Hello, Zen here.

Well, I'll keep it nice and short, or at least as short as I can.

As some may be aware, I have tried to start up a small series of RPs evolving a comical bunch of rodents and other creatures working to help and save the weak and prayed on. Feral Friends was initially what it was dubbed and I tried my hardest to get it off the ground.

Website here... http://s2.webstarts.com/feralfriends/

Zen stretches a bit as he trots along, hardly managing to stay up right on his hind legs. "Wow.. falln' down those stairs did a number on me.. Things are still blurry... bleh!" Of course, he was talking to Belumine who he hoped was walking with him! "Mmm... Ok, let's see... I remember now, we still have that tour to finish and... the mess hall is liter.. er.. ally... a mess, yes!" Of course, they still had a small distance to go before they actually got to the colony, but planning how to break in always gave Zen a thrill!

Belumine trods along behind Zen, on all fours and still very wobbly. "Mrff. Yessa... My headstill swimminaround..." he mutters in reply, swaying this way and that as he shakes his head vigorously. "I saw some biiiig mousies chasin' us out. Yous think they're mad at us for all the fun we caused? I didn't gets tah eat to much at all, either... still huuuungry!" He sniffs the air hopefully, trying to pick up the scent of any nearby nourishment. "Aww yeah...we didn't gets to see that one evil place they told us about." He 'hrmms' for a second, thinking through his haze. "Soooo...hows we gonna get back in?"

Timothy keeps up as best he can with his crutch, though he seems to lag behind the others. He's starting to wonder if it might be better if he got on all fours and favored his lame leg instead. "Wh... hey, wait up," he calls.

"Ok now... I believe this here, is the dining hall. That's where all the rats and other rodents come to eat..." Zen smiled as he lead his mousie friend, Belumine through the colony. Of course, Zen knew he wasn't supposed to bring friends into the colony but... they never said anything about feral friends! "Heh, if you ask me, this is the best place in the whole colony! Now... I say we snag a bite to eat real quick, then check out the evil room... It's where you go if you get hurt... They force you to lay down as they poke and prod at you and make you eat or drink the nastiest stuff on the planet!!! Medicine.... OR, you get lucky and they wrap cloth around one of your wounds that you get to chew up later!"

Belumine scampers around behind Zen, randomly licking at objects and walls alike, sniffing and huffing at all the unique scents. "Oooo...good good! I like foods! They have foods here?" he asks, finally looking through the dining hall doors, taking a very big sniff of the air...before falling over backwards. "Oooo.... many many munchies..." He rolls back onto his stomach before standing on his hindpaws a moment. "Wrap cloth arounda wound? How do you lick it then? Es good for chewing, though? Tha's good. Does it taste good, too?" Belumine scampers right up to the Dining Hall door, sniffing wildly all around.

Timothy is already in the Dining hall, apparently well enough to walk with the assistance of a crutch. He's at one of the mouse-sized tables, idly munching on a sandwich for lunch. He smiles when he sees Zen enter, then tilts his head when he sees that he's not alone... and that his friend seems to be the rather curious sort.

Marcavian enters the crowded cafeteria with his usual stride, a few papers in one paw, a tray already balanced upon the other. Today's menu seems to be an assortment of fresh fruit, arranged in slices and, in a display of experimentation, in a few kinds of soups. The councilrat has dispensed with his robes today, having donned a purple vest with white undershirt. He ladles some interesting-looking soup into his bowl, picks up a few slices of apple, and moves on, shifting the papers under his arm. He makes his way to a table at the side of the room, gratefully plopping down in a chair and looking at the door, as if waiting for someone.

Julius enterd the caffeteria walking casualy along. He leaned havily on his cane, a habbit he had to take up since his injury, from a stagg. He wore his usual black tunic, and undeshirt but decded not to ware his cape due to the heat. He gathered himself a tray of fruit, and scanned the caffeteria for a familiar face. He spotted Marcavian, and hobbled over. Sitting down he said, " Ah Marcavian my good chap. How are you?" He noticed the papers and chuckled "It seems the office follows you everyware.Hmm?"

Xavier sits at one of the tables off to the side, his usual spot. Since taking a desk job in the guard house, he's taken up the habit of taking lunch a half hour or so early, to beat the rush, his choice in table keeps him out of the hustle and bustle of those arriving on the hour, allowing him to casually observe as he stabs at the stray food that still remains on his tray. His head raising occasionally as a new person arrives, watching their mannerisms curiously for a source of entertainment.

