Felix Lamonte

---

The Eukary Quad, Winter Carnival Club Booths, 9:00AM
Interactions: @LostButterfly92 and the upperclassman chumps

'Another day of shitty telemarketing done,' cradling a cup of coffee between his mittens the grey tabby blew at the steam wafting from the steaming liquid, Felix had just gotten off the night shift a few hours ago when the sound of festivity had awoken him from his catnap 'At least you got a little sleep.' the coffee helped to keep him somewhat awake but Felix was still quite groggy from lack of sleep.

His black wool scarf whipped behind Felix as he trudged through the snowy ground, the petite black boots he wore crunching beneath him with each step. If there was anything the cat hated more it would be cold weather and usually he would do anything to hide away in his cozy dorm room but the noise would prevent him from getting a decent rest.

Felix wore a big grey sweater with the words 'OBEY' on the front, it was almost too big it draped down below his waist but he was comfortable in his warm sweater and scarf. He hadn't bothered to put on a proper pair of pants so before he left to grab a coffee he threw on a pair of baggy sweatpants.

His tail swished from side to side as he glanced at the various club booths, few really interested him so he just kept moving between the booths as he cautiously sipped his coffee purring at the warm feeling it gave him.

'Looks like the literary club is up ahead.' Felix loved to read, if there was anything he was passionate about it was that and coffee of course. Felix imagined himself snuggled up under a blanket with a good book, as warm and cozy as can be.

'So chilly outside.' the scrawny little tabby thought with a shiver, Felix picked up his pace a bit as he began to near the literary club's booth. As he got closer Felix nearly tripped over someone on the snow-covered ground, immediately snapping Felix out of his daydream "Oh fuck," swore the grey tabby as he stumbled aside quickly regaining his balance and only spilling some coffee on his sweatpants 'No big deal, black doesn't stain.' Felix took a deep breath and sighed, glancing up to see two upperclassman looking at him and the female skunk fallen in the snow 'I am never going to live this down.' as a freshman this was big time embarrassing for the tabby.

Taurus Altobelli, The Winter Carnival
Interactions: August Weiss, Melanie Rose Pourri, Felix Lamonte

Taurus was deep in conversation with August when his ears swivelled at the sound of a yelp and a thud. It took a couple of moments of him glancing around to realise where the noise had come from; eyes finally resting on the skunk at his feet. One of the downfalls of being so tall was that most others were out of his immediate eyeline.

”Oh my dear there’s no need to apologise. Are you alright?” Taurus assured and crouched down, snagging the glasses next to his hoof that he assumed belonged to the young girl. He cleaned them on the edge of his scarf, inspecting them for damage before passing them over. ”They don’t seem to be damaged, thankfully, maybe a little scratched. That was quite a fall - though someone should really move that cable.” He hummed, offering out one hand to help her out of the snow while the other searched in his pockets for a handkerchief.

His fingers closed around the square of forest green fabric and he passed it over, ”Clean up your paws, I’m sure we can find a first aid tent around here somewhere if needs be?” Taurus lifted himself up and brushed the snow from his trousers and the hem of his coat, one hand instinctively shooting out as someone else nearly tripped over the skunk, although it seemed as though the feline righted himself quickly without too much spilling of his drink.

”Careful, watch your step. Hope you haven’t burned yourself?” He warned, tilting his shaggy head.

@Dark Cloud @LostButterfly92 @vertigh0st

Percival
Location: Herbivore Dorms - Winter Festival Entrance
Mentions: None
Interactions: Open

Finals week had gotten to Perci, it was obvious. He was awful at studying, so most of the time he ended up reading the vocabulary words out of the textbooks and getting sidetracked on YouTube. The goat had found himself wishing he paid more attention in Art History… But, finals week had finally relented, and his depressive mood seemed to have lifted a little bit the night before. Grant, Fenzi, one of her roommates he didn’t know very well, and another one of Grant’s friends had come over and had a few drinks. It was to celebrate getting over testing. They were all incredibly lame, and mostly played drunk Mario Kart (or whatever the equivalent is here) before passing out or going back to their dorms.

When Perci woke up in the morning, he wasn’t entirely sure what was happening. A fuzzy paw was gently shaking him awake. He opened his eyes to see the blurry shape of Fenzi standing by his bed. He squinted while he looked at her. She’d crashed in his room, which wasn’t that uncommon, so he wasn’t surprised when he saw her.

“Hey,” The bunny started, “Heeey-”

Perci grabbed his pillow and rolled over to ignore her, but she grabbed his arm and continued to shake him. He finally relented and threw off his covers. “Okay, okay, I’m awake-” He sighed. “What’s your deal?”

“Dude, you have to get ready for the festival, “ she answered while crossing her arms. “I’ll be back with the synth and whatnot in like half an hour, but I need to go back to my dorm. Will you be ready by then?”

Perci, who was hungover and still groggy, took a minute to process what she’d just said. Festival...festival… Oh, fuck, the Winter Carnival started today! “Fuck- Yeah, yeah, I’ll be fine,” he lied. Fenzi raised a brow. She knew how Perci was and was skeptical.

“Uh-huh…” The goat yawned and then slid off the bed, wearing an oversized shirt like a nightgown. Fenzi politely left him to get dressed. Perci felt like hell, and his mouth tasted weird and kind of musty. He shuddered and decided to go brush his teeth before anything.

