BEASTARS MINI-STORY #4: “A Different kind of Charity pt. 5” (FIN) by JCL
We are back at the dining room hall, where we see that Georgette has returned to her table and is sitting across Dumas again.
DUMAS: "Anyway, I doubt he'll show his face again at the club anytime soon. I mean who would after being caught with his hand in the cookie jar? Or rather, caught with his hand in that caddie's blouse..."
Dumas voice begins to dwindle off as he notices something odd about Georgette.
DUMAS: "Georgette? Is something wrong?"
Georgette, in a stark difference to her usual, cool exterior now looks visibly shaken. Her eyes are staring off into space and she seems to be sweating, like she is in shock.
She blinks and meets Dumas look. She still looks a bit disoriented though, like she is uncertain of how she even got back to her seat.
DUMAS: "You're acting like you're a thousand miles away. I know you're not very thrilled about being here, but you usually keep an ear out for good gossip."
She puts her hands together, at which Dumas notice that they are trembling.
DUMAS: "You seem... Disturbed. Did something happen on the way to the bathroom?"
Georgette avoids his look by looking over her shoulder.
GEORGETTE: "No, nothing at all... I've probably had too much to drink. I'll stick to water for the rest of the evening."
Dumas look skeptical and confused, like he suspects that she is not telling the full story, which is correct. Over her shoulder though, we see that she has adopted a comically annoyed expression.
GEORGETTE: (Why the hell am I not telling him? After what I saw, I feel like screaming it out to the top of my lungs!)
She thinks back to seeing Louis kiss Juno; the two manifesting in the background like a snogging apparition.
GEORGETTE: (Louis, heir to Horns Conglomerate and arranged to be married, is having a secret relationship with a carnivore!)
Shen then turns her head back towards the table and adopts a melancholic expression.
GEORGETTE: (What the hell is the matter with him?! I mean I don't know him THAT well, the only times I actually meet him is during these events...! I mean it's been that way ever since the first time I had to go here)
Staring down into the plate of soup that is in front of her, we enter into a flashback.
---
In the flashback we see a 13-year-old Georgette, sitting at a table during a previous charity event. She looks smaller, wears a reserved dress and looks really insecure. She doesn't have her current, more expressive eyes here. They are more like a pair of black, doll-like dots.
GEORGETTE: (The 13-year-old me... I was such a grey and timid little creature back then)
Sitting around her is her family, which is largely composed of the peafowls male counterpart, the peacocks. Next to their much more colorful and regal appearances, the young Georgette looks more like a lost autumn leaf.
GEORGETTE: (As is typical of any peafowl surrounded by a bunch of peacocks... It's like a divine prank, with one half of an entire species looking like beautifully arranged bouquets of flowers, and the other half looking like wilting weeds...! Because of that, we fowls develop a naturally low self-image when compared to our male counterparts)
Zooming in on her face, we can clearly see her looking sad and uncomfortable.
GEORGETTE: (I was no different. When I first came here, surrounded by all this grandness, I just felt so small and mismatched, like a mud-cake staining a glass slipper... So it was kind of like home, except now even more people could see how unremarkable I was... Like it needed even more of a confirmation)
It is then that the table is approached by someone.
FLASHBACK-LOUIS: "Excuse me."
She looks up to see who it is.
GEORGETTE: (But then I met him)
It turns out to be a younger Louis, looking cool and impressive even as a 13-year-old. He extends his hand to a surprised-looking Georgette.
FLASHBACK-LOUIS: "Would you like to dance?"
The young Georgette blushes at this.
GEORGETTE: (So handsome. So cool)
She accepts and takes his hand, though she still looks really uncertain.
GEORGETTE: (I have no idea why he asked me, I've never dared to ask him)
Louis leads her out to the dance floor, and the two begin to dance.
GEORGETTE: (No matter the reason... When I danced with him, for the first time, I didn't feel like an inferior)
Zooming in on Louis face, we see that he is looking at her with a stoic and reserved expression.
GEORGETTE: (That stoic exterior, that reserved strength, that calm but oozing confidence...!)
