Don't pet them, grab them! [Mingle]

[ourearth]

Date: 25th of July
Characters: Open!

---

I.

In the afternoon on the 25th, a network message alerts the Numbered to the fact that the petting zoo in Moss Manor's Menagerie is facing a major break-out: Someone has torn down the fences, and all the bunnies, sheep, and all the other animals typically found in petting zoos have decided to book it. They are now swarming the manor's grounds.

Due to the staff being nowhere near enough to catch them all, and due to the generally low threat level of the animals that escaped, visitors are asked to help catch them instead of being sent away.

And anyone who just happens to show up and help will be happily welcomed and included in the fort, without any question of who told them that help is needed.


II.

Afterwards, Lady Margaret Camilla Brassant invites everyone onto her patio and offers refreshments - tea, water, little sandwiches, cake and scones with clotted cream and jam. She retires quickly herself, but not before giving a brief speech thanking everyone who helped save the gardens from hungry mouths.

Comments

[spaghettimonster]

IA. Catching flies in your mouth
After checking into the latest message from mysterious voices, Russell throws caution to the wind and rides his scooter up to the Moss Manor Menagerie to check it out. And sure enough, something's gone horribly wrong with the fences. There's animals everywhere, and a mix of staff and random visitors working to herd them back to safety.

Give him a minute to process the fact that this is actually happening. Or don't, and yell at him to get over and help already.

IB. Catching escaped animals
On the plus side, Russell's a young man and reasonably fit. Enough to contribute to the animal wrangling, and even get pressured into helping with the larger and more frightened animals.

II. Catching your breath
Russell takes the invitation for refreshments and seats in the patio, of course. It would be rude to turn the lady down, and besides, he needs to unwind before he goes driving anywhere. Plus there's a few familiar faces in this crowd, like his roommate, and one of his sort-of cousins. Who knew that petting zoos were the sort of place they visit...?

II

[runs]

Kitty has settled down to eat scones. Well, technically she's eating clotted cream and jam with some scone buried under it.

Which has caused her to run out of both spreads rather quickly. "Hey, can go get me the clotted cream over there?" she thus addresses the next best person with long arms, which happens to be Russell. She can't reach the little bowl, but maybe he can...

[spaghettimonster]

The fine dining experience is all in the fine details, and that seems like a little too much clotted cream.

Lucky for Kitty, Russell isn't paying much attention. "Oh, yeah, sure, this?" He stretches those long arms over, nabbing the bowl of clotted cream from under whoever's not paying attention to it, and passes it to her. He does a quick doubletake at the age of the asker, but he's not a stickler for childrens' health, either.

[runs]

But why have a fine dining experience if you can have more of the really tasty stuff?

"Thanks." She starts piling more of the yellow goodness on a scone, but then stops. His voice sounds familiar... She narrows her eyes and just stares at him. It is a very intense staring. "Say something."

[spaghettimonster]

There is that. The usual answer is, other people watching will have Opinions and Whisper about them, and that makes life worse somehow. So the secret is, have the really tasty stuff in private.

"Uh..." Russell stares back at her, nonplussed by her intensity. 'Something?'" Children love hyper-precise rules, don't they?

[runs]

"Say some more. Tell me what you ate yesterday."

She just needs to hear his voice a bit more to really be sure.

IA

[iamnotgod]

Well, speaking of other familiar faces!

Granted, Walter's more running past than running at. Someone's tried to lure a donkey into following him, and has gotten more than they bargained for!

It's surprising how the man can stay ahead of this ass... possibly.

[spaghettimonster]

Honestly, Russell notices that there's a human and donkey charging right by him before recognizing faces. He stumbles back a few steps to get out of their path, and only notices who it is as Walter charges by him.

"What--- Walter?!" he sputters, and jogs after them to call out questions. "Why are you, why is a donkey...?"

Coming here was supposed to reassure him of his sanity, and instead here's his IT tech of a roommate running with asses.

