Couple of Tickets

Perhaps they should have expected this, Diei thought as she and Noctis trudged through snow. She and her mate had been wandering around the far side of the human city, following whispered rumors of a building that had been made into some kind of festival where any and all were welcome. The two cryolophosaurus’s interest had been peaked- especially Noctis’s once he had caught the name; the lunar light festival. The purple cryolophosaurus was nocturnal in nature, so Diei’s wasn't surprised that he had been so interested in attending. And while she personally would have been more excited if it had been day themed, she couldn’t deny her own eagerness to hopefully do something fun for once in a dreadfully dull winter. But that was just it- the winter. While the night sky was cloudless, strong winds whipped around, throwing scents to and fro in the air. It was hard to tell where anything was, and the scents they had been tracking had long since blown away. While Noctis had a thick coat of feathers, Diei lacked protection from the cold. Shivering, she pressed herself to his side to steal some warmth.  

“There!” Diei lifted her head at a shout from Noctis, spotting the rumored building instantly. It was enormous and once grand, now a sad sight only revived by the sound of chatter and laughter within. The two cryolophosaurus hurried in, scaling the timeless stone steps before entering the building- an act made easier by the fact that the whole doorway had been broken down, likely to allow for some of the islands bigger creatures.

Noctis and Diei stopped in shock at what was before them. All kinds of creatures roamed the halls, laughing and chattering together with the absence of the fear that came from hunger- something very prevalent in times like these. A nearby table piled high with mammalian prey explained the lack of fear between herbivores and carnivores- a similar table across the hall had plenty of exotic fruits and plants- from the dome, maybe?

Noctis whistled lowly, scanning the room before his eyes landed upon one of the large hallways leading from the main room- this one seemed fairly popular, a steady stream of those od all ages coming in and out. Those that exited clutched tickets in a claw or jaw, making their way over to the back of the hall where some kind of large prize booth lay. As Noctis watched, a young hatchling pointed at some strange, soft, human toy while handing over some tickets. A merry oviraptor took them, before sliding over the toy to the hatchling; who squeaked and held it tight.

“Seems like we can get tickets thatway.” Diei mused. They knew the most basic of rumors about this place- a safe haven where no blood was shed, strange red tickets that could be won through games. But to know that it was all real? Strange indeed. 

“Lets go check it out!” Noctis grinned, and the two were off. It was a bit of a tight squeeze through the hall, especially with how busy it was. However, what was on the other side was worth it- a wide room, like nothing the two had ever seen before. Huge, winged, metal machines were scattered across the room in various states. The air smelled faintly of human toxins, but the scent had long since thinned to being no more than a tickle. But what was truly amazing was the way the festival had taken over the room- dinosaurs and reptiles were scattered all across, and various wooden and plastic objects had been shoved in to create these games. Diei caught sight of some kind of obstacle course, a game that seemed based around throwing objects, and even a pool of water with various fruits some hatchlings were dunking themselves in. Ugh. Getting wet was not something she wanted right now.

The pair wandered for a bit between the different games, trying to decide which one to approach first. There were simply too many for them to choose- thankfully, their choices were narrowed down solely by the amount of other dinosaurs there were- and the two cryolophosaurus did not want to sit in a line!

“How about that one?” Noctis pointed to the agility course that Diei had first spotted when they came in- absent of any line. She had no complaints, so they made their way over. 

A half asleep oviraptor perked up a bit as they made their way over. “Oh! Hello there!” The two carnivores nodded a bit awkwardly as the oviraptor stood. “Welcome to the course of metal! Are you two alone?” At their nod, they went on “Well, it’s easy enough! Just start here, and whoever goes fully around the course and makes it back first wins! If you are ready, take your places!”

Diei and Noctis moved onto the track, playfully bumping against each other as they stood on the track. Track was fairly generous- it was a long strip of the normal floor with borders marked with some kind of paint. There was plenty of room for the two to stand without brushing, although larger creatures would have struggled. The path ahead was littered with random bits of metal that had likely been gathered from this very room, many pieces too large or too sharp to climb over. 

“Are you ready?” The oviraptor chirped out. Diei and Noctis gave their agreement, before eying each other. Before they had been mates, they had been rivals, and that spirit had never gone away. Teeth bared, they eyed the track ahead as the countdown began. “3…2…1… go!”

Diei and Noctis took off rapidly, sprinting down the track. The two kept pace despite the strange terrain under their feet, the two well used to running in an urban sitting. Already, Diei had a bit of a disadvantage, with more metal in front of her than Noctis, resulting in her slowing down. Noctis shot her a cheeky grin as he ran past, a low growl his answer in return. Diei irritable ducked around the metal in her path, snarling at how far behind she had fallen. Thankfully, she had always been the faster of the two- it took her a minute to pull back in stride with him. 

The two continued to dodge and weave around the obstacles- sometimes, one would pull ahead, but the other would quickly catch up. It wasn’t until the final obstacle, a metal bar across most of the trail, that things changed- there was only enough room to get through the gap. Noctis slowed to approach the gap, losing speed but sure he would win- but Diei had an idea. Instead of slowing down, she sped up- pouncing over the metal bar and over the finish line in swift motions. “Woo!” She cheered, turning around as Noctis stumbled after her a few seconds later. 

“Ok, ok, you win.” He panted, nudging against her side. Diei let herself bask in the glory for a moment, before nudging back against him.

“Well done!” The oviraptor cheered, making their way over with slips of paper. “Tickets- 7 for you, 3 for you!” Diei and Noctis were quick to grab them, bowing their heads in thanks. The night was still young- there would be plenty more chances to win.