Perci was in the bathroom, drying off his face after washing it when his phone buzzed. Fenzi? He glanced over but wasn’t able to read the screen without his glasses. She could wait, couldn’t she? It’d only been about five minutes. He waited until after he finished brushing his teeth before checking his phone. He let out a funny wheezing sound when he noticed it was Marcello who had messaged him. “See you at the show”. Fuck. He totally forgot he invited Marcello on Monday. They hadn’t made much progress and only spoke about the final for the one class they shared. Fenzi was right, he was trying too hard. Fuck! He didn’t even know if he was gay-

The goat stared at himself in the mirror, feeling quite small and focusing on every flaw on his face. There weren’t many, but he had a knack for making a big deal out of nothing. He jumped when he heard a knock on the door. It was Grant. Perci grabbed the makeup bag he kept underneath the sink and retreated back to his room, tail twitching.

When Fenzi came back, Perci was fully dressed. The rabbit was dressed as well, strutting a neon vinyl jacket over her outfit, which was completely black (aside from the high-top shoes, which were also neon). Perci, however, sported his usual hoodie and another set of jeans. Aside from a bit of eyeliner, his face was plain. Fenzi looked surprised.

"You going to the show like that?- what happened to our plan of matching colors?" The rabbit inquired.

Perci shrugged off her question and picked up his drumsticks, which were on the floor under a pile of t-shirts. "It's too cold for that," he muttered. Fenzi, who was eyeing his ever-thickening coat of white fur, didn't look convinced.

"Right, well Grant's making toast so you should grab some before we leave," Fenzi instructed before leaving the goat to be.

Perci didn't feel hungry. He'd never actually...played a show before. A few weeks ago, he'd jumped at the idea. Now that it was actually happening, he was terrified. He didn't look very anxious, but the bit of gray fluff that made up his tail was twitching madly. He half-bounded out of the room, looking exceptionally goat-like.

Grant was indeed making breakfast. He stood on a small step-stool to reach the counter. Grant was indeed very small, but not small enough to fit in the tiny animal dorm. However, he was still too small to be able to use the shorter herbivore dorms. He, certain small dogs, and some cats shared the same pain. Grant was used to it by now. Perci gave his roommate a nod, and he nodded back. They weren't very talkative with each other, and this morning was no exception. Perci grabbed a piece of jam-covered toast, shoved it halfway into his mouth, and took another in a napkin.

Fenzi grabbed the end of her friend's unbroken horn and shook it a bit, making his head wobble. To Perci, it was like a pat on the head. "Relax, dude, we're gonna have fun." He merely shrugged in response. If it wasn’t obvious, he did not want to go on stage. In fact, he’d rather still be in bed. Perci wondered why his friend insisted he wake so early… She could run the stall with somebody else, right? The goat’s depressive mood seemed to be creeping in the longer he was awake. Ugh.

“I need coffee,” Perci complained.

“We’ll get some at the fair, so hurry up.”

The pair of herbivores arrived at the festival rather quickly, not speaking much. Perci spent his time reluctantly chewing on his first toast slice, but wolfed down the second when reminded how hungry he was. The scent of treats and other snacks wafting from the fairground awakened his appetite. Hopefully there was coffee. Fenzi showed the grizzly bear manning the entrance a piece of official looking paper and her school ID. The rabbit had to nudge Perci to show his student ID to the bear since he was preoccupied with sniffing the air.

There was indeed coffee at the carnival. A breakfast-themed booth sat by the entrance, attracting many customers. The line was long, but Perci didn’t seem to care much. Fenzi, on the other hand, was much more annoyed. She took him by the upper arm and tried to pull him away.

“C’mon, dude, I gotta take over at the booth. Can’t you wait another five minutes?”

Perci let out a snort. “Naw, I’m damn tired.”

“You’re insufferable sometimes, y’know? I’ll just go on my own. Meet me there and don’t get lost,” Fenzi retorted.

“I’m not gonna get lost- I’m not 12, and you’re not my mom,” he answered with a yawn. However, she had spun around and left by the time he answered. Perci crossed his arms. He wasn’t THAT insufferable, was he? Sure, he was irritated that his friend thought it was a fucking war crime to be tired and grumpy.

Corrie Strickman

Winter Carnival, Sports Booths

Corrie stood frozen in shock for much of Zaina's speech. The owl's first movement came when the hyena tossed her the ball, at which point Corrie flinched away and let the ball fall in the slush at her feet. After that, the owl blinked and seemed to snap out of it. Could... could this herculean hyena really be on her side?

Well, either way, everyone was staring at her now. Corrie picked up the ball and closed her eyes, attempting to take a deep breath. She honed her mind to focus on the zonkey... wait, no, her broth-- her ARM, yes, focus on the throwing technique. Corrie hastily let the ball fly. It plunked off a can, which wobbled for half a second and then stayed upright.

The zonkey allowed the smallest smug toothy grin while Corrie straightened up her posture and her face, determined not to show any emotion. The owl approached the zedonk and the hyena.

"Well, I suppose that is th-that," Corrie addressed the zedonk in a quiet voice, staring down the mammal's neck rather than dare to meet her eyes. "We may now exit each other's lives as swiftly as w-we entered... none the lesser for one fewer amicable contact, at least on my part."

Finished with her sick burn, Corrie shifted her gaze to the hyena's neck. She experienced dueling feelings of gratitude for being rescued and bitter shame for needing to be rescued.

"This may be a sizeable ask for someone who has already lent significant aid," Corrie began, "But I may require your particular skillset for a moment longer. Would it terribly inconvenience you to escort me a short distance away? We may discuss some form of remuneration, if you so desire."

Corrie felt satisfied by her intellectual translation of "I am still freaking scared, please help me big strong lady, I'll pay you."

