New Home at the Petting Zoo
The plot thickens as the animals make their way to a new home.
The petting zoo draft was an exciting day for the dozens of former humans who now live as talking non-anthro animals. Most of the animals were under contract to work at the petting zoo, so they really didn't have much say in the petting zoo closing down. The draft divided them up between the remaining seven franchise locations in the tri-state area.
Everyone said their goodbyes and loaded up in animal trailers for the ride to their new homes. In the back of the trailer, Barnaby the Dik-Dik fiddles his hoove against the buttons on a small radio. He manages to turn it on and goes through the stations. Some spicy latin music comes on and Ricardo the Sea Lion says, "Hey leave it on that!" Ricardo manages to move his body to the music in a semblance of a dance, despite not having legs. The rest of the animals roll their eyes and Jupiter the Sea Lion joins in mimicking his dance moves.
Bill the Striped Hyena walks carefully to the other end of the moving trailer. Popcorn the Binturong and Myra the Civet discuss the subtlety of a Binturong smell. Myra says, "Yeah, you smell like buttered popcorn, but there is an undertone of something to it." Popcorn says, "Humans don't have sensitive enough noses to even detect that, so it doesn't really matter." Bill asks, "You still wipe your urine on people when you climb on them?" Popcorn gives a shy smile and replies, "Maybe. They don't seem to mind the smell." Myra laughs, "You're so naughty."
In the truck, Park Director Swanson looks over to Ian the Maned Wolf in the passenger seat and says, "Those legs of yours just don't quit." Ian replies, "Yeah, I know. All the girls love them." Thomas the African Wild Dog asks from the back seat, "Boss, where are all these extra animals going to sleep? The dorms are almost full." Swanson replies, "Some of you are getting roommates." Ian says, "I don't mind sharing a room with Barnaby and Bill." Swanson nods his head and says, "Sounds reasonable."
Swanson looks in the rearview mirror at Dante the Beaver and Tiffany the Platypus, "What about you two?" Dante says, "In the army, I learned to sleep through anything. I'm not picky." Tiffany says, "You always find a way to mention you were in the army." Dante replies, "I gave my body to this country. I think I deserve the right to mention it." Thomas asks, "Why didn't you get transformed into something more useful and reenlist?" Dante answers, "My son was really into beavers when he was young. He had this beaver stuffed animal that he took everywhere with him. It seemed like a good choice. He loved me even more as his beaver dad. His mother, not so much."
Swanson says, "I know this story, she would have rather you die and collect the insurance money?" Dante says, "No, she just didn't approve of the Non-Feral Animal transformation program and I didn't want to live my life as a permanently disabled human. We divorced soon after." Thomas asks, "How old is your son now?" Dante replies, "He's 19, and attending college." Thomas asks, "How does the marriage law work when someone gets transformed?" Swanson answers, "It greatly favors the human. Why do you think there are so many divorced penniless middle aged animals working at petting zoos?" Dante gives a nod of agreement.
With a laugh Swanson says, "That's why your friend Howard drinks all the time. Poor guy was dropped off at the humane society, by his wife, the same day he became a lynx. They gave me a call and I'm not kidding when I say, he was sitting on a pile of his belongings outside the front door." Ian says, "That's rough. My ex-girlfriend loved me to death when I got changed. She groomed me every day, took me on walks, played with me, and fed me the expensive dog foods."
Dante laughs, "That sounds like she kept you as a pet." Ian shrugs, "Maybe?" Tiffany asks, "Why is she your ex-girlfriend?" Ian replies, "She kept inviting over another wolf for playdates. She hinted that she wanted to get intimate between the three of us. We would hang out, but I didn't want to have an open relationship with her. I could smell him on her when she came home sometimes. She had tried to wash the scent off, but my nose is too powerful." Thomas says, "Ouch! Why does everyone have to have a tragic backstory? I got transformed because I was bored and this job was a easy way for me to move out of my parents house."