This is exactly what I came here for, thank you. X3

[iamnotgod]

If he hadn't heard Russell, Walter might have just kept running and try to loop around back to the petting zoo - but no.

"Got a call from someone on-site; help me get her turned around!" he calls, still artfully staying out of range.

At least being out in front of the beast means he can't get bucked?

Excellent, I saw the first tag and was "good, good, I can use this"

[spaghettimonster]

"A... call, okay, uh..."

This is still all a little out of his element, but hey - he does have dog-sitting experience. That's something grounded and sane to focus on. Russell draws on those hours, of trying to convince canines who've slipped the leash to let him get close enough to get their collars back on already, and moves around to the other side of the donkey.

"Right, uh, so, if we just... just pressure her, she might try to move away from us, and we can herd her back to the zoo?"

The problem is, if donkeys are anything like dogs, being out in front steal means they can get bit.

What if I had gone with a pony? o3o

[iamnotgod]

"He was- hah! - rather loud. And insistent."

Though he'd at least volunteered relevant information.

"There's got to be something we can use to make her turn to the side!"

Of course, as they speak, the donkey's already taking interest in Russell, and turning towards him.

"UH. If you can't get out in front, stay at her side!"

That is outright half-remembered advice he read somewhere. If Russell can't tell, Walter is panicking.

IB

[warped_replica]

During his time in the gardens, he may very well come across his extended family member. Benjiro is standing just off one central path, looking up from beneath one of the larger trees with a perplexed expression. This will not be an easy task for certain, and his backpack has already been set aside.

Benjiro notices someone near and turns his head. Surprised to see Russell, he actually does a quick double take before he steps back on the path to meet him. “Russell? You’re here too?”

[spaghettimonster]

Russell starts a little at being addressed, much less seeing family, but... Benjiro lives in Moss Manor at least, doesn't he? Maybe he was just in the area. It's not quite so astonishing as running into Walter, or how Russell got here.

The initial shock - seeing that the animals really had gotten loose, that the voice had been right - didn't so much wear off as bury itself for a while. It's like his mind is full of potholes, freshly overturned soil threatening a return to bewildered frozen staring if he trips over them.

"I am! I, well..." He shakes his head, still not sure what to think about it all. "It's... complicated. Anyway, what are you up to?"

[warped_replica]

Complicated is right.

Overcoming the surprise, he notices the hesitation to give any reasoning for his presence. It isn't in Ben to press, but that doesn't preclude the possibility of giving his own hint to see if it gets any recognition from Russell.

Motioning loosely with one hand back towards and up into the tree now behind and to the side of him using two fingers, he'll explain, "I got a frantic sort of call about what was happening. After I got here, I helped with a few animals, but I kept hearing something around here. I came back to investigate and apparently one of the chickens got rather high up in a tree."

[spaghettimonster]

"A 'frantic call'," Russell echoes, grimacing because that sounds worryingly familiar. He's been trying not to think about it, but he's also here because a frantic call. From his microwave.

"Right, right... Did you say a chicken?" Quick to grab the excuse of anything else to talk about, Russell steps closer and follows Ben's gesture to look up into the tree. He peers up, squinting for signs of feathers in the branches. "I didn't know chickens could fly?"

I laughed at the microwave

[warped_replica]

The grimace is noted, but it’s not quite enough to confirm any possibility just yet. At the very least, he has not eliminated the chance that Russell is involved with the numbers.

Matters at hand still requiring attention, he’ll turn to walk with Russell to get to a better place to stand to see the chicken. “Yeah, I was surprised too. They don’t actually fly, but they can use their wings to help jump to branches. Same way some can get on top of chicken coops.” He’ll point it out more directly as he talks.

Then, he speaks to a solution to consult with Russell, “The branch it’s on is too high to bend. I was thinking of climbing up, but if it falls it could get hurt.” It would be feasible to get the chicken to transfer to a long pole, but he has no idea where to find one long enough here. That chicken is high up.

