the bear says. “Legosi’s probably just in a bad mood today.”

 The wolf puts his bag down and opens it up, pulling out a trio of cans. Two of them are marked with a few red lines. Maybe they hint at the flavor? He pulls out his phone and quickly texts Melon.

 [What do the red lines on those cans mean, exactly?[

 He tosses a red-lined can to Riz and a can marked with blue to Legosi, taking another red-lined can for himself. “How about a drink to calm your nerves?”

 The bear looks like he’s about to say something, to object, only to be silenced with a glare from the hybrid. He sighs and cracks it open, and with a cheeky “cheers” from Amvrosiy, the three take a few sips. The wolf coughs a bit at the strong cherry flavor. He’d have to let Melon know about that.

 [There were marked cans in the case I gave you?? Don’t drink them! They’re spiked with Bloodbone! It causes a carnivore to hunger for meat! It’s meant to create more business for the market. My supplier must have slipped a few in there in an attempt to cause problems for you and your family.]

 Well shit.

 [What about the blue lines? Do they work on hybrids?]

 [Blue lines mean blue raspberry. The red ones should work on hybrids. DON’T TRY IT!]

 Amvrosiy sometimes doesn’t have the brightest ideas. It’s gotten him into some sticky situations before. And this time is one of those times.

 [Any idea how long it takes to kick in?]

 [A few moments. WHY?]

 [I kinda, sorta, gave a marked can to my bear clubmate and drank one myself?]

 [YOU IDIOT! YOU’RE AT SCHOOL! WITH HERBIVORES! WHY THE FUCK WOULD YOU DO THAT??]

 [I don’t know! I do dumb shit sometimes!]

 [YOU’RE TELLING ME!]

 “What did you bring us back here for?” Riz asks.

 The wolf shushes him with a finger and reads another text.

 [I called my supplier–who I am now going to have a little chat with later–and he said the drug doesn’t work on carnivores who have committed predation.]

His eye goes wide briefly and he looks up at Riz. “You’re the one who devoured that alpaca.”

 The bear eyes him suspiciously. “What makes you think that?” he asks.

 “That can I gave you is spiked with a drug that causes carnivores to crave meat,” he replies. “It doesn’t work on those who have devoured an herbivore. To be completely honest, I’m not entirely sure why I did that. But I do dumb shit sometimes.” He glances at Legosi. “Your can is safe. I promise.” He looks back at the bear. “So now I know why there’s tension between you guys.”

 The ursid gives him a look that could kill. “Well, now that another animal knows, I’ll just have to silence you too.”

 Before he can even take a step there’s a gun in his face. It’s massive, too large for any sane man to just casually carry around. The barrel alone looks like two tubes fused together one over the other, and the cylinder and overall size makes the gun look more like a handheld cannon than anything feasibly usable.

 “Not so fast, Ursa Major,” the hybrid says. He winces immediately. “Ooh, I’m sorry. Was that specist?” He puts a hand to his heart. “I swear, I was not trying to be specist. I was just trying to think of a good bear-related one-liner.”

 Both animals just stare at him in utter confusion as he starts pacing back and forth.

 “Honestly, it’s so hard to come up with good one-liners sometimes! I mean, I watch a lot of old cheesy action flicks, so I should be good at that shit!”

 Amvrosiy sighs and returns his attention to Riz. “Sorry about that,” he says. “Anyways, if you try to ‘silence me,’ you’re going to die. Painfully. But I’m not gonna hurt you if you cooperate.”

 Legosi huffs. “He’s a murderer , Rosie!”

 The canine ignores him and keeps the gun trained on the larger carnivore. “What happened, Riz? The truth.”

 The ursine heaves a big sigh. “Tem told me I was scary. No one had ever told me that before. I still don’t know why, but talking to him made my body feel lighter. He suggested we meet often outside of club and talk. So we did. I even told him about my medicine.”

 “The strength suppressors, right?” Riz looks at the hybrid in surprise. “One of my best friends was a grizzly bear. He told me about them.” He pauses. “Sorry for interrupting. Please continue.”

 An actual smile, albeit small, forms on the bear’s face. “After some time, I started needing less honey to deal with the side effects. Thanks to him, I didn’t feel so bad about needing to take my meds. So… I wanted to show him the real me.”

 Amvrosiy gives him a sympathetic smile. “So you two met up after you skipped your meds. He freaked out, you tried to stop him and accidentally hurt him. The blood and him running triggered your hunting instincts, causing you to chase and eventually devour him.”

 The wolf leans against the wall, taking a thin object from his bag. He brings it up to his lips, presses a button on it, and inhales, breathing out a cloud of cherry-scented smoke. “I’m guessing the trauma caused you to create a false scenario in your head. Maybe an image where he embraced you fully, in your case.”

 Riz takes a step back, an expression of shock on his face. “How did you–”

 “My siblings and I have dealt with a few cases like yours, same with my dad. Accidental devourings are all too common, unfortunately. And trauma from something really serious can cause someone to disassociate or create better, less horrifying scenarios in their head.”

 The wolf's prosthetic arm opens up at the bottom and a set of arm-like contraptions spring out from it. He spins the gun on the trigger guard so the barrel faces his elbow, and the weapon is hooked onto the arms before being pulled inside, after which the panels close. He pushes off the wall to stand in front of Riz, his posture changing from his normal slouch and the giant carnivore finds himself actually eye level with the canine. It’s somewhat intimidating to the ursine because Amvrosiy is huge in terms of muscle mass, matching him in size–and maybe even surpassing him–and he’s seen all the scars while changing in the locker room.

 Amvrosiy is staring at him, but there’s no hate in the hybrid’s eye. He holds his left hand out. “There’s no need to be afraid, Riz.” His voice is soft and full of care. “I know a doctor in the back alley market. He can help you.”

 Legosi glares at him. “You can’t seriously be thinking of helping him! Rosie, he devoured one of our friends!”

 “One of your friends. I didn’t know the kid. It was an accident, like most devourings.” The hybrid’s tone is different, strained like he’s getting annoyed or upset.

 “I just don’t get why you’re–”

 “BECAUSE I’VE BEEN WHERE HE IS!”

 Both Riz and Legosi fall completely silent.

 Amvrosiy’s expression turns morose. “When I was seventeen, I partially devoured a client at work. He was a Dall sheep, and he was a big contributor to my grandpa’s business. He hated my mom and me and my siblings, but he only directly expressed that hatred with me.”

 The boy goes back to the wall and leans against it again. “He would get rough with me a lot, occasionally beat me, even pulled out a few teeth one time. But I never said anything, because I didn’t want to cost my grandpa business, and the bastard paid really good for me, practically triple my usual rate. But one day, I just couldn’t take it anymore. He broke one of my fingers on my right hand, and I just… snapped. By the time my boss and a few coworkers pulled me away, I had already eaten most of his face. So my boss just put him out of his misery.

 “It fucked me up for a bit, had to get some counselling. That doctor I mentioned, Riz? He’s the one who helped me get past it all. Granted, I had already killed a few people–just ones that deserved it–but something like that? It was way worse. But in the moment, all I could think about was that I had just cost my grandpa and boss a major customer, and that people would likely come after me seeking retribution. It never happened, and my grandpa and boss didn’t give a shit. All they cared about was that I was okay. Grandma was actually planning on killing the guy anyway because he was rude.”

 Legosi looks at him with wilted ears. “I’m sorry, Amvrosiy. I shouldn’t have gotten in your face like that.”

 To his surprise, the hybrid smiles at him. “It’s okay. You didn’t know."

 “I’ll talk to Gouhin. Hopefully he can help.”

 The sound of footsteps draws the three carnivores’ attention. Bill comes around the corner with a big grin on his face.

 “You guys done talking?” he asks.

The trio nods.

 “Great! Now get your asses inside! Els just had a great idea!”