Cedric enters the dining hall, humming a tune to himself as he grabs a tray and picks out a selection of fruits and nuts for his lunch. He happily picks a table (that happens to be near Julius) and sits down. He sees Julius and another rat he's never seen before there, but he shrugs them off for the time being and starts nibbling on a berry. No point in interrupting their work/meal.

"Oh come on! Quit limping so much already! Back in my day, I swear they made mice stronger than this! Well... then again, they don't make rats like they used to either..." As his voice started to grow louder as he approahced the cafeteria, Zen huffed and puffed a bit as he seemed to be helping another mouse beside him. By the way Zen was walking though, it was obvious he himself was having troubles keeping on two feet! "Almost there Tim.. I.. told you I knew where to get food! You... wanted food, right? Or was it a nurse you wanted... Oh well, food makes people feel bette... yikes!!!" Finding that he had lost his ballence, he wobbles back and forth as... he bumps into table to table, ten eventualy bumps into the table Xavier's sitting at before getting his grounds again!

Timothy squeaks a little and tries to keep up, though his feet don't seem to cooperate very much. Judging by his grin, he doesn't seem to mind too much, though he does seem a little self-conscious having the other mouse doting over him. He chuckles a bit. "No, food is fine," he replies, leaning a bit more heavily against him from the exertion, perhaps causing Zen's imbalance. He shifts a bit to right himself, wincing when he puts a bit too much pressure on his lame leg. Looking up, he blinks and grins when he spots whose table they'd run into. "Hi, Xav," he greets with a smile.

Kaelin mrrfs softly as the injured mouse is placed on his back, blinking a bit as he feels a second form on his back as well. "Mmf. Dunno. Prolly. I'll try." he chatters hyperly, standing back up on all fours once he's satisfied the mice are holding on. The squirrel then blinks, peering up at the sky, "Xan! Stop playing with those mushrooms and get down here! We gotta go! ... Uh.. which way is the big house, again?" he asks, whiskers splaying.

Belumine clasps onto Kaelin, firmly but not uncomfortably so. "Mmm, whatsa fur doin' with mushrooms? He should be ready ta go!" he syas, ears twitching as he looks around. "Zeeeeen? Which way's tha big house? I's dunno the way, does you?" He cranes his head around, the better to look at Zen as his tail swishes back and forth.

Timothy clings a bit tighter, bracing himself for a somewhat bumpy ride... He blinks a little at the question Belumine and Kaelin both ask, looking around at the surrounding forest. His ears splay back a little when he realizes he doesn't really recognize where he is. Still in the valley at least.

Zen's ears perk a bit as he smiles and bites his lip. "That's a good question! We must first find the big house! Erm... Maybe we could ask the colony rats where the big house is? I know how to get there!" He smiles and points in a general direction. "If you go that way and follow the trail, I think you'll eventually end up at some steps and there ya go!" He then looks around for Xan. "Oh, uh... heheh, we don't need mushrooms I'm afraid... Good thinking though!" Turning to Belumine, he nods and smiles at his eagerness. "It shouldn't be -TOO- far from here... and then we'll get Tim back home and... and... then maybe they'll help us with our plan!" Of course, he keeps this plan to himself and in his own mind... "We had better hurry though before some predator or nut fiend shows up..."

Kaelin chitters agreeably as a direction is pointed in, waiting just one last moment for Xan, before twitching his ears and beginning to run as quickly as he can manage without outright bounding in the general direction Zen points in. "Alright alright! Whoo, ooooh! I smell foods!" The squirrel picks up his pace a bit, making for a bit of a bumpy ride for his passengers.

Darting along the game trail, Zen slowed his pace as he sniffed about. Once off the trail, he waved a paw and shouted to the two following behind them. "Hey! Over here... Heheh, here's my burrow." With that, the mouse seemed to disappear, darting into the burrow with his tail quickly following behind. Echoing softly, Zen yet again shouted back. "And don't chew on the pillows!"

Kaelin cautiously bounds along the game trail behind Zen, flicking his tail as he watches Zen disappear inside the burrow ahead. He pokes his head into the burrow entrance shortly after the mouse, his black eyes adjusting to the darkness. "Smells funny in here. Hey, do you like nuts?" he chitters, then blinks a few times, "Uh.. whatsa pillow?" he asks, backing his head out of the narrow entrance with a grunt. "I'mma have to stay out here. Hole too small."