Tiffany says, "I got transformed to further scientific research. The university was paying good money to get transformed into obscure animals and participate in testing." Dante says, "Being a labrat? No thanks." Swanson says, "That was very noble of you." Tiffany says, "I used the money to pay off my student loans." Ian replies, "That sounds like circular logic. You became a platypus to pay off student loans but becoming a platypus made getting student loans pointless." Tiffany shakes her duck bill and replies, "You wouldn't understand." Thomas says, "I don't think any of us understand."
Having skimed the employee files of the animals he selected in the draft, Swanson knew they were leaving out key details and bending the truth a little. He stays quiet about it and just let's them chatter to get a feel for their personalities.
Swanson sees a highway sign and says, "Time for a rest break to check on the cargo." The truck and trailer pull off into a rest area. Swanson swings open the trailer's ramp and asks, "How you guys doing in there?" The animals are sitting in a circle and Barnaby says, "Are we there yet?" Swanson says, "Halfway. Stretch your legs in the grass over there." Dante and Tiffany playfully slap tails as they walk together in the grass. Bill says to Thomas, "Can we switch? It's so boring riding in the back with Popcorn and Myra. All they want to do is argue about how things smell." Thomas nods and figures he can survive an hour until they get home.
Myra and Popcorn look at a vending machine. It has a scanner for her microchip, so she rubs against it and calls out the number to order a snack. She grabs the beef jerky and walks off. Popcorn orders a bag of corn nuts and carries it back to the trailer. Barnaby frolics around the grass without a care in the world. Ian darts his eyes around guarding the tiny antelope. Ricardo and Jupiter don't bother getting off the trailer.
At the edge of the wooded area, a fox comes walking out. It's fur is muddy and matted. Ian doesn't see an identification collar and stands his tall maned wolf body in front of Barnaby, Tiffany, and Dante to guard them. The fox holds it's head down and approaches cautiously. Ian says, "That's close enough cousin." The fox replies, "I saw the logo on the trailer. You work for a petting zoo?" Ian replies, "Yes." The fox exclaims, "Please take me with you! My father dumped me here a week ago." The fox breaks down into tears, "He said I was an abomination and if I wanted to be an animal I could live in the wild like one."
Swanson comes out of the restroom and sees the dirty fox talking to Ian. Thomas the African Wild Dog and Swanson walk over. The fox asks, "You're the Boss? I'm Ray, and my asshole father left me out here to die. Please let me come with you!" Swanson looks over the fox and says, "The petting zoo is already pretty full with all these transfers." Ray's eyes go wide, "Please! You don't have to let me work there, but I can't stay here anymore. I just don't know how to live in the wild. Something chases me around at night and I don't have any more money in my account to buy food from the vending machines."
Tears of desperation wet Ray's muzzle as he begs Swanson. Thomas says, "Have a heart. He's been through a lot." Swansons says, "Fine, he's your new roommate." Thomas yelps, "Wait, what?" Swanson reiterates, "If you want to bring home a stray animal. He can live with you." Thomas lowers his ears in defeat. Ray exclaims, "Thank you! Thank you!"
Ray walks towards the trailer and is taken aback by the Sea Lions. He nervously sits down just inside the door and waits. Swanson waves his finger in the air and yells, "Wrap it up everybody." Thomas, Myra, and Barnaby join Ray, Ricardo, Jupiter, and Popcorn in the trailer. Popcorn asks Swanson to open the pack of corn nuts and they are poured into an empty bowl. Swanson lifts the ramp and closes the trailer up.
When Swanson opens the truck's doors, Bill jumps into the front passenger seat and says to Ian, "I was second pick in the draft, so I get to sit up front second." Ian grumbles at Bill's flawless logic as Swanson places Dante and Tiffany in the backseat. Ian jumps up to the seat and lays his long legs across to crowd Dante and Tiffany together in the remaining space.
Swanson starts the truck and pulls out of the rest area. Once back on the highway, Swanson reaches a hand over to pet the long mane on Bill's Striped Hyena back. He asks, "It wasn't that bad back there in the trailer was it?" Bill replies, "Between the spanish music and the bickering. I'm glad to be up front now. How much further until we get to our new home?" Swanson answers, "An hour at most."