 Amvrosiy’s ears droop a bit. He has a bad feeling about this…

Chapter Text

 Amvrosiy and company return to the club room, where Ellen is looking both interested and displeased, Kai looks bored and angry as usual, Dom seems intrigued about something, and Sheila’s looking a bit nervous. A few of the other members he sees have similar expressions, but almost all of them are looking at Els with concern. The little angora goat looks like she’s about to phase into a different dimension from her clear excitement and vibrating body, eerily reminding the wolf of his own mother.

 Before he can say “fuck” the herbivore is right in front of him, looking up at him with a great wide smile. “Amvrosiy!” she cries. “Zoyechka and I just had a great idea!”

 The carnivore looks at his sister with a look that says “Rex save me,” while the she-wolf just stares back at him with the biggest shit-eating grin. Not sensing imminent salvation from the tiny bovine probably about to take off, he turns his eye over to Pina only to find a similar smug grin.

 “What is it, Els?” Legosi asks, evidently concerned by the girl’s behavior.

 “I was talking to Zoyechka about how good Amvrosiy is on the dance team, and how I was curious about him because he’s so quiet, and she suggested we all play a game so we and the new members can get to know each other!”

 “It’s a great idea!” Juno says from right beside them.

 Amvrosiy and Legosi jump at their fellow canine’s sudden appearance.

 “We barely know anything about you or Zoyechka, Amvrosiy, so I think it would be a great way to get to know you! We can have fun and learn about each other at the same time!”

 The canine in question scowls. “I’m not drunk or high enough for this shit,” he mutters quietly.

 “Where are we going to play it, though?” Legosi asks. “Club’s almost over and I doubt we’d all be able to fit in someone’s dorm room.”

 “That’s why I suggested we do it on the roof,” Zoyechka says as she walks over. “Plus, we could probably bring a few drinks, and my baby brother could use his medicine if he needs to.”

 “I’m only a few seconds younger,” Amvrosiy mumbles.

 The she-wolf throws an arm over his shoulder, trapping him, and rubs the top of his head with her fist. “But that means I’m still older!” she says with a laugh. She releases him and playfully shoves him towards the locker room. “Now go get changed!”

 Amvrosiy doesn’t see an escape from this predicament, and he loathes Zoyechka’s plan. It’s probably one of his greatest banes next to drunk Free and trying to shred blocks of cheese.

 Forced. Social. Interaction.

 Amvrosiy opens the door to the rooftop garden with a bit of hesitation. He sees the members of the club who came up to play sitting in a circle. There’s Ellen, Bill, Els, Legosi, Pina, Sheila, Juno, Riz, and his sister. Haru’s sitting next to Legosi, but there are two female foxes he doesn’t recognize.

 He gets about halfway to the group before the vizens notice him, squeal, and hop to their feet before running up to him. One is very curvy with spots around her eyes, and the other is buxom with a good amount of muscle.

 But now that they’re right in front of him, he realizes with shock and a bit of horror just where he’s seen the two girls before.

 They’re Ten’s daughters. Ayano and Yuri. And they’re fucking obsessed with him.

 “I told you he was here, Yuri!” Ayano says, glaring at her sister.

 Amvrosiy looks at the three with a wide eye. “What’s… going on?” he asks.

 “Well Ayano was talking to Juno and Juno was going on a rant about you and she mentioned your scales but realized she mighta fucked up but we knew about that already so we showed her some of your videos and now she just spends so much time in bed behind her curtain and we’re pretty sure she has a crush on you!” Yuri practically vomits out.

 The wolf rubs his eye a little, not used to the girl’s hyperactivity and how her seemingly infinite supply of energy also goes into her speech. He’s only met the twins twice before, once at a turf war when he was sixteen, and the other at his wedding.

 “I had actually spotted you a few times around campus, but Yuri didn’t think it was you,” Ayano explains more calmly.

 “And we were really hoping we could meet you and that maybe you might fuck us senseless like in the videos!” Yuri adds.

 Amvrosiy looks at the girls. “When did your mother send you here?”

 “Just a few days ago!” Yuri replies. “She wanted to help keep an eye on you for Mrs. Romanov!”

 “Your mother is aware of what I do for a living, is she not?” A rhetorical question, but he wants them to acknowledge that.

 “Yes, sir,” Ayano says. “And she is more than fine with the idea of you treating us to a good time. In fact, her exact words were ‘better the One-Armed Wolf than some untrustworthy man.’ She trusts you more than anyone with our safety.”

 A smile forms on the wolf’s face. “Well, it’s good to know that the mistress of the alley has so much faith in me.” He takes out his wallet and pulls out a pair of cards, then hands them to the vixens. “Show those to Clive or any of the security at the club, or to the security or my manager at the studio, and they’ll let you in no questions asked. Those will even get you a discount at the club.”

 Ayano and Yuri squeal and clutch the cards to their chests like they had just been given tickets to their favorite boy band. “Thank you so much, Amvrosiy!” they cry. And with that, the pair run off through the door, likely heading to their dorm room.

 When he sits down with the other club members and Haru, he finds all of them staring at him.

 “What was that about?” Juno asks.

 Oh fuck I forgot everyone else was here. Shit.

 Amvrosiy shrinks in on himself and awkwardly rubs the back of his head. “Um… that was… uh… Those two girls are the daughters of a close friend and business partner of my mother. They’ve seen some of my videos and wanted to meet me in person and spend some time with me.”

 “What videos?” Legosi asks. “Do you do BeastTube videos on spiders?”

 He grits his teeth. “Uh, no. I, um… Fuck…” He sighs. “I’m a stripper and escort in the back alley market, and I also work with a porn studio. I enjoy it, and I make a lot of money from my work.”

 “Does your family know?” Bill asks.

 “Yes. And they’re supportive of me.” He shakes his head and looks at Els. “What’s the game we’re playing?”

 “I was thinking we could play ‘Never Have I Ever,’” the goat says. A mischievous grin spreads across her face. “But now that we know about your job, maybe we could turn it into a strip game.”

 “A what?!”

 “A strip game! If someone says a thing and you’ve done it, you take off a piece of clothing. Or if you say a thing and no one’s done it, you take off a piece of clothing!”

 “I don’t think anyone here is ready for that, Els,” Pina says. “I think seeing Amvrosiy topless for an extended period of time, or Rex forbid, almost or completely naked, would melt their brains~”

 Amvrosiy glares at the sheep. “Pina!” he barks.

 “I think that’s a neat idea, Els!” Bill says.

 “I think Amvrosiy should go first, then we’ll go clockwise!”

 The wolf stammers for a second, then when he realizes there’s no way out, relents. “I guess, uh… Never have I ever… hmm… cried during a movie?”

 All the girls save Sheila take off their shoes, with the already barefoot cheetah taking off the school uniform’s belt, while Pina removes his uniform vest.

 “That’s a decent starter, Amvrosiy,” Els says. “But maybe try and come up with something spicy or really interesting!”

 Zoyechka smirks. “Never have I ever had dirty thoughts about someone up here,” she says confidently.

 Amvrosiy sighs and takes off his shoes, while Bill takes off his shirt, and Pina and Juno pull off their socks.

 “Good one, Zoyechka!” Bill praises. “Oh! Never have I ever lost a tooth because of something crazy! Classic childhood experience!”

 The she-wolf removes her sleeves, exposing the purple scales and tattoos along her arms, while Amvrosiy takes off his socks and Pina discards his tie.

 “I lost a tooth from getting in the way of a swinging punching bag during my siblings’ training,” the sheep says. “I’m lucky I just lost a tooth and got a bloody nose.”

 The female canine twin grins. “Lost a few when I fell off a roof trying to prank our grandpa.”

 “I had one knocked out by one of my brother’s prosthetic arms when he was tinkering with it,” Amvrosiy says.

 Els perks up. “Oh! My turn! Never have I ever gotten spooked by a bug!”