Georgette on the other hand looks at him adoringly; her dot-like eyes glittering like two shiny pebbles.
GEORGETTE: (It inspired me. Instead of going around feeling sorry for myself, I would act strong and unmoved by the world around me, like he did)
---
GEORGETTE: (I would not be bothered by anything, betray no insecurity, not get knocked down by anything!)
We see Georgette in a montage where she aims to improve herself: exorcising by running on a treadmill, purchasing more womanly clothes, reading through several fashion magazines and a bunch of self-help books. Finally, we see her learning how to apply makeup in front a mirror.
GEORGETTE: (I really took that to heart, and it worked)
She is looking into the mirror with the newly applied makeup, which makes her look look both beautiful and intimidating. Her eyes, which as her younger self looked like dots, has now gained the icy sharpness of the current Georgette.
GEORGETTE: (I didn't feeling inferior anymore)
---
GEORGETTE: (Even when I heard that he got engaged, I never showed myself sad around him... Though I do think it was around that time when I started drinking)
We see Georgette drinking from a glass of whine with an unreadable expression while Louis and Azumi is seen dancing past her in the background.
GEORGETTE: (As the years went by, we would meet again and again, but only here. It made it special somehow. But this...)
We return to the present, where we see her grabbing a nearby napkin. A shadow then begins to grow in her face; she looks like she is getting really angry.
GEORGETTE: (What the hell is this?!)
She begins to unconsciously shred a napkin into itty-bitty pieces. Dumas stares at this with an increasingly alarmed look.
GEORGETTE: (It's not just not just a scandal, it makes no damn sense! Getting busy with some floozy canine! That she-devil...!)
---
We go into a scene that illustrates Georgette's imagination. There is even a text above it that spells: GEORGETTE'S IMAGINATION
GEORGETTE: (It's like she pulled him down from the heavens...!)
Georgette's imagination has given form to a scene straight out of a renaissance-like painting with a biblical motif, where an angelic-looking Louis getting pulled by the ankle down to a dark and depressing-looking landscape by a Satanic-looking Juno.
GEORGETTE: (... AND IS GETTING READY TO EAT HIM!)
The Satanic-looking Juno looks more and more like a monster, with glowing red eyes and drool flowing out of her mouth as she moves in to devour Angelic-Louis.
---
We return to present reality, where Georgette's napkin has been turned into a pile of confetti between her hands.
GEORGETTE: (Of course, she's a carnivore after all. That's all they ever think about!)
The cockerspaniel waitress that took Juno and Louis orders before walks by. Seeing the shredded napkin, she leans in with a civil expression and addresses a nervous-looking Dumas.
DOG WAITRESS: "Would you like more napkins?"
We see that Louis and Juno are now walking into large room again. Juno is covering her mouth, like she is still feeling a bit queasy from the unexpected, garlicy assault.
LOUIS: "Are you sure that you're alright?"
Juno removes her hand from her mouth and gives him a reassuring look.
JUNO: "Yes, I am fine now. Just don't think-"
She stops talking abruptly as an older, snooty-looking couple of beavers walk past them. Once they're out of sight, Juno leans in and whispers in Louis ear.
JUNO: "Just don't think about planting another big wet one before you've had a Tic Tac or something...!"
Getting reminded of this seems to irritate him, prompting a grumpy expression.
She leans in closer, her lips very close to his ear, and whispers with a more guttural, seductive tone.
JUNO: "Not that the gesture itself wasn't romantic though..."
Louis swallows, her hot breath tickling the inside of his ear. Then all of a sudden she gives him a hard blow into it, which makes him jump. He shoots her an annoyed glare, but Juno just laughs at this.
It is then that the lead singer of the band, a cockatoo (about 35, male, dressed in a red suit with a black shirt), addresses the charity guests through his microphone.
COCKATOO SINGER: "Okay people, time to put on some charm for that significant other around your arm, cause it's about time we got our first dance of the evening started!"