Belumine sprints so fast past the burrow that he must skid to a halt, toppling head-over-heels before gaining his bearing again. He shakes it off, following Kaelin. He nearly runs into the squirrel in his hurry to enter the burrow, having to once again adjust his bearings. "Hey hey, watcha where ya goin'! I gotta get in here!" he says quickly, darting into the burrow a moment later. "Ooo, nice and safe here! Hey, what's that?" he squeaks immediately, pointing at random objects around the room with obvious fascination. "You got some coooool stuffs in here!"

Timothy has been trying to keep himself awake; he doesn't think it'd be a good idea to fall asleep in a stranger's home, kind as he is... and he's a bit worried about the bump to his head he'd gotten earlier. Hearing a bit of commotion outside, his ears perk up; /finally/, he thinks. /Been running out of things to think about.../ Still, he's a bit worried; he doesn't recognize any of the voices.

Zen darted back and forth, looking high and low as he made his way back from the rat colony. He was looking for a specific doctor, but couldn't find her! "Hello? Hey, Abat? Abat the squirrel? Are you here? HELLO!!!! ... Anyone?" Finding himself on his way home, empty handed, Zen felt a bit flustered! An injured mouse, in his burrow, and he can't get him help? Leaning against a tree, he stopped to think and fuss! "Stupid! People can't just stay away from the giant rats that will eat them... Nooo, they have to get hurt by them and... Wait, no, it's the stupid rat's fault! Stupid, stupid, stupid! Why can't rats just eat plants!?! Hello?!? Anyone?"

"Yeah, stupid rats, always tryin' to steal my nuts or eat me or -somethin'-!!" comes a chattering voice above. Kaelin the squirrel bounds head first down the tree Zen is leaning against, stopping just above the mouse's head. "Bad, BAD rats!"

Belumine yawns, throwing a pile of leaves off of himself as he sniffs eagerly at the air, looking for something to sooth his rumbling tummy. He spies a berry bush, sprinting forward to claim one of the delicious contents...before turning his head around to find out what made that shrieking noise! He tumbles headfirst into the bush, squeaking and flailing. "Hey! Wha's the big idea?! Whossa shoutin'?!" He yells, sprinting out of the bush as he puffs his fur. He runs towards both Squirrel and mouse, bouncing up and down. "Who's you? Whatcha doin' makin' me run inta things? Huh? HUH?!"

As every day of the mouse's life has been, Zen was out fending for himself and searching for precious, shiny blue objects! It was like a quest for him, every item he found being a marker of his progress. Sniffing and bounding around, Zen came to a stop. What was this? This certainly was no shiny object and defiantly wasn't food. Turning to face the direction of the running mouse, Zen blinked as he looked to see what the mouse was running from. Keeping low, he side-shuffled into a patch of grass as he looked to find the nearest tree for shelter. "Hey! Over here! Hurry up and get over here!"

Timothy skids, not quite stopping as he hears the slightly quiet voice over his loudly beating heart and panting breaths, altering his trajectory to head towards the voice. The possibility of it being a trap flits across his mind briefly, but he's running out of options, and nearly anything would be better than being eaten by the monster following. Speaking of... Nearly the same instant Timothy reaches the patch of grass, a large, hulking rat with blood on his claws and a crazed, hungry look in his eyes emerges into the clearing, slowing a bit to look around. He sniffs about, ears perking as he listens for the slightest sound.

Well, for those of you curious, I ended up writing out a detailed 'short story' that isn't so short on Zen's past and where he came from... sooo... enjoy. Also, I recommend having a few tissues on paw... o.o

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Characters:Isabella, Albren (As spoofed by Cadmus), Merick, and Benjamin
Location: LVC: Infirmary -- Clinic

Do you want to know what events lead to Merick snapping? Read here! This is the day before the horrible murder of a random rat!

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Isabella is making her rounds, stopping occasionally to look at a patient's chart, and talking with the other doctors and nurses. Marking off a detail on her clipboard, she continues on her way, stopping near an empty exam table as she fills out the last chart.

Albren limped into the Infirmary, a sour look upon his face as he curses under his breath. "Damned rock...need to get rid of all of the flipping things..." he says, lightly stepping on his right leg and wincing as he does. "'Scuse me, don't mean to barge in or anything, but can I get a little help over here?" He makes his way on in.

As if he had something planned for the day, Merick seemed to be following behind Albren loosely as he watched him limp into the Infirmary. Hearing him curseing about a rock brought a smile to his face. What a fool. He makes his way into the Infirmary as he gives Isabella his usual wave. "Good day, Dr. Bradbury. I was just on my way to see how things were going. All is well?" Glancing over at Albren, he smiles softly and offers a paw to help steady him. "If you need a paw, with permision from Dr. Bradbury, I may be able to help you, sir."