 Haru giggles and removes her shoes while Sheila takes off her uniform’s bow tie. Juno huffs and begrudgingly shucks her shirt.

 “It was a huge spider!” she cries.

 Amvrosiy’s eye glints. “What kind?”

 “It was a big one and really hairy!”

 “It was just a little jumping spider, Juno,” Haru says. “They’re harmless.”

 “They are! I’ve got a bunch of them at home, and they’re just the most adorkable curious little guys!”

 The she-wolf pouts and glances at Amvrosiy. “Never have I ever slept with multiple people at once…”

 The male growls as he pulls off his shirt, while Zoyechka winks at her fellow she-wolf and does the same. “I should probably mention I also do porn. Mainly lesbian stuff. Amvrosiy mostly does dudes.”

 “Never have I ever met someone famous,” Ellen says. “You said your brother works for the Sublime Beastar, Amvrosiy. Surely you’ve met him too?”

 Zoyechka pulls off her skirt, Juno takes off her pants, and Amvrosiy detaches his prosthetic arm, getting a look from the others.

 “What? It’s technically a piece of clothing, since major parts of it cover my arm.”

 “Okay, new rule,” Els says. “Amvrosiy’s prosthetic equipment also counts.”

 The wolf gently sets the Devil’s Right Hand on top of his bag. “As for your question, Ellen, I guess I might as well get the spider out of the cupboard. I haven’t just ‘met’ the Sublime Beastar. He’s my honorary great-uncle, and is a close friend of my grandpa. Yahya was training Artyom to be his successor.”

 Everyone’s jaws drop as they just stare at the canine for what feels like minutes. Eventually, Bill’s the first one to recover.

 “Wait, WHAT?!”

 “My brother also starred in The Man Who Erased His Name alongside the actor Miyagi.”

 Juno splutters and nearly smacks her head into the ground. “Now I know where I recognize you! That’s one of my favorite movies! You look so similar!”

 “I’ve been mistaken for him more times than I can count–especially in the last two years.”

 “Would I be able to meet him?!”

 Amvrosiy’s face falls for a moment. “Unfortunately, no. He passed away two years ago. But I did go with him to Miyagi’s home to celebrate the movie’s success, even met Miyagi’s girlfriend.” A sly grin forms on the wolf’s face. “They were pretty damn good in bed.”

 “YOU FUCKED MY PARENTS?!”

 The she-wolf immediately slaps her hands over her mouth. The other club members all look at her incredulously.

 “Your dad is Miyagi?!”

 “That’s so cool!”

 “What was sex with him like?”

Chapter Text

 Amvrosiy turns to Els. “Shall we continue?” he asks.

 Sheila raises her head. “Never have I ever gotten in a physical fight with a peer.”

 Legosi and Bill glare slightly at the cheetah as they take off their shirt and socks, the tiger having already removed his shoes before the game began. Everyone save Sheila, Pina, and Zoyechka stares in surprise as Amvrosiy removes his pants.

 “Who did you get in a fight with?” Bill asks.

 “One of my grandpa’s friends,” the wolf answers. “It’s actually how I met Pina. The asshole was trying to capture him to sell to some really bad guys for the pelt trade. I stepped in and told him to leave Pina alone. He refused despite knowing who I was. So I broke his arms.”

 He notices the way Sheila is looking at him. Absolute horror is written on her face and she’s covering her mouth with a hand. He starts to question why she’s so shocked, but then he follows her gaze and realizes she’s staring at his legs.

 His leg coverings have been pulled down along with his pants. His entire legs, but especially his thighs, are covered with numerous scars–bite and claw marks, knife cuts, old healed burns. It’s honestly a wonder he was still able to walk after it all. But then everyone else looks at him in horror.

 The cheetah lowers her hand and looks him in the eye. “Did that… Did that come from…?”

 Amvrosiy grabs his clothes and rushes to get dressed. He’s had a lot of practice getting dressed with one arm, so it’s over quick. He grabs his bag, stands up, and apologizes to the others for having to leave, before rushing to the door. He practically throws it open and bolts down the stairs. His roommates are having a sleepover in one of the other dorm rooms, so he should hopefully be alone.

 Els looks at the rooftop door with sadness. She didn’t mean to cause distress for Amvrosiy. She just wants to know him better.

 “I shouldn’t have pressured him into undressing for a game,” she says.

 “You couldn’t have known, Els,” Bill assures. “Hell, none of us guys knew. He keeps his upper legs covered when changing, not that I blame him.”

 “Rosie forgets about his scars often,” Zoyechka says. “He keeps them covered except for when he’s showering, and combined with his memory problems, he just doesn’t pay any mind to them. Some of his scars he’s proud of, but those ones…” She sighs. “He would rather forget they even exist. You all did good, not bringing them up, even the ones on his upper body.”

 “I’ll go apologize to him,” the goat says.

 “You have nothing to apologize for. He enjoyed the game.”

 Els looks at the she-wolf with determination. “I insist. I should at least go see if he’s alright.”

 Zoyechka gives her a proud smile. “Then go. He’s in room 704.”

 She nods and heads to the door.

 Els eventually finds Amvrosiy’s dorm room. There’s music coming from inside, so he might not be able to hear her, but she tries anyway. She knocks on the door. “Amvrosiy?” she calls. She waits for a few moments, and gets no response. So she tries the door. To her surprise it’s unlocked.

 She walks in to find the canine sitting at a desk at the back of the room, hunched over and working on something. “Amvrosiy?” she calls again, to no avail. He’s probably focused on whatever he’s doing. The herbivore approaches him until she’s right next to him.

 “Amvrosiy?”

 The wolf yelps and falls backwards with a thud, his legs flailing upwards to accidentally kick the bottom of the desk.

 Els’ eyes widen. “Oh, Rex! Are you okay?!” she cries. “I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to scare you!”

 Amvrosiy, somewhat dazed, confusedly looks up at her. “Els? What are you doing in my room?” he asks.

 “When you ran off, I got worried about you. I shouldn’t have suggested a strip game. I’m sorry.”

 To her surprise, he smiles at her. “It’s okay,” he says. “You couldn’t have known. I, uh, I take a lot of pride in my body, so I was a little thrilled at getting a chance to show it off. I enjoyed the game, too.” He rolls over and pushes himself off the floor. “You don’t have anything to be sorry for. I’m just a bit sensitive, is all.”

 Els smiles a bit. “Okay,” she says with a relieved sigh. “I’m just glad you’re alright.”

 He sets his chair back up and looks at the desk. On it is the arm he was wearing when he came back to school, alongside a white arm. Behind them is a picture frame with a photo of Amvrosiy and another male wolf. The two look extremely similar, with the exception of Amvrosiy being a bit shorter, and having only one eye and both his arms. In the other wolf’s right hand–the same red prosthetic laying on the desk–is a large over-under double-barreled revolver.

 “Is that Artyom?” she asks.

 Amvrosiy nods. “That picture was taken on my nineteenth birthday. Artyom had just taken me to see a movie he’d been in, The Man Who Erased His Name. It became one of my favorites. He specifically requested to have his character designed to be like an American gunslinger, since we were both extremely fond of American Westerns. He even let me keep the poncho he’d worn in it.”

 “He sounds like a wonderful person,” Els says.

 “He was,” he answers with a laugh. “Artyom actually told the director he refused to be in the movie unless they let him wear a poncho for it. He used to say to me, ‘Anna, if a movie has a Western-style outlaw-type marksman in it, the character is obligated by the divine will of Rex Almighty Himself to wear a poncho. If he doesn’t, he’s not a proper outlaw.’ And that rubbed off on me.”

 “Is that why the wolf on that arm is wearing one?”

 “Mhm. He used these big revolvers in his vigilante work. So he figured, ‘Why not go all the way and wear a poncho?’ Yahya thought he was a bit crazy for it, but he believed in looking stylish while putting the fear of Rex into people.”

