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In his earlier days Howler travelled with the team and attended most every road game but its appeal had diminished over the seasons since he wasn't required to do so and now he mainly stuck to a few big rivalry games or throwback events from time to time. For this reason he was somewhat hesitant to take up Sharkie on an offer to come to the upcoming game that had his Coyotes visiting the Sharks.

It had been a few weeks since their hanging out but they had kept in touch, swapping numbers before Sharkie had left. Often times it was just Sharkie sending a goofy picture. Howler was overly amused by the one set of pictures of Sharkie being a nuisance at a charity golfing event. There were also the playful jabs over social media about whose team was better and the more common back and forth between rivals. This most recent text though was different, it read, "Hey you should really hit the road and come to the game on Saturday. I've got something really cool I want you to see, I think you'll like it."

Initially he immediately assumed it was mascot related and Sharkie was going to do something crazy. His mind then quickly wandered to the darker side and wondered if what the shark meant was he wanted to show off his naked body. Howler imagined him slowly stripping down to nothing in a private show. "Yeah I probably would like that" he thought to himself as a wandering paw made its way downward and began to rub his hardening shaft through his shorts. He was 99% certain that was not what Sharkie meant but he liked the visual anyway. He sent a reply that he'd think about it and was quickly responded to with, "Please?! It's kind of a big deal, would mean a lot to me. If you guys win I'll even buy dinner!" He pondered and answered,

"Ok, but only because there might be free food."

"Haha, coyotes, always thinking with their stomachs! I'll see you then!" Howler sighed as he looked down at the tent he was now sporting and mumbled to himself, "Yeah, my stomach."

He made his way over to his bed and tugged his shorts off so he could take care of himself, in his newest fantasy Sharkie was making use of both ends of the coyote; after a few minutes of pawing Howler grunted as he came over his chest. He grabbed a towel and as he was wiping the seed from his fur he argued internally.

"Why do I do this to myself, what is it about that stupid shark? I've already got something good going on here with Emma. I can't date a guy anyway...how do I even know Sharkie swings that way?" He picked up his phone and stared at it, thinking about texting back and cancelling, making up some excuse about conflicting events. He didn't need his life any more complicated than it already was. "But it would be rude to back out now, plus he did say it was important to him." He sighed. "I guess I'll see what happens."

"Man, I'm with James on this one, busses are the worst. Why couldn't we just fly there?" Over the long bus ride the canine tried to get comfy, he was squirming in his seat as they entered the town. He peered out the window as the bus drove past the Sharks' arena on their way to the hotel, eyeing the iconic giant geometric framework windows at the front of the building. "Man I haven't been here in forever, I forgot how cool their place looked."

After checking into the hotel the team dispersed to their rooms, most getting ready to head out to an early afternoon practice before the late game but Howler didn't really have any obligations until later so he turned on the tv and plopped on the bed to chill for a bit. He decided to get comfy by kicking off his pants and sprawling out on the bed, and as it were with the stereotype of hotel rooms, his mind couldn't help but wander to thoughts of the shark again; what if after the game Sharkie ended up coming back to the hotel with him? The coyote wondered how long it would take before his pants came off and would be bent over the bed taking it from the studly shark.

He shook his head and rubbed his eyes as he argued with himself, "no that's not why you're here. You're only here to be a good friend. Why would he even be interested in a canine? Why am I so interested in a big dumb fish?" He sighed and quickly turned the tv off and put his pants right back on, he decided that he needed to go for a walk. He hoped the change of scenery would help clear his mind.

The weather was great out, slightly cooler than he was used to in Arizona but he certainly wasn't complaining. The big change for him was the constant scent of the ocean in the air, definitely not something he was used to in recent years, but it brought back memories of his childhood when his parents would take him and his sister on vacations to the Gulf of Mexico. The same parents that had always urged him to find another coyote to settle down with, which he always found odd and questioned them about, why would it have to be one of his own?

What he never questioned was his parents' imperativeness that he could only date girls. That made sense to his younger self since most every guy he knew had a female counterpart at some point. He didn't find girls unattractive he just didn't seem to get that need and connection that other guys his age talked about, particularly in high school. That's where his first girlfriend came from, upon being called cute by one of his female pals he figured this would be a good a reason as any to have a girl of his own.

