Context: You swore an oath to look after all animals under your care, as a zookeeper. This is your first shift in a new zoo, an overnight shift, at that. At least nothing interesting happens at night, right?

Setting: An after-hours zoo

Tags:[MMMMM4A][Many Buff Animal Humanoid Male Speakers][Freaked Out Zookeeper Listener][Tiger][Hyena][Timberwolf][Octopus][Centipede][Flirting?][Some Himbos][Many Sweet Muffins][Hugs][Mild Comedy][Spicy][Reverse Comfort][Touch-Starved][CW: Buff Animal Men???]

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***

[T] = Tzzy the tiger

[H] = Hal the hyena

[W] = Wally the timberwolf

[O] = Octavius the octopus

[L] = Louie the centipede

***

[Scene opens at a zoo - after dark]

[SFX: General night chatter]

[It’s your first shift at the new zoo. You’ve heard it’s a little unusual, but a job is a job. Besides, you know how to handle animals]

[T] “Ahem… Yes, you there?”

[Pause…?]

[You turn toward the tiger enclosure and spot a buff man that… looks oddly tiger-esque]

[T] “Yes, hi. I’m your first stop of the night, waiting on my spray?”

[...]

[The tiger… man… tiger man… perks an eyebrow at you]

[T] “You must be the new blood… and, given how you’re staring, I’m guessing they didn’t tell you about the nighttime activities at this particular zoo, hm?”

[...]

[T] “Right… Hal! Hal, we have a new one! Don’t worry, love, Hal is our sort of… unofficial welcome wagon. Do try not to let him talk over you forever. Ooh, actually, could you get my back with that hose real quick while we wait, pretty please?”

[...]

[SFX: Water spraying and happy tiger man noises]

[T] “Rrr… ooh, that’s nice in this heat. Ah, here’s Hal.”

[A young hyena man runs up to you, panting excitedly]

[H] “Hiya! I’m Hal. And you are…?”

[...]

[H] “Heheh, yeah, I am a hyena! Normally, one of the ladies would handle this, but all the ladies have been sequestered at the other end of the zoo while we sort exhibits out. Just us guys, for now. Nice to meet you, though! Let me give you a quick tour.”

[...]

[SFX: Walking/ various chatter/animal noises]

[H] “OK, so, that’s Dennis’s enclosure. Dennis is a hippo. Very dad bod, very homicidal. That’s Terry and Jerry. Polar bears. Polar bros? I dunno, they’re more chill than Dennis but, like… polar bears. Hi guys!”

[The polar bros both grunt at you, apparently busy measuring their pecs]

[...]

[H] “Hmm? Oh, no, there’s never been any casualties here. There have been incidents, for sure, but no one has died yet!”

[...?]

[H] “Well, I mean… See, the night zoo is here for a, um, different crowd, we’ll say. And sometimes that crowd really wants to sneak into an enclosure with a half-naked jaguar man or a bull man or Wally… usually Wally… Wally’s our timberwolf, by the way. Nice guy. Hi Wally!”

[The wolf gives you a big, toothy grin and waves]

[W] “Hiiii Hal! Who’s that? The new meat?”

[...]

[H] “Yeah but let’s not call them that, we’re trying to promote a safe work environment where they can work despite the concerning amount of testosterone loose in the area! They’ve already been speechless this whole time! I’m gonna call them Ranger!”

[W] “OK! Hi Ranger!”

[...]

[You wave and the wolf man howls in response, tail wagging excitedly]

[W] “Welcome to the Night Zoo, Ranger! Awooo!”

[H] “Haha, yeah, awoo… a-ahem. So, do you have any questions?”

[...Pause?!]

[H] “How… does this happen? Oh, um, well, basically a witch turned us into these hybrids in return for some of our forms. Fur, teeth, that sort of stuff. For that, we get to chill here as our animal selves during the day, and then hot monster men at night. Other witches come here, we flex for them, and get fed and treated nicely. Win-win!”

[...]