 “So is that why there’s a horse on that arm too?”

 “In the back alley market, Yahya’s known as ‘The Black Devil.’ Artyom decided to make himself known for being his apprentice. So that arm became known as ‘The Devil’s Right Hand.’ Like I mentioned during club, some people thought he was a demon sent to punish them.”

 “But wouldn’t that make him a target?” she asks. “If he was known as the Sublime Beastar’s apprentice, someone could have captured him to try and lure the Beastar into a trap.”

 Amvrosiy actually barks out a laugh at that. “Yahya isn’t that dumb to fall for a trap, and Artyom was too careful to let himself get caught. Besides, he was way too risky to capture and hold for ransom or shit like that.”

 The goat looks at him quizzically. “Why’s that?”

 The wolf’s expression turns nervous. “Shit… um…” He looks at her with concern. “Promise me you won’t tell anyone?” he says softly.

 Els smiles at him. “You can count on me. I don’t like breaking promises, or telling secrets. It’s one of the fastest ways to lose a friend.”

 “Okay. Well… You see… Fuck, I can’t believe I’m telling you this…” He sighs. “For one thing, my dad’s a police sergeant, and he’s really good at what he does. The other thing though… is that my grandpa’s a yakuza boss.”

 The girl’s eyes widen. “Really? You mean you’re…?”

 “A possible heir to a criminal empire? Yes, if that’s what you’re referring to. My parents don’t have any involvement in criminal activities, though, and Mom runs her own clothing store, even has a fashion line.”

 “What about your grandmother?”

 “Former hitwoman. Have you ever seen The Man Who Erased His Name?”

 She nods.

 “You know the female wolf assassin character?”

 Another nod.

 “That was her niece. Grandma trained her to be a professional killer, and a bodyguard for a really powerful business. My aunt Natalya is one of the few carnivores to work directly for Oguma of the Horns Conglomerete.”

 Els looks at him incredulously. “So your aunt works for the most wealthy man in the country, your dad is an experienced police officer, your grandmother is a former hitwoman, and your grandpa is a mob boss? What does your mom do?”

 “She’s a fashion designer, and a really good one. She actually does tailoring work for all four gumis in the Black Market, along with a few minor gangs. The Inarigumi’s leader–this gang of female foxes–is one of her closestfriends.” Amvrosiy gives a small laugh. “Man, what is it with me and spilling my guts to white-furred herbivores? It’s like I’ve got some sort of magnetism or something.”

 The small goat cocks her head. “What do you mean?” she asks.

 “Well, first and most obviously, there’s Pina. He’s probably my best friend, as little as I can understand why he still hangs out with me. Second is Haru, that rabbit in gardening club. And now there’s you. Mom’s really spiritual about me connecting with white herbivores. She says it’s about purity.”

 She smiles. “That’s what friends are for, isn’t it?” she says. “Confiding in each other and easing each other’s worries is an important part of being close to another animal.”

 The wolf’s eye widens. “You… consider me a friend?” he says, voice full of shock.

 Els nods. “Of course. I may not know you very well, but from what I’ve heard and seen, you seem like a wonderful person. Anyone would be lucky to have you as a friend.”

 He lets out an odd sound, somewhere between a cough and a gasp. “I don’t know if that’s a good idea, Els.”

 “Why not? From what Zoyechka’s said, you two came here to have a normal life. Friends are a part of that.”

 “But I live in the Black Market. I’m a yakuza’s grandson. I’m a sex worker. I eat meat. You wouldn’t be able to truly get to know me, because you can’t go to the Black Market.”

 She huffs and puts her hands on her hips, staring at him like a disappointed mother. “And why not? I know full well some herbivores go to the Black Market. I can tell from your relationship with Pina that he’s been there too. I know Bill eats meat, and I know he needs it. It’s just a fact of loving a carnivore.”

 Amvrosiy unintentionally returns the stare. “Because if you go there, you’ll likely be kidnapped and devoured.”

 “I’ve been planning on going there with Bill when he goes there for his next meat meal. He can protect me.”

 He shoots up from his bed and starts pacing. “Carnivores are in just as much danger there as herbivores!” he shouts. He raises his right hand. “I know first fucking hand!”

 She stands up and glares at him. “Can’t you do something to help? Surely you have connections!”

 The canine freezes and gawks at her, clearly caught off guard by her words. He’s completely still, and for a moment Els is worried she accidentally broke him. But he starts moving again, pacing irritably around the room.

 “Have you gone completely insane?! You want to ask a favor of the fucking yakuza?! That’s how you end up indebted, how you end up in a life of crime, and often how you wind up dead in a lake somewhere!” He groans and rubs his eye. “I swear, you and Pina are gonna be the fucking death of me, fucking Rex’s sake.” He sighs. “Fine. I do have a way to help you without risking your safety.”

 The little herbivore's eyes almost sparkle, and a large smile spreads across her face. “Really?!”

 Amvrosiy goes over to his bag and starts digging through it. Eventually, to her confusion, he pulls out his wallet. “A few months ago, my grandparents and I came up with a system to protect Pina and anyone else I care about who goes in and out of the Black Market,” he says. He opens his wallet and pulls out a card. “I give this card to someone, and they go to a specific location close to the market. They get escorted to the market entrance, then they call the number on the card. Someone working for my grandpa comes and meets them, and escorts them until they leave, unless I’m physically with them.”

 He hands the card to Els. “Let me know when you and Bill are heading to the Black Market, and I’ll make arrangements. If you want to make your outing a little longer, plan for a weekend.”

 She looks at the card with awe, then at the wolf. “Thank you! I’ll let Bill know!”

 He smirks. “I say you should keep the specifics a surprise,” he says, a mischievous tone in his voice. “When you get to the Black Market and call the number on the card, tell the person on the other line that Anatoli gave you his number.”

 She gives him a confused look. “Anatoli?”

 “It’s my middle name. Pretty much no one outside my family, except for my boss and a couple particular coworkers, knows it. When you give them that name, they’ll know it’s legit.”

 Els smiles at him. Maybe now she can get to know him properly.

Chapter Text

 Els is, admittedly, a bit giddy when she goes up to Bill the next day on the way to club, and the tiger immediately notices it.

 “Hey, Els,” he says with a smile and a friendly wave. “You seem to be in a good mood today. How’d it go with Amvrosiy?”

 “Hi, Bill! It went great! He actually opened up to me a bit!” she replies cheerfully. “And you remember how I wanted to come with you the next time you go out?”

 He nods. “Yeah. Did you change your mind?”

 “Nope! In fact, I’ve only got more reason to go! Amvrosiy offered to help us out!”

 Bill looks at her weirdly, his face a mix of intrigue and concern. “Uh… ‘help us out?’ What do you mean?”

 “He suggested that if we want to make our outing a bit longer, we should plan for a weekend. I think he was implying we could stay with him.”

 “That’s exactly what I meant.”

 Both animals yell and jump, Bill’s fur and tail puffing up considerably. They turn to see the wolf in question standing a few feet away, leaning against a wall with his arms crossed and a childish grin on his face.

 “You should have seen your face, Bill,” he muses. “I have an arrangement with the school that allows me to stay home one day during the school week for work if my manager calls me in, as long as I keep my grades up and schedule it beforehand, which means he needs to give me at least a day’s notice before calling me in during school hours. It gives me a little less stress, which my doctor says is great for my health. He was actually a great help in making the arrangement.”

 “And this has to do with me and Els because…?” the tiger asks.

 “My boss said I wouldn’t have to come in on school days this week so I can continue my recovery and catch up on any schoolwork I might be behind on. My dad confirmed to Gon and the dorm mother that I’d been kidnapped. Legosi’s roommate is gonna help me with homework, and Zoyechka took notes for both of us, so I’ll be fine.” Amvrosiy pushes himself off the wall and approaches them. “If you want to go out this weekend, you can stay at my house over the weekend if you want. My family won’t mind.”

