Forums » Fantasy Roleplay » Chionti Zoo 1x1

Pori smiled a little and came in when she was allowed, following him to the convertible. "Thanks. Yeah, everything's fine...I was just exploring, and I saw you." She wasn't going to tell him what she noticed. His loneliness. He was a man, he probably still had his pride, certainly. She would sit down on one of the seats, sprawling over it comfortably. "There aren't any other creatures like you?" she asked. "Well...I mean, I know I've never seen one like you before, but I didn't really expect you to be in one of these biomes all by yourself. Do the tigers have to be separated by their specific species, or do you just choose not to be with the other tigers?"

She couldn't help but be curious.

Ianto curled his lips into a feline smile before getting distracted by cleaning his pelt again.He listened as she talked. "Lots to see round here." He stated between licks.

She asked about others of his kind and he looked up, "Oh, yeah there are. My sister lives in the city. She's going to the university. The rest of my family...they're kind of scattered. But I'm the only one here." In the zoo he meant.

Pori continued on and his head flattened to his paws, "There were other tigers here...they died." He said it flatly but there was a sadness to it. "In the war here...I had to take care of the nursery. Protect the young animals, I was the only one that could keep them calm and get them safe. The rest of the animals went to battle. Many didn't come back. The few that were in here with me...died."

He shifted and curled his paws to his chest, but his eyes were cast at the pool of water. "Since then I just...haven't really been ready for more I guess." The war hadn't been that long ago, part of the zoo was still being rebuilt and they were still tracking down more animals. But Ianto wasn't sure if he'd want any more "biommates."

Pori listened to him carefully. There was indeed a lot to see around the zoo, it was such a large thing. But she was more interested in him at the moment. He was curious to her. She was relieved to hear that he did have family, others of his kind. But her relief and happiness was very short-lived as he spoke of the others in the biome.

"...Sorry.." She knew it was such a useless thing to say, but she didn't know what else to do. She looked at him, watching him carefully. "This war...it's over, right? And it won't start up again?" Wars scared her. Wars meant anger, humans, and rash, dangerous decisions. Attacks. She shivered a little just thinking about it.

"I can understand that, though. I mean...I don't really want to be around others much either, even if it's my own kind. Though...nothing is really 'my own kind', exactly. But you know what I mean. Other pandas." She fidgeted slightly. She worried about feeling out of place.

Ianto wasn't looking at her but it didn't mean he couldn't feel it. He shifted and rolled his shoulders curling tighter in on himself. He never knew what to say when people said sorry, it never...made sense to him he supposed. Perhaps it was the animal side, but sorry never quite meant much with loss.

"Should be. From what I understand anyway. It...didn't last long but there was a lot of devastation." He hadn't seen a great deal, once he'd secured the animals he'd gone to defend Leona and keep her safe. So he'd been in the muck, but only long enough to get to his friend.

"I fit in alright with the tigers I guess, my family and I are a little rocky. My sister is a decade younger than me but we get along alright. I'm a bit more of a shut in than they are I guess." But he understood what Pori was saying. Ianto shifted again and flicked his tail, "I guess being...just this side of our cousins is a little awkward. I'm not like other tigers in the respect that I don't care about being the strongest. I'm a big guy but I'd prefer to go unnoticed then have to constantly be on guard."

He snorted and shifted to flop on his side, that action tossed his hind legs over the other side of the hood so now his head and rear were dangling off. "I'm kinda lazy actually." Go figure.

Pori listened to him talking and she nodded slightly. "That's good. I know it goes without being said, but I don't like wars..." She listened to him as he spoke about his family, and then the other tigers, and she nodded. "I can't really place it...but I just feel different than my cousins. I think differently, and I guess I act a bit different too. And I look different, obviously."

She sighed slightly. "Don't misunderstand. I am fine as I am, I accept myself. But sometimes it's hard. You're with them, and maybe they tolerate and even accept you...but you just always know that you're the odd one out.."

She was quiet for a moment, then sighed loudly and flopped onto her side. "Sorry, sorry! Little depressing moment...I'll try to shut up now." She chuckled and smiled apologetically. "Sorry about that..."

