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It wasn’t the first time Juno found that her legs had brought her to the mostly abandoned corridor located in the school’s upper floor. As usual, she had simply walked while her thoughts had wandered alongside her, and that had, once again, led her to stand in front of the door to the school’s gardening club.
She tried to laugh it off as a silly coincidence. There were many corridors in this building, and that she happened to arrive at the farthest end at the top was not too weird, was it? Of course not, she assured herself. Coincidences happened all the time; this was just her going for a walk… that had just come to its conclusion… in front of an inconspicuous door… behind which was a girl she definitely had not thought about while she was walking. A mere coincidence, really.
“Oh, hello.”
Caught up in her mental assurances that she had not gone here on purpose, Juno completely failed to notice the door to the club open to reveal the very tiny cause of her quite big problems.
“I, uh, ehm, I-” she drew a hand through the fur on her head, then quietly cursed herself for ruining the hairstyle she’d spent at least five minutes trying to perfect this morning.
Ever since that afternoon they had spent some time together tending to the plants - when she had come to the realisation that carnivores are inferior to herbivores in terms of their natural charm - she had barely managed to go ten minutes without thinking of that stupid rabbit’s face. Or how she had flirtatiously asked if Juno was attracted to her. Or how she hadn’t been able to wipe away the crusts from her face. Or how soft her fur had felt below Juno’s touch. Or how those large eyes had looked into hers endearingly. Or how-
“Have you come to help me again? You were very useful the other day!” It was impossible to understand how a smile big enough to conquer the earth and absorb the universe could fit onto the tiny rabbit that stood in front of Juno. On mere instinct, she took a step back, and realised that that smile was captivating enough to make her feel threatened.
“Uh, I didn’t plan to but-”
“I have some geraniums that have to be taken care of, could you perhaps help me with it?”
Certainly, this rabbit must intentionally be pulling Juno’s tail now, right? She had to be aware of canines’ inability to refuse help, and used it to her advantage. Surely, she was an evil mastermind who planned to wrap all of the school’s wolves around her finger so that she could rule and make them command her every will until she could take over the world and-
“Or are you busy? You don’t have to help me but-”
“Don’t be silly!” Juno put on a forced smile to feign carelessness. Being with Haru felt an awful lot like walking blindfolded through a room filled with mice traps, but, evidently, she couldn’t simply say no. “Of course I’ll help you!”
The large smile she received was probably bright enough to blind the sun itself, and Juno had to stop herself from shading her eyes with a hand as she followed the rabbit out into the fresh air of the late summer afternoon.
It was nice out; warm yet slightly windy to ruffle the fur not covered by her clothes. And still, the only thing she paid any real attention to was Haru. By now she was getting thoroughly annoyed by the impact the herbivore had upon her thoughts, yet she had to stifle that annoyance in favour of a smile.
“They need to be replanted”, Haru turned her head to look back at Juno while she led them to the flowers. “Their roots have almost grown bigger than the pots, you see.”
“Ah, poor plants”, Juno answered awkwardly, and Haru shrugged one shoulder.
“Not really. Or sure, right now they probably hurt, but the fact they have been able to grow so big is because they’re healthy and flourishing!”
“R-right. You’re very good at taking care of them.”
“Thank you. I try.”
Juno noticed the way Haru’s shoulders sank whenever she spoke of the flowers she tended to, and wondered if everyone had a thing to speak about to put them at ease like that. She wondered what her own subject would be, and thought briefly of Legosi. But then, almost as if her body wanted to prove her wrong out of spite, she tensed up when she remembered that he would never want to date her as long as the tiny puny rabbit in front of her existed.
The smile she granted Haru the next time she looked at her to instruct her on how to help the flowers must have been fake enough to be noticed kilometres away, but Haru didn’t mention it, and returned it with her own sickly sweet smile that would put even syrup to shame. God, how she hated that smile.
“You know, Juno”, Haru said after some time of them working beside each other in silence, “that time you pressed me against the wall and smelled me, I really thought you were going to slit my throat. How silly that seems now, hm?”