 Bill looks a bit hesitant. “Are you sure? Your family’s, uh…”

 “They won’t mind. My parents like you, Mom especially. Just make sure you two behave. Grandma doesn’t like rude guests.” The canine brings a small bag out of his backpack and hands it to Els. “Don’t open that until you’re in the market. It’s a gift for the two of you.”

 He turns around and starts walking away with a friendly wave.

 The tiger gives Els a worried look. “What did you just get us into, Els?”

 At the end of club, Els is curious about what’s in the bag Amvrosiy gave her, but she convinces herself to wait. She just hopes it’s not anything illegal.

 “What’s with the bag, Els?” Ellen asks.

 The goat looks at her clubmate. “Just something Amvrosiy gave me,” she replies. “Bill and I are going to spend some time with him this weekend. He said it’s a surprise. He even invited us to stay at his house.”

 “He seems a bit excited about it,” Zoyechka says with a smile. “Whatever you said to him last night really helped him. Just prepare yourself for our family. Mom in particular is a bit excitable.”

 “I forgot to ask, but what reptile are you and your brother a hybrid of?” Els asks.

 “Komodo dragon. We’re immune to our grandpa’s venom, and even the venom of other Komodos. Amvrosiy uses it in some of his engineering experiments.”

 Juno looks at her quizzically. “Isn’t Komodo venom really acidic?”

 “It is. But Rosie’s been working with a few scientists to develop materials immune to it. It also tastes like bitter marmalade. He puts it in some of his drinks.”

 “So if those kinds of materials were to expand into the open market, that means Komodo dragons could potentially have more jobs available to them?” Shiela says.

 The she-wolf nods and grins. “Exactly. They’re doing a lot of testing involving the varying potencies of Komodo venom, since it can get stronger if a Komodo’s emotions are strong. I’ve heard of a guy whose venom can melt through several feet of thick concrete.”

 “That sounds like a wonderful idea, Zoyecha,” Els says.

 “Apparently, some of the prototypes will be ready this weekend, including some prosthetic arms and a surprise specifically for Rosie. He’ll probably rope you and Bill into coming with him, so you two will be the first outside our family to see some of the results of my little brother’s experiments.”

 Sheila looks at the canine. “I never heard about Amvrosiy experimenting with stuff like that, and Tatsuo never said anything.”

 “That’s because it was supposed to be a sort of team project for Rosie.” Zoyechka pauses for a moment, seemingly upset by something. “But he had to continue it by himself after he lost his arm. My family asked him to continue the project with the hope of giving him at least a little motivation. Unfortunately, he was unable to work on it himself for the past year, so he gave the team he was working with the go ahead to proceed in his absence.”

 To all the girls’ surprise, a hateful expression spreads across the girl’s face as she looks at the cheetah. “And if I ever see that piece of shit you call a brother again, I’ll skin him alive myself and stick his head on a pike,” she snarls. Zoyechka picks up her bag and walks out of the locker room, a tense silence laying in her wake.

 Eventually, Juno is the one to break it. “What… What was that about?” she says, fear showing strong in her voice.

 Sheila returns her scared stare. “I don’t know. She never liked him in the first place. Maybe she knows something about Tatsuo that I don’t?”

 Els steps off the train, practically dragging Bill with her. It’s an amusing sight, a large Bengal tiger being pulled around by a tiny herbivore, and the goat brushes off the stares she gets as she confidently walks with her boyfriend down the stairs.

 “Amvrosiy said to go to Beast Apartments,” she says. “Do you know where it is?” she says.

 “Yeah,” Bill answers. “It’s actually where Tao, Legosi, and I took him to meet with this deer guy who claimed to sell good theater-related stuff.” He frowns a little. “But the guy turned out to be a scam artist, apparently one Amvrosiy’s family has had trouble with in the past.”

 “What happened?”

 The tiger winces. “Promise me you won’t freak out?”

 The goat cocks her head. “Why would I freak out? He didn’t devour the deer, did he?”

 “No, but…” He rubs the back of his head. “He, uh, bit and heavily maimed the guy’s arm, and apparently poisoned his drink while no one was looking–which I still have no idea how he pulled off. So he basically murdered him.”

 “Oh…” She figured Amvrosiy must have been in a fair few fights judging by all the scars he has, and she knows about his background too–at least just his family–so the idea of him murdering someone isn’t too far-fetched.

 But still…

 “Amvrosiy doesn’t seem like the type to just randomly kill someone like that,” she says. “Maybe he had some sort of reason for it? You said that deer had been giving his family a lot of trouble. His dad’s a cop, so maybe he was having problems getting the guy put away, or even trying to pin charges on him? I’m sure he wouldn’t be able to just arrest someone for messing with his family. It would be a conflict of interest. Personal attachment and emotions getting in the way.”

 “Maybe. Wait.” He stops and looks at her. “How would you know about stuff like that? And how did you know Amvrosiy’s dad is a cop?”

 Els smiles proudly. “I’ll have you know I watch quite a few cop movies. Amvrosiy told me about his parents last night when I went to apologize to him. I decided to look his dad up, and apparently he’s been quite influential in the making of some recent crime films, including The Man Who Erased His Name, which happens to be one of my favorite crime dramas.”

 Bill chuffs. “I never knew you were into stuff like that, Els.” He looks ahead. “Oh, we’re here.”

 The pair are standing in front of a large, somewhat worn apartment building, the sign at the top reading “BEAST APARTMENTS.”

 “Amvrosiy said to go in and ask for someone,” the goat says. She grabs the feline’s hand and pulls him inside, much to his protests.

 The lobby is actually somewhat nice, to Els’ surprise. It’s evidently been refurbished lately, with new furniture over marks left by older furniture that had been moved, some nice rugs, and neat polished wood on the front desk, currently being run by a pleasant-looking female pigeon. The avian’s happy expression only increases when she spots the duo.

 “Welcome to Beast Apartments!” she greets cheerfully. “Are you looking to rent a room?”

 Els goes up to the desk. “No, ma’am. We’re meeting with a friend, and he told us to come here and ask for a ‘Jinu.’”

 “That would be me.”

 The two look over towards the stairs to see an old caiman coming down them. He’s well built for a reptile his age, maybe in his fifties, and wearing a worn pair of sweatpants and a simple button-up shirt.

 “So someone sent you here and said to ask for me, hm?” the lizard says, bending forward a bit to come-face-to-face with Els. “And just who sent you?”

 “Um, A-Amvrosiy, m-ma’am,” the herbivore says, her voice shaking a little from nerves.

 Immediately, the man’s expression changes and he goes back to his full height, an amused look morphing his features. “Well, well, someone got close enough to the One-Armed Wolf for him to let them into his turf, huh?” He chuckles a little. “Alright. If wolf boy thinks you’re alright, I’ll take you to him. Follow me.”

 He turns around and exits the front doors, his stride almost a hobble.

 Bill lightly grasps Els by the arm. “Are you sure about this, Els?” he asks quietly.

 She gives him a reassuring smile. “If Amvrosiy trusts him, then he can’t be that bad, right?”

 As the two walk behind Ten, Els thinks about what the lizard said.

 “Someone got close enough to the One-Armed Wolf for him to let them into his turf.”

 “Mister Jinu?”

 The caiman turns his head. “Yes?”

 “Why did you call Amvrosiy ‘The One-Armed Wolf?’”

 “It’s because he’s got one arm.” Jinu laughs. “See, Amvrosiy isn’t the first One-Armed Wolf–or ‘Sekiro,’ as everyone knows it–to walk the market.”

 “He isn’t?” Bill says, his head tilting.

 The lizard shakes his head. “That would be his older brother, Artyom. That boy was supposedly trained by the Black Devil himself, and he wanted everyone to know it. So he created what everyone knows as ‘The Devil’s Right Hand,’ this fearsome-looking prosthetic arm with a little surprise to it, called ‘The Judge.’ You two familiar with the four gumis of the Black Market?”

