Unknown Secrets

~Jaguar's Heart~
Vella Sigala
&
Logan (Grizzly Shifter, Clan-less)

~Aikofox~
Oberon (Tiger Shifter, Pack-less)
&
Leah (Cheetah Shifter, Pride Status Unknown)

Vella
Vella made her way down the dusty parking lot, the sound of the cab driving away fading into the background. The big area that she was heading to didn't look like much now, but she supposed it would be very different once all the tents were up. Shifting her duffel bag on her shoulder she made her way over to a very extravagant motorhome. She assumed this would be the owner's RV. Shaking her head at the expense of the ting when all the others parked behind it were a bit rundown, Vella knocked on the door.

Logan
Logan dropped his arm full of pipes down on the ground next to a pile of steaks, looking out at his "coworkers". They (the stronger shifters) were the ones typically charged with tent set up. It was a backbreaking job that involved hammering spikes into the ground to keep the then canvas from blowing away. He honestly didn't mind this part of the job - better than roaring at the public by command, that's for sure. Silently he lifted one of the pipes and began setting up the frame for the main ring.

@ Jaguar's Heart

Oberon
He glanced up from tying down the flap of the yet to be raised tent, nostrils flaring as the breeze carried him an unfamiliar scent. Oberon’s eyes narrowed as he parsed it. Human. Female. Young. He glanced in the direction, spotting the owner of the scent approaching their lord and master’s RV. Who was she, and what was she doing here? She shouldn’t be here. Was she looking for a job? If so, she was in the wrong place. One of the humans snapped at him for daydreaming, and he sent the man a snarl as he got back to work, putting the girl from his mind. She’d be sent packing soon enough.

---

Leah
Leah zipped across the open ground, carrying tools and other small things back and forth as she did her best to help out. Small as she was, she was pretty much undervalued and sent to go take care of the elephants or something, which she thought was just dumb. She wasn’t just a pretty face, she could do more that fetch and carry! She could set up, too!

@ Aikofox
Vella
At a male's "Come in," Vella opened the door and walked into the RV, not at all surprised to see the that the expensive extravagance wasn't just on the outside. She turned to see her new "boss", a fake smile on her face, "Hi, I'm Vella. My grandfather sent me here to help out for the summer?" She had no clue how this would work of even what she was doing. All her grandfather had said was that he was indebted to this man and that she needed to help work off the debt. If she was remembering correctly, his exact words had been, "Vella, now you've got no plan in mind for your future, right? So then it won't hurt for you to take a summer and help me out."
Yeah, Vella thought now, won't hurt my ass.

Logan
Logan didn't notice that anyone had stopped until he'd had the frame set and the canvas on. He was about to hammer in the steak when he finally caught wind of the new smell. Standing straight he looked around, not seeing any new faces, "Hey... you guys smell that?" He looked around again, "We don't have any hopeful customers here early, do we?"

@ Jaguar's Heart

Richard
Smiling, the man stood and offered his hand. “You must be Vella, good to meet you, please, have a seat. We’re so lucky to have you this summer. How’s your grandfather, I hope he’s feeling well. Would you like something to drink?” He walked to the fridge and opened it for her perusal. “I’ve got water, soda, beer, juice, what would you like?”

---

Oberon
Oberon glanced at Logan and shook his head. “You just noticed? Some woman’s in talking to the boss.” He snagged a bottle of water from Leah, then moved on to the next task. “My guess is she’s looking for a job. Had a suitcase and everything.”

---

Leah
“A job?” Leah tilted her head in confusion, then offered a bottle to the big bear. “Here, Logan,” she said shyly, intimidated a bit by the man. He kept to himself a lot of the time, or was with Oberon, so she didn’t really spend a lot of time with him. But he seemed nice. Or at least he’d never been mean to her. “Why would anyone want a job here?” She asked. “We only have an opening for a tamer, but we can take shifts with that.”