Again. She smiled again and giggled , as if what she’d just said wasn’t a completely horrible story of how she had been deathly afraid by Juno’s actions. Almost instinctively, Juno scrambled back a few steps, waving her hands in the air and shaking her head vigorously.
“Oh god, Haru, I would never do that! I would never harm you or anyone else! I promise, I didn’t mean to-”
“No, it’s alright.” Haru stepped closer to Juno, who was still staring at her with large eyes. “Of course I was wrong, and as I said I now feel very silly. Yet…”
She reached up to touch the fur covering Juno’s right cheek. The wolf didn’t breathe because of the proximity, and something in the back of her mind told her it wasn’t only out of fear of scaring the rabbit.
“…You’re frightening, you know.”
It felt like a punch to Juno’s gut. All her life, she had endured nothing but discrimination and bullying because of her fangs, her strenght, her natural ability to eat meat, and she was so utterly tired of it. Tired of herbivores, and even some smaller carnivores, always jumping out of their seats when she entered a room, or eyeing her suspiciously as she walked past, and even now, when she was helping a rabbit replant her flowers, she was told how frightening she was. She was tired of it.
Something deep inside her awakened along with her rage, and she couldn’t stop herself from letting out a low but very threatening growl. What surprised her then, and what helped her calm down slightly, was that Haru didn’t move. She shivered slightly, and the corners of her mouth trembled a bit, but yet… she held her ground. Still smiling, albeit slightly more forced than before.
“But”, Haru said, voice firm and bold enough to prove her shivers were merely instinct and not her really being afraid, “you’re also very enticing.”
Juno’s eyebrows must’ve surely grazed the top of her ears, how much she raised them in surprise. Haru thought she was… enticing? Now, her insides were fighting to see what emotion would come as a successful ruler of her actions. Whereas she was still angry and frustrated, she was now also embarrassed, flustered and… flattered?
Haru was still looking at her with that goddamn endearing expression, and Juno was afraid she would either strangle or kiss the rabbit in her current emotionally conflicted state, so she chose the reasonable and very adult middle ground solution to the situation.
She ran away like all hell.
The next day, she avoided any thoughts of Haru like one would avoid the plague. She had decided that the rabbit was a character of a story she did not want to take part in. If Legosi was caught up with her, so be it. Juno was a beautiful, smart and popular student, who even though she was merely a first year heard whispers of her becoming a Beastar; she didn’t need to be courted by a tall and shy wolf nor a tiny but fierce rabbit to be happy.
Wait a moment, why had she even included Haru in that line of thought, as if the chance of her falling in love with Juno was even a possibility? How silly of her, Juno almost laughed out loud, she must surely just be lacking iron for her to think such irrational thoughts.
“Juno?” Sheila asked from across the table. “Are you alright?”
“Hm?” Juno shook her head in an attempt to clear all thoughts, and slipped on a bright smile for her friends from the drama club. “Of course I’m fine.”
“You seem a little tense”, Els said, looking sympathetically at the wolf.
“Ah, I’m just worried about taking on the main role for the play this term”, she lied, but received understanding nods from her peers.
“You’ll be an amazing Adler!”
“We’ll show those other clubs we’re much better than them for having such an amazing female lead!”
“No one could play the role better than you!”
Although she was grateful for her friends’ assurances, and she thanked them profoundly for their support, Juno still couldn’t help her thoughts from returning to a certain rabbit. Why, she frustratedly wondered, did she never forget that tiny yet strong body, those soft ears that quirked at the smallest of sounds, those dark eyes that twinkled in the sunlight? She had begrudgingly mostly gotten over Legosi’s rejection so why could she never let it go? At first, all thoughts toward Haru had been vicious, competitive, a list of comprehensive reasons as to why Juno was a better match for Legosi than Haru, but now… they weren’t necessarily vicious anymore.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a white figure walking past her periphery, and she felt herself tense up. Ignoring the weird looks from her friends, she sprung to her feet and all but ran across the cafeteria toward the white rabbit.
“Haru”, she breathed out, still facing the back of the rabbit. “I’m so sorry for yesterday, I never meant to frighten you or be mean, please forgive me for my-”
The rabbit turned around, and Juno was face-to-face with a rabbit she had never seen before, with a large patch of black fur around one eye. They visibly shivered and took a step back when they saw Juno, yet they spoke before hurrying away to their friends.