 Both shake their heads.

 “There’s the Shishigumi, a lion gang that’s actually become more popular and has actually helped the market thanks to its new boss. Next up is the Madaragumi, a group of leopards who take after the old ways, led by Miso. Then there’s the Inarigumi, a group of female foxes, really fiery. Finally, there’s the Dokugumi, a gang of Komodo dragons led by this old lizard named Savon–good man, makes a mean hotpot. Artyom was Savon’s grandson.”

 Bill gawks at him. “So you’re a–” Els smacks him on the arm to shut him up.

 Jinu just smiles. “Yep, I’m a yakuza boss’ best friend. Anyways, some people started thinking Artyom was some sort of demon. They even called him the ‘Shadow of the Devil.’ The fact that he had black fur and red eyes helped cement that fear. Amvrosiy looks exactly like him, minus the red eyes. He actually dyed his fur in order to go hang out with his friends and go to work, so people wouldn’t freak out.”

 “But he doesn’t anymore, I’m guessing?” Bill says.

 “That’s right. After Artyom died, Amvrosiy just stopped giving a shit. After some time, he seemed to take on some of his brother’s personality. But not just the good parts. He started taking on the image that people had created of ‘Sekiro, the Shadow of the Black Devil.’ He became colder, more angry. Eventually, he stopped dying his fur, and started wearing some of his brother’s arms and going out and continuing Artyom’s work. It got to the point where some people thought the One-Armed Wolf had never died. Others thought he was actually a ghost now, wandering the market to claim the heads of anyone that got in his way. Some people don’t even know Artyom had a brother. Shit, most don’t even know Amvrosiy’s name.”

 Els stares at the man in shock. So what Amvrosiy had said to Ellen about his brother in a moment of irritation wasn’t just exaggeration. She had heard stories of the police department having packages shipped to them, only to find severed heads, all of them with tear marks under their eyes and a set of symbols carved into the back. The calling card of what one police sergeant had started calling “the Volkolak,” and soon after the rest of the department began to use the name as well.

 “You said Artyom was trained by the Black Devil. Did Amvrosiy continue that image?” Bill says.

 The reptile shrugs. “Honestly? I think some people fear him more than the Black Devil himself, even starting calling Sekiro the Devil Incarnate. Makes sense, because he’s brutal. At least Artyom just removed heads.”

 “What… What does he do?” Els asks, almost shaking now and having to rely on Bill to stay steady.

 Jinu looks back at them with a serious expression. “You don’t wanna know.” He stops in his tracks and turns around. “Well, we’re here,” he says. The lizard spreads his arms wide and bows theatrically. “Welcome to the Black Market, lady and gent!”

 The pair swallow their horror and just stare.

 “Oh, I didn’t scare ya too bad, did I?” the old man says teasingly. “If it makes you feel any better, a lot of that stuff is just folk telling stories. I don’t believe it myself! I just like to scare newcomers!” He cackles.

 After a minute or two, they’re able to collect themselves as the lizard walks back the way they came. Els manages to calm her shaking enough to pull out her phone. She starts dialing the number Amvrosiy gave her and presses the call button. After a few seconds of ringing, someone picks up.

 “Hello?” a gruff voice greets.

 “Um… Hello?” she says awkwardly.

 “Who is this? How did you get this number?” the voice demands.

 “Anatoli did. He told me to call this number when I got to the entrance of the Black Market.”

 The voice hums for a bit, and she hears some noise in the background before the person on the other end seemingly returns.

 “Alright. I’ll send someone over.”

Chapter Text

 It takes only about six minutes of waiting for someone to show up. A pair of Komodo dragons wearing masks to cover their jaws walk up to them from within the market. One is wearing a pair of cargo pants and a harness over a sleeveless sweater, while the other is dressed in cargo pants and a purple tank top, with a gray scarf around his neck. Both of them have a fair few scars across their bodies and what look like grenades on bandoliers.

 The one with the scarf looks down at Els. “You’re the one who called?” he asks, his voice gruff and somewhat raspy.

 Els shakes herself out of her staring. “Yes, sir. I’m Els, and this is my boyfriend Bill. We’re here on a date, and Amvrosiy invited us to stay with him.”

 The Komodo turns his head to Bill. “Coming back to the boss’ family’s house in less than a week?” He chuckles a bit. “Either you’re brave or stupid, thinking you can just come in and out as you please, or the boss’ kid has actually taken a liking to you.” He turns around and motions them to follow. “Name’s Smog. This is CO2.”

 As they walk, Bill leans down. “These guys are bad news, Els,” he whispers. “Is this what you meant when you said Amvrosiy said he’d help us out?”

 The goat nods. “He told me he does this for people he cares about. Pina apparently comes here a lot.”

 The dragon with the harness glances back. “Sheep boy?” he says.

 She nods.

 “Kid seems really fond of Amvrosiy. Rex knows he could use the company. The family loves him.”

 “Does Amvrosiy not have many friends?” she asks.

 “Just Pina nowadays, as far as we know. He seems to have taken a liking to that gazelle guy that started working with the boss’ daughter a few days ago, though.”

 The Komodos sit the pair down at a nearby table, then sit down themselves and take off their masks. Smog looks at Els. “You’ve got some balls, coming into the Black Market unprepared with your stature. Your boy know how to fight?” he says.

 “Bill’s an actor in the drama club at school,” Els replies. “He does a lot of fighting scenes, and he works out a lot. So yes, I think.”

 “Stage fights are different from real ones. You won’t have a fake sword to defend yourself in the real world.”

 “He’s right, Els,” Bill says. “Sure, I work out and I’m pretty strong, but the only actual fight I’ve been in as a teenager was with Legoshi.”

 The lizard frowns. “So you’re the one who marked up wolf boy. You’re lucky the boss didn’t kill you when you walked in the door.”

 Bill pales. “Why?” he asks nervously.

 Smog shrugs. “Close friend of the boss is the kid’s guardian, or benefactor, not sure which. Even got the Black Devil keeping an eye on him.”

 “Amvrosiy mentioned the ‘Black Devil,’” Els says. “Apparently he used to train his older brother.”

 He narrows his eyes. “Kid must trust you a lot to open up about his brother. What’d you do?”

 “He said something about white herbivores having some sort of effect on him that compels him to open up. He apparently does it with Pina, and even did it with the rabbit in charge of the gardening club.”

 He nods. “I see. So the Purity Effect is real.” He smacks the other lizard upside the head. “Told you, rat breath.”

 Bill tilts his head. “‘The Purity Effect?’”

 The reptile nods. “Some of the guys, and Amvrosiy’s mom, think that white herbivores can have a weird effect on some carnivores, especially if they develop a connection. It causes carnivores to let their guard down and let their emotions out. It’s like how animals of the same species can feel relaxed with each other through physical contact, but in a spiritual sort of way.”

 “Why’s it called the Purity Effect, though?”

 “Boss’ daughter coined the name when she saw Amvrosiy interacting with some white herbivores. Kid thinks he’s tainted, but that herbivores like Pina are pure, like angels sent down to Earth by Rex. Maybe he hopes that having a close enough connection can heal him, or something.”

 Smog pauses his thought as he pulls his phone out. He presses a button and puts it up to his head. “Yello?” he says. “CO2 and I are currently having a chat with Amvrosiy’s classmates he invited. Yeah, he gave one of them the card.” He hums a bit. “Alright. We’ll be right over. Just gotta leave the kids with the family.”

 He hangs up and stands. “Looks like you two are seeing the boss’ family for a bit. I suggest you pray to Rex that it goes well.”

 The pair and their escorts stop in front of what looks like a clothing store. Els’ eyes widen when she sees the sign, though.