Back in the trailer, Ray introduces himself to everyone. Myra looks suspiciously at the fox and asks, "Why did you become a fox if you knew your father wouldn't approve of it?" Ray answers, "I have always felt like I was a fox on the inside. I knew dad would be annoyed with me, but I had no idea he would throw me in a cage, drive to the middle of nowhere, and leave me on the side of the road!" Ricardo asks, "What was your plan for after your transformation? You can't just live with your parents forever." Ray lowers his head and replies, "I had a job in a call center. One of the NFAs that worked there convince me to go get transformed when I saved up enough money for it. I doubt I still have that job after not showing up for a week."
Thomas says, "My parents flipped out about as badly when I joined the petting zoo as an African Wild Dog. What's that line parents always say?" Popcorn answers, "I'm not mad, just disappointed." Thomas nods his head, "That's the one! I don't see what the big deal is? I got a job and moved out, just like they wanted." Myra adds, "Some people think we are a downgrade from being human." Barnaby says, "We are considered less than human. If I went out in the woods and got shot by a hunter, they would only get a slap on the wrist."
Ray gasps and says, "But that's murder!" Barnaby shakes his head and replies, "Do you really expect a hunter to ask consent with his dinner? Maybe they didn't see my collar. Maybe they have bad eyesight and thought I'm just a small deer."
Myra licks Barnaby's neck and teases, "I would eat you right up too. You are cute enough to eat." Barnaby replies, "I got something I could feed you." He gives his hips a few thrusts and his pink cocklet pokes out from his sheath. Myra rubs against Barnaby and raises her tail. Barnaby gives her butt a sniff and looks around to say, "You guys don't mind do you?"
Everyone shrugs and Ray asks, "You two are gonna have sex right here in front of everyone?" Thomas says, "We're animals dude. I flash my butthole in people's selfies all the time. It's no big deal." Barnaby asks, "You didn't become an animal for all the steamy interspecies sex?" Ray looks nervously around, "Well, I mean, I uhh." Popcorn asks, "What's a virgin doing becoming a fox? Everyone knows they have reputations."
Myra exclaims, "We need to pop his cherry!" She looks around and says, "Jupiter only has eyes for Ricardo and I'm busy right now. It's gonna have to be one of the boys." Ray replies, "I'm not gay." Barnaby states, "It's not gay if it's outside your species." Ray asks "It's not?" Barnaby smiles and replies, "No, it's an unwritten rule for animals. With how rare it is to meet someone of the exact same species, you take whatever is available."
Barnaby and Myra walk to one end of the trailer and start sniffing and licking at each other. Barnaby climbs on her back and gives a few good thrusts of his hips before he finds his mark. Ray watches in surprise as Myra and Barnaby start to share an intimate exchange of fluids.
Popcorn licks the corn nuts out of his teeth and says, "I don't mind you being so muddy. I was planning on taking a nice bath when we get home." Ray looks down between his front legs at his erect vulpine cock bobbing with excitement. Popcorn uses a paw to brush off the dried mud from Ray's belly. He gives it a sniff and laps his bearcat tongue up the length of the cock.
Jupiter sees the animals starting to have sex and says to Ricardo, "You know, we could do that too, if you want?" Ricardo barks a laugh and says, "Sweetie, unless you grew a penis since the last time you asked, there isn't anything you can do for a bottom like me." Jupiter growls in sexual frustration as Ricardo waddles over to Thomas and asks, "May I?" Thomas nods and Ricardo reaches his head under the dog's belly. Thomas smiles and pants as Ricardo expertly massages his dog dick. Frustration builds in Jupiter at not being able to have Ricardo. She watches longingly at all the animals except her satisfying their libedos.
In the truck, Bill the Striped Hyena asks, "What you going to do with that Fox?" Swanson answers, "I'll assign him the status of a special guest. He wouldn't actually work at the petting zoo, but he would be eligible to get tips to cover the expenses of staying there." Bill says, "How is that any different from what we're under contract for?" Swanson looks over and answers, "Your salaries are so meager because you receive room and board. He'll have to pay for his own meals with his tip money. Plus, I can eject him from the zoo at the drop of a hat. No paperwork needed when he causes trouble."
