"I'm Sam," he said to Jack, "Nice to meet you."

"Next time." Jake nods before he and Joey notice the badger.
"Hi there."
"Oh. G'day, new guy!"

"He's Jake; I'm Joey."
"He's Joey; I'm Jake." the twins say simultaneously, pointing at each other and themselves. They pause a moment before trying again.
"I'm Joey; he's Jake."
"I'm Jake; he's Joey." they chorus, again in perfect sync.
"Got it?" they finish together with wide grins.

"Hey." He smiles. "So... can I play with you guys?"

"Sure, the more the merrier," Maria said. "Go ahead and take your first shots"

"All right! Thanks!" He said. He got himself a putter and a ball and took his first shot. The ball rolled down the green and stopped about a foot or so from the hole. "Huh. Not bad for a first shot..."

"way better than my first attempt yeah" Storm nodded

"Thanks!" he smiled. He tried to take another shot. It went to the hole and bounced over it. "Shoot. Missed that."

"So... Is it Met or Maria next?" Joey queries.

(OOC: since Mickey had to drop her RPs due to personal life, I'll be controlling her characters until the end of golfing, then send them home.)

"I think it's actually Delilah, then Tesla," Maria said.
Delilah took her turn and got her ball into the hole.

"Wow, nicely done, looks like i'm the only one not good at this huh?" Storm joked

"FORE!!!"
"Huh?" CLUNK *thump*
"Joey! Are you okay?"
"Ow. What was that?" Joey sits up, rubbing his head, as a sheepish-looking cheetah at the seventeenth hole ducks down behind the bushes.

"Ouch. Are you OK there? That looked like it hurt." He stood by Joey and offered a clawed hand to help him up.

"Hey! Watch where you're swinging!" Sam shouted at the cheetah, trying not to sound rude.

"To be fair, she did yell fore," Maria commented.
"yeah, but this is mini golf. you don't expect to have to beware of flying balls."

Joey climbs unsteadily to his feet with the help of his brother and the badger.
"How many points does she lose for that shot?" he quips.
"Yup, he's fine." Jake rolls his eyes.

"Glad to hear that." The badger smiled. "Who's up next?" he asked.

Tesla looks a bit nervous, watching over towards the seventeenth hole as she rubs her ear. "I-I think it's me," the fox stammers, keeping relatively low as she steps up to the course.

She looks around a few times—her ears also turning to catch what others are doing—to make sure she's not going to get hit with a stray ball. She ends up over-playing this one, the ball rolling over the hole and bouncing off the boundary of the far side of the course. "Well... it was going to happen at some point."

"aw don't worry about it" Storm said , putting a paw on Tesla's shoulder "you still did better than me" she chuckled

"So... Now it's Met and Maria again, right?" Jake asks.

"Excuse me, but when is my turn?" Sam asked.

"You came late so your turn is last," Maria informed.
"Yeah, it's my turn, then Storm," Met said, as he tapped his ball into the hole.

"nice, so er..... I guess it's my turn?" Storm asked "uhm....I'm sorry, where's my ball again?" she laughed sheepishly

"Er, it's that one, isn't it?" Joey asks, pointing with his putter.

"Is it?" Storm asked, unsure as she approaches the ball "did it land here?"

"heheh, maybe we started this confusingly," Met chuckled. "I think most people actually go one ball at a time. But yeah,
I'm pretty sure that's yours."

"Hehe yeah, i'm still a little confused to be honest" Storm smiled sheepishly, then suddenly turns to look behind her
"anyone heard that?"

Tesla steps forward, ears perked up. "Which 'that' specifically? There's a lot to be heard."

"Hear what?" the roos query, standing up straight and ears swivelling as they peer behind Storm. Instinctively they've gone into defensive mode, which for them means ready to run.

"Don't worry, you two," Sam said to the roos, "It's probably nothing...Uh, emphasis on probably." His body showed a little caution with that last remark.

"Umm, no. I didn't hear anything." The badger said, scanning for the sound.

"that's....." Storm muttered as she started walking toward the direction of "the sounds", as if she was suddenly mesmerized
"I could have sworn there were someone calling for help"

"Uh, Joey? Jake?" Sam responded, "I take my last statement back. It's probably something. Who needs help, Storm?"

"If you hear the cry... It's already too late. Keep away or share the fate." Joey recites quietly. It's a concept all prey animals have drummed into them in some form or another - that by the time you hear a creature calling for help the predator will already have made the kill so it's better to save one's own skin than to pursue a forlorn hope and become the next meal.

"Are you sure it's a predator?" Sam replied cautiously to Joey's chant.

"Can't be." Jack replied, a little uncertain. "Carnivore pets know not to attack other pets and are too well fed to have reason to attack a feral. And feral predators aren't going to attack when there are lions and tigers and bears nearby that might take offense to it." He reasoned.

"Can someone lift me up so I can hear a bit better? I should be able to hear where it's coming from," Tesla pipes up with, looking around at the larger pets. "I'm not ignoring a cry for help."

"Uhh, yeah, no problem," Met said, grabbing the fennec and lifting her up. He was a bit taken aback by the sudden change in subject. "Lemme know where it's coming from, I can probably get to the police in a few minutes if it's too far away to help myself."



"He's right," Maria tried calming the roo down. " And you especially don't have to worry, cause you're friends with the lions that would take offense."

"they were cubs......lion cubs....." Storm muttered, seemingly to herself, then started rubbing her eyes

"Well, then..." The badger gestured forward. "Let's go find them and help them!"

"No it's......" Storm said, her voice sounded like she just held herself back from crying "It's fine, there was nobody there...... I'm sorry everyone, I guess I ruined the mood for us all" she sighed