@ Aikofox
Vella
Vella looked at the fridge, then shook her head, "I'm fine, but thanks." She looked around the RV again, "And my grandfather is fine... would be better if you just dropped whatever debt he owes," She said quietly, with a bit of sarcasm added. Her grandfather hadn't told her how much he owed, just that she was to help pay it off, "Actually, I'd just like to know what I'd be doing. I don't know anything about what a circus needs..."

Logan
Logan blinked down at the bottle of water that was thrust to him. He took it with a thankful grunt before returning his gaze to Oberon, "You think Boss-Man is going to hire outside the circus for that? He does know that not every person off the street is going to keep his secret, right?" Logan shook his head, then downed the water in one gulp. He chucked the empty bottle at the trash can, then picked up his large hammer again, "He'd really have to hire someone h trusts."

@ Jaguar's Heart

Richard
Richard grabbed himself a water bottle. “Suit yourself.” He let go the comment about forgetting the debt, staying amicable as he offered her a seat, then sat himself. “Your duties, of course. I recently lost my beast tamer, and am in need of a replacement. It’s an important job, everyone always wants to see the lions jumping through the hoops of fire and whatnot, and we can’t have jumping lions without a tamer to crack the whip. Don’t worry about commanding them or getting hurt or anything, all the animals are well trained and could honestly do the show on their own without a tamer, but appearances, you see? Besides, I need someone to stick their head in the tiger’s mouth.”

---

Oberon
Oberon grunted in agreement, wiping the sweat from his forehead. His hair was pulled back into a queue and he’d removed his shirt hours ago, but it was still blistering hot, and the humidity didn’t help. Plus the dust being kicked up didn’t help at all. “That or it’s someone he knows he can control.”

---

Leah
“I dunno, it could just be a customer trying to get advance tickets,” Leah said skeptically, skittering to the other side of Logan as some of the lionesses passed by. She didn’t like the lions. They were mean and they picked on her a lot. So did the hyenas, but luckily they were on the other side of the lot setting up attractions. She hated their pranks even more than she hated the lions’ swats and jeers.

@ Aikofox
Vella
Vella sat as Richard did, then stared at him as he explained what she'd be doing. She blinked at him for a bit, "You're kidding, right?" She shook her head, "I don't know the first thing about animals. I've never even owned a fish, let alone a domesticated version of what you've probably got here in the zoo." She shook her head again, "And I sure ain't gonna stick my head in a lion's - or anything, for that matter - mouth." She sat back in her seat, "Seriously, this is very dangerous."

Logan
Logan blinked down at Leah as she skittered around him, then shrugged. The girl had always been a bit... flighty. Like a caged bird, he'd always thought. He returned his attention to Oberon, "Think she's like us? Maybe that's how he'll control her." But the idea didn't even seem sound to him and he began shaking his head before Oberon could say anything, "No. It's got to be something else." By this time in the day Logan had yet to remove his shirt, but there were sweat marks all over the thing, making the cotton a bit uncomfortable.

@ Jaguar's Heart

Richard
“Really, you don’t have to worry!” Richard said, “It’s completely safe! These animals were born and raised in captivity, and have never hurt a soul in their lives! They’re extremely well trained and very intelligent, almost human, some might say.” He chuckled at his own joke. “And you won’t ever have to see them outside of the ring. I could even introduce you to one of them right now, if you like. Maybe that could convince you they’re harmless?”

---

Oberon
Oberon watched the lions warily, making sure they didn’t try to start anything with Leah. He’d known her since she was a little girl, and almost from his first day there he’d appointed himself her protector, something she’d sorely needed. He thought of her as something of a little sister, despite the difference in species, and she’d even admitted once that he was like the brother she’d never had. “Well, if it concerns us, we’ll find out soon enough.”

---

Leah
Leah smiled at Logan sheepishly, moving away once the pride was past. “I wonder who she is?” She said, tilting her head to the side and chirping. “I’m going to go find out!” With that, she dropped the remaining water bottles and took off towards the RV, dodging expertly around people as she went to go eavesdrop.

@ Aikofox
Vella
Vella stared at the man before her as if he was nuts, "You do realize that I have no clue what to do, right?" She shook her head, "Look, this just has 'Bad Idea' written all over it. These animals might be well trained and know what to do, but that doesn't mean they won't attack me because I'm fresh meat and scared out of my mind."