Their first kiss was nothing special, not to him anyways, he didn't feel "sparks" as it was described to him. He liked her company but she clearly wanted more and he couldn't keep up. That was his only relationship for a while until he got into the mascot business. He met a girl who was really into him but it was short-lived as she turned out to only be attracted to the sports side of him and once she realized he wasn't actually going to get the same fame as a star player she was gone.

Emma he had been with for well over a year now, almost two. Met her at a charity auction for the team. Something about her silky white fur and gold eyes really struck him, he wondered if that was the connection he'd been hearing about. Turned out she liked what she saw, too, and they hit it off pretty well. The fact that she was a feline though was a tough sell to his father who valued a more traditional pairing but eased up eventually. She didn't want to go too fast with the relationship which was great because Howler wasn't sure how a relationship was supposed to go in the first place.

The best way he could describe her was like a really awesome friend but the more he pondered it now he wondered if this was going the same direction as his first dating attempt. In recent months she had definitely been trying to be more open and intimate to move their relationship ahead and while he certainly didn't object to the attention it was just hard for him to "put out" as it were.

He liked her but had never felt truly aroused in her presence. She was terribly understanding and willing to just chalk it up to inexperience. He used to wonder if it was something wrong on his end but only recently was he starting to put puzzle pieces in place considering the way he would feel just thinking about that shark and how turned-on he could get. He certainly wasn't broken down there; the amount of times he had pawed off recently would attest to that but he could only do that with Sharkie on his mind.

Howler thought back to when he was younger and noticed that he'd rather sneak peeks at guys packages rather than oggle at pairs of breasts or other such feminine features. He had never really thought anything of it until now. That couldn't be why none of his relationships had worked, right? If he was really into guys he should have noticed it sooner, right? This walk really wasn't helping him clear his head, he was more conflicted now than when he left. Part of him just wanted to slink back home, he pulled out his phone and thought about sending a message to Sharkie that something happened and he couldn't make the trip and as if on cue a text popped up,

"Hey I saw some of your 'Yotes on the ice practicing, did you make the trip?" Sharkie didn't know yet, this was his chance to back out.

"Yeah I'm here, exploring around the hotel."

"Awesome. I've got a couple of engagements before the game so I won't really be free until it's over. But if you're hungry there should be a place near the hotel called Traci's Diner, order the mac & cheese bacon burger. It's not typical fare but you won't be disappointed!"

He put his phone away and sighed and then as his stomach growled he realized he was pretty hungry, he hadn't eaten much on the ride over. "How did that stupid shark know?" Howler took a glance down back the way he came, looking for some kind of signage of this supposed diner and then turned and looked up ahead in the way he was heading originally and sure enough he saw it a few blocks up. "Man I want to just bop him right in his snout...but a burger sounds really good right now."

As gametime neared the general buzz of excitement around the arena had increased; the number of people, the crowd noise, the music, which in and of itself was normal but Howler hadn't been a visiting mascot in a while and was getting himself mentally prepped. He had changed into his game attire and was hanging with the team in the locker room when he felt his phone buzz, it was another message from Sharkie.

"Make sure you're near the ice before the game starts."

"Don't worry, I will be. Good luck with whatever you're planning."

"It's sure to be a high-profile event."

Howler wasn't sure be liked the sound of that. Minutes later he could hear the announcer and saw the lights dim so he made his way out of the tunnel and to the edge of the rink. Spot lights were roaming around the ice and through the crowd until they suddenly clumped together and shot upward highlighting an area in the rafters. Howler could see a figure up there and knew exactly who it was. "You've got to be kidding me..."

The stadium announcer let it be known to everyone else who exactly was up there,

"Aaaaaand now your very own S...J...Sharkie!!" The figure up top could be seen waving down and then slowly leaned forward.

"James, don't you dare." Howler mumbled to himself as he tensed. The whole arena went silent as he stepped off the support beam and fell towards the ice. He was free-falling for a mere second but to Howler it seemed like forever. He clenched his jersey as he watched the elastic strap pull taut and slowed the shark down until he was mere feet above the ice and proceeded to fling him back up a bit before another short drop, after which Sharkie grabbed the line and inverted himself as he dangled above the ice.

