Sharing is Caring [Peony]

[Quinn Winchester]

"Is this all of them that I asked for?" Quinn questioned one of the gang members that her and her father had actually trusted enough to be a worker in their bakery. Of course they had to be an incredibly kind and personable member and even more importantly they had to be able to you know...bake. Quinn and her father handled most of the actual baking, but they couldn't do it all. They were busy little possums and they weren't too stubborn to believe that they didn't need any sort of help. "All the cookies? The donuts? The cream puffs?" she began to go down the list as she tried to peek into the cutely decorated basket that the baked goodies had all been placed in. 

Once she received a nod and a 'Yes Ma'am' from the the worker she picked up the basket, hanging it on her little arm. "Perfect. It best actually all be here." she commented, giving a bit of a grin before she moved to leave the bakery with all her goodies. Well, they weren't her goodies, they were a bit of a gift...for the police department. It was an idea she had, had the other day to keep her 'family' on their good side. How could they ever suspect the sweet possums who brought them delicious, free treats were the center of any sort of large crimes? A bribe that was disguised so well that the ones being bribed didn't even know that was what would be going down.

She knew that at least the chubby cheetah that worked at the front desk would be thankful for the generous gift. She just had to hope that he didn't eat them all before any of the other officers got to them. Maybe she would have to make sure that didn't happen. It meant she would have to hang around the station longer though and it would be longer before she could get out of this silly outfit. 

Quinn had decided to dress herself up in clothing that made her look younger than she was. To make her seem more cute and cuddly and innocent than she was. She had to really play the part. That meant wearing pretty pink ribbons by her ears and a simple, cutesy pink dress with sparkles. She couldn't resist the sparkly locket necklace that once belonged to her mother either. It worked well with the outfit. This was going to be a piece of cake...

At least it was until something ran into her as she rounded the corner near the station. Maybe she ran into it, but she didn't like to be the one at fault. She let out a squeak of sorts as she grabbed the basket, losing only a couple of treats on the ground before she managed to close the lid with her little hand. "Be more careful!" she shouted at whoever it was who had run into her. "You made me drop perfectly delicious sweets!"

[Peony Rìluò]

Peony was excited. It was Saturday afternoon and this particular pup had a busy day of work ahead of her. Her face held a small determined smile as she slowly stepped out of her new home, telling Zira goodbye. With a freshly packed lunch in one hand, and a kazoo she'd recently received in the other, Peony began to walk down the street.

"Why the kazoo?" one might ask. Well, believe it or not, it'd been helping Peony settle into her new home. She loved to play on it, and would constantly be seen buzzing random songs she'd heard on the radio on it. Whenever she'd think of her dad, she'd start to play on her kazoo. A weird tactic for not thinking about sad things, but it worked most of the time. And it was slowly making her happy.

Once Peony had reached the end of the street, she placed the tiny instrument in her mouth, looked around, and walked onto the street ahead of her. She began to play a small familiar tune. She couldn't recall the name of it, but it'd been stuck in her head all morning.

Now her thoughts fell on the song. Peony tried to figure out the song, one ear falling to the side as she did so. She believed the song started with an 'S', but she wasn't too sure. Looking up, Peony saw the building she was aiming towards going to.

A tiny bit of excitement shone in her light blue eyes as she ran forward, the kazoo still in her mouth, and ran into an animal.

Her red kazoo now on the floor, Peony looked at the animal she'd run into. She noticed the basket of treats and the few that'd fell on the floor. Flinching as the sparkly possum yelled at her, Peony could feel her tail tuck in between her legs.

"I-I'm sorry!" She stuttered as she properly regained her footing from the stumble. She looked down at the treats on the floor as she bent over to grab her kazoo. There was a cookie and a donut on the floor. Clawhauser would be so distraught to see wasted food.

Wait! She's right in front of the ZPD! And with treats! Peony thought, her ears falling forward with interest as she turned back to the possum.

"Are you going to deliver those to the Police Officers?" She asked, standing up with her kazoo now safely inside her hand.

[Quinn Winchester]

Whatever it was that Quinn had run into, or ran into Quinn, was quite tiny, but still bigger than she was. It could have been much worse though, she knew. Had it been a larger animal they might have been able to step on her or completely knock her out. This hadn't been that bad and, what she could now see was a wolf pup, was actually stuttering an apology as if she were scared of Quinn. She was about to give her a lecture on watching where she was going when she noticed the change in emotion. It was quite a quick change that she had not been expecting.

"I don't believe that is any of your business." Quinn stated, brushing off her sparkly clothing to make sure there wasn't any dirt on it from the collision. She could have left it at that, but there was something interesting about the little wolf pup. "But...why would you ask that?" she added suspiciously, pulling her basket closer to her little body protectively. She had to be careful about these things, right? What if this pup somehow knew more than she was supposed to know? "Perhaps I was just taking a shortcut to take these somewhere else. Or maybe I was picking them up and bringing them home." she continued.

