[Comm] Corny
In the abandoned world once more overtaken by the ancient, there were not many good, safe places to get some family bonding time. Life was deadly enough as it was, even for the biggest of creatures; raising a family, and taking care of hatchlings, could be incredibly difficult. It was a challenge for sure; but when Iroke and Gorko had found Olca, they couldn’t leave her there. She was a euoplocephalus, an Atlantean- and many had not taken well to their presence after the harm they had caused. The pair of dacentrurus had barely arrived in time to ward off the carnivore sniffing out the hiding hatchling, but it was far too late for her mother. The two had a choice to make; and they could not leave a hatchling alone in a hostile world still reeling from war and toxin. The two had never regretted the decision- despite being different species, euoplocephalus and dacentrurus were not unlike each other. The only main difference? The size. Even now, as an juvenile, Olca was still tiny compared to them- which made Iroke and Gorko all the more protective.
Especially now, in a new, confusing place with the scents and sounds of other dinosaurs all around them. The family of three had made their way to a rumored carnival deep in the human city, skeptical but curious. And now, on its marble steps, they were faced with the realization it was true. Olca was excited, almost dancing with glee as she bounced in place. Her parents were a bit more wary, nervously scanning the crowd as they ascended the steps. The scent of carnivores made them cautious, but the lack of blood or screams made them confident enough to continue. After all, it was a cold, winter night- and at the very least, it seemed warmer inside.
Iroke scanned the inside of the museum, blinking a bit in surprise at the blinking lights around the area. They weren’t like the ones from the alpha labs- less cold, more warm. Reptiles bustled all around the large entryway, chattering excitedly. It was much more crowded than the pair expected- Gorko had to quickly tug Olca back by her tail out of the way of a distracted shunosaurus, his growl being swallowed by the crowd. “This place is amazing!” Olca smacked her tail on the ground in excitement, eyes sparkling. There were all kinds of booths and stands scattered around the area, various prizes being traded to creatures in return for small red tickets. “I want a prize!”
Iroke smiled down at her daughter. “Well, lets get some, then!” She turned to Gorko, who got the message- the larger male wandered a bit away, approaching a nearby group of cryolophosaurus who were giggling over some weird human toy they had won. They flinched a bit when Gorko spoke to them, but were quickly put at ease enough to explain directions to him before excusing themselves.
“It seems tickets are won from playing games.” Gorko explained lowly, pointing with his tail towards the busiest hallway. “It seems most of the games are down that way, in a much larger room.” The question for Iroke went unsaid, but she heard it anyways- was it worth going? The two looked at Olca, who was almost shaking in glee. Yes. Yes it was.
“Lets get going, then!” The juvenile grinned, almost sprinting off before remembering her manners and instead taking up a fast trot. Her parents rushed to either side of her, their bulk and spikes combined making an extremely effective blockade. Other dinosaurs in the hallway were forced to duck under them, or even turn back if too big. It earned them quite a few nasty glares and comments, but the two dacentrurus weathered it easily- anything to keep Olca safe, even here.
“Well, that is a big room.” Iroke commented as they finally exited the hallway. It was bigger than any room she had seen before, with a ceiling that curved ever so slightly at the top- not that you could tell in its current, worn state. A hallway at one end of the room seemed to lead into a smaller version of the room, but here? Was where most of the stands were.
Despite how crowded it was, there was plenty of room for all the visitors inside. Large metal machines were littered around the area, large wings on their sides being used as places to put prizes and even seating. All kinds of games and stands were scattered around the floor, all run by seemingly cheerful staff wearing festive gear. The three began to slowly walk through the room, slowed down even further by Olca gasping and pausing to investigate anything that caught her attention. Neither of her parents minded; although Gorko frowned as he noticed a key feature; none of these games were really the right size for Olca- all of the ones in this room seemed to be geared towards bigger creatures. While Iroke kept Olca busy, Gorko slipped away, searching for someone to question.
Eventually, he found an oviraptor at an almost empty stand, waving away her latest visitors before turning to the herbivore. “Oh! Hello!” She greeted. “Are you here to play?”
Gorko grunted. “Not exactly. I’m here with my mate and daughter, shes a euoplocephalus, about this high.” He gestured with his tail. “We’re trying to find a game we can all play together, or at least a game more suited to her size.” While playing a game together as a family would be great, Gorko and Iroke would willingly sit out if it meant Olca could play. “Do you know of any?”
“Hm… about nay high, you say?” The oviraptor scanned the crowd, before seemingly spotting the two. “Ah! We have another room with smaller games for hatchlings, but she seems big enough to play some of these! She seems big enough to play the game we have here, if your interested?” The oviraptor pointed to the game itself, which Gorko had ignored. It was some kind of long, slightly slanted wood board, messily painted by claws and with a few large holes in it. Small, round bags of corn sat by the side, with a total of three different colors. “It’s simple enough! If you bring them over, I can explain?”
“Explain what?” Olca pipped, almost startling Gorko and causing Iroke to laugh. The pair had seemingly noticed Gorkos disappearance, and had followed him over to the booth. “Dad, are you trying to play without us?”
“Of course not!” Gorko smiled, nudging his daughter. “I just found a great game for us to play! Do go on, uhh…” He trailed off. What was her name, again?
“Snowshoe.” The oviraptor finally introduced herself, soft smile on her face as she turned to Olca. “Nice to meet you! Your dad was telling me about you, and I think you’ll love this game.” Snowshoe walked over to the board, grabbing one of the bags. “This is called cornball!” She introduced. “Humans played it long ago. You drop the ball, and try to get it to land in one of these holes. The further down the hole, the more tickets you get! Make sense?”
“Yes!” Olca thumped her tail on the ground. “Can I go first mom, dad?” Gorko and Iroke quickly gave their approval, causing their daughter to shout in glee. “Ok! Watch! Im gonna get all the tickets!” The small herbivore grabbed one of the bags in her mouth, before making her way to the high end of the board. She was short enough she had to rear onto her hind legs, dropping the ball right onto the center and giving it a nudge. The gathered crowd watched as it zoomed down, dodging the first two holes, but tipping down the third one. “Aww.” Olca pouted. “That wasn’t at the bottom!”
“You still did pretty good!” Iroke smiled, gently bumping against her daughter's head. “And hey, any tickets me and your dad win? Will be yours too! So you better cheer us on!” The white dacentrurus made her way up to the front, dramatically swishing her tail as she grabbed one of the cornballs. With her much taller reach she was easily able to reach the board, throwing the cornball down enthusiastically. However, her throw had too much force, and her ball rolled down one of the first holes in its path. “Oops.” Iroke smiled as Olca sympathetically patted her on the leg. “Guess its all up to you now, huh Gorko?”
Gorko blushed a bit as he stepped forward, caught off guard a bit by the sudden spotlight. “Ill do my best.” He teased, stepping forward and grabbing his own cornbag. Unlike his mate, he was careful to scan for the best possible angle before dropping his cornbag. Finally, dropped it- right into the first hole.
The three froze for a moment, Gorko blushing in embarrassment, expecting some disappointment- however, when he turned, he found his mate and daughter giggling, and Gorko couldn’t help but join in. “Er… how many turns did we get, again?”