The crowd loved it and erupted in cheers while he made exaggerated chomping motions before he righted himself and was lowered the rest of the way to the ice. He unhooked himself from his harness and threw his hands up in excitement as he skated around the logo in the center. After that the usual introductions went on as normal but not even the team got as big of a cheer that night.

Howler's heart was racing and he had decided that after that ordeal he was just going to take it easy for the evening but he replayed the jump in his head and the entertainer side of him was thrilled at how cool it had looked and how much the fans loved it despite how tense he was watching it happen. "I'm actually glad I didn't skip out on this, that was something else." It didn't take more than a few minutes after the game had started before he received another text.

"So?"

"That was definitely nuts. I'll admit, I'm impressed. Scared me half to death though watching you fall."

"Scared watching me fall? Imagine how it felt to be the one doing the falling."

"No thanks."

"Well I'll catch you after the game, have fun. Good luck!"

As hyped as the crowd was after that performance it was unfortunate that the energy didn't transfer into any momentum for the team as they went on to be trounced 5-0 by the Coyotes. Howler stood at the entrance to the ice and congratulated each of his teammates as they came off and then turned and followed them back down the tunnel to the locker room. After a quick shower and a change back into street clothes the canine headed out to the team parking lot where Sharkie said he'd meet him, and sure enough he rolled up right on time. Howler hopped into the passenger side, smirking, not having felt this confident around his rival since before their tussle.

"Hey there, Canis."

"Good evening, James. I do believe someone owes me a dinner."

"Ha, yeah; right to business, I like that. Well good game and all that." He offered a congratulatory fist-bump, Howler reciprocated.

"Sorry your boys couldn't pull it off tonight."

"It happens! A deal's a deal though, I've got a nice place in mind."

"So that stunt was definitely not what I was expecting, though as soon as it was over I remembered you telling me at the coffee shop about wanting to do something like that."

"About doing exactly that!"

"Well it was stunning, I never want to see you do it again." They both shared a laugh. "So where we going?" "You'll see!" It wasn't a long drive, only 10 minutes or so away from downtown to what seemed like a decently built up main street. "A spot! Sweet, there's never street parking around here." They had pulled up and parked in front of a large-windowed restaurant. It looked really fancy and had a name scrawled out above it that Howler could only assume was french and didn't remotely know how to pronounce.

"This place looks...really high end. Maybe a bit much for just a free dinner bet?"

"What? No, that place is trashy. We're heading over here." Sharkie pointed down an alley across the street.

"Ahh, ok, that doesn't seem suspicious at all."

"You gotta trust me. You went to that diner for lunch, yeah? I know all the good under-the-radar joints."

"That burger was actually really good."

"See?" Howler followed him across the street and down the alley and around a corner. Sharkie stopped at a door that looked like all the others in the alley but there was a wooden sign above this one that just read, "P." "This is it, hope you're hungry." With a harsh creak the shark pushed open what looked to be a really heavy wooden door. As they walked into the short hallway Howler was hit by all sorts of wonderful smells and he knew immediately what was in store.

"Pizza?" Howler's tail wagged.

"Yup, but not just any pizza, best pizza place in town." As they walked through a second door into what seemed to be the restaurant itself a bell chimed and a heavyset gator at the bar turned his head at the pair and smirked.

"Teeth!" He exclaimed in a gruff voice.

Sharkie answered, "What's happening, Scales?" The lizard trundled over and gave Sharkie a hug.

"Been a while."

"Yeah the new gig keeps me busy, bud."

"Teeth? Scales?" Inquired the confused canine.

"Well I have teeth." Sharkie grinned to show off his chompers. "And he has scales. Pretty straightforward but he likes his nicknames, gives 'em to all his regulars. As you can see it's not very formal here."

"Ahh, Teeth plus one?" Inquired the gator.

"No, no, not this time. I lost a dinner bet and this was the first place I thought of."

"Hmm, Sharks lose to Coyotes," the gator scratched his chin. "Then you bring a coyote to my shop. I know who you is. I'ma call you Desert Dog."

"I guess that's...technically accurate. But I thought you only gave nicknames to regulars."

"You'll be back, Ah can tell. Now go sit, Ah'll get drinks." The place was empty save for the two mascots and the owner.

"Why's is so empty here if the food here is so good?"

"I suppose it's pretty late for the dinner crowd, it's almost 11. Let's grab that booth." Sharkie grabbed menus from the bar and the pair sat down.

