non-petting zoo [open]

[Verena Niobe]

Ee-ee~~ eE-eE~~ ee-ee~~ Eet, eet, eet...

it's like forgetting... the words, to your favorite song... you can't believe it, you were always singing along. it was so easy, and the words-- so. sweet. you can't remember... you try to move your feet, it was so easy, and the words so sweet! you can't remember, you try feel the beat--...

The weather was getting worse by the day. The sky was surprisingly bright despite the chill, but the canvas of cerulean was thick with frosty, smears of darker and icier grays. Under normal circumstances, the child would have never come this far into the freezing open. 

She certainly never wanted to come here, to the place with all of the eyes that watched and watched. The ones that judged her for all of her small, precious life. How she longed to be on the other side, with some gentle, loving family. A bittersweet feeling crept into her throat, tingling and scratching at her hoarse lungs. Despite everything, she was there, in her thin cotton shirt, hands tucked in furry folds of unnatural skin. The girl stood in the wind, shivering, staring at the glass wall that seemed to stretch on forever. She had been here once before-- or perhaps, she had dreamed of being there before. She wasn't sure.

The important thing was that she was close. She was sure she had reached the place. She had made it this far, at least. The land where the others were... That is, where the other anthros supposedly were. She hadn't seen any yet, but with the approaching storm, of course not. Any sensible shifter, or anthro, she supposed there was some sort of difference, would be in a nice warm, cozy den. 

It was no use being bitter about that now, of course. She had come to far to be shied away by the peering eyes of the public or the cold. Her ears laid back, small hands into tiny fists, she drew closer to the glass wall. Her teeth were clattering, her bushy tail curled around her waist, she drew close enough to let them all see. If she died from hypothermia, maybe someone would remember, maybe someone would care. 

Glee dared a smile, drawing back her lips, as she tried to make out the visitors, despite the massive barrier-- the people who had come to see her as though she was a zoo animal. Maybe. She could hope that someone would care. 

glee - 353 - open

kagney@adox

["Quick" Taylor]

Quick, Beta of the Fallenring, slunk through the small buildings in Nakoma territory, near the domestic wall. Normally he wouldn’t violate the borders of another group, but this was a special circumstance.

It had all begun early that morning, before the sun had risen. A small group had come in and raided their meager food stores, killing two of the guards posted there. Quick, having arrived on the scene sooner than anyone else, had swiftly taken up the chase. He had been furious that, once again, someone had been bold enough to walk into the Fallenring’s home and kill some of their people. He had ordered a nearby Omega to explain the situation to the Fallen Delta and to have him send a small patrol out to follow Quick, and then head wasted no time in tailing the marauders.

He had initially thought them to be from the Carnaring, since the trail headed directly towards the said Ring’s Waterfront. However, about halfway there, the trail turned abruptly towards the neutral grounds that rested between the three Rings’ lands. That was when he knew he was dealing with a small group of rogues.

Hours into tracking them, he unwittingly caught up to them in Delicate Park. Due to his suppression of his telepathy, he didn’t uncover the ambush waiting for him until a tiger leapt unexpectedly from some nearby bushes. The Beta only managed to escape being gored by the larger cats claws due, ironically, to his enhances physical abilities given to him by the Keepers. In Leopard form, he had leapt lithe lyrics away from the larger feline shifter, and swiftly counter attacked. The ensuing melee was frantic, and difficult for the Leopard shifter, but he came out on top. He left the tiger’s body where it lay, blood from his throat coating Quick’s muzzle, and picked up the scent of the others in the group and tracked them into Natoma territory, up to a small group of buildings near the wall of the dome.

He had searched them and found the stolen food (half eaten, of course), but no sign of the thieves. He searched both floors of the building before seeing a group of three heading from the very building he was in towards the wall and a lone member of the Nakoma. He had cursed loudly to himself as he had shifted back into Leopard form and sprinted after the rogues as quickly as he could. He only hoped head reach them before they harmed the lone anthro. The Nakoma had treated him well and helped him in the past, and he’d be damned if he’d not do his best to return the favor here….

[Verena Niobe]

Ee-ee~~ eE-eE~~ ee-ee~~ Eet, eet, eet...

it's like forgetting... the words, to your favorite song... you can't believe it, you were always singing along. it was so easy, and the words-- so. sweet. you can't remember... you try to move your feet, it was so easy, and the words so sweet! you can't remember, you try feel the beat--...

As soon as the smile began to twitch up on to her expression, the young girl felt an impending sense of dread. The feeling that she was being watched-- and not by the hundreds of eyes just beyond the wall. She was a sitting duck, out in the open, and though she felt the urge to run, she forced it down. Slowly, carefully, she turned, dark auburn eyes searching for the source of her unease.

The girl took a timid step back, gaze searching the buildings in the distance, her heart pounding in her chest. She could feel the glass brush her tail and nearly jumped out of her own skin. She was absolutely frightened, but she had no idea why, a mouse waiting for the stalking cat to pounce. Her only comfort was that whatever or whoever it was couldn't possibly sneak up on her with her back to the wall, but on that same note... She had no where to run.

"W-Who's there?" She managed to dare to call out, ears laid back. She had only gotten this far by luck and she knew it. She had no valuables, and in general came off as relatively harmless, so most could be convinced to just leave her be. For now, she held her ground, hoping that the people she was looking for... The people she wanted to join... Were right around the corner. That they would come out, have a chat, and everything would be fine.

Such a shame that it didn't ever seem to work out that way in the Menagerie.

glee - 263 - open

kagney@adox

["Quick" Taylor]

Three figures emerged from the building nearest Glee, two men and a woman. One of the men had a bow in-hand, arrow nocked and drawn and pointed right at the Anthromorph pressing herself into the wall of the dome. The remaining man and woman, both carrying hatchets, came forward to either side of Glee.

“Well look what we got here,” the man advancing on Glee said with a thick southern accent, a grin on his face , “We got ourselves a tiny little mantramorph girl.”

“Shut up, Donny,” the woman snapped at him with an annoyed look on her face. She was clearly from a different area than the first man who had spoken. She stepped closer to Glee, Donny mirroring her movements on the other side of the anthromorph to prevent her from running away.

“You do what I say, and we won’t hurt you, understand?” the woman told Glee quietly, “give us everything you have on you: food, weapons, extra clothes…all of it.”
*********************************************
Quick covered ground fast in his leopard form and caught up to them just as the woman started demanding everything the anthro had, except the clothes on her back. Quick grimaced and pulled his bow from his back, nocked an arrow to the string, and held it in place with the fingers of his left hand. Then, he pulled out three of his throwing knives, holding one ready to throw and the other two between his fingers. After he had all of his weapons ready, he laid his back against the building he was hiding behind and reached out with his telepathy to touch the mind of the anthro.

Don’t react visibly to this at all. You’re not imagining things, you’re not hearing voices. I have telepathy. I’m a shifter from the Fallenring. I’m here to help. Just play a along with these guys for now. I’ll get rid of them for you soon. Just don’t panic, he told her mentally, in as calming a way he could do it.