Ian the Maned Wolf says, "I like him. Clean him up and he'll look like a tiny version of me." Bill says, "Like we need another you." Dante and Tiffany chuckle. Ian bares his teeth at them to make them quickly shut up.
The trailer is filled with grunts and moans during the impromptu orgy. Thomas grunts and sprays his jizz down Ricardo's throat. Thomas looks over and sees Ray on Popcorn's back vigorously thrusting into the Binturong. Thomas whispers to Ricardo, "Won't that make his dick smell like popcorn?" Ricardo whispers back, "Yeah, we call it getting popcorn dick."
Barnaby has his legs wrapped around Myra and is giving it his best. With a few grunts, he blasts Myra's civet pussy with his seed. He slumps on her back and she asks, "You gonna roll over and take a nap like all men do?" Barnaby can barely talk coherently as he pants. "I just, catch my breath, road motion." Barnaby lays down on his side in exhaustion. Myra rolls her eyes and lets him rest. She walks over to watch Popcorn and Ray.
Ray sees Myra staring at him and says between breaths, "This is hard enough to do without you looking at me." Myra turns around to show Ray her seed covered pussy. She looks back and says, "Just imagine this is what you are thrusting into." Ray locks eyes with the civet's genitals and grunts as he finally forces his knot into Popcorn. With a moan, the fox climaxes into Popcorn's tailhole. Popcorn gives a shudder and is pushed over the edge from the knot pressing all the right buttons inside him. Popcorn pants and says, "I love knots. It's nature's version of BDSM. Ray gives his cock a pull and asks, "I knew this happens with foxes but how long does it last?" Popcorn wiggles his butt and answers, "Depends on how pent up you are."
Ray gives a shudder and Popcorn squeezes his anus. The trailer starts to slow down as it get's off the highway. Ray looks around wildly and says, "Are we almost there? I don't want to be caught like this!" Myra says, "Getting caught is half the fun." Myra walks around back to look at the red dick straining Popcorn's tailhole. She runs her paw across both sets of balls and says, "I wish I had balls some times. They are so much fun to play with." Popcorn says, "Have at it. I'm not going anywhere anytime soon."
With a grin, Myra licks Popcorn's bearcat balls. The stimulation causes Popcorn to squeeze down on Ray. The knot tying them together hardens at every movement. Thomas says, "I can't wait to see the look on Swanson's face when he sees you two like that." Ray starts to pull at his cock and Popcorn says, "Cut it out. It's not coming out any time soon." Ray lays his head down on Popcorn's back in embarrassment as the trailer comes to a stop in the petting zoo parking lot.
All the animals smile as they hear the sound of Swanson walking around the trailer and unlatching the door. Swanson looks at the red fox locked into the bearcat and says, "I should have known you wanted to hitch a ride with us because you were horny." Ray exclaims, "No! It was Myra's idea." Myra shrugs and replies, "I don't know what you are talking about." Thomas, Ricardo, and Barnaby snicker. Popcorn asks, "You got any wet wipes? Because my butthole is going to be leaky." Swanson rolls his eyes and says, "Typical fox."
Bill and Ian look into the trailer. Swanson furrows his brow and says, "Thomas, take the rest of the new employees to the office while I deal with this." Thomas climbs out of the trailer and leads the animals to the office. He holds the door open as they file in. They wait on the stained oriental rug in the lobby. Bill says, "That trailer reeks of sex. He's going to think we are a bunch of sex crazed animals." Barnaby replies, "Wait, we're not?" Bill whispers back, "We are, but can we at least try to pretend like we are model employees until we get settled in?"
After a few minutes, Swanson comes in followed behind by Ray and Popcorn. Swanson points the the corner and says, "Ray, sit facing the corner and think about what you did. I'll deal with you last." Ray trudges over to the corner in shame and sits down. Swanson looks at the stack of folders in his hand and says, "Ian, Bill, and Barnaby. In my office first." The trio look between themselves and sheepishly enter the office.