 She gives Smog an incredulous look. “The Romanov designs come from the Black Market?!” she exclaims. She can’t believe it. If one of the biggest names in the fashion industry works with a company based here, maybe the whole place isn’t as bad as she thought. After all, Lyudmila Romanov singlehandedly started a trend aimed at and designed for hybrids, since she’s one herself. Maybe Amvrosiy’s mom works with her?

 The Komodos usher them in before leaving. The goat is somewhat surprised to find herself missing them just a bit. They’re surprisingly amicable for yakuza. A female Maasai lion is currently sitting behind the counter, and a masked gazelle is in the process of hanging clothes on racks.

 The lioness quickly notices them, though, and a smile forms on her face. “Hello again!” she says cheerfully. “How did your club find the materials?!”

 “The stage crew loved them,” Bill says. “The head of the costume department actually talked to me about the possibility of picking up more at a later point for another production.”

 “That’s wonderful to hear! Here at Romanov Fashion Do’s, we pride ourselves on aesthetics and feel, whether it’s for a wonderful party or a riveting play!”

 Bill’s eyes wander to the gazelle, who also seems to be looking back. It’s somewhat hard to tell, since his eyes are squinted. The tiger seems shocked.

 “You’re the guy that…”

 “Asked you about Oda?” the gazelle says. His voice is somewhat high-pitched and playful, and has an almost sing-songy vibe to it. “Yep! And he didn’t actually owe me money. I was just looking for him as a favor, and to keep a promise I made. But he was fun~”

 “Who’s Oda?” Els asks.

 “Oh, just a miserable, vicious old man who got what was coming to him.”

 The curtains leading into the back room open to reveal a beautiful female gray wolf. At first Els wonders if it’s Amvrosiy’s mother, but then she notices the scales. She’d figured that his mom would have scales like him, but instead of purple like his, they’re a beautiful emerald green. The she-wolf’s fur is different, too, being a light brown color with cream on her muzzle and down her throat.

 The woman’s face is nearly divided in two, with the right half being covered entirely in fur, and the left covered in scales. Her eyes are interesting, too, the right is brown and like a normal canine’s, while the left is small and reptilian.

 It’s like Legosi’s eyes.

 The woman freezes upon seeing them. “Lyudmila? Didn’t you say you weren’t expecting customers until later?” she says, glancing behind her. Her voice is rich and smooth, with an almost musical tone to it.

 “WHAT?!” an accented voice cries out. The curtains open again, this time revealing a second beautiful she-wolf with dark gray fur and purple scales. She looks in the direction of the front door and spots Bill and Els, and instantly, a wide happy smile forms on her face.

 “Billy!” she cries, immediately rushing forwards and wrapping the tiger in a bear hug, causing him to wheeze as the air is forced out of his lungs. “Oh, it’s so good to see you! Rosie told me you were coming to visit again!” Her eyes meet Els’, and the goat looks at her a bit nervously. She was not expecting something like this.

 “And who are you?!” the woman asks. “You’re adorable!”

 “Um, this is my girlfriend, Els,” Bill says. “She wanted to come with me to the market.”

 “I wanted to understand Bill completely,” Els adds. ”Eating meat is a necessity as a carnivore, and understanding that is just a part of loving one.”

 The canine smiles again. “You’re certainly brave. It’s not often an herbivore acknowledges the fact that carnivores need meat, much less be willing to come directly here to understand it.” She puts a palm to her face. “Oh, where are my manners? My name is Lyudmila Romanov. I’m Amvrosiy and Zoyechka’s mother.”

 The little herbivore pauses, eye wide. “YOU’RE LYUDMILA ROMANOV?!” she shouts. The she-wolf at the back winces at the volume. “So you work inside the Black Market?!”

 “Yep!” Lyudmila chirps. She turns and looks at her fellow canine. “Have a wonderful day, Leano. I’ll send you your pay very soon.”

 The woman nods and scrambles to cover herself up, pulling a shawl over her head and donning an outfit that looks rather out of place on a warm day. She smiles at Lyudmila before exiting the building.

 “Who was that?” Bill asks.

 “Leano. She’s my best model, and my best friend,” Lyudmila replies. She claps her hands together. “Now then! What can I do for the two of you?”

 “Um, we were hoping to see Amvrosiy,” Els says. “Do you know where he is?”

 “He should have gotten off of work not too long ago, so he should be home by now.” The she-wolf looks at the lioness. “Masa, we’ll be closing a little early today. Please make sure to lock up, dearie.”

 The feline nods. “Of course.”

 “And Melon?”

 The gazelle turns his attention away from the shirt he’s hanging up. “Hmm?”

 “Good work today, love. Get home safe, okay?”

 With that, the canine leads the two students outside.

Chapter Text

 Els is astounded when she sees the garden on the front lawn. All sorts of flowers are littered across it in neat rows, and she can see several small statues and little oddities scattered around.

 “Your garden is beautiful, Mrs. Romanov,” she says.

 Lyudmila smiles at her. “Please, call me ‘Lyudmila.’ Dad’s business partners call me that out of respect, but I don’t like being so formal with potential friends. And thank you. Amvrosiy is a big help, especially with his spiders.”

 Bill cocks his head. “Spiders?”

 “Rosie collects spiders. They eat pests and weave beautiful webs I can take inspiration from for my designs. You should see his collection. He has a few particular favorites, namely Katyusha, Shelob, Freja, Rom, and Quelaag. Patches is an odd one, though. He bullies the other spider in his terrarium, keeps kicking Reah off the ledges in it despite being her mate.”

 “What’s your dad like, Lyudmila?” Els asks as the trio come up to the door.

 “He’s a bit rough when you get to know him, but he’s sweet. You’ll likely get to meet him while you’re here.”

 The she-wolf opens the door and heads inside. When they’ve taken their shoes off, the goat looks around and sees a dark gray male wolf sitting in a recliner in the living room, reading a novel.

 And here I thought Amvrosiy and Zoyechka were big.

 The man in the chair looks like a bear stuffed into a wolf’s skin, one that could probably knock Riz over with a good kick and barely any effort. The fur around his neck is longer and shaggy, like a lion’s mane. She can see scars littering his arms and neck, along with a few on his face, likely gunshot wounds, knife cuts, scrapes. There are also bite marks on his arms and a few gouges all over, even on his head and face, leaving the areas bare of fur. If it weren’t for the coffee mug pajama bottoms, fuzzy pink snail slippers, and old man glasses, he would look absolutely terrifying.

 The man looks up at the new presence and smiles. “How was work, dear?” he asks. His voice is deep and gravelly, with a thick accent that immediately makes Els think of crime movies.

 “It was good, dorogoy. Melon is doing very well for his third day.” Lyudmila steps aside. “Rosie invited Bill and his girlfriend to stay with us for the weekend during their little outing.”

 The massive carnivore looks at Els. “And who might you be? Amvrosiy hasn’t spoken of you. He must trust you quite a bit to invite you to our home, much less without any prior context.”

 “E-E-Els T-Turner, sir,” she stammers out. Her instincts are screaming at her to run away from this behemoth of a wolf, but she forces herself to stay still. She can’t afford to make a bad first impression.

 “Grigori Mikhailov. I’m Amvrosiy’s father.”

 “Where is he, by the way?” Lyudmila asks.

 “In his room.”

 “Do you mind if I ask a question, sir?” Bill says.

 Grigori looks at him. “Ask away.”

 “How are you and Amvrosiy so large? I’ve never seen a wolf, or even a carnivore that isn’t a bear, as big as you.”

 The wolf grins proudly. “My father is a gray wolf from Russia, and my mother was a brown bear from Romania. I got the size and fluff from her. Those genetics passed on to my children. They were glad I could pass as simply a larger than average wolf.”

 “What about your fur?” Els asks. “It looks like a lion mane.”