“Do you seriously care what that whore thinks of you?”
Juno was shocked at the audacity of the stranger, and had to will herself not to follow and punch them for their awful words. She dug her claws into her palms to calm herself, and that’s when she heard the soft voice behind her.
“Thank you”, it was Haru. “For your apology, I mean. But you hardly need to say sorry; you never did anything wrong.”
She turned around and looked down to meet the gaze of the tiny rabbit she meant to speak to in the first place. Had she heard everything she and the other rabbit had said?
“I mean”, Haru continued, “it’s hardly your fault that I believe you’re frightening - it’s just a herbivore’s nature, you know?”
“You really think it’s alright?” Juno asked, bewildered at the boldness of this tiny animal. Even though she had even admitted to being afraid of Juno, she still stood before her now, saying it wasn’t her fault. This rabbit was something else.
“Sure!” Haru smiled brightly, and Juno wondered why her knees suddenly felt weak. “Do you want to help in the garden again today?”
Yes, Juno wanted to say. She wanted to spend as much time as possible with Haru, yet she didn’t know where those feelings came from.
“I would, but I have to attend the drama club and practice later.”
“Right! I heard you got the lead role? Congrats! I’m sure you’ll be amazing.”
Although Juno had heard this statement from a dozen mouths already, the praise coming from Haru made her heart skip a beat and warmth spread to her face. She actually had to clear her throat to avoid letting her voice raise an octave.
“Thank you, Haru. I appreciate it.”
“Well,” Haru made to leave, and Juno almost felt panicked, as if her body screamed at her never to let the rabbit out of her sight. Was it a biological response to her prey slipping from her grasp, or something else entirely?
“Let’s meet tomorrow instead?” Juno hurried to say, and Haru smiled beautifully enough to make the wolf wonder why she wasn’t on every billboard in the city.
“Sure! Come by the club anytime after class.”
Then she walked away, and Juno felt her previous energy drain from her as soon as the rabbit was out of her sight. Just what was up with her emotions lately?
When she walked out of the cafeteria, she barely even noticed how quiet everyone around her had gotten, as if awfully surprised Juno and Haru were acquaintances.
As instructed, Juno waited a solid twenty minutes after class had ended the following day so as not to look too desperate, before making her way up all of the stairs to the end of the abandoned hallway. She was surprised to find it was not actually abandoned today.
Before the door to the gardening club, three herbivore boys stood huddled together, whispering as if conducting a plan. Juno hesitated by the end of the stairs, mostly hidden by the corner of the wall. She watched as they disentangled and gave each other high-fives before knocking on the door.
“Hi, I was waiting for you Ju- oh.” Haru’s voice drifted to Juno, although she couldn’t see her behind the legs of the boys. “What can I do for you guys?”
“I think you know what we want”, one of them said while someone snickered.
“Yeah, we know how badly you want to help fellow herbivores out”, another said.
“I-” Haru began, but was interrupted by the third boy.
“Can you take three at a time? Or are you too frail for that?”
Juno furrowed her brows, rightfully confused. What were they talking about? She had thought they asked for help regarding something flower-related, but take three at a time ? What did that mean? She hung back to continue to listen in, and remembered what that other rabbit had said yesterday; “Do you seriously care what that whore thinks of you?” Juno had thought they had just been unabashedly mean, but…
“I’ve never been with more than two at once”, Haru said, and Juno’s eyes widened.
“But you’re willing to try, eh?”
“We could always-”
Juno didn’t stay to listen to Haru’s answer, and took off down the stairs instead. As if her instinct to hunt a prey kicked in, she flew down the stairs and through the corridor leading outside faster than a heartbeat, and was out on the school grounds in no time. She panted, not because she was out of shape, but because she had to calm down.
“Are you alright?” Someone asked her, but she merely smiled forcedly and waved them off.
“Do you seriously care what that whore thinks of you?”