The new employees are quickly filed in and out of the office as Swanson gets them into the system and decides the room assignments. Ray is the only one left in the lobby as Popcorn waves a paw goodbye at him. Swanson calls Ray into the office and says, "I have to put up with enough horny animals around here. You are a special guest here at the zoo and will work for tips only. Stay out of any more trouble or I'm kicking you to the curb. You can bunk in Thomas's room until you figure out what you want to do with your life. Now hit the showers you filthy fox." Ray bows his head and says, "Thank you so much!" Ray trots through the afternoon zoo and animals laugh at the muddy fox wandering down the path.
In the locker room, Popcorn says to Ray, "Come by my room anytime. I'm always in the mood for a good knotting." Ray gives an embarrassed smile as Karen the park attendant clicks her tongue at the sight of a muddy fox. She points to a tub and says, "You new transfers stopped to roll in the mud on the way here?" Karen starts blasting Ray with the shower sprayer and the dirt dissolves down the drain." Popcorn watches as Karen shampoos Ray's fur.
Ray hasn't been touched so much since he became a fox and to his embarrassment, quickly gets an erection. Karen sees it and says, "That's very flattering but I already have a boyfriend." She ignores it and works the shampoo into his belly and hind legs. She rinses the shampoo out and points to the air jets on the other side of the room. Ray is glad to be clean after that dirty week spent in the woods. Popcorn is quickly washed and joins Ray.
Ray enjoys the attention as Karen brushes his fur. She says, "You are such a cutie fox." She turns to popcorn and asks "But what the heck are you?" Popcorn answers, "A binturong, but you can just call me a bearcat. Got a cup? I'll show you a neat trick." Karen is curious and grabs a paper cup from beside a drinking fountain. She holds the cup out to Popcorn and he grabs it in his mouth. He gently places it on the floor and squats over it. Karen wrinkles her face in disgust as Popcorn lines himself up to start peeing into the cup. The small cup is half way filled and Popcorn carefully steps back. The room is filled with the scent of freshly buttered popcorn.
Karen asks, "Your pee is popcorn flavored?" Popcorn gives a big smile and says, "Yep, that's how I got my name!" Ray gives the cup a sniff and says, "That's interesting, but not really a family friendly trick." Karen is too curious and picks the cup up to give it a closer sniff. Into the locker room walks Shawn. He looks annoyed and asks Karen, "Where's the dolly? I'm not carrying those boxes one by one into the dorms." Karen points to a closet on the other side of the room. Shawn grabs the dolly and walks to the exit.
Karen looks at the cup in her hand and says, "Hey Shawn, you have to try this new flavor of gatorade. She holds out the cup of yellow liquid towards him. He grabs the cup and gives it a sniff. He asks, "Who would want popcorn flavored gatorade?" Karen, Ray, and Popcorns eyes are wide as Shawn brings the cup to his lips. He swallows the liquid in one gulp and says, "That tastes awful. Which means it was full of all the good stuff like electrolytes and shit." He throws the cup in the trash and continues on his way.
The trio can hardly contain themselves as they wait for Shawn to leave the locker room. They laugh hysterically at the prank and Karen says, "We're going to be good friends." Karen spends a few minutes brushing them and sends them on their way.
The dorms are mostly empty since all the animals are out in the zoo. Jacob the park attendant looks at the label of the box he is carrying and matches it to the info on the bulletin board in the common room. He walks down the hall and places the box in a room. He grabs a dry erase marker from his pocket and writes the new animals name on the small whiteboard beside the door. Popcorn looks for his room and sees his name written on the slate below Dave the Coyote. Swanson has warned him that Dave was a half-breed. All the brains of a human with all the manners of an animal. Popcorn lays down on the brand new dog bed. He looks at the well worn one on the other side of the room and wonders what his roommate will be like.
Out in the zoo, Barnaby greets his fellow herbivores. He sees a deer and reindeer sitting in the grass. The reindeer's antlers are both broken off. Barnaby walks up to them and says, "Hi, I'm Barnaby! I just transferred here." Bucky the Whitetail Deer says, "Welcome. I'm Bucky and that's Christmas." Christmas the Reindeer nods at Barnaby and exclaims, "You're the smallest antelope I've ever seen." Barnaby says, "But I'm also the cutest, right?" Christmas smiles and says, "You are pretty cute for your weight class. I bet you would make great prey in the weekly predator hunting games."