@Argetlam350

Eukary Campus
Interaction: @Zanavy Corrie Strickman

---

Zaina watched the owl take her final throw, slightly disappointed to see that the target remained upright but that had hardly been the reason for the entire confrontation. She smirked slightly hearing the owl do her best to burn the zonkey though seeing how stubborn the animal was, perhaps it went over their own head before the owl turned to her. While there were many things Zaina would prefer doing, being stuck wandering the campus didn't leave many options so letting the request of the owl swim around in her head briefly she decided it would probably be her better option to oblige her request.

"Sure why not, but don't worry about payment. Putting idiots in their place is my own payment," she replied before looking at the zonkey directly leaning in ",Now that this is settle I'll let you go back to your little games but if I catch wind of anymore of your bullshit, well, lets just say I've never had equine before." Zaina snapped her jaw shut, her teeth crashing together making a audible crunch sound that left the zonkey in a state of fear giving a shakey nod that wiped the previous smug look from their face. Zaina smiled and roughly pat their back

"Good now run along and take care," she said turning from threatening to sweet, or at least as sweet as a hyena could look to be. She straightened herself up back to her full height, dropping three dollars into the still seemingly petrified monkey that helped with the stand as a small peace offering. The zonkey seemed to glare at the smaller mammal but a glare back from Zaina made the zonkey look away and mutter a thanks before going about to what they had been doing before the altercation. Zaina turned to her new acquaintance.

"Welp lead the way," Zaina said, wondering what other trouble the owl could get into along with hoping there weren't going to be any more conflicts. While enjoying being the big bad bitch she was and despising animals like the zonkey, she rather avoid being thrown off the campus, so hopefully that was the only little bit of squabbling she had to take care of.

August Weiss
Location: Winter Carnival
Interactions: Taurus Altobelli, Melanie Rose Pourri, Felix Lamonte

August was immediately behind Taurus when a yelp cut through their conversation. He was glad the bull had reached her first. The little skunk looked distressed enough-he didn't think a Dobermann rushing up and reaching out for her would be perceived very well.

"You'd think they would have some caution cones put out or something." He mutters, moving from around Taurus to create a sort of barrier between the crowd and the skunk. He could tell she was pretty embarrassed by the whole ordeal and wanted to cut down on any curious onlookers. "I'm pretty sure I saw one on our way over." From what he could see her, paws looked pretty scraped up and would a least require some bandaging if nothing else. "I'm sure they can get you patched up in no time." He said offering her a little reassuring grin. Maybe they had a few towels to spare as well. The snow had absolutely soaked her.

His attention was quickly drawn as someone else nearly topples over the skunk. This damn chord is gonna be the death of someone. "Oh, shit- you okay?" August rummages through his jacket pocket and pulls out a couple of clean napkins he'd acquired with his own drink. "Here take these." He says offering the fistful of napkins out to the little tabby cat.

@GreysonEA @Dark Cloud @LostButterfly92

Cecily Abraham
Location: Winter Carnival
Interactions: None

Cecily stood staring around at all of the animals passing, eyes narrowed and interested. She, for the most part, didn't care that she was standing directly in the walkway, except for when someone purposefully elbowes and jostles her.

That happened right now, and someone - they were too quick to let her see their face - muttered lowly in an irritated tone. "Watch it," they grumbled. This truly infuriated Cecily, because she had been watching it. That was exactly what she was doing. She snapped back at him, "You watch it, sir… miss… whatever you are." Her voice raised at that part, so it could reach the mystery animal. "You know who you are!"

Mumbling half-hearted insults under her breath, she almost returned to watching, but decided that maybe it really would be best if she just moved out of the way. After all, the view didn't matter. It wasn't like she would've been able to fly to watch up and around, and she was not an actual fly who can see things very well in all angles.

Actually, this would be worth it. She could just watch everyone as she walked around and looked at all the carnival had to offer. She did so love carnivals, and hopefully it would be a good stress-relief for her. Cecily suppressed a happy-shout and it instead came out as a squeak. She ignored that mistake and clapped her hands together, startling a little more than a few others around her.

The Wolf Pack

---

Tholo sat in his office working through the repetitive nature of crunching numbers and the costs for the Wolf Pack. He hated it but it had to be done even if he knew the place was doing well. The only sound in the room coming from the clicks of a computer. The quiet didn't last long as the blaring ringing of the office phone went off. Tholo gave a annoyed huff and growled before reaching for it, picking it from its perch and answering.

"This is the Wolf Pack, we're currently close, what do you want?" Tholo answered, showing his rather poor people skills.

"Well it has been some time hasn't it, Gevaudan?" A mysteriously familiar voice replied, one that gave an irritable growl from Tholo as his hand clenched around the phone harder.

"I told you to not call me that. That was another time, one that is dead. So what the hell is with the call all of a sudden. Another pred hiding in a hole you can't get too?" Tholo asked annoyed and agitated. Ever since having done a rather, impressive albeit illegal act, he had somewhat of a leash on him. Mostly he was called in for favors by the so called precious higher ups to clean up shitty messes they got into or drag someone out of a hiding hole in the black market. Authority figures weren't exactly welcomed there and their red tape made it tough to find their culprits, where as Tholo could ignore it as long as he didn't damage the goods, well at least not to the point of death. In return he hadn't ended up in prison with a life sentence. He hated being a tool.

"More of a curiosity that needs to be looked into. Had a mole inside a new pack that formed. A few days ago he was suppose to meet up and give some details on what they were currently doing as well as a few insights on some other new players we are looking into. Problem is he didn't show and this new pack has gone quiet. Due to the location cops would be sniffed out in a moments notice so who better to send then the old beast that ruled their in the past," The voice replied, Tholo imaging an annoying smirk on their face. How he would love to rip it off of them.

"To chicken shit to do it yourself. Guess it is true what the say about lions, need the women to do the work for you," Tholo replied smirking himself knowing that the voice would be annoyed with that.