Was it possible that Haru was…
Could she actually…
Juno shut her eyes and was properly grateful for the rain that started to fall that chilled her and numbed her senses. Was it possible that the tiny rabbit, who although she was bullied kept on being strong and self-assured, was a… harlot?
Honestly, she didn’t know why that bothered her so. She was older than Juno, and since long of legal age to fornicate and have fun, so that was not the issue. Did she have mean preconceptions about girls who lay around? Not personally, apart from knowing they had a bad reputation, but that was not enough to make her react this strongly. Damn, she quietly cursed, figuring out her feelings was really difficult sometimes.
“Juno”, someone spoke again. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
This time, she looked up, and met the concerned gaze of Legosi. A few weeks ago, her heart would’ve pounded out of her chest, but now she merely smiled slightly.
“Hello, Legosi”, she greeted. “Yes I’m-” she cut herself off. Looking into the larger wolf’s eyes made her feel secure in a way that resembled the safety of a family home. She remembered what he had said about wolves feeling at ease by touching each other, and thus she decided. “Actually, no”, she admitted. “I don’t feel very well.”
Legosi searched her face for something, and then nodded decisively.
“Let’s go into town and get some ice cream.”
As always, it was kind of awkward to hang out alone with Legosi, yet whereas Juno usually had to worry about the flutters in her stomach around him, she now merely mused about how both of their problems seemed to revolve around the same tiny herbivore.
It was nice to be with Legosi, she realised. Not in the anxious are-we-dating-and-does-he-like-me-as-much-as-I-like-him kind of way, but in the way two old friends can walk beside each other in comfortable silence without feeling they have anything to prove to each other.
“I can’t believe you like mint ice cream”, she mocked Legosi, who in turn pretended to look hurt at her.
“I didn’t know you were an ice cream flavor racist”, he retorted, and she snorted at the bluntness of his joke. It was already apparent that both of them had shifted the course of their relationship from one-sided admiration to one of familiar friendliness, and she was very glad.
They bickered for a while, and Juno felt much better already, as she and Legosi fell into step beside each other in the matter of their behaviour. She had never seen the wolf let out this many unrestrained comments before, and had to mock him for that too.
“I can’t believe I’m the one who broke the stoic Legosi from his self-discipline”, she said after he had joked about letting the spotlight fall on her during the play to see if she was strong enough to catch it. “You’re usually so reserved I was almost wondering if you had any personality at all.”
She meant it lightheartedly, but regretted saying it when Legosi instantly tensed and looked at his lap.
“Legosi, I didn’t mean-”
“No, you’re right”, he said, suddenly somber. “I’ve been suppressing my emotions and opinions for so long that I barely remember who I really am anymore.” He stirred the spoon of his long since finished bowl of ice cream. “Being one of the strongest animals in the school is… a burden.”
Juno nodded. She knew exactly how it felt to always be feared, and although herbivores claimed to trust her, she could always see the glimmer of caution in their eyes that would never disappear completely.
“But someone helped me feel better, by trusting me with their life even though they had no reason to. It showed me the true reality of coexistence between species; that herbivores and carnivores can really be with each other, we just have to believe in it ourselves.”
After he had finished, Juno looked at him for a long time before answering.
“You’re talking about Haru.” She said it as a statement, because surely that was the case. She had seen how he had looked at the rabbit; how his eyes lit up in her proximity in a totally different way than they did when he interacted with anyone else. It dawned on her that it was true for herself as well. The only other person that had made her feel as anxious as the rabbit was Legosi , and those feelings had been all other than platonical. Did that mean her feelings toward Haru were…
“Haru?” Legosi looked at her in surprise. “Sure, we’re good friends, but no, she’s always a bit cautious around me - us being total opposites and all.”
Juno blinked. Then blinked again.
“Y-you’re not-” she had to blink several more times to process this information. “You’re not in love with her?”
“I think I was, once”, Legosi said, then tilted his head to the side as if debating it inside his head. “Or maybe I wasn’t even into her as much as it was a guise of me wanting a prey. Not that I would ever hurt her of course”, he added, as if that would ever cross Juno’s mind.