The band starts to play more romantic jazz-music. It is the Japanese version of 'La vie en Rose' as originally sung by Misora Hibari. This prompts dancepartners from all over the room, young and old, to start and gather on the dancefloor in front of the plesiosaurus-fountain.
As the cockatoo begins to sing, Louis turns to Juno and extends his hand.
LOUIS: "Do you know how to do a slow dance?"
Juno smiles and takes it.
JUNO: "Doesn't everyone?"
They both walk onto the dance floor, hand in hand. They soon find a spot, and after having positioned their hands, they start their dance. There's definitely some eyes on them, as the only case of a herbivore dancing with a carnivore being present. As they slow dance to the calm and romantic music, Louis begins a few internal musings about this whole situation.
LOUIS: (Why am I doing this? I am going to marry Azumi. It is expected of me)
Louis leads Juno to him and they make a little turn.
LOUIS: (Yet I can't push Juno away... That tactic doesn't work on her)
They continue with the slow dancing, their steps following the beats of the song perfectly.
LOUIS: (No... Of course it doesn't. I can't push her away... Not when I am the one getting pulled to her)
We go from Junos happy and content face, to Louis more thoughtful face. As we zoom in on it, we see a moth manifesting in his eye.
LOUIS: (Could this be what a moth feels like when it's close to a burning candle?)
---
In Louis imagination, we see this moth flying through an all-encompassing darkness towards a lit candle.
LOUIS: (Moths are attracted to the light, to the point where if you light a candle, they will fly closer and closer they catch fire and burn to death. Why they do this is a disputed question)
The moth circles around the candle until it's wings are set aflame.
LOUIS: (Is it the beauty, the guidance of the light, or simply the danger that makes it so attracted to the flame? Or is it all three at the same time?)
---
LOUIS: (The question is, would I mind-)
We return from this daydream, where Louis and Juno performs a dip.
LOUIS: (-if she set my life on fire?)
In Louis imagination, Juno suddenly transforms into a flaming entity, like a fire-elemental. The flames from her catch onto Louis, engulfing him in fire and setting a pair of imaginary moth-wings on his back ablaze.
---
At a distance, we see Georgette and Dumas, still at their table. They follow Juno and Louis with their eyes. Dumas gives off a little humph.
DUMAS: "He does seem to dance well despite having only one leg."
Georgette on the other hand still look angry and upset, but also a little confounded.
GEORGETTE: "..." (What is she doing to him?)
She takes note of each of the expressions that Louis displays as he dances and talks to Juno. These expressions include annoyance at Juno teasing him, vulnerability as he looks down on his prosthetic leg, concern as he looks up at Juno and then, finally, a genuine smile.
GEORGETTE: (I've never seen him look like that. Annoyed, vulnerable, concerned and... Happy?)
Georgette looks softens a bit because of this.
GEORGETTE: (She managed to pull all of that out him?)
Dumas takes a sip from his own glass of whine.
DUMAS: "What do you know, that wolf-girl isn't a bad dancer herself. Go figure."
Suddenly, Georgette stands up. She has a look of determination evident in her eyes.
GEORGETTE: "You and me: We're dancing. Right now."
Dumas chokes on a bit of whine and then looks surprised by the sudden development.
GEORGETTE: "Yes. How are your dancingskills?"
GEORGETTE: "Well then you'll have to help me out, cause I still got half the bar still in my system, and I don't want to look ridiculous. Is that something you can manage?"
Dumas blinks. Then he down his glass of whine and stands up, adjusting his tie.
DUMAS: "Well I'll be damned if I won't try."
The two walk over to the dance floor as well.
---
Meanwhile, at the another part of the dance floor, we see that Agata is dancing with his date, MINA (lioness, about 25, female, black dress and high heels, pretty but sulky-looking). Agata looks at her apologetically.
AGATA: "I swear, it's the honest truth!"
Mina replies with an icy tone.
AGATA: "Really, she needed my help!"
We can tell that she is being sarcastic. Agata shakes his head and gives off a hurt.
AGATA: "No-no, I don't believe you believe me. Your tone makes it unbelievable."
Mina rolls her eyes at this, though one can detect the hint of a smile in the corner of her mouth.