Logan
Once second the little cheetah was next to him.... and the next she was gone. Logan shook his head as he watched her zip to the RV. Why anyone needed to get anywhere that fast was beyond him. He much preferred just the plain old walk. It would still get you there, but give you a lot more to look at along the way. He turned back to Oberon, "True enough. Come on, we need to get back to work before they start to think we actually enjoy ourselves here."

@ Jaguar's Heart

Richard
“You’ll be fine, Vella, trust me, these animals are totally harmless, there is no possibility of incident. I’m in quite a bind.” He decided to take a different track with the negotiations. “Your grandfather was originally supposed to take this position, but then he said that you would be helping out in his stead. But if you refuse the job…” He trailed off with a sigh, leaving the implications there for her. “Now, would you like to meet one of the animals or not?” He walked to the door, opening it, surprised when he hit something that squeaked. He looked down to see a familiar little blond woman sprawled at the bottom of the RV’s steps, clad in Daisy Dukes and a cut off tank top. “Leah, what are you doing?” He asked, voice deceptively mild. “Were you eavesdropping?”

---

Oberon
Oberon grunted in agreement, turning back to the task at hand. If the crazy little cheetah wanted to get herself in trouble, that was on her head. But he couldn’t help but glance over in her direction every now and then. He couldn’t see her from this angle, she was on the other side of the vehicle, but the wind was blowing in the right direction to bring her scent to him.

---

Leah
Leah hit the ground with an “Oof!”, sprawling on her back on the hard ground. She winced, sitting up, then froze at the sound of the voice. She ducked her head, peeking up at the ringmaster and the man who had practically raised her. “Uhm…maybe?” She said sheepishly, deciding honesty was the least likely to get her punished. “Oberon and Logan saw someone they didn’t recognize come over here and I was fetching them water and we were wondering if it was an early customer or someone to fill the empty spot as animal tamer so we don’t have to take shifts with it anymore and I was hoping it was an animal tamer and Oberon thought it might be someone looking for a job because he said he saw a suitcase but Logan thought it might be an advance customer looking for tickets and I decided to come find out and then you hit me with the door and…hi!” She said brightly, waving at the strange woman behind Richard. “Are you going to be our new animal tamer? I’m Leah!”

@ Aikofox
Vella's brow lifted as she stared down at the woman on the ground, "Hi," This woman was very.... chippy for someone who just fell onto the ground. And chatty. So very chatty. From what this girl was saying Vella seemed to be the talk of the circus... and it looked like she'd have to be the damn tamer as well, because there was no way her older grandfather would last long doing it. Still, her response to the woman was, "Not if I can help it."

Logan
Now that Logan knew a strange person was on site he kept part of his attention on the look out for her scent again. When it was caught on the breeze he lifted his head and turned to the Rv, "I think they're coming," He said to Oberon as he sniffed again, "You think Leah was caught?" The little cheetah was always bouncing around somewhere... and seemed to always be getting into trouble somewhere.

@ Jaguar's Heart

Leah
“Oh, but why not?” Leah asked, hopping to her feet and dusting herself off. “You’d make a pretty animal tamer, much prettier than me! I don’t have the chest for it.” She glanced at Richard, trying to take her cues from him and find a way to stay out of trouble. She was already in for it for the eavesdropping, she knew, but maybe if she could make him happy again he wouldn’t be too angry.

---

Richard
“Leah,” Richard said, all patience for the beast in front of Vella, “Why don’t you and Oberon go get the tiger? That way Vella here can see that her new position is completely safe.”
The shifter girl gave him a bright smile that wilted only slightly at the sight of the control remote hidden in his hand. “Sure!” To Vella, she added in her annoying chirpy voice, “You’ll love him! He looks big and scary, but he’s a pussycat. He’s one of my favorites!” She turned and zipped off, back to where the other animals were actually doing their job.