[H] “Well… your duties wouldn’t be that different. Just walk your rounds, and check in on the animals on your little checklist. You already sprayed Tzzy down with water, so let’s see… Oh! Looks like you have to feed Octavius… Um, good luck with that.”

[Pause?]

[Hal rolls his big, terrifying puppy eyes]

[H] “He’s the octopus, yeah. He’s a dick… always punching the poor little dumb fish boys who just want to hang out with him. He does have shiny skin though. Here, I’ll show you!”

[SFX: Footstep, a metal door unlocking and swinging open, followed by running water]

[H] “Octavius! We have a new Ranger, so be nice!”

[SFX: Water being displaced]

[An octopus man pokes his head over the top of the tank, giving you a bit of a sneer]

[O] “Ohh, wonderful. Another human to get spooked and flee in the dead of night. Not been in the creepy crawly exhibit yet, human? Not in the mood for any sinfully muscular spider or insect boys to desperately try and quench their being touch-starved by hugging you?”

[...]

[SFX: A ladder being climbed]

[O] “Ooh, so brave… You know I could grab you in a tentacle, drag you in here, watch you turn blue, and…mmph!”

[You stuff a normal fish in his mouth while he glares at you]

[O] “...Hmph. Nnhm. Don’t stuff fish in my mouth, human. Not unless you really want to piss me o-mmph!”

[You stuff a normal fish in his mouth while he glares at you]

[H] “Wow…you got him to shut up… That’s impressive!”

[O] “Mmphh!”

[H] “He is right, though… The insect boys tend to be touch-starved. Do you think you can handle centipede hugs or spider hugs?”

[...]

[You did take an oath]

[H] “Yay! Oh, they’ll be so thrilled! Louie will be so happy to have someone visit him in his exhibit! He’s a centipede, by the way. Don’t worry, he has one set of human arms and the rest are pinchy-pinches. Not too freaky, right?”

[...]

[O] “Hmph. I look forward to hearing you screech clear across the park, human. Hey! I see you grabbing that fish, don’t you dare! Rrgh… just pour them in. The idiots playing below will get their fill.”

[SFX: Fish/octo food being dumped]

[...]

[Octavius tenses as you pat his human arm]

[O] “...Mmph… that touch feels… nice… A-Ahem! Go on about your business, human! And don’t let me catch you unawares…”

[SFX: The Listener descending the ladder]

[H] “You got through feeding Octavius! Great job, Ranger! He’s usually super punchy and mean.”

[...]

[H] “So… ready for the insect enclosure? Cause that’s next on the map!”

[...]

[You did swear an oath]

[H] “Great! Don’t worry, you get used to all the legs eventually. They do kind of twitch involuntarily, same as the occasional pincer wiggle.”

[...]

[SFX: A metal door being opened and some general insect chatter/humming]

[H] “Louie! We have a new Ranger at the zoo! They’re directly beneath you so don’t attack, OK?”

[SFX: Clacking/hissing]

[L] “Ohh… one moment. Us centipedes have terribly poor eyesight. Here, let me just lower myself down and get out the old antennae.”

[A very large centipede man descends from the ceiling, antennae twitching and eyes shut]

[L] “There you are… Hold still, won’t you?”

[...]

[You did swear an oath]

[His antennae trace you for a bit while the rest of him does as it pleases]

[...Pause]

[L] “Oh…? You like how my chitin reflects the moonlight? How very kind of you, Ranger. Most people would have thrown up by now.”

[Pause]

[L] “Well… we do appreciate our keepers being kind to us. Especially us…shyer creatures. You have many eyes on you, at present… We’re all so curious as to what you will do now…”

[...]

[Fuck it]

[L] “Ooh! Did you hear that, fellas? Hugs!”

[You are immediately swarmed by more buff insect men than expected. Well, you didn’t really expect any of this but… you did swear an oath]

[L] “We love you, new keeper! You’re the best!”

[...Maybe it wasn’t the worst oath you could have taken]

[To be continued?]

Note: No, I will not take any questions at this time.