Barnaby says, "I love doing those! I have 10 wins under my belt." Bucky says, "If I was that small, I would have nightmares of being stalked through the zoo." Barnaby says, "My best friends are predators. I'm comfortable around them." Christmas says, "I don't think anyone can be comfortable around a thousand pound liger." Barnaby looks around and exclaims, "You have a liger here! I have to meet them."
Dante the Beaver and Tiffany the Platypus look out over the pond at the crocodile and alligator. Dante calls out to them. "Hello?" The reptiles swim over and introductions are exchanged. Roy the Alligator says, "We lucked out. I sure as hell didn't want to share our pond with a hippo or sea lion." Tiffany replies, "Sorry, the sea lions are a bit slow and will be along shortly." Alex the Crocodile says, "God dammit!" Dante quickly says, "Don't worry, Swanson is making plans to expand the pond." Roy's interest is peeked, "Expand the pond? Nice!" Alex bumps against Roy and says, "Maybe we can get some fish in here too?"
Myra the Civet follows her nose around the Zoo and finds the alley behind the maintenance building. She smells the dried jizz on the ground to get the scent of the animals that were down to fuck. She walks off to match up the scents and make new best friends.
Bill the Striped Hyena and Ian the Maned Wolf see a hyena couple and introduce themselves. Cody the Spotted Hyena and his Russian wife Belka are quite the sight to behold. The larger female is covered in scars on her right side and her right leg and eye are missing. Cody says, "It's nice to have other hyenas around." Belka says in her russian accent, "Tall fox very good looking."
Being so tall, Ian is hardly ever intimidated. The sight of Belka frightens him as he stares at her eyepatch and prosthetic leg. Ian replies, "Thank you." Bill asks, "Any other 'yenas round here?" Cody shakes his head and answers, "No, but we do have an Arctic Wolf you should watch out for." Belka looks at Cody and says, "Ivan such cute puppy but his Dedushka not so much." Cody rolls his eyes and says, "Fine, I'll admit Ivan is adorable, but just watch out for his grandpa."
Ricardo and Jupiter slowly waddle through the petting zoo. People constantly stop them to take pictures and pet them. Jupiter stays close to Ricardo and tries to handle the attention. They finally make it to the small pond and look at it in disappointment. Ricardo slides in and says, "Swanson said it would take a few days before the pond is expanded so we should make do with this." Jupiter looks at the pond and freezes when she sees the gator and croc watching them. Ricardo says, "They aren't feral. There is nothing in here that can hurt you." Jupiter looks at Ricardo in panic and asks, "Can you just check everything out for me first?" Ricardo swims over the reptiles and they exchange introductions.
Leaning in close, Ricardo whispers, "Please give her some space. She had a very traumatic experience in the ocean and has anxiety about swimming." Alex the Crocodile looks at the nervous sea lion on the shore and says, "C'mon Roy, let's go see if we can convince a bird to pick our teeth clean like on those nature documentaries." The croc and gator climb up the shore to go on a walk.
With relief, Jupiter slides in the water. She wishes this was a swimming pool with 100% visibility. After a few test laps she is flying through the water. Ricardo follows her through the water and they playfully take turns chasing each other.
Myra the Civet see a White Wolf watch a human hold a puppy. She walks behind them and gives the wolf a few sniffs on his balls. With a smile she says, "You must be Sugar? The one who's in charge around here." Sugar looks behind him at the cat and says, "Damn right I am! Who are you?" Myra sits down and holds out a paw for a shake, "Myra the Civet, I arrived with all the transfers today." Sugar glances at the human holding his grandson, Ivan, and says, "Times up." The man holding the puppy looks disappointed and sets Ivan down. Sugar says, "Let's go get a drink and you can tell me all about the transfers."
Philthy the Polar Bear lays in the grass of the limited touching section. The black claw scars covering his head, chest, and front legs contrast sharply against his white fur. Tyler the Tapir and Ling-Ling the Panda sit in front of him and argue. Tyler says, "I've known him longer than you so, I'm his boyfriend." Ling-Ling replies, "Well he takes me out on dates. So I'm his girlfriend." Tyler defends, "He only takes you out on dates so people won't know how gay he is for me."