Ib

[dragoonrouge]

In Russell's quest to wrangle animals he will almost certainly come across a blonde, sunglass wearing teenager tugging at the bridal of a particularly stubborn Shetland Pony.

Said teenager would be very grateful for a helpful intervention.

[spaghettimonster]

An intervention she'll have, as Russell brightens at the sight of her challenge. He's just helped with an aggressive donkey and this pony just looks stubbornly stationary, so he feels confident this will be more manageable.

He waves as he approaches, and calls out "do you have any... carrots, or things ponies like to eat?"

[dragoonrouge]

Sadie's head swivelled to get a good look at Russel before she looks back at the pony with a frown.

"I don't I'm afraid, they didn't have any spare feed to give me when I asked and the Digestives I had were sacrificed to the peacocks."

[spaghettimonster]

He slows his approach at her answer, then continues to arc around flanking the pony.

"'Sacrificed'... Uh, what are Digestives?"

Almost any other day, he'd assume she was just using a dramatic turn of phrase, but today's a weird day.

[dragoonrouge]

Sadie takes a moment to squint dubiously at Russell, not that he'd really be able to tell unless he was paying attention to the way he brow furrows slightly and her mouth pulls down at the corners in a small, thoughtful frown.

"They're digestives...you know, the busicuits? Come in red packaging? Oaty? Can have chocolate on them? As for sacrificed...we used them to lure the peacocks."

Post II (As discussed)

[warped_replica]

As everything is winding down and people are dispersing from the patio to head off with most of the refreshments either consumed or spoken for, Benjiro is lingering to one side after having tried to speak to staff for more information. During his time scanning in the crowd, he had confirmed that his cousin was still present, and it is Russell he is waiting for now. As soon as he sees Russell start down the path leading away from the patio, he’ll stand to hurry after him with a brisk walk.

He calls for his attention as he nears, “Russell! Wait up!” Once he manages to come up beside his taller cousin, he slows only somewhat in an effort to match pace. “Sorry, I uh...” he hesitates with a slight frown, “There’s something I wanted to ask you.”

it's time

[spaghettimonster]

Russell's strolling away from the gathering, thinking about spending the evening watching musicals, as he hears Ben calling out.

For a day off, it's been a surprisingly busy one. He'd meant to catch up on some of the mess around the apartment, and had been in the middle of making lunch when that strangeness interrupted... Then all that running around, with chasing and carrying animals. That original microwave meal's probably garbage by now, but he's fed and even has a couple cookies wrapped up in a napkin, so it balances out pretty well. It's almost enough to put the question of how he got here out of mind.

"Did you want a ride?" Russell guesses, glancing up the way where his scooter's parked. "I don't have a spare helmet, but it's only a short distance..."

[warped_replica]

A slight stutter in his pace follows the guess with a catch of one toe on the ground, and Benjiro shakes his head as he waves a hand back and forth in reinforcement of his words, “No, sorry! That’s not what I wanted to ask. I don’t mind walking to the house from here.”

He takes a breath to gather himself, reaching that hand further to hold behind his neck, and asks with some hesitation in his voice, “Do you remember the aurora that showed up a month ago...? I felt weird when I saw it. Like I had been scooped out and my heart pounded louder in the emptiness.” Saying as much is something he can explain away as part of the dizziness that worried their aunts. He goes further however to ask shyly, “...have you ever felt that way?”

[spaghettimonster]

Russell slows as they talk, tilting his head as he listens to Ben's question. The question's not at all what he expected, and he frowns a little from trying to follow the reasoning... And then he remembers back to the aurora, and the frown gets a little pained.

"You know... It's funny you should ask that. I did get sick around then, yes." He rubs a hand to his face, trying to smooth down the frown lines before it gives him a headache. "If I remember right, I missed rehearsal. Kept thinking... Oh, weird things." Strange obsessive thoughts, audio and visual hallucinations. Nothing he's about to admit to anyone, let alone a younger relative. "But, uh, Walter seemed out of it too. I think a gas line must have ruptured nearby."