 Grigori chuckles. “Like I said, I got the fluff from my mother. Plus in Russia, it’s a bit cold, so wolves tend to have thicker coats. Aside from that, it’s a bit of a fashion trend for male carnivores in the Motherland to grow out the fur on their necks, particularly because of romance movies and novels. Makes them look rugged and regal. Amvrosiy does it too.” He points to a staircase on the far side of the room, near another door with a sign above labelled “Spood Cave.” “His room is at the end of the hall on the second floor. Can’t miss it.”

 Bill takes Els by the hand and leads her up the stairs. They get about halfway down the hall when a door opens and an older female wolf steps out of a room. She yawns, blinks, and meets Bill’s eyes.

 “Back so soon, stripes?” she says. Her eyes flick to Els. “I assume you are Els?”

 “Yes, ma’am,” the bovine confirms.

 “Amvrosiy told me about you. He says you are a nice girl, much more polite than that suka Sheila, from what I heard. I suppose my daughter is correct about her belief in the Purity Effect.’” She lets out a chuckle. “It seems to run in the family.”

 “You don’t like Sheila?” Bill asks.

 The woman scowls. “She has disliked, or likely even hated Amvrosiy ever since a, ah, mishap involving her best friend and brother. But the shlyuka she called a friend deserved what she got–although I’d say she got far less than what she deserved.” Her eyes narrow. “I understand she defended my grandson over some gossip?”

 “Yes, ma’am.”

 “Odd. Maybe her father finally knocked some sense into her.” The woman facepalms. “Oh, where are my manners?” she says irritably. “I am Amvrosiy’s grandmother. Milunka Romanov. It is a pleasure to meet a potential friend of my grandson.”

 “It’s wonderful to meet you too, Milunka,” Els says. “I’m Els.”

 Milunka smiles. “Amvrosiy said you two were coming to visit. When you’re finished talking to him, allow me to show you where you will be staying for the weekend.” With that she heads down the stairs.

 Bill turns to his girlfriend. “That was weird. You think Sheila did something to hurt Amvrosiy?”

 The goat hums. “I don’t think so. She was pretty solid in defending him when Ellen suggested he had hurt her brother. Zoyechka was a bit hostile towards her yesterday, though. She said she’d kill her brother if she ever saw him again. I’ve also noticed her glaring at Sheila occasionally during practice.”

 The pair walk down the hall to the door at the end, and Els immediately notices why Grigori said they couldn’t miss it. It’s covered in pictures of spiders and a sign warning to beware of them. She steps up to knock on it.

 “Zdravstvuyte?” The wolf sounds tired and a bit annoyed.

 “Amvrosiy?” she calls. “It’s Els and Bill.”

 “Come in!”

 She opens the door and steps inside. The goat looks around the room, but there’s no sign of the wolf. However, on the bed is a truly massive plush spider. The thing takes up almost the entirety of the bed. Strangely, it has two heads, one in the normal spot, and the other at the end of the abdomen. Large red eyes stare at her from the back head. It’s kind of creepy.

 “Els?” a muffled voice says. The plush starts rising, and for a second Els is terrified the toy has come alive, with it turning around and moving towards the end of the bed. But her fears are dissuaded when she sees Amvrosiy underneath it, lifting the giant thing with ease.

 The canine looks at her, and it clearly takes a moment for his brain to register what he’s looking at. But when it does, his muzzle splits into a wide grin. “You two are early,” he says. “Did the walk here go okay?”

 “It did,” she replies. “We met your parents and grandmother. They seem nice.”

 He sits up and stretches, his teeth and fangs showing as he lets out a yawn. “Why don’t you open the bag I gave you?”

 Els nods and takes the bag out of her backpack. Unraveling the drawstrings, she pulls it open and peers inside. Her eyes practically turn into saucepans when she sees the contents. Inside the bag are numerous rolls of cash, a small taser, a compact handgun and some spare magazines, two boxes of ammunition, and some make up supplies.

 “This is…”

 “Enough money to last the weekend and a few more outings, and means to defend yourself. The make up was Zoyechka’s idea. From her personal supply. So be careful with it.”

 “What is it, Els?” Bill asks.

 She hands him the bag, and his eyes go wide. “Holy shit, Amvrosiy!” He stares at the wolf. “What’s with the handgun?”

 “It’s one of Pina’s. He has three others, so he won’t miss it. He was actually the one that suggested I give it to you.”

 “And the money?”

 “A cut of last week’s paycheck. Three hundred thousand. I figured I’d give you two the means to have the best date possible.”

 “But this is a lot of money!”

 Els’ face flushes. “So you’re saying our outing is…”

 “Paid in full by my ass, according to last week.” He says it casually, as if just remembering a minor detail about something.

 Amvrosiy throws the blanket off of himself and stands up, and the pair’s faces go bright red when they see their clubmate is practically nude, with only a thong and his leg sleeves covering him. He goes over to the desk against the back wall and picks up his prosthetic harness, smoothly pulling it on. Next he attaches his new hand prosthetic, then looks over the array of arms hanging above the desk.

 “Which one to wear…” he mutters, tapping his chin.

 “What’s with all the prosthetic arms, Rossi?” Bill asks.

 “Each one has a different purpose. Some are built for offense, some for defense, some for craft-related stuff. I’ve got one built to give Mom massages.” He hums and looks around for a few more moments, before locking on to a deep purple one that looks like it’s covered in scales. “Ah. There we go.” He grabs it and puts it onto the connector on the stump of his arm, then twists it a few degrees, an audible click coming from it.

 He turns to his guests. “Any idea what you two want to do first?” he asks.

 “Maybe we could get something to eat?” Els suggests.

 “Sure. I just woke up and I’m pretty hungry. Let me just put a shirt on and grab my stuff.”

 The wolf turns towards a dresser, and Els lets out an almost inaudible gasp. His back is covered in scars, from claw marks to gunshot and stab wounds, just like his front. But to her horror, there’s a large mark in the center of it… a brand.

 It’s in the shape of a shattered cross going from a little bit below the base of his neck to a few inches above his tail, with a pair of broken wings level with his shoulders. As he pulls a shirt out she notices a greenish-blue chain tattoo on his wrist. Who could have done such a horrible thing to him, and why? Bill looks uncomfortable too, but their host doesn’t seem to notice as he dons the shirt, emblazoned with the logo of a popular pop band, and turns around.

 “Any place in particular, Bill?”

 “Um…” The tiger seems to be struggling to speak, his face still traced with discomfort.

 “Zoyechka said you were working on a project,” Els says, trying to chase away the nerves.

 Amvrosiy’s face lights up. “Ah, so she told you about my experiments with Komodo dragon venom. I figured you two were going to hear about it, what with some results being ready today from what Moreau told me.” He takes a belt off the tool-covered desk and tightens it around his waist.

 Curiously, it has a set of hook-like bars on the right side, like they’re meant to hang something on his hip. Then he starts looking through the array of arms he has on the wall, taking down the red one he’d worn recently, a deep blue one, and a steel gray one–the same arm he’d worn when he first came to the club almost a month ago. The canine lowers each arm to his belt, where they’re placed on the hooks.

 Well that answers my question.

 “What do you need multiple arms for, Rosie?” she asks.

 “Like I said, some of my prosthetics have different purposes. The gray one has a pneumatic mechanism that delivers more force to my punches, making it great for dealing with large carnivores. The blue one is capable of delivering high-voltage shocks through the hand via a palm strike or grab, or the thick rings on the fingers that fit together to form steel knuckles, and can fire a thin wire for ranged shocks, like a taser. It can even be used to charge stuff. The purple one, on the other hand…” He chuckles a bit at the joke. “It’s just a visual sign of my identity, so the other gumis won’t mess with us if they don’t see my face first. Plus it just looks cool. Moreau has a modification in mind for it, though.”

 He stretches a bit and smiles. “So where to first? I have to check in with the research team today, so you can come along if you want.”

 “I wanna see this project you’re working on,” Bill says.