---

Oberon
“It’s possible,” he said. “She’s not exactly stealthy.” Oberon looked up at the sound of his name, spotting Leah waving in his direction as she approached. He sniffed the air, smelling the boss and the stranger once more. He still couldn’t see them, but they were there. “What is it?” He asked as she skidded to a stop.
“She’s here to be the new tamer but she doesn’t want to be so the boss wants her to meet you so she can see we’re not dangerous. But she could have just met me, I’m not scary at all and I’m a lot cuter, too! But I guess that’s why, he wants her to meet someone scary and your tiger’s pretty intimidating and he had the remote and we should go.”
Oberon waited for her to wind down, there was really no way to stop her once she got going. With an annoyed sigh he tossed his tools to Logan. “Be right back,” he said with a scowl. Great, now he had to show off and play the dumb animal again. He led Leah back towards where they kept the animals, just in case. It sounded like they were putting on a damn dog and pony show here. He quickly stripped the rest of his clothes and waited for the shock of the collar to send him into the shift. He missed being able to shift of his own free will, he thought, grunting in pain as fur sprouted and his bones realigned themselves. The shift was always painful, even when he’d been free, but having it controlled like this made it agony. He kept silent as he changed, grateful that Leah gave him the illusion of privacy by turning her back. Once he was done he shook himself, glorying at the feel of power that filled him. The world shifted, colors dulling and shifting as scent became his primary source of input. His hearing sharpened as well. He padded silently over to Leah and nudged her hand, indicating that he was ready to go.

@ Aikofox
Vella
Vella watched as the woman ran off, "Is she always this... peppy?" She asked Richard, shaking her head, "Really, this is too much. I don't think you understand what I'm saying. I'm actually a little uncomfortable around animals. Especially big ones. So you don't need to grab a... a tiger. I'm sure the tiger is eating lunch or doing something important...."

Logan
Logan watched Oberon walk off with Leah, then glanced back at the RV. There was no way he was going to miss this. So he dropped his hammer and headed off to the RV, ignoring the human workers who tried to call him back. As if they could. He was a grown grizzly, like they could make him do anything. Only Richard could, since he had the remote. Which pissed logan off, but he couldn't do anything about it.

@ Jaguar's Heart

Leah
Leah turned and smiled at Oberon. “All ready? Okay, let’s go!” She grabbed one of the show leashes and clipped it to his collar. It was annoying and she felt bad doing it, but they all had to wear leashes for things like this. She turned and started to run off, but was stopped short by a pull on the leash. She looked back as Oberon padded calmly up to her, giving her a look. “Oh, sorry!” She giggled in embarrassment, then headed back at a more sedate pace, the massive tiger at her side.

---

Richard
“I need an animal tamer,” Richard said, exasperated. “If not you, then your grandfather. I honestly would much rather prefer you. All you have to do is stand there and look pretty, crack a whip, do a few tricks, which I’ll show you, and it will be completely safe.” He noticed someone approaching, then hid a scowl as he realized it was Logan. Mangy, lazy beast. He had to let it slide for now, he was trying to make a good impression. “Look, here’s Leah now.”

---

Oberon
Oberon padded beside Leah, tail swishing angrily behind him, as they approached the two humans. He snarled at the boss, baring all his fangs and swiping a paw at him. Protest given, he turned to the strange woman who smelled so damn good. He ignored Richard’s explaining his behavior away as training as he looked her over, opening his mouth to better take in her scent. He stepped right up to her, butting her with his head as he asked for pets.

@ Aikofox
Vella
Vella stared with wide eyes as the tiger walked up. Even though the thing was on a leash and collar it could still easily over power the very tiny Leah and and attack everyone in the vicinity. When the tiger pressed his head against her Vella lifted her arms out of the way and looked at Richard, "Uh... you can explain that behavior away all you want, I still won't believe you." But the annoying man was right. Her grandfather couldn't do this... but could Vella? On a groan she glared at Richard, "Fine, but I swear, if even one incident happens I'm gone."

Logan
Logan watched the group, a smirk on his face as he leaned back against the giraffe trailer. He crossed his arms over his chest and huffed. Oberon was just asking for trouble and punishment swiping at the boss like that. What was the cat thinking? That Richard wouldn't remember and seek revenge later?