MINA: "Believe it, I believe you."
Agata sighs dramatically, like someone getting his heart broken in a soap opera.
AGATA: "Unbelievable, she doesn't believe me...!"
MINA: "How many times are you going to say that? Till it loses it's meaning or what?"
AGATA: "No, just until you see how bad I feel and forgive me..."
Agata gives her a sad-kitten kind of look, looking a lot like Puss in Boots in Shrek 2 (2004). This makes Mina groan, melting her cold front completely.
MINA: "Awww...! Now you're hitting under the belt, you adorable asshole!"
AGATA: "Well that's what you're gonna get from going out with a straight-down gangsta. There is no such thing as fighting fair."
As he says this, he accidentally steps on Mina's foot.
She gives him a skeptical, but still jovial, expression.
MINA: "Not much of a dancer, are you?"
AGATA: "Actually I'm a champion, except this isn't my kind of music. I swear if they hade something wilder on, I'd own this floor."
Mina gets an excited glint in her eye as Agata says this.
As they pass the band, Mina makes a psst-sound to a nearby lemur with an oboe.
The lemur looks their way, as does a few of the other band members.
MINA: "Do you take requests?"
---
We go back to Louis and Juno, who converses while dancing.
LOUIS: "What does one do at a beach anyway?"
This appears to wake Juno from some warm thoughts, and she gives him a sporadic answer.
JUNO: "You know, the regular stuff."
Louis gives her a look, clearly relaying the message that he doesn't know what 'the regular stuff' entails. Juno quickly picks up on this and proceeds with giving him an answer.
JUNO: "Catch some sun, take a dip in the ocean, play some volleyball, hang out and relax... Guys your age usually look at pretty girls in bikinis."
LOUIS: "Yeah well that doesn't sound too bad."
He then looks a little self-conscious.
LOUIS: "But I can't help but to think that I'd feel a bit misplaced."
Juno gives him a patient look, like an older sibling dealing with an immature younger sibling.
JUNO: "Like me, at this place?"
Louis look a little surprised at this.
LOUIS: "That's how you feel?"
Louis leads Juno into another turn before returning to Louis arms.
JUNO: "Don't get me wrong, I am happy you invited me. I like the food, I like the grandness of it all, and above all, I like being with you. But it's not really ME you know."
As they dance past the frame, we see in the distance a few people sitting in the bar, looking at them. Some of them are the male admirers that came across Juno in the second chapter. They point at Juno and Louis and snicker; it is indicated that they aren't saying particularly nice things. A few seats away from sits Oguma, who is getting served a scotch on the rocks as he too observes his son and his dancing partner.
JUNO: "The two-facedness, the happy front and the deriding backtalk... I've discovered that I like it when people are straight with me, like you are."
Juno gives Louis a deep look.
JUNO: "You're a blunt person Louis. And this place... Well, now I'm just guessing, but it doesn't feel like a place where a blunt person would enjoy himself. That's why I figured that you would like to be with people who are used to your bluntness."
LOUIS: "... When did you become such a deep thinker?"
JUNO: "Someone recommended that I should try a bit of philosophy. I mean at first it made my head hurt, but now I'm really into it."
Louis stares at Juno tenderly.
LOUIS: "..." (So kind of like how I got into you?)
The song from the band finishes. Some clapping is heard and the dancing ceases. It is then that the cockatoo singer addresses the attendants yet again.
COCKATOO SINGER: "Okay folks, I hope that that warmed you up proper, because now, we're gonna be walking on the WILD SIDE!"
The band begins to play a familiar song: 'Wild Side' by ALI. Juno and Louis looks at the band as they begin to play.
Louis turns to Juno. There's a challenging gleam in his eye.
LOUIS: "What do you say? Are you up for a something more fast-paced?"
Juno answers this by pulling her shoal down from her shoulders and ties it around her waist.
JUNO: "Bring it on, Richie Rich."
---
We see Seymour and Tom from the first chapter together with their dates, ARLA (cow, female, 18 years old, a little bossy) and DAISY (banker horse, female, 19 years old, a bit air headed). They look excited as the catchy song begins to kick into high gear.