"I have more pressing maters to attend to. Don't forget who holds your leash Gevauden," The voice warned before hanging up. Tholo sighed before getting out of his chair, writing a note before shoving it on his office door. It left Zaina in charge when she got back and where he would be. She knew he did some work in the market but never question on what it was and even if she had, he wouldn't of told.

---

The Black Market

Getting to the black market didn't take long, the scent of seared meat wafted into his nostrils. The old smells of the underbelly of the city brought back bitter memories, both of better and worst times. A time where he had been just as part of it as many other gangs and thugs ran the place today. A time where he could make a plenty cower from his own shadow as he dealt the punishment of missing payments of protection money or lesser gangs weaseling in on their turf. Now hardly anyone noticed the lumbering wolf drift between the flow of other predators. Just another face in the crowd. Though unlike them who sought the sustenance of flesh that the world pretended to not exist, he had a different mission. One that took him to his old stomping grounds.

The building looked shittier then he remember, probably because it became mostly a drug den after the tragic events that transpired. Vagrants looking for a quick fix and homeless who sought refuge from the cold night air. That is until a new pack decided to claim it as theirs and kick the trespassers out. A bunch of punks wanting to make a name for themselves by hanging in the old ruins of a far greater pack. It was laughably pathetic and now with how silent they had been, probably meant they bit more then they could chew. Or bit the wrong hand and got a beating that pushed them out. He expected to find maybe a bloody warning from one of the stronger clans running around the black market but what he found was far worst then expected.

Tholo found the dumb punks, but in a state that went beyond a simple gang lesson. Rot hung in the air, rancid and palpable. The bodies of the various canines strewn about like mere play things, having been skinned and left to decayed. Their heads hung in the air from hooks or from the ground on rusted spiked poles, faces contorted in agony. Teeth pulled, eyes gouged, pieces of their skinless bodies mangled while their hides hung on the walls in a sick display of violence. This was far beyond a simple crime lord hit on a lower gang. More then simply turf disputes. This was torture, one he was somewhat certain was simply for sadistic pleasure. He definitely needed to ask for a pay raise on this job.

Melanie Rose Pourri

---

The Eukary Quad, Winter Carnival Club Booths, 9:00AM.
Interacting with @GreysonEA, @vertigh0st, and @Dark Cloud.

Melanie fumbled around in the snow frantically, shaking from fear and cold alike as she stole glances at the looming shadows with her squinty, pearly black eyes. The biggest shadow moved and Mel flinched, but was surprised by a friendly, deep voice. She opened her beady eyes to see a blurry brown figure crouch down in front of her, with her glasses in an out-stretched hand.

"Oh thank you so much!" the girl cried gratefully with tears streaming down her cheeks. Her cold, stiff tail raised and wagged a little. It seemed the upperclassmen were not going to pummel her for being a loser after all. After wiping her eyes with the back of one paw, she took her glasses and placed them back on her snout.

The glasses were smeared with water and may have had a scratch or two more than before, but she was finally able to see at a distance again. In front of her crouched a large, handsome bull offering his hoof. Mel smiled shyly and took it, and was easily pulled to her feet. Beside him was a doberman with green-dyed hair, and off to the side was a grey tabby with a little drink spilled down his front. Others stared their way as they walked by. The girl's face flushed nervously at the nearby predator and onlookers.

"Th-thank you... Y-you're too kind..," the girl replied to the bull, smiling nervously and reluctantly taking the handkerchief from him. She hated the idea of ruining something that was not her own, but after taking a breath she wiped her paws dry, wincing at the pain. They had been scraped up pretty badly by chunks of ice hidden in the snow, and some blood got on the handkerchief. Melanie frowned and looked down ashamedly as she offered it back.

[Color=pink]"I th-think I'm oh-k-kay. Ju-just c-cold," she answered. [Color=pink]--and spooked,[/pink] she thought, glancing around the crowd with wide eyes. There were humans about, but not that appeared hostile, and she relaxed her gaze once again. "M-my name is Melanie," the little skunk introduced herself with a bashful smile.

"I-I'm so sor-sorry for the trouble I caused," Melanie apologized sincerely to the group with her head bowed. "Esp-especially to you." she said with a nod to the tabby. She badly hoped his clothes wouldn't stain.

"Th-thank you for being so nice to me. I-I'll get out of your way and go to the med-medicine tent. B-bye... " Melanie stammered. She gave a weak wave of her paw before she started to walk away, dripping wet and shivering with her head hung in shame and embarrassment.

Silas Moore, The Black Market
Interactions: Tholo Whitlock

Silas was no stranger to the dark underbelly of the city where the criminals made their home - and their living.

The tiger had urges, afterall.

Ones that got him into trouble when they weren’t kept under control.

The paparazzi knew better than to follow him here - besides the fact he kept their pockets lined handsomely for their silence - they’d be robbed blind of both their belongings and their dignity before they could set foot off the main path. Not that people didn’t know him of course - they’d rather ignore the fact that their designer clothes came from a predator who had done more than his fair share of doing peoples dirty work. It was how he’d first made his money - selling fine furs on the street corners with a vague wave of his hand when asked where (or rather, who) they came from.

”I didn’t expect to see you back here, old timer. Being someone’s dogsbody again? Running around after misbehaving pups?” Silas snorted, crunching down on the delicate leg bone held in his paw. He surveyed the scene inside the run down building over Tholo’s shoulder, nose wrinkled at the stench. ”Pathetic, aren’t they? Rubbed everyone up the wrong way now look at them. They should have learnt their lesson the first one that got picked off.” He hummed, stepping back again, carefully as to avoid the debris and the other questionable… fluids on the floor.