“So then… who is it that changed your perception of herbivores?” Her feelings were all over the place now. She had maybe perhaps kind of in a way realised she had some serious feelings about Haru, and while she’d thought they were vicious at first, as she was the competition for Legosi’s heart, they were still strong but… definitely less hateful, and also… less platonic, than before.
Suddenly abashed, Legosi mumbled the response in his hand, incomprehensible even to the sensitive hearing of a wolf.
“What was that?” she asked, suddenly very intrigued as to what his answer was.
“Hmhm”, he mumbled again, and although she was confused about her feelings, Juno’s smile widened.
“I still can’t hear you.”
“Louis!” Legosi all but snapped, then slapped a hand around his mouth when he realised he had almost shouted so that heads turned to look at their booth.
Juno squealed.
“No way!” she answered just as loudly, and ignored Legosi’s attempts to make her lower her voice. “Is it established? Are you dating? Does anyone else know? Are you-”
“It’s whatever”, Legosi answered, and although she wanted all of the details, she respected that he didn’t want to spill everything to her. Not already, at least.
Still, her mind raced. This meant that relationships between herbivores and carnivores could be healthy - trivial even - toward building a society on equal grounds between the species. She had thought that herbivores were superior carnivores in the sense of them being able to lure carnivores to their charm and appeal, but this seemed to prove it could be done the other way around, too!
And it also meant Haru and Legosi weren’t…
Her face fell when she remembered this afternoon, and the cause of her distress in the first place. Legosi seemed to sense the shift in her mood because his expression grew soft as he lay a hand on her shoulder. He didn’t say anything, but she understood the gesture was an indication for her to speak her mind, if she wanted to.
“Legosi”, she began tentatively. “Have you ever had strong feelings toward someone who’s lifestyle you are completely fine with in theory, but when actually applied you feel disgusted and… disappointed?”
He thought about it for a moment.
“Perhaps. But even so, if the feelings are strong enough, I would put them aside in favour of not letting them get in the way of the relationship with the person.”
Juno met his gaze, and couldn’t help but see the mental image of Haru’s large carefree eyes looking back at her instead. Those adorable eyes, that hid more strength than Juno could probably ever muster up, a boldness so strong for such a small and fragile creature that Juno could never begin to understand. Haru…
“Could it be”, Legosi continued, “that it’s not their lifestyle that is the problem, but your jealousy toward how it’s applied?”
She blinked. Jealousy. Was that what she was feeling? Thinking back on the three boys, she wanted to strangle all of them, bite off their limbs one by one and growl at them to never go near Haru again. And when she thought of Haru herself, she was not disgusted by her being “ a whore ”, as that other rabbit had called her so bluntly. No, now that she thought about it in a different angle, she was possessive in a way that she knew wasn’t her place at all, but Legosi was right. She was mad because it wasn’t her who was with Haru. She didn’t particularly care how many others Haru had been with, but she did know that she wanted to be with her now .
“Oh”, was all she could get out of this revelation. “ Oh .”
Legosi smiled.
“She likes flowers”, he said, even though Juno had never told him who she was talking about. “You should get her some.”
And that, she did.
The two wolves had been in town for a couple of hours, and dawn was crawling just around the corner. Juno had hurried to a flower shop, then spent an awfully long time deciding what flowers to bring, and then had to run back to the school before the dark broke out.
She leaped over bushes, jumped on the benches and sprung as fast as she could up the stairs of the building. Not until she was in front of the gardening club’s door did she stop to catch her breath. And now that she had arrived, she… was suddenly very shy.
What if Haru didn’t like her after all? What if she didn’t want to be in a relationship? Oh god, what if she didn’t even like females . What if-
“Juno!” Haru appeared in the doorway, smiling bright enough to devour the universe and all living things in a heartbeat. “I was hoping you’d come.”
For some reason, Juno felt the need to apologize.
“I’m so sorry for all the trouble I have caused you”, she blurted. “And that I’ve made you feel threatened and afraid of me on several occasions, and I understand if you don’t want to be associated with me but-”
“Juno”, Haru laughed, and took Juno’s hand, which made her blush so profoundly she was certain it was visible even through her fur. “You have nothing to apologize for. I like being with you, regardless of your species.”