SEYMOUR: "It's about time they played something with some swing it."
Seymour offers his arm to Daisy.
SEYMOUR: "What do you say ladies? Shall we cut a rug?"
Tom raises his arms enthusiastically, while Arla gives him a skeptical look.
They, along with several younger guests at the charity go over to the dance floor and join in.
We see that Juno and Louis are dancing swing-style, showcasing some impressive footwork and spinning like something straight out of an old musical, their moves matching the rhythm of the song like two gloves on two hands.
And they're not the only ones, with Agata and Mina doing pretty darn well in the background; showcasing that Agata wasn't kidding when he said that this kind of music was more his thing.
Tom and Arla dance nearby too, though their dancing is kind of mismatched with the music: doing more of a robot-dance.
Seymour and Daisy dance in a very hip fashion, though because of the height-difference, Seymour's head often end in her chest (not that he seems to be complaining about it).
Georgette and Dumas is a riot to see too. Georgette dances pretty good, though her cold expressions is a stark contrast to the catchy dancing. Dumas seems to awkwardly follow Georgette's lead, having a hard time keeping up, but does otherwise seem like he is having a good time.
The dancing reaches a fever pitch as it nears it's end, with Juno and Louis finishing with a dynamic pose in front of the plesiosaur-fountain.
COCKATOO SINGER: "And that's called JAZZ!"
The song then finishes. A chorus of laughs and clapping can be heard as people stop dancing and chatter starts. Louis and Juno appears to be out of breath, both looking like they're about to keel over now that the dance is done.
Juno fans her face with her hand.
JUNO: "Wow... My heart is still beating so fast...!"
Louis gives off a pained little sound and bends over, holding his knee. Juno notices this.
Louis instantly gets up, putting on a brave face.
LOUIS: "Yes. Don't worry. The leg is just a little strained."
He looks away, scratching the back of his head. Doing this, he notices his father sitting in the bar, holding a whiskyglass and observing the two with his usual, unemotional expression. Louis stares back with a similar expression, and then raises his hand and gives a little wave.
Juno notices this and chimes in, giving Oguma a smile and a more excited wave.
Oguma's expression doesn't change, but he does raise his glass, acknowledging their gestures.
Louis then turns back to Juno.
LOUIS: "... Shall we call it a night?"
Giving Louis leg a discreet look, Juno then nods. Louis takes her arm, and the two proceed to walk off the dance floor. As they do so, they pass Georgette and Dumas. Dumas looks exhausted, wiping some sweat off his forehead. Georgette stares at him rather critically, but then breaks into a genuine smile. She doesn't notice Juno and Louis passing her, though Juno gives her a curious look as they do.
Once they get a bit of distance from the peacock and the peafowl, she turns to Louis.
JUNO: "There's something I've been wondering about all evening."
JUNO: "When we first got here, that peafowl whispered something in your ear. What did she say?"
This question makes Louis look a little uncomfortable.
LOUIS: "It was nothing important."
JUNO: "If it wasn't, I don't see any problem with you telling me."
She says this with a slight edge. Louis bites his lip, realizing that Juno is not about to let this go unless he tells her.
LOUIS: "... She said: 'I can see why you would throw her a leg or two.'"
Juno raises her eyebrows at this. Louis quickly provides a panicky response.
LOUIS: "I tried to tell her of course that you weren't the one who ate my leg!"
Juno looks weirded out and stairs right ahead as they walk through the doorway that they came in through in the first chapter.
JUNO: "I'm not sure whether I should see that as a compliment or an insult."
Louis looks like he doesn't quite know what to make of it either. They now pass the Great Horned Owl from before, who is actually busy talking to the cockerspaniel waitress from before. They don't even notice Juno or Louis walking past them.
DOG WAITRESS: "I get off at eleven. I hope it's not too late for you..."
The horned owl smiles at her.
HORNED OWL: "I am nocturnal, so it'll be just fine."
Juno turns to look at Louis again.
