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The floor squeaked as water was caught between it and rubber soles, causing Otomeza to cringe in reaction to the loud sound. Shaking a bit of the water off, she was about to lead the twins down the inner hallway of the zoo, but wasn't quick enough in grabbing Iridian's hand. In his excitement, he tore off down the hallway to get first dibs on seeing the animals in the smaller, glass-walled habitats at the front, laughing as he went. "R-Riddy!" Otomeza called, although knowing it was a lost cause. At least he stopped none too far away...

Cheyenne stuck to his guardian's side, pulling back his raincoat's hood as they left the rain behind. It wasn't pouring down, at least, but it could very well do so in the time to come. Otomeza was slightly concerned about it, but Cheyenne had the biggest grin on his face -- it was still summertime, but he could finally get out of the house! Holding her hand out to the pale toddler, Otomeza asked, "Well, should we catch up to him?" With a sharp nod in response, Cheyenne grabbed hold of the offered hand, flicking his white wings in an attempt to shake some of the water off.

They caught up with Iridian in moments, just as he started to lightly smack his hand against the glass of the nearest tank. Turning his mismatched eyes to Otomeza, he gaped, "Lookit da lizards!"

Quickly, the woman grabbed hold of the boy's hand before he could poke at the glass again. "You shouldn't disturb them like that, hon. They don't like the sound it makes. Just look at them, okay? Don't touch," she explained before releasing his hand again.

He pouted slightly, looking as though he were considering if he really wanted to listen to the woman. Thinking better of it, he turned back to the display, bouncing slightly for a better view and in reaction to his excitement. "Ennie, come here and lookit this!" he exclaimed. In curiosity, Cheyenne obeyed the summoning, but not before Iridian earned a punch in the shoulder from the albino for the nickname.

Cheyenne was the first of the twins to notice the newcomers as they entered, mainly because the tone of the voices being used weren't as annoyingly giddy as his brother's. Of course Iridian hadn't noticed them enter: he was too preoccupied trying to mimic the lizard's movements, and his laughing drowned out anyone else's words when it came to his own ears. Must have been a first, though, as the kid was usually first to pounce when it came to a new acquaintance.

He watched Damon and Ilyrosa as they spoke to one another, curious as to why they were entering as they argued. Weren't zoos suppose to be fun? Then what was with all the grouching? It never occurred to the albino that, perhaps, there were some people that really didn't like the rain. Sure, Otomeza had been concerned about the twins' well-being when she had seen the weather outside, but it wasn't everyday that Cheyenne could wander about freely in the middle of summer.

As he pressed his nose against the glass, Iridian was about to flick his wings out when his senses started picking up the faint signals indicating that someone was behind him. Otomeza frowned, but she was cut off before she was able to scold the kid for touching the glass again. Iridian spun around, hitting Cheyenne next to him with his scaled wings instead of the little naga boy. It wasn't long before a large grin was back on his face, "Hi! Wanna see the lizards?" Apparently, he hadn't heard Seth's "chicken" comment.

Cheyenne grumbled at his brother's 'attack,' but he didn't do anything else about it. He couldn't: there was an audience now, and he didn't want to draw attention to himself. Instead, he backed up into Otomeza -- an accident at first, but a workable one. He'd just... hide here, at least until his guardian decided to shove him off to make some friends.

It took a moment or two for Iridian to process Seth's comment accurately. He was almost prompted to look back into the tank behind him, wondering if there was suddenly a chicken with the lizards, but needed only think about the likelihood of that happening for him to refrain. His second guess was that Seth had been calling him a chicken, as an insult, but then why would he have that goofy grin on his face? He stiffened, his own smile falling to the shadow of one, as it registered that he was actually being called on looking edible. The muscles in his wing-tines coiled, storing the energy in the case that this other toddler thought to attack him, as he squeaked, "Wha'?" Funny how pretending to be ignorant only ever managed to falsely boost optimism, as the scaly toddler was ready to run off with any quick movement the snake-bodied spawn may give.

Cheyenne watched the two as they interacted, an almost bored expression on his face as he hid his anxiety. His hands gripped onto the hem of Otomeza's skirt, but other than the clinging aspect left no resistance to it, up or down. He knew better than that. Frowning slightly, the woman nudged the albino's shoulder, "Why don't you go say 'hi,' too?" Apparently she was a little oblivious to Iridian's reaction with said encounter, but with so much going on at once, there was really no wonder.

In fact, she hadn't really expected Damon to come up to her. Flinching, she turned to face the man, slightly bewildered with the way he was talking with her. Funny, a zoo really didn't seem like the place... She smiled, despite herself, and answered bluntly, "Hello Damon, my name's Otomeza. Is that your child?" She motioned with her head toward Seth, redirecting the subject. Long ears pointed back slightly, Cheyenne almost didn't realize the fact that he was glaring up at Damon, half-hiding behind his guardian as he refused to let go of her skirt. However, it was easy to blame this look on the length of his white bangs over his eyes.

Although the tenseness didn't leave him, Iridian blinked a little when he realized that Seth seemed a little... confused. Wait, he was confused? Unfortunately, that realization only managed to befuddle Iridian further. Could he have read into the word wrong? But then, what other explanation could there be, other than Seth actually confusing Iridian for someone else literally named Chicken?

As Seth lowered his body down, Iridian took a reactionary quick step backward, only to be met with the surprisingly warm surface of the habitat behind him. The action knocked out a cough, but once the boy had realized that Seth was merely lowering himself down to a comfortable level, he shrugged his own movements off with a meek smile. Perhaps it would be better to set the record straight, then to jump to conclusions. Pointing to himself, he shook his head and corrected, "'Ridian. No' Chicken." He could at least hope he wasn't mistaken, this time.

Otomeza relaxed a bit, her smile coming easier now that the subject matter had been successfully changed. Even if the woman had been that easily interested in Damon, she wouldn't have let on to it, especially with Cheyenne tugging at her possessively like he was. She waved at Ilyrosa as Damon had halfway introduced her before she responded verbally, "Hands full, huh? Yes, these two are my responsibility." She nodded, placing a hand on Cheyenne's head and glancing over toward Seth and Iridian, where her eyes finally thought to frown at the situation, "Doesn't... look like they're getting along too well, though." Strange, Iridian was usually the first to hop to getting along with anyone.

He was trying to relax, he really was, but this was falling under unknown territory. Scratching at his fingernails nervously, he fidgeted when Ilyrosa's voice reached his ears, and he stiffened once more. "R-Really?" he squeaked, looking worried before his eyes bolted back to Seth, to keep an eye on his movements. Perhaps if Cheyenne was paying any attention, he could kick some sense into the other toddler's head, but he was too busy trying to keep Damon away from his mother.

Well, if nothing else, Seth's comment sure broke Cheyenne's silence. His long ears twitched, head turning quickly to make sure he was hearing the word