Ianto tilted his head and gazed at her, "Yeah...I understand that." He didn't like battle, fights, it just...wasn't him. But that didn't mean he didn't defend himself or those he cared about. Or complete strangers sometimes. He did what he felt was right, but he never went out looking for a fight.

Pori was talking about the differences and he flicked his tail lightly, "Mmm." He purred contemplating his next words carefully. He was different as a tiger, at least he was more open and relaxed. Plus he ruled his biome so he felt at home. "We are different, they did a scan on me one time. Studying my brain compared to one of the cousins. It's structure is different, more flashing lights, less instinct." He shifted again and lifted a leg to start cleaning the upper portion of it. "I suppose it's the humanisitic part of us, but I dunno..." Ianto trailed off as he purposefully worked to keep that fur extra spotless. Cats, oi.

He flicked his tail again, "Hehe. I'm the odd one out even when there are a ton of us in the room. So yeah. I get you." Well not many people had the sheer mass that Ianto had, animal or people actually. He was a beast of beasts, but he was a softie too.

Ianto paused in his cleaning to chuffle, furred lips curling back to reveal pointed and cleaned teeth in a flashy feline smirk. "Happens." He pawed at the air in her direction before settling back down. Silly cat.

Pori watched him. All cats were so finicky about their cleanliness. "I'm the same, though I don't think it's been actually tested. I just think I'm a lot more human than my cousins. And...skinnier, too." She giggled softly. When he pawed at her, she laughed a little and smiled. "Yeah. I guess it does."

She watched him, actually enjoying watching him and how he behaved. She knew it was just her phobia, but he felt so much more friendly and approachable when he was in this form. "I won't get in trouble for being in here, right?"

Ianto was a clean cat! He swears! Except maybe behind his ears, those were issues. Ahem. "Well...I guess your cousins are a bit portly." He mused lightly and flipped a bit so he could start bathing his chest. He made her giggle though and that made his tail switch, he wasn't so bad at lightening moods.

Her eyes were on him though and he paused mid lick to lift his head, "I'm embarrassing aren't I?" Ianto switched his tail and gave another tilt, "I swear I get back on all fours and I feel...dirty." Cats, they're so weird. He shifted a bit and then rested his head down, perhaps he should calm down the cleaning a bit. "Nah, I kinda...come and go as I please. They'll just suddenly be missing their star attraction for a few weeks. No one ever says anything. It's not a prison or anything, the centaurs especially get to go wherever they want."

Pori listened to him speak, chuckling. "Portly. I guess that's a good way to describe it." When he mentioned him being embarrassing, she shook her head. "Not at all. I find it amusing, actually." She gave a little nod when he spoke, relieved that they wouldn't get in trouble. "That's nice. I'm sure it definitely helps with you and the...'other side of you' thing." The whole human-changing. She shifted a bit and got up, moving to sit down on what little free space there was on the hood. It was easier to talk to him that way.

Ianto chuffled again and flicked his ears up, "Well...it's that or rotund and that just sounds mean." She says he's amusing though and he gives a grin. "Hehe, I guess I could see that." When she came up on the hood he hefted himself up making the car groan, but he took up most of the hood when he was sprawled out and he didn't find that very uh hostly of him.

"I guess it comes in handy. I'm so used to being like this though, the human half was more of a side show trick where I came from. I was an animal in a cage. Then a freak when they needed one." He rolled his shoulders, "Here...I can be an animal and a person. And unless I want them to know, no one realizes I'm both." He twisted his gaze to look at her, "But I guess I'm lucky in that respect. I get two forms of camouflage." Three if he counted the stripes, though being a tabby they didn't help much.

Pori sat beside him, listening to him talk of what he was. When he spoke of being in a cage, she murmured quietly. "I can relate.." She listened as he spoke of having two forms of camouflage, looking at him and giving a little smile. "Heh, yeah. That's true. Must be neat."

She was just her, so she couldn't imagine herself being anything else. She glanced at him for a few moments, thinking hard about something. "...Can...Can I...pet you?" Animals definitely didn't scare her like humans did. Humans were bad. Animals...were animals. And right now, he was definitely animal, and therefore touching might now be so bad.