”Happened three, maybe four days ago. Couldn’t tell you who did it, though.” He chuckled nonchalantly, licking his fingers clean of fat from his snack.

@Argetlam350

Ike & Zelda
Location: Catalyst Headquarters, Black Market
Mentions: None
Interactions: Open

Ike found himself in Cedar’s- or his office. It was his now, and it’d been his for almost a month now. He had just woken up, bleary-eyed and seated at a handsome wooden desk. Ah, he must’ve passed out here last night. A half-empty bottle of alcohol sat dangerously close to the edge. The humans grabbed and shook it, swirling the contents before setting it back down. It was too early to drink, even for somebody like Ike. Instead, he stood up and stretched. His arms seemed to be slightly too long for his body, and his legs even more so. He ran his hands through his messy black hair and then tied it back in a low ponytail. He paused when a knock on the door interrupted what slow, morning thoughts he was having.

“Who is it?” Ike asked gruffly.

“Zelda,” answered a familiar voice.

“Come in,” he yawned. Seating himself back on the chair.

A tall, burly figure opened the door and ducked her large head into the room. Zelda was a bearded vulture. She had ferocious looks but carried herself timidly. She avoided eye contact with Ike. The human seemed rather uninterested with her as he spoke. “Whaddya want?”

“I…” The bird seemed unable to gather her words. She tapped her talons against the floor apprehensively, and they clicked loudly. “I would like to take the day off,” She finally admitted.

Ike, who was rather engrossed with a fountain pen on the desk- it had once belonged to Cedar, raised his eyebrows and glanced up at Zelda. “It ain’t the weekend, sweetheart. Why?”

“Christ,” Zelda huffed, “Maybe because I wanna go spend some time to myself and have some fun once in a while! Guard duty is boring as fuck-”

Ike raised a finger to silence her, shaking his head a bit. “Don’t ruffle your feathers,” he grumbled, “Just tell me where the fuck you plan on going, will you?”

Zelda was growing irritated with Ike, but she didn’t dare get any snappier than she already did. “There’s this festival, by the college...I thought it looked fun,” she explained.

The human’s brow scrunched up in confusion. “Oh, I thought you were gonna go clubbing or somethin’.”

“Why the hell would I want to go do that? That’s where you spend all your fucking time, and then you drag me along to be your bodyguard!” If she could do so, her nose would’ve been wrinkled in disgust. Furrowed brows would have to do.

“That’s where the market’s at!” He lied. “You can go, but I ain’t paying for shit- It’s all rigged, anyway.”

“I don’t care, and I’m not asking for an allowance!” Zelda screeched while slamming the door shut as she left.

Ike muttered to himself, shaking his head. Zelda was a goddamn fool, but he knew he couldn't stop her. Instead of complaining more, he reached into the pocket of his bomber jacket and pulled out a cigarette. He had just lit it when there was another knock at the door.

“What the fuck do you want?” He snapped.

A wolf cautiously opened the door, sticking their snout through. “Uh-” They barely got a word out before Ike exploded on them.

“If you’ve come to ask for time off, I’ll turn you into a goddamn rug!”

The wolf whined at the harsh words, knowing their leader wasn’t one to make false threats. “No, no, no- uh, sir… There’s been another delay. Another attack.”

Ike almost dropped his cigarette. “When?- By who?!”

The wolf now had their ears pinned back and was vigorously shaking their head. “We...don’t know who did it. Stole a shipment off of a barge at around four in the morning...”

“You’ve gotta be fuckin’ with me,” he hissed, pinching is crooked nose bridge with his free hand. “Anyone dead?”

“No, the crew didn’t notice anything until around six,” the canine answered.

Ike didn’t say anything for a bit and instead took a long drag from his smoke. He scratched a stubbled cheek before responding. “Bring whatever you can here and to the warehouse. No more shipments go in or out, we’re on lockdown. I want a search of the whole market- beat the shit out of anybody selling who isn’t one of us.”

With that, the wolf ducked out of the office. What a MORNING- Ike wanted some breakfast. He soon left the office, too, locking the door behind him with a key on his neck. It was 9 AM and he was worrying about stolen narcotics. He should be worrying about what to eat instead. One thing he did know was that whoever was messing with them wasn't a group of pansies. This was a threat. What would Cedar do? He had no idea because nobody ever messed with Cedar.

(just a big exposition dump-)

Corrie Strickman

Winter Carnival

@Argetlam350

With the briefest of nods to Zaina, Corrie began trudging off toward... who knows where. Anywhere but the softball booth. She was grateful for the thick layer of winter feathers that obscured most of her blushing cheeks.

"I ought never to have attempted a carnival game in the first place," the owl muttered, mostly to herself, after a couple minutes of travel. "Of course I should've expected such an attraction to be rigged for the primary purpose of acquiring funds. Such scams exist to snare those who can be misled to believe their know-how... or athletic skills... may be enough to secure victory."

Corrie kept up an air of polished, restrained contempt during her speech, though she couldn't help sagging and sighing a bit at the last half-sentence.

"Well, I have learned my lesson." Corrie craned her neck up to almost make eye contact with her hyena escort. "And I may have you to thank for its nature as merely a mental lesson and not a physical assault. She had a point, you know... I wish animals could solve every problem with intellectual reflection. That would be an exceptionally superior world. But some situations require a swifter approach of which I must admit a personal lack."

The owl looked around now, feeling like the duo had walked a safe distance away. It seemed they had reached the edge of the sports booths, with the beginnings of the science booths across the street. That might be a more reasonable - or at least safer - place for Corrie to wait for a while.