JUNO: "What is her deal anyway? She seemed kind of close to you."
Louis closes his eyes and thinks back.
LOUIS: "Well close would be a bit of a stretch... You see the first time I had to go here I was like thirteen."
---
We see a flashback where the 13-year-old Louis is attending the UniFeed Charity.
LOUIS: "It was expected of me to be able to show proper etitiquette and manners, and to be able to dance with a girl if neccesary."
The young Louis look composed, though a bit of nervous sweat on his forehead suggests that it is more of an act.
LOUIS: "I had gotten plenty of practice, but I had never actually danced with someone my own age, and even worse, now everyone was about to see it. I was nervous, but I couldn't really show it."
He then spots the young Georgette, sitting at the table surrounded by her family, like in her own flashback.
LOUIS: "When I saw her, I thought it looked like it was her first time too. She looked on the outside like what I felt on the inside."
---
We then return to the present.
LOUIS: "It wasn't out of pity or anything. She just felt like the least intimidating girl to ask for a dance."
Juno looks skeptical and points a thumb back to where they came from.
JUNO: "Her? Not intimidating?"
LOUIS: "She was quite different back then. I am not really sure what happened."
Juno smiles and gives Louis a loving look. Louis cocks an eyebrow.
LOUIS: "What is with that look?"
JUNO: "I just thought that was very sweet of you... Is that why you invited me?"
Louis gives her a deadpan look.
LOUIS: "No way, you scare the crap out of me."
Juno's eyes widen in a comical expression.
Louis waves this way, and he can't help but to smile in amusement at her reaction.
LOUIS: "Don't misunderstand me, it doesn't mean I'm not comfortable with you."
He looks ahead, with a little blush on his face.
LOUIS: "... You're pleasant and exciting. That's why I invited you."
Juno looks at him, accepting this answer. She grabs his hand.
JUNO: "Any other reason?"
Louis squeezes her hand in response, as they walk through the hotel lobby, now near to the exit.
JUNO: (Operation Good Moon Rising, phase 2...)
They leave through the doors, both of them smiling and hand in hand; their hurt hands being the ones locked together.
JUNO: (... More or less accomplished)
---
We return to Oguma, now sitting alone in the bar and taking a sip from his scotch. It is then that he is approached by his assistent, Shigure. She jumps up on the seat next to him.
SHIGURE: "Sir, I have done as you asked. As she's an active social media-user, I managed to find fairly comprehensive information about her online. For the rest I had to hack Cherryton's official website and call a few old contacts in the government, who provided me with more private information."
OGUMA: "Well done. Now who is this girl?"
Shigure pulls up her tablets and begins to swipe through several pages of information.
SHIGURE: "Name: Juno. Aged 17, goes to Cherryton Academy in the second year. Mostly average grades, with notably well-received activities within the drama club. She is quite popular, especially among carnivore-students. From what I can see she is one of the student's favorite choices as the school's next Beastar. At least on the carnivore-side."
Oguma listens to all of this with interest.
OGUMA: "What about her family?"
SHIGURE: "She has a single mother and three older brothers. Each child has a different father, none of which appears to have an active part in respective child's lives. The mother works at a pharmacy and has one noteworthy criminal charge, but is otherwise completely clean."
Oguma turns to look at Shigure.
OGUMA: "What is the charge?"
SHIGURE: "Predation, but it's strange... Apparently the victim, a camel, had a few of his fingers bit off, but decided not to press charges."
Oguma seems to process this information.
OGUMA: "Hm... Anything else?"
Shigure gives him an uncomfortable look.
She swipes rapidly through her tablet and brings up a video file that begins to load.
SHIGURE: "I ran a photo of her face through a recognition app to see if there were any noteworthy matches on the internet. And... I found this video from the local news."
She hands her tablet over to Oguma, who looks over the video file as it begins to play. It turns out to be footage from the interview that a reporter did on Juno after a predation incident. Juno's upset face is reflected on Oguma's glasses as she says her immortal line:
JUNO: "I'm madly in love with a male deer! If If I let the risks scare me, then he'd reject me!"