Quinn looked her over again and took a cautious step back. "And what is it that you have in your hand?" she asked quickly, noticing that she had something. She just wasn't quite sure what the item was. It could have been something dangerous. She could be working with someone else. Who wouldn't use a sweet looking little wolf pup to trick her into a false security. This whole thing could be some sort of trap. 

[Peony Rìluò]

"I don't believe that is any of your business. But...why would you ask that?"

Peony tilted her head, her ears falling to the back of her head as she did so. Had she done something wrong? The suspicious tone had thrown her off.

"Well... I know the Officers here! My new dad works here, and I like to talk to Bogo, even if it's only for a bit. But then I get to talk to Clawhauser!"  She cheerfully replied. That was when she'd realized the wording that she'd used to call Ivan. Peony had just called him dad. That's who he is for her now, right? It wasn't a mistake, was it? Peony could feel her emotions get tangled up on the inside. Shaking her head, the pup realized that she had more she could say.

 "I like Clawhuaser. I packed some extra cookies in my lunch so I could share with him! She said, proudly holding her sack up.

"Perhaps I was just taking a shortcut to take these somewhere else. Or maybe I was picking them up and bringing them home."

Peony felt herself slightly perk up.

"Oh! Well... Do you need some help taking them home? I can help!" She offered, lowering her bag. That was when the slightly older possum motioned towards her kazoo. Peony glanced to it. It chipped when it fell. The pup felt herself sadden at the site. It doesn't matter! Ivan can buy me a new one! She thought, taking her mind off of it.

"That's my kazoo! My... Ivan gave it to me." She responded, carefully thinking over what she called Ivan.

[Quinn Winchester]

Quinn watched the odd, cheerful wolf pup as she explained why she was hanging around the police station. She was immediately intrigued by the entire thing when she explained that her new dad was a police officer and that she knew the chief and the chubby cheetah as well, but the new part threw her off for a moment. "Your new dad is a police officer?" she questioned, tilting her head to the side ever so slightly. She was curious...or nosy rather. Funny since she had just been telling her that what she was doing was none of her business. 

She was quick to jump back to the important stuff though. The information that could be beneficial to her. "So you know Chief Bogo and the chu-" She caught herself. "And Clawhauser well?" she asked her. If this wolf pup was good friends with all of these cops then maybe it would be a good idea to befriend her as well. To get her on her side. If she was friends with her, then the officers had to like her too, right? 

"No, no, no. I was just saying that I could have been doing anything. I didn't have to be coming to the police station." Quinn explained, shaking her head. This wolf pup was incredibly interesting. So willing to share her cookies with Clawhauser. So willing to help out the possum that had pretty much just yelled at her for something that was actually her own fault and not the pup's. She was sweet and it was weird. Quinn was not used to being around those sorts of people. 

"I am actually bringing them to the police officers here. My Daddy and I own a bakery and we wanted to share them with the heroes that help to keep our city safe." She explained with a bright smile. That and of course she wanted to make sure that they didn't suspect them for anything. She wanted to give herself and her father a good name with the officers. Peony could help with that. 

"A kazoo? Oh, so it was you that was making those...interesting sounds?" Quinn asked. She had heard them as she was approaching, but she didn't know what it was. "And, your Ivan? Who is your Ivan?" she asked, once again really just being nosy. She perked up a bit though, realizing it might be helpful to have this pups name. "Oh, I am Quinn. I forgot to introduce myself. You are?" she asked.

[Peony Rìluò]

"Your new dad is a police officer?" The slightly older possum asked. Peony nodded her head slightly. She'd heard that she'd called him dad. She'd messed up. He wasn't a dad. Or was he? He did technically care for her now. But Ivan had always done that, hadn't he?

Wait.

Was it weird to have a new dad? Was Quinn curious as of why she had a new dad? Should she tell her that her real dad was killed? No, that was weird. And sad.

"So you know Chief Bogo and the chu- And Cawhauser well?" She asked while Peony was still thinking.

"Yeah! I like to mess with Bogo a lot! He played Detective with me and Ivan! And Clawhauser and I talk every time I come inside! He likes to talk with me." She said happily, not realizing that she'd said Ivan's name once again. Geeze, she was bad at not mentioning him.

A small confused smile was on her face as Quinn said that she was going to the ZPD. Okay then... She'd thought, giving the older possum a small "Oh!" after she'd finished stating it. 

"A kazoo? Oh, so it was you that was making those...interesting sounds?"

Peony nodded eagerly, pulling her kazoo up to her mouth. She began to play a familiar tune - one she'd heard from watching cartoons on the TV. Although she couldn't quite remember the name of the show, she knew that she had used to watch it when she was younger.

Peony put her kazoo down when the older possum began to talk again. She was asking about Ivan. 

"Ivan? He's my..." Peony stopped. Should she say it? It was technically true...

"He's my new dad." The pup said. She was so lost in thought by then that she realized she didn't introduce herself when Quinn did.