"I appreciate your succor on this morn," Corrie addressed the hyena. "I no longer require your aid, and I'm certain you must have companions awaiting your return, so you may take your leave as you desire."

The owl attempted a friendly smile, though it came out a little nervous as she extended a wing.

"Cordeliamycinth. But you may call me Corrie. It has been a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

Eukary Campus - Winter Festival
Interaction: @Zanavy

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Zaina followed the owl, giving the zonkey one last glare and toothy smile before following after. They appeared to be absorbed in a bit of their own conversation at first, talking about error or trusting rigged carnival games before speaking to her. Zaina looked down while they walked, slightly slouching as to make it easier on the owl so she didn't have to crane her neck as much.

"I dislike people being bullies. Could of thrown a punch but I'm all ready in a little hot water for defending someone else, so had to think on my feet. Perhaps it would be superior world if things could be simply resolved with a matter of words but to me a little dull. Don't let that literal ass ruin the festival. Just avoid the games, even if its a school, still trying to scam all out of cash. Sure can learn how to outsmart but not really worth the effort and time. You've got spunk for trying I'll give you that. Just need to know when to pick the battles."

While definitely most of the parting words went over the Zaina's head along with the girl's name being quite a mouth full, she just gave a light laugh and smirking grin sticking her arm out to shake Corrie's extended wing.

"Zaina. Just avoid getting into more trouble, can't threaten to eat everyone, my appetite only goes so far even for a gal like me," Zaina joked giving a shake ",Thanks for the bit of excitement and letting me put someone deserving in their place."

The Black Market - Decrepit Building
Interaction: @GreysonEA

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Tholo gave an a growl of annoyance at the voice signalling that he had a guest in the hellish freak-show of a room. While most of the regular civilians of the Black Market seemed to of forgotten about 'Gevaudan' some of the older gangs along with a sprinkler of newer players in the underbelly of the city occasionally were a bother. Mostly was a simple deal, he didn't fuck with them and they didn't fuck with him. None of his errands running for the police had ever involved the big players and he intended to keep it that way. He had gotten out and he didn't want back in. Unfortunately that didn't stop them from at least pestering him when they caught on to his presence, much to his frustration as many young bloods appeared to enjoy poking his buttons.

"What do you want cub, no cowering mice to chase," Tholo shot back as he made his way through the room, following a specific stench as well as drag marks of stagnant blood ",Or a free meal. I know you enjoy trash, so plenty of that currently here. All rotting and ripe for your enjoyment. I've got no time playing babysitter and don't have a ball of yarn for you so maybe one of these guys' heads will do."

The trail went further into the building, a sickening feeling entered the old wolf's stomach. This was far more then simple turf wars, someone sick in the head was responsible for this. More horrors were within, some missing limbs, fur pelts hanging on the wall above mangle remains. The trail went further and further until ending in a room with only one body, the only body that seemed untouched minus the fact it was pinned to the wall, hanging from it. On the wall, written in blood was a simple question:



"Well fuck."

Vance's eyes stared straight ahead, boring through the moving images of students, families and general patrons as they scurried from one carnival attraction to the other. His elbows were propped on the picnic table upon which he sat while his paws rested under his chin, taking on the full weight of his head while his neck rested limp. His body was an unmoving statue, but his mind was racing at furious speed.

Each side of Vance's double-life were in a constant conflict for his attention and, as of late, The Student was losing its battle to The Enforcer. Even though it was just a short while, it felt like he hadn't been back to campus in months. Extra curricular not-so-legitimate activities had increased dramatically and it felt like Vance's phone was constantly summoning him away to address some form of seedy business that could not wait or be passed on to anyone else in the Ebonlock's syndicate.

The thought of "free time" seemed like a mythical notion. There was no free time, just the short pauses between one job to the next.

As he continued to sit, part of him wondered how long it would be until his phone chirped again. How many minutes until he would be called away to get his hands dirty? Was this a glimpse of the rest of his life? Is this how his father, the notorious Magnus Ebonlock, started out in his early career?

After having settled a morning collection run, Vance's attention was quickly caught by the appearance of the Winter Festival. The wandering masses seemed to move in unison toward the event and the young lion allowed himself to ride along with the current and drift in toward this social gathering filled with chit chat and laughter. Perhaps the company of jubilant people could snap him out of his funk, he thought. And so there he sat alone at the picnic table waiting for his environment to help regrow his sanity.

"Hey, there fella!" came an sudden intrusion into Vance's earshot. With a few rapid blinks and an uncomfortably abrupt return to reality, Vance cocked his head over to the voice. Before him stood a festively dressed frog with a bullhorn in his hand pointed directly at the lion. "What say you come on up and take a swing," the frog suggested aggressively before presenting the High Striker setup behind him. Take a sledge hammer, hit the target, see if you can make the puck shoot up high enough to hit the bell at the very top. If you succeeded, your victory would sound out in an infamously satisfying DING!

"No thanks," Vance mumbled, ready to reenter his zombified state of constant internal thought.

"Oh, I see," the carnival barker mused. "From here, it looked like you were a black lion. Obviously, I was wrong. You're nothing but yellow."

The last word created a spark within Vance. As if a switch has been flicked, Vance's pupils immediately grew, nearly enveloping his entire eyeball. His hands tightened into fists as his claws systematically protruded from the ends of his digits, embedding into his own palms. With low rumbled huff, Vance sprung to life, pulled himself out of the picnic table and seized the sledge hammer. With one arm, and what appeared to be a significant amount of ease, Vance brought the hammer down on its target with a thunderous boom. The inner puck raced skyward and violently clashed with the bell at its peak.

The frog's jaw was slacked as he witnessed the display. His amphibious eyes soon descended back onto the lion whom he found was already staring right back at him with two onyx orbs that warned of imminent danger to follow.

