An Oddity Among Beasts (BEASTARS)

Scarlet Wolf

Am I going to regret this?

"No, I should at least see how they're doing...", Alan shook his head as he slowly walked down the club hallway.

He hadn't set foot in the Drama Club ever since he fought Will (putting Louis' sending him to the city aside)— and even then, he was still unsure of his position there. Was he still considered apart of it? Does anyone hold it against him? Would they even accept him back if he suddenly came back?! He shook his head again, drowning the questions out.

He was only there to check on everyone. He wasn't sure about going back just yet.

    Part of him wanted to go back, try and start over like before. It was impossible, however, and the human knew that. It would still loom over him, but he wouldn't let it affect the friendships he made. The least he could do is check with the Drama Club and see how they're doing. Given the Meteor Festival's not too far away, they're most likely busy.

Alan stopped as he came up to the double doors he slammed open so long ago. He took a breath and opened them silently, slipping in and looking to the stage area. It was empty, but he could hear shuffling behind the curtains. He took his time going down the aisle, nerves creeping into him as he tried his best to stay optimistic.

    He got to the curtain and peeked behind it, seeing a bunch of members moving things around. They really seemed to be busy with the Meteor Festival preparations. He didn't see Legosi or Kai, though, but he wasn't looking for them in particular. They seemed preoccupied with getting everything ready, like what happened was all in the past.

The human knew better than that, though. Nevertheless, it wouldn't hurt to say hi and see how things were going.

He stole himself and walked through— only to bump into someone and make them drop a few boxes.

"Oh, sorry!", he said as he bent down to pick up an open box with decorations hanging out. "I wasn't looking around that much and..."

He stopped for a moment as he locked eyes with a surprised female wolf. Her eyes were blue, fur a darkish scarlet with some parts cream-colored. He couldn't help comparing Legosi to her, mainly in terms of their eyes. Legosi's eyes had somewhat small pupils, while the females were much larger. She looked smaller than him, too, maybe by a foot or somewhere close.

"Oh, uh!", the human snapped out of his stupor and picked the box up. "Are you alright?"

"Oh! Yes, I'm fine.", the wolf stood up as well. "You're the human Alan, right? I'm Juno."

He smiled slightly, "Nice to meet you. I didn't know there was another wolf in the Drama Club."

"Well, I'm on the acting team most of the time, so it makes sense.", she said before faltering a bit. "Uh...I heard that you were actually part-wolf."

Alan ignored the pang in his heart and nodded, "Yeah...I'm guessing you heard from the others, right?"

Juno nodded, "Yeah, but I don't think badly of you. I think it actually makes you more unique."

He blinked, "Really?"

"Mhmm. I think it helps distinguish you from others—more than you already are.", she chuckled. "The others are probably scared because they've never seen anything like you."

"Huh...", he said. "I never thought of it that way. I guess I just focused more on the fact that everyone thought of me as crazy. Still, I'm not sure how exactly to feel about everyone knowing about it."

"Well, if it helps, I don't think you're crazy.", she smiled.

"Thanks.", he smiled back. "I was actually wanting to see how everyone was doing. I haven't really been here in a while."

"Oh yeah! We're actually moving supplies around for the Meteor Festival.", she picked up the other box. "These boxes are supposed to go in another room."

    The two made their way to one of the storage spaces around the room. The other club members seemed to notice Alan but didn't stare for long. He'd almost forgotten how being in the Drama Club felt as if he was in a small community. He liked being here, working with others, and helping out. Juno seemed nice, too, if a little timid.

"I'm guessing everyone's busy trying to get ready for the festival.", the human said as they set the boxes down.

"Yup. I'm actually performing during the festival, too!"

"Really? I bet it's pretty nerve-racking.", he chuckled.

"It kind of is, but Legosi-senpai helped me out with my dancing.", she smiled wide. "So I'm giving it my all for it!"

"I didn't think of Legosi as the dancing type. He really doesn't strike me as that kind of person."

"You know him too?"

"Yeah. We actually met in the wolf room, back when I first enrolled. I like to call him 'Legwolf' a lot.", he laughed.

"Do you know what he's like most of the time?"

He thought for a moment, "Hmm...we don't see each other that much, but he's really quiet from what I can tell. He's kind, though, and he can get pretty worked up when it counts..."

Alan frowned as his thoughts drifted, going to that night in the city. The moment they discovered The Ghetto, their argument with Bill, meeting Gouhin. It showed parts of the wolf that he didn't know about, parts that made them more alike than different. Now that he thought about it, the two of them being friends made sense. They hid their ferocious aspects in exchange for being quiet and unspoken. It mainly applied to Legosi, but Alan felt like it applied to him as well. Everyone thought of him as a human before, but now they put his wolf side into play.

He shook his head as he realized he trailed off, "W-well, he has a lot of different sides to him. That much I can say."

Juno nodded before glancing at him, "If you don't mind me asking, what's it like being part-human, part-wolf?"

"Well, it's different.", he said as he stroked his chin. "I mainly lived a human life before I came here. Sometimes I get these instinctual ticks, but they don't happen often. I just make the most of it, I guess."

She smiled, "I'm sure you can do the same now. Even if everyone knows about you, it shouldn't bring you down."

Alan looked at her for a moment before smiling gently, "Yeah...I'll try, at least."