"My name's.. Ài!" She said, remembering how Ivan told her that she couldn't tell her first name to other animals anymore.

[Quinn Winchester]

It seemed that the young wolf pup had to think quite a bit about something. Quinn noticed what the something was when she didn't entertain her curiosity any. It was sad really because she was hoping for some interesting sort of story from the pup. Then again, there were only so many reasons one could need a new daddy and the worst of those was not something that she wanted to think about. She couldn't imagine losing her own father and having to get a new one. She never wanted a new one. "Did...Did something happen to your old daddy?" she asked, her voice softer now and more gentle than it had been before. She was still curious really. She couldn't help it.

She was happy to go off the subject though when she started to talk about her relationship with the chief and with the cheetah. It seemed that she had a good relationship with both, interesting, but good. That meant that she could use her to gain their trust more. If she became friends with her, then they would like her more, right? That was how these sorts of things worked. Besides, the wolf pup actually seemed like she could be fun since she mentioned bothering the chief a bit. A bit of mischievous fun was right up Quinn's alley.  "That is nice! It must be a lot of fun to have an officer and the chief as your friend. Have you ever played little pranks on Bogo?" she asked, tilting her head a bit with an innocent little smile.

Quinn couldn't help the little giggle that came out when she started to play the kazoo again. She wasn't laughing because she thought it was funny in a bad way. She was laughing because it was amusing and different. It was actually really cute and she even began to do a little dance to it. "That's fun! I have never heard anything like it before." she said. It wasn't like people were regularly playing kazoos in the music she used for her dances. 

"And it is incredibly nice to meet you, Ai." She added, trying to be as sincere as she could. Did she really need to try as hard as she thought she did? No, she didn't seem to be that bad really. "Is your new daddy out working? If he is we can save a little treat for him if you know what he likes." she offered. She had to win the favor of him too of course.

[Peony Rìluò]

Peony's ears fell down at Quinn's reasonable question. Could she ever put her old family's deaths behind her? She'd done her absolute best to keep a brave face for herself and her new parents, but sometimes, the images still popped up on her brain. And it didn't help that the kids at school couldn't get enough of the new reason to bully her.

The pup closed her eyes and began to twist her shirt a little. She had asked. It was rude to leave a question unanswered, and it would be lying if she just said it was nothing Because it was something. But what would Ivan say? Surely he would be okay with her telling someone else, right? Quinn was just a kid, after all. Or was she? Maybe a teenager? It didn't matter.

"He.. He was killed.."  Peony said softly, looking to the ground, clutching her kazoo even tighter. She let her tail droop,as an awkward silence passed between the two.

Peony's excitement returned to her as Quinn asked about Bogo; she was eager to get off that subject.

"Oooh! A prank? No, but I'd want to! I wouldn't be allowed inside for like, a whole week or so, though." She giggled, thinking of what the buffalo's reaction would turn out to be. It'd be funny, but not when she suddenly wasn't allowed in for her weekly visit.

Peony gasped when Quinn mentioned that she'd never heard a kazoo before."Really? They are only like, one of my favorite things in the world!" the pup smiled.

"Yeah, he's working today. He should be, or else his wife won't be too happy!" Peony replied, laughing as she thought of telling on Ivan.

[Quinn Winchester]

Quinn instantly regretted allowing her curiosity get the better of her and asking such a personal and hard question. Just the way the little wolf pup's ears went back and the look in her eyes was enough to tell Quinn that she had made a mistake in asking. She wanted to tell her it was okay and that she didn't need to answer the question, but she just couldn't get the words out and the wolf pup sadly answered anyways.

"I am so sorry to hear that..." Quinn said quietly, knowing that it probably didn't mean much at all to Ai, but she didn't know what else there was to say to her. It just made her think about her own father and what a mess she would be if she lost him. Simon was her everything and she was always scared that someone would eventually get to him and kill him. It was uncomfortably likely to happen, which made the whole thing even worse. "And I am sorry I asked." she added, being entirely truthful with that statement. She wished for both their sake that she hadn't asked.

Quinn tilted her head slightly, glad that the she perked up again as soon as they were off the subject. It would be one that she would be careful to avoid in the future. "Would he really kick you out for a whole week just for a little, itty bitty prank? It would be harmless of course!" she added quickly. Even Quinn would never play a prank that would get someone hurt. That wasn't fun at all. "Maybe I shouldn't teach you all the best pranks..." she said, not really looking at Peony anymore. She was looking thoughtfully past her, off in her own little world for the moment. 

She shook her head after a moment though, looking to the Kazoo. "Really. I have never heard one or really even seen one. I like music, a lot!" she told her, smiling a bit. "I like to play piano, but I can't really carry something that big and heavy around with me like your little kazoo." she added, giggling a bit. 

"Well we can save something for him then. I will let you pick something out for him before everyone else gets one." Quinn assured her with an amused grin. "And if you want, you could pick out something for yourself too." she added sweetly. She didn't intend to give them out to just anyone, but she liked Peony.