"Okay, okay, m-my bad..." the frog stammered, raising his hands up in a means of surrender. "Go ahead, take a prize... F-free of charge" he insisted. "Please, take the giant stuffed human. Two of them, even! Just... uh... don't do anything rash, alright? This is supposed to be a celebration and all..."

Vance's adrenaline began to recede, followed by the diameter of his pupils. Nonchalantly, he dropped the sledgehammer to the ground and shook his head for a moment, trying to rattle away his aggression. Gradually it seemed to work. Without taking any prizes or speaking any words, Vance turned and left the annoying carny. He refused to allow himself to become that guy. That scary version of himself. He wanted to laugh, to love, to have fun and just be Joe Average. What he was feeling more, lately, was a transformation that was beginning to prove he was his father's son.

A stinging sensation in his hands managed to break his concentration. Looking at them, he rolled his eyes and let our an exasperated sigh. A small trickle of blood was coming out of his hands in a couple of spots were his claws had penetrated his own skin. "Perfect," he said sarcastically while scanning the fair grounds. Soon his sight fell on what appeared to be a medical tent. They're bound to have something that can clean this up, he thought to himself. And with that, he began his stride.

Eukary Campus - Winter Festival
Interaction:

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After having left Corrie near the various booths of the science section of the fair, Zaina returned to the various sports and physical activity booths, finding one that was having some form of arm wrestling contest that Zaina immediately entered easily working her way through a bunch of other competitors. Either through her physical prowess,causing a few to flop out of their chairs as their hand slammed into the table, or by intimidation causing forfeits of her opponent. She had drew somewhat a crowd while doing this from curious on watchers, to various defeated opponents waiting to see who came out on top. Her current opponent was a rather large grizzly bear, an opponent that was starting to actually make Zaina work for her win as they both seemed in a stalemate while neither budged.

Their hands swayed in one direction and the other as each tested their might against the other, seeing how would falter first. Both focused on concentration. What were a few seconds felt like minutes as they remained in their stalemate with no winner in sight. Zaina while having a bit of a challenge with her opponent was waiting to see him crack, and soon had her show as the bear gave a slight growl and huff, the littlest of hints of his strength weakened. This was her moment and she took it.

With a roar she pushed, a crazed glint in her eye as she smirked with all her teeth showing as she used all her strength to push back against her opponents arm. The bear faltered not expecting the sudden attack as he struggled to keep his hand from hitting the table, barely above it while trying to push back against Zaina's strength, both growling. Once more at a stalemate though the bear was only prolonging the inevitable. This was a war he could not win now as Zaina kept the pressure. He fought back valiantly but eventually it was to much as his hand hit the table with an audible thud, lightly panting with a slight groan of disappointment while Zaina threw her hands into the air and madly cackled with triumph.

"So who's next to try and dethrone the Matriach?"

Percival
Location: Winter Festival
Mentions: None
Interactions: Open

Percival waited in the line, which was slowly inching forward. He stuck a pair of earbuds into his floppy ears and went back to thinking about nothing in particular. He was sandwiched between two other animals he didn’t recognize, but they were both taller than him. Occasionally, he was unexpectedly jostled forward, but eventually, he finally made it to the front. The goat would then order a sugary, caffeinated drink that looked far too large for him to consume. By the time he was walking to where he thought Fenzi’s open-mic club tent was, he was in the process of making a pretty good dent in it.

Meanwhile, Fenzi had found her booth without a hitch. She fist-bumped one of the club members, a red squirrel, who was seated at the front. The rabbit then focused her attention on a stack of flyers to hand out to passersby. They were currently resting on her keyboard, so she grabbed them and skimmed over their message. Unfortunately, the flyers were printed on a light yellow paper that she thought looked butt-ugly, but there wasn’t anything she could do about it.

When she looked up again, Fenzi was face to face with Perci. Though she was a bit irritated with him, she really felt no need to continue any argument. She handed the goat half of the stack of papers and he took them, a bit perplexed.

“Could you hand these out? Thanks,” Fenzi requested.

Perci took the flyers and nodded, not verbally answering because he had a straw shoved between his lips and a mouthful of coffee. He honestly didn’t want to go around and talk to strangers, but at the same time, he could feel a tense atmosphere while around Fenzi. Whatever. He was still too sleepy to care too much. The caffeine hadn’t kicked in yet. Plus, it'd get her off his back. With the papers tucked beneath his arm, he turned the corner and trotted off.

Zelda
Location: Winter Festival
Mentions: Zaina, @Argetlam350

Zelda finally got to the front of the line and paid admission. She felt much better around the joyous atmosphere of the festival; it was a nice change of pace from the chaos of the black market. Puffing out her feathers from the morning chill, she began to make her way down the rows of booths and games. Many were still being set up, but we're still interesting to look at nonetheless. She passed a tired-looking goat handing out flyers- curious, she picked one up.

The flyer was about a school club. Zelda, not being a student, wouldn't really be able to join. A club sounded fun- college sounded fun, but she couldn't do that right now… Though, something else on the page caught her eye. There was a concert this afternoon hosted by them in collaboration with the music club! She would like to stick around and watch that- the sudden sounds of animals hooting and hollering grabbed her attention. Zelda, now very curious, took in the scene of a group of larger animals crowding a table in a booth. She took a few steps forward, just in time to catch the scene of Zaina winning an arm wrestle against a grizzly. Impressive.

“I’ll try!” Zelda squawked while raising her taloned hand. Her tone was cheery and she approached the Hyena.