@ Jaguar's Heart

Leah
Leah giggled as Oberon rubbed his massive head against Vella’s stomach. “He likes you!” She said brightly, dropping the leash and clapping as she hopped up and down. “He’ll act a little grumpy sometimes, but he’s a real sweetie. He’s my favorite! He’s so big and strong and fluffy!”

---

Richard
Richard shot the cat a look, then smiled at Vella. “What did I say, completely harmless! Thank you for accepting, I just have to figure out where you’ll be staying. Most of the RVs are two beds, so you’ll be rooming with someone, I just don’t remember who has the open bed…”
“Um, that’s me,” Leah said, raising her hand. “I don’t have a bunk mate.”
“Perfect! Then Leah, why don’t you show Vella to her new quarters while I take care of Stripes here.”

---

Oberon
Oberon stropped against the girl, leaning up to sniff her face. She smelled very citrusy, and the sweet tang made his whiskers curl in pleasant ways. Though at the sound of the boss’s nickname for him he turned to the man and roared his annoyance. He hated being called Stripes. Least original nickname ever. It was even worse that Obie!

@ Aikofox
Vella
Vella continued to hold her hands in the air as the tiger pressed against her. She glared at Richard, definitely not happy about any of this, "Yippie." She said sarcastically, stepping back to grab her duffel bag once the tiger was away from her. She wasn't looking forward to having a room mate... especially one so chipper. She'd almost yelled at the girl for dropping the leash, but hadn't wanted to make any loud noises with the large tiger against her. So instead she followed Leah to the trailer.

Logan
Logan almost chuckled at Richard's nickname, gaze following the women before he glanced back to Richard and Oberon. He knew that this wouldn't be good and that there wasn't much he could do to help Oberon.... but he wasn't just going to leave the guy. So instead he walked up to them slowly, not saying anything, just a silent presence.

@ Jaguar's Heart

Leah
Leah’s bouncing slowly stopped as Vella went back inside to get her things. She watched Richard and Oberon warily, certain that they were going to have another one of their spats. Someone needed to stop them, but there was no one. You angered Richard at your own risk, though Oberon tended to do it more than anyone else. She glanced around, worried, then spotted Logan. She sighed in relief. He’d stickup for Oberon and keep his punishment from being too harsh. When Vella reemerged, she grabbed her hand and hauled her off, surprisingly strong for someone so small. “Come on!” She said, eager to get away from all the tension. “This way! I’m so excited to meet you! You seem like a nice person, are you a nice person? I hope you’re a nice person, I hate bunking with mean people, they like to pick on me all the time!”

---

Richard
Richard glared at Oberon, unintimidated by the roar and flash of fangs. As soon as Vella was gone, he flipped the shock switch for the cat’s collar, sending the brute crashing to the ground as electricity coursed through his body. “I ought to skin you alive and make a rug out of your pelt!” He hissed furiously. “How dare you show me such disrespect!”

---

Oberon
Oberon grimaced in pain as he writhed, a high pitched whine coming from his throat that he couldn’t control. When the shock finally stopped, he lay there, panting as he tried to stop trembling. He was no stranger to punishment, being one of the most problematic of the captive shifters, but it still hurt.

@ Aikofox
Vella
Vella blinked as she was suddenly pulled along by Leah, overwhelmed with so many questions, "Uh... I have a feeling that you get picked on a lot, huh?" She asked, lifting her brow at Leah, "I wonder why..." Her tone wasn't rude, just... there. This wasn't a situation for Vella to get excited about, so she couldn't bring her excitement level up to the same as Leah's, "Is that why you're in your own RV?"

Logan
Logan stared at Richard as the man shocked Oberon. There really wasn't anything he could do at the moment, but once the shocking was over he walked up to Oberon and grabbed the tiger by his scruff. Being a grizzly he had the strength to lift the almost dead weight of the tiger. Luckily, most didn't mess with the grizzly. He glared at Richard, then made his way over to Oberon's trailer, "You just like punishment, don't you."