Juno felt her heart beat at an ungodly speed, and was hyper aware of every millimeter of skin that touched Haru.
“Are-” Haru cleared her throat, and she realised she must’ve noticed the flowers in her other hand. “Are those for a boy?” It might’ve been lucky thinking, or pure imagination, but she definitely saw how the rabbit’s smile grew forced, as if she was unhappy with that alternative.
Again, Juno’s heart skipped a beat as she thought of what that could incline.
“No”, she said tentatively. “They are for you.”
As Haru took the flowers with the hand that wasn’t grasping Juno’s, her adorable face was almost completely covered in the largest smile she had ever seen. It seemed impossible, Juno thought like so many times before, how the force of this girl’s smiles were as strong as perhaps the strongest animal on the planet. How the way Haru looked at her with such plain adoration was the most captivating and enticing look she had ever seen anyone ever give. And she knew she would remember it for all the time to come.
“I-I am… actually a bit speechless”, Haru said, and a small tear found its way to her eyes. Juno was scared she had done something to anger her, before she realised it was a tear from happiness. “No one has given me something like this before. I know these are very expensive flowers.”
“You deserve them”, Juno said, perhaps a bit too hastily. “You deserve a million, no, millions of them. You deserve the best of the best because you are amazing, Haru. You are… great.” She hid her face by looking away, not daring to look at the rabbit’s honest reactions to her confession.
“Juno…” she said, but she cut her off.
“And I understand if you want to… copulate with others, I don’t want you to feel trapped. We don’t even have to do anything other than hang out as we did before, unless you want to of course, but if you don’t want to that is definitely alright and I can disappear so you won’t have to speak with me again and-”
“Juno.” She spoke harshly, much too loud to be ignored, and Juno shut her mouth, as usual feeling very submissive to this unusual rabbit. “Look at me.”
Juno looked at her. She seemed very serious, and she couldn’t tell if she was angry or not, but she was definitely determined and firm.
“Am I understanding this correctly? You know of my sexual history, yet you’re still asking me to, what, date you?”
The wolf flinched. It was harsh and blunt, just like Haru always spoke. She never sugarcoated anything, and Juno deeply respected her for it, hell, even liked her for it. Liked her a lot.
Again, she didn’t dare look at her when she nodded. Yes, she thought. I want to date you. Gods, how dearly she wanted to.
“Okay.” Haru said. “Then let’s.”
Juno blinked. Then blinked again. And then blinked a few times more.
“ What ?”
Haru looked at her as if she were an unusually stubborn child.
“I said , let’s date, then.” She looked at their intertwined hands, then at the flowers in her other hand, then up at Juno again. “You like me, and I like you. So , let’s date.”
“Y-you can’t just say it like that!” Juno spluttered. “You’re way too blunt!”
Haru laughed, and it was the most beautiful sound Juno had ever had the pleasure of hearing.
“Sorry”, she said, although it had a teasing undertone to it. “I’ll try harder not to scare you away, wolf.”
Juno laughed, and it felt good. She felt great. Splendid even. Yet, there was one thing still on her mind.
“But your… history, as you put it”, she said tentatively, trying hard not to come off as insensitive. “Do you still want to… continue that?”
Haru smirked up at her.
“You mean having sex with herbivores?”
Juno blushed and all but squealed at her constant bluntness. This rabbit was going to be the end of her, she was certain.
“Yes, like those three boys that came by earlier today…“
“Oh, you saw that? You should’ve come in, I was hoping you would show up. Well, anyway, I turned them down. Boring fellas.” She looked up at Juno. “Ever since you helped me tend the flowers a week ago, I’ve really lost my appetite for that stuff.” She wiggled her eyebrows flirtatiously. “Maybe I’ll settle down with some canine meat for once.”
And with that, Haru dragged her inside the gardening club’s door, locked it behind her, and started speaking about how best to tend the flowers that Juno had brought, as if they hadn’t just confessed to each other.
Really, Juno thought as she followed this incredible girl she could never get off her mind even if she wanted to, even though she was the carnivore, she was certain it was she who would be devoured first.