Taurus Altobelli, The Winter Carnival
Interactions: August Weiss, Melanie Rose Pourri

Taurus tucked his handkerchief back into his pocket without fuss; it was what they were made for after all.

”Taurus Altobelli, it’s an absolute pleasure to meet you, Miss Melanie.” He introduced himself, beaming down at the young skunk. He raised up to his feet again, casting a quick glance over at August as Melanie made to leave. ”Wait a moment, let us escort you. Wouldn’t want you falling victim to more cables now.” He chuckled softly, noticing the nervous looks the skunk was giving to her surroundings and he couldn’t say he blamed her.

He was glad he had his height as an advantage at least.

He unwrapped the scarf from his neck and folded it twice before draping it around Melanie’s shoulders. He would have offered his coat but it would have all but swallowed her. ”Lead the way, it’s just up ahead I believe.” He smiled, reaching out to briefly rest a hand on the small of August’s back.

”Coming?” He asked his companion, tilting his head slightly. ”I’ll find you something to eat soon, I’m sure there’s something up ahead here anyway.” He gave August an apologetic smile, having gotten quite sidetracked from their original plans.

Melanie Rose Pourri

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The Eukary Quad, Winter Carnival Club Booths, 9:05AM.
Interacting with @GreysonEA, @vertigh0st, and @Dark Cloud.

After a few anxious glances this way and that, Melanie started off towards the medicine tent with her arms wrapped tight around her shivering, icy body. She stared down at the ttampled snow as she walked away, partly looking out for more trip hazards, but mostly lost in her thoughts. Was she being paranoid? Maybe a lot of humans just looked angry all the time. After all, Mel used to be afraid of predators--and she was still a little bit, to be honest--but Nolan had proven how good and kind they should be. She was just being speciest. An awful, awful, speciest. She was just as bad as the human who made that club brocure. Melanie hugged herself tighter, fighting back tears. She couldn't help hating herself for the way she felt, and wished Nolan was here to look out for her.

Melanie hadn't got far when someone spoke up, offering to escort her. The girl stopped in her tracks and began to cry, overwhelmed with feelings of undeserving. She buried her face in her paws to hide and stifle her sobs, and was surprised to feel something warm and soft drape over her shoulders like a shawl. Her sobs slowed to a sniffle and she smiled gtatefully, looking over her shoulder at the gentleman bull standing behind her, and his companion. "Th-thank you, T-taurus... " Melanie managed between sniffles. Between the large bull and his canine companion, she would surely be safe from any ill-intended humans.

Regaining her composure, the girl looked sadly to the cat, who seemed to be busily and angrily wiping at the stain on his clothes, too busy stewing to respond to anything or anybody around him. He probably was not coming with them. [Color=pink]"I'm so sorry..."[/pink] Melanie apologize, with her snout shamefully pointed toward the ground. A few seconds later she looked back at the pair of nice upperclassmen boys, then started back on her way.

The medicine tent was only a couple minutes away, close to the fields where the races and other activities were being held. It was a fairly large white tent, built big enough to encompass even elephants and giraffes if needed. A red plus sign was made with red duct tape was on the front door flap. Melanie pushed through with one paw outstretched and the flap fell down behind her.

The tent opened into what appeared to be waiting room of sorts. The floor was tarped
and a small space heater was in one corner. "He-hello?" Melanie asked, not seeing anybody around. She heard hushed voices and rustling behind one doorflap. "I will be with you in a minute!" a female voice spoke up. Satisfied that someone was here, Mel looked to find a seat and chose a typical middle-sized-animal chair. She lifted herself into it and sat with her boots dangling an inch or so off the floor. Melanie breathed deeply and sighed. The heat felt wonderful.

"Hi, can I help you?" a kangaroo girl asked, as she popped out from behind the flap. She wore blue scrubs with white snowflakes on it, apparently the nurse. Strangely enough, nobody else came out with her.

"Uh, yes, I fell in the snow and ice and I got scraped up..." Melanie explained, showing the nurse her paws, which were swollen red and bleeding slightly.

"Oh my! Let's get those paws disinfected right away. Did your friends get hurt as well?" the kangaroo asked, sounding almost hopeful as she eyed Taurus.

"No, um, they just came for e-emotional sup-p-port," Melanie explained, scratching her ear and feeling a little embarrassed about it. She got up from her chair and turned towards her new companions.

"Thank you for bringing me here, guys... August and Taurus... I should be fine now. You can get back to-to the festival if you want. And oh, here, your scarf...Thank you for letting me borrow it, Taurus. Sorry it's a little damp now," Melanie apologized, smiling bashfully and offering up the large scarf as far as she could reach.

Eukary Campus - Winter Festival
Interaction:@Crystal Amalgam Zelda, the worthy opponent

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Zaina was still basking in her latest victory before a voice rose from the crowd of onlookers to answer her previous challenge. Zaina looked over to see a rather similar size bearded vulture who was enthusiastic and making their way to her. Zaina smiled a toothy grin, a cackle escaping from her mouth involuntarily from her excitement from a worthy opponent. The bear had been tough but still Zaina was certain of her strategy against him while this new opponent seemed more evenly matched to her own strength making her jittery in anticipation for such a feat of friendly competition with them. A final challenge to end it all that would make it all the more memorable, win or lose.

"Ah finally a worthy opponent, this battle shall be grand!" She exclaimed returning to the table, getting her arm in position while waiting for her opponent's talons to grab her paw. While waiting to start Zaina idly started to chat the rather eye catching bird.

"Never seen you around. New here?" She asked though soon someone off to the side acting as referee shouted go and the battle begun, with neither side seemingly moving, Zaina continuing to chat ",I'm certain I would remember if I had seen you around. Few avians around that match my size, outside of condors."