With a growl, Philthy says, "I'm not gay." Tyler nuzzles up to his shoulder and replies, "Of course you're not, snuggle bear. I'm the gay one in this relationship." Ling-Ling snuggles up to the other side of Philthy and says, "He's my snuggle bear." Tyler and Ling-Ling glare at each other.
A guest starts leaning on the fence taking pictures of the three of them with an expensive looking camera. Tyler and Ling-Ling quickly put on their fake smiles. Philthy lays his head down on his paw and closes his eyes to finish the nap that was interrupted by the argument.
Ray the Red Fox walks around the park meeting the animals and bends the truth to tell them he was a transfer. He is sullen about not being able to go back to his old life. His father dropped him off on the side of the highway and said all Ray's possessions would be promptly put beside the curb with a 'free' sign on it. Ray growls at not being able to convince anyone to stop and give him a ride home to prevent that.
There was no point on trying to go home the next day. Being free from his home and worldly possessions truly made Ray feel like an animal. He didn't own anything besides the microchip in his neck. His father was even petty enough to take his identification collar. He walked beside the highway until he came to that rest stop. He had spent all his savings on getting transformed so he tried to live off the land and hunt for his food, but he didn't know the first thing about how real foxes did that. He ended up begging for scraps from the cars that stopped there.
There was a trucker that offered to take Ray with him in exchange for being his pet, but Ray wasn't desperate enough for that. The next few days were rainy and miserable. When he saw the animals get out of the trailer, he knew he had to go with them. Ray smiles to himself as he thinks about how things have turned out from that point.
He see a grey raptor with pink feathers and runs up to it in excitement, "Hi I'm Ray! You're Scotty the Raptor!" Scotty looks down at the fox and replies, "That's me. You looking for an autograph?" Ray sadly looks at his paws and says, "I wish I even owned any paper." Scotty reaches his arm down and pets Ray on the head. Ray looks up and says, "You're so cool and I'm just a nobody." Scotty flippantly replies, "Then make yourself somebody." A group of screaming kids suddenly swarm Scotty while ignoring Ray. The fox trudges away from the excitement and thinks about about Scotty advice.
The sun starts to set and all the transfers meet up to eat dinner in the cafeteria. They sit around the low table and talk about the experiences they had today. They finish eating and Myra says, "If anyone wants to make some extra money, talk to Spotty the Leopard about signing up for the 'anything goes' petting sessions behind the maintenance building." Ian the Maned Wolf says, "Gross." Ray asks, "Do you mean what I think you mean?" Barnaby the Dik-Dik says, "Getting felt up by a pervert can be a fun time. Sometimes they don't even want to finger you." Tiffany the Platypus says, "I let people pick me up and touch me everywhere for free. You telling me I should start charging for it?" Myra replies, "I think that has more of a scientific curiosity to it than a sexual one."
Popcorn the Bearcat says to Ray, "There are some weirdos out there. I once had a guy want me to spank him with my tail." Myra laughs and says, "Dante, your beaver tail would have been perfect for that." Dante replies, "I'm with Ian on this. No thanks." Bill the Striped Hyena says, "I once had a guy pay me to bite him on the shoulder. He came back a few months later and showed me the wicked scar I left." Ray says, "Gross! All that blood right in your mouth?" Bill shrugs and says, "I'm a hyena. I could eat a rotten steak out of a grocery store dumpster and be just fine. A little blood isn't going to cross the species gap and hurt me."
Barnaby says, "That's a pretty specific example." Bill darts his eyes around and replies, "I wouldn't know anything about that." Ray wonders what it takes to become indifferent to human standards. He noticed some animals acted more animal than others. He doesn't think he could ever bring himself to eat a live animal raw.
Bill tries to change the subject by asking, "Where's Ricardo and Jupiter?" Myra shows her fangs in a smile and replies, "Ricardo couldn't wait to sign up for the petting sessions and Jupiter always wants to watch while lusting after him." Ian asks, "When is she gonna learn that although they are the same species, Ricardo just isn't into women?" Popcorn says, "I heard one time, he got so drunk he turned straight. He regrets it everyday since."
