Raised by Lions

Chapter 34: Turf War

The end of the month had finally arrived and Louis was a little more excited than he probably should have been. This was the first month that the Shishigumi was going to allow him to take part in the Turf Wars alongside them. He may have mentioned it to Legosi and now Louis was aware that his friend would be there too, alongside his own family.

As soon as the bell had gone to signal the end of the last class, Louis and Legosi had practically run to their rooms and were out the schoolyard within ten minutes, on route to the Market. They'd told Sanu they wouldn't be showing up for Drama Club due to "important family stuff" so they dodged any problems there.

They drove side by side on their motorcycles until they had to split into their respective territories.

The blood drawing thing, however, was rather strange to Louis. He knew they did that and that it was suppose to be lit on fire to signify their Gumi, but he's never seen it first-hand. Ibuki had given him the option to not take part in the ordeal, but Louis had stood his ground and said he would anyway.

It did take watching that scene for Louis to learn that apparently Dope is scared of needles and Free had to talk the young lion through the situation. When it was his turn, Louis had admitted that he wasn't sure how to draw blood, so Hino stepped over to help him, saying he had to pay attention because the next month he had to do it on his own. Louis was fine with that and watched Hino work closely.

The pretty lion had wavered a moment, not wanting to hurt Louis, but the deer was so much smaller than the rest of them, even now that he was almost fully grown. It went over well though and Free pulled Louis to his feet afterwards, helping to stabilise the deer, who had become a little woozy. "Remember when you were younger and had to get shots? You were always so pissed afterwards," Free told him as he lead Louis to the kitchen to get him some coffee and maybe convince him to eat something.

Louis chuckled at the memory, leaning his head on his hand, "Yeah, and you ended up taking me for ice cream every time after we returned from the doctor." Free smiled and passed Louis the coffee and a bowl with celery. They always kept some in the fridge, ever since Louis moved in 12 years ago.

°°°°°

Legosi lit a cigar as he stood next to Gosha in the cooling evening air. Gosha had tried to put it off for as long as he could, but when Legosi himself had asked to take part in the Turf Wars, there wasn't much he could do to stop the inevitable.

The rest of the gang had practically dragged Legosi off to go do the blood drawing and while Legosi wasn't particularly fond of needles, he'd gotten through it just fine.

"You looking forward to tonight?" Gosha asked, grey smoke rising from his maw as he spoke. Legosi glanced at the older male, trying to figure out if he was speaking to his boss or his grandfather, because the answer would differ accordingly. Gosha's face was neutral, making it difficult for the wolf to decipher. He sighed and made a quick decision, "A little nervous, but I'm looking forward to it." Gosha nodded, one corner of his lips perking up in a small smile before it vanished again.

"Remember the pact with the Shishigumi," Gosha said as they finished their cigars. Legosi nodded, "Wouldn't dream of disobeying it."

°°°°°

The gangs kept to their own as they waited for the new gang to finish their pseudo gameshow against the Inarigumi. The newcomers were a smaller gang calling themselves the Okamigumi. They apparently wanted some official territory of their own instead of just existing within the Inari territory.

Louis glanced over the opponents he could see and checked his gun over once more, before ensuring his Freddie Cougar claws were properly fastened to his hands. He had them made about three months prior and was happy to finally be able to use them in a proper battle. It had taken Miguel quite some time to teach Louis how to fight like a carnivore with the claws, since Louis wasn't used to the techniques. He got it eventually though.