Besides. He was furry. Furry was good.

(Ok, for some reason my words didn't show up? o-o I'm going to bed, just letting you know so you didn't wait forever for a post. I'll post whenever I can tomorrow ) (And derp wrong character too, fixed)

Ianto eyed her carefully when she said she could relate, "I tend to think most of us unusual creatures can." It wasn't that far of a stretch, his sister had gotten lucky but most creatures like them didn't. He shrugged lightly, "Can be. But it also makes it harder, because half the time you feel like neither body is the right one for you."

He blinked when she asked if she could pet him and he gave a smile, "Sure. I'm not opposed, but I'm not...exactly soft. We have coarse fur, but I um...tend to purr a bit." He flicked his ears back and forth. Yeah, totally a cat but at least he was honest about it.

Pori nodded a bit when he spoke of their kind, the 'unusual creatures'. "I can understand that." It made sense to her, at least. When he said she could, she smiled a little and scooched closer on the hood. "It's alright. Soft and coarse is kind of the same to me." She reached her hand out, slowly, almost a bit hesitantly, and rested it on his head for a moment. She took in a deep breath, slowly let it out, and then started petting his head gently.

She still knew he had a human form. That was what caused the last-minute hesitance. But he wasn't human, he was only part human. So maybe he only had part of their personality. Maybe, hopefully, he only had the good part.

Ianto flicked his tail a bit with a feline smile. He watched her as she worked herself up to petting. It didn't take him long to relax, his green eyes closed and his ears flicked a bit before settling in a sagging position. But it also didn't take long for him to start purring, deep playful sounds that made the skin along his ribs vibrate. If she pet him long enough he'd probably start to fall asleep.

Pori pet him, surprised to see him relax so quickly. She smiled though, especially as he started purring, and continued petting him. She would move her hand after a little to scratch under his chin and pet along the area there, along his neck and such. His fur wasn't soft, but it felt nice under her fingers.

She would pet and pet, but before he had the chance to fall asleep, something else would happen. She would wrap her arms loosely around his neck and faceplant into his fur.

Ianto wasn't unused to pettings, he did the shows two to four times a day and at the end of every trick show he did a session where people could come up and pet a tiger. It was all for conservation and it helped the young tigers in the zoo. So petting always seemed to make him sleepy after a while.

When Pori started scratching under his chin and neck he'd murr and raise his head, tilting it into the movements of her hands so she could really get his spot. But when she threw her arms around him his eyes slid open, he hadn't expected it but his reaction wasn't terrible. He was used to children doing something similar and so he leaned into her a bit and nuzzled his head along the arm nearest it. A comforting type of gesture really.

Pori was just quiet for a few moments, before she pulled back and started petting him again. "Sorry." she murmured. "Impulse." Some days you just needed a hug, after all. Or to just hug something warm and furry. She would pet him some more, then eventually stop. Reluctantly.

"So...which form do you stay in more, Ianto?" She was curious. Half human, half tiger. It sure waged war on her phobia. If he were to morph into a human at that moment, she'd freak and put distance between them, easily. It was just how her body was conditioned now.

Ianto didn't say anything but when Pori pulled back he sat up again rather than leaning, "It's alright." He chuffled and flicked his tail, "Kinda used to it actually, I work with a lot of kids here." He said it like he loved it, because he kinda did. When she stopped he gave a shake and flicked his tail to curl it about his hips.

"Mmmm mostly tiger, but I go out into the town sometimes. I visit my sister, and my friend Leona. I work with the animals in the nursery which is much easier with opposable thumbs. And I do some other things around here. But most of the time I guess tiger. Though both feel natural in a lot of ways." He was technically both so that made sense.

Pori nodded some. It was good that he worked with kids. She was sure they loved being around him. She listened more as he spoke and answered her question, giving another nod. "I see. That's nice." She could understand, really. It did make sense.

"So um...what would I do here?" She didn't want to just stay in that house day in and day out. That was boring. She wanted something to do.