Dante asks, "Speaking of flamboyantly gay, have you seen the Tapir prancing around the zoo?" A few animals nod. Dante continues, "I overheard that he is in a love triangle with that nazi polar bear." Ray exclaims, "The one covered in scars?" Dante nods his head. Bill says, "These animals are just as weird as our old co-workers. I talked to an Anaconda that gets his kicks from BDSM. He offered to give me an extended hug." Popcorn makes a mental note to find that snake tomorrow.
Myra yawns and says, "Let me know any more juicy gossip. The more we know about these animals the better informed we can be about who to be friends with." Tiffany says, "I got one! Did you know the kangaroo carries a brown rabbit around in her pouch all day?" Myra says, "That's kind of weird." Ian says, "That seems kind of harmless." Dante says, "I've always been curious about what the inside of a Kangaroo's pouch looks like." Tiffany teases, "Maybe you should ask her for a turn." The animals all chuckle as Dante gets a bit embarrassed at the thought of being babied like that. The animals gossip for a few more minutes before deciding to go to their rooms.
In the dorms, Barnaby, Bill, and Ian look in the boxes of their stuff. Bill asks, "How do we divide this room three ways?" Ian suggests, "How about we each get a corner of the room?" Barnaby slides his small dog bed to the corner closest to the door and says, "Works for me."
Popcorn lays in his bed and stares at the pictures Dave the Coyote has on the wall. He drifts off to sleep and is woken up by a nose pressed against his sheath. Popcorn kicks a leg and hits the intruder in the head. Dave yips and says, "Sorry, I couldn't help myself! You smell just like popcorn down there. Is that how you got your name?" Popcorn looks at the coyote with annoyance and replies, "Yes." Dave smiles and replies, "I knew it! I have such a great sense of smell. Did you want to smell me back?" Dave turns around and lifts his tail. Popcorn stares at the coyote's balls for a second and answers, "Maybe later, I'm kind of tired."
With a nod of his head, Dave says, "Me too." Dave lays down with Popcorn and presses his side to him. Dave says, "Goodnight roomie." Popcorn rolls his eyes at the half-breeds complete misunderstanding of personal space. Not wanting to make a big deal about it, Popcorn presses against Dave and gets comfortable.
Myra looks around her dorm room at Howard the Lynx and Jerry the Bobcat. They lay in their beds and look back at her. Myra looks at the litter box in the corner and says, "Why do you have one of those?" Jerry replies, "It's convenient. The bathroom is all the way at the end of the hall." Howard says, "It also works great for puking." Myra lays down on her bed and says, "As long as your not taking a loud diarrhea in the middle of the night, I guess I can live with that." Jerry points to the jug of cat litter next to it and says, "We buy the expensive odor neutralizing stuff. If you want to use it, you need to chip in for litter and housekeeping."
Dante and Tiffany share a room with Curtis the Skunk. Curtis exchanges introductions with them. Dante sniffs the air and says, "When we were told we would share a room with a skunk I had misgivings." Curtis replies, "Yes I know. Everyone thinks I'm going to smell bad. I get enough of that from the guests." Tiffany asks, "We're not going to have to worry about accidents are we?" Curtis sighs and answers, "No." Dante sits on his bed and says, "Good then."
The sea lions, Jupiter and Ricardo were lucky enough to get assigned a room to themselves.
Ray the Red Fox sits in the corner of Thomas's room and looks at the only dog bed. Thomas says, "I don't think a bed is included in your welcome package." Ray looks at a rug and says, "It beat sleeping outside, I guess." Thomas tries to cheer Ray up, "I'm sure you will be able to collect enough tips to afford something to sleep on by tomorrow night." Thomas settles into his dog bed and Ray lays on the rug.
Outside the dorms a howl can be heard and Thomas says, "Don't mind Ivan. His mom insists that he practice for a few minutes every night. You can go join them if you want." Ray still has too many inhibitions to act like an animal and lays his head down to come up with ideas of how to earn tips tomorrow.