"What was that whole 'plus one' thing?"

"Well over the years I may have taken a couple of first dates here so he probably just assumed anyone new I walk in with is my 'plus one.'"

"Must be good here then to warrant first date status."

"It is! Scales makes everything from scratch; the dough, the sauce, even the pepperoni! I don't want to give too much away but everything here is great." The gator returned and set drinks down on the table.

"Here's yer sodas. Teeth, what'll ya have?"

"It's been a while, let's see...I'm gonna go with-" As the shark was occupied with the order Howler's mind started to ponder things, "so is it normal for him to bring guys here and not women? He didn't specifically say so but that owner didn't seem to bat an eye when he assumed I was with him like that. I'm probably overthinking things here, it's not like I could date him anyway, the Coyotes certainly wouldn't stand for that."

At this point Sharkie had turned to face Howler.

"Look at him with his adorable toothy grin and those blue eyes of his."

"Howler."

"Eyes you could get lost in, look how blue they are, you can almost see his whole personality in them."

"Howler."

"There's no way I'd be able to tell Emma either, 'Hey babe there's this shark guy I want to hook up with.'"

"Canis, hello?" Sharkie was waving a paw at Howler. He blinked and realized suddenly that they were both staring at him. "You alright, bud?" He -had- gotten lost in those eyes after all. His face began to flush red and he quickly threw his menu up in front of his face.

"Yeah, um...I'm fine. I just...was..."

"What chu gonna git, Desert Dog?"

"Um, I'll just go with uhh, the big pepperoni, Sharkie says it's good."

"Teeth is smart, you'll like it." The gator reached in and took the menus away before leaving, suddenly with his shield gone howler tried to turn from the shark so he couldn't see his face, but he was so embarrassed at having been caught staring that even the insides of his ears were heating up as he continued to blush.

"You sure everything's ok?"

"Yeah, yeah. I was just thinking about something work related. My brain got a little preoccupied, sorry."

"It's alright, you were definitely not with us for a moment there. So what do you think so far?"

"Well it's really...what's a good word; rustic, and Mr. Scales there seems really straightforward."

"That's what I love most about it here, no fancy decorations, no snobby servers, just straight up great food." Howler nodded but he folded a paw over the bridge of his nose to keep his blush hidden.

"I hope so, I'm getting pretty hungry now." The pair chatted for a bit, mainly on the topic of more mascot antics but it didn't take very long at all for the pizza to come out which surprised Howler but Sharkie just smirked as the pies were set down in front of them.

"Teeth, Desert Dog; holler if you need somethin' else." Sharkie had already grabbed and folded a slice and his eyes were closed as he chomped into it. He hummed in delight. Howler tilted his head a bit in amusement, wondering if it could be as good as Sharkie was making it seem. He grabbed a slice for himself and bit in; the crust was so soft and chewy, yet at the same time almost crispy and held up the toppings well, then the flavors hit him. Everything seemed so familiar yet so new; the cheese, the sauce, the pepperonis especially. His tail wagged quickly as he finished his slice and went in for another. Sharkie just smirked.

"I've converted another one! I knew you'd like it."

"This beats frozen pizza any day." "Ya think? It's the brick oven he uses, cooks these babies at like 800 degrees. The perfect finish for the perfect pizza.

"Seems he was right, I'll definitely have to come here again." Howler chowed down on another slice.

"So what're your plans after this?"

"Other than going back to the hotel, none."

"I have a proposition for you. Do you drink at all, bud?"

"Um, yeah, from time to time. But I'm really not interested in heading out to a bar." "No, not that. Remember a little while back you posted on Yipper boasting about your Madden skills, that you could beat any challengers? I think it's time to put your money where your muzzle is."

"Man I haven't played in forever. It's tempting though, you should be pretty easy. But how does that involve drinking?"

"Very easily, beers just to have and then shots for every touchdown against."

"Shots of?"

"Rum is my go-to."

"I'm not...opposed to this idea, hard for me to turn down a challenge. Especially one I know I'll win." "Hey, just because you won dinner doesn't mean you'll beat me at everything."

"We'll find out, won't we?"

"Indeed!" The pair finished up their meal and after another hug to the gator they were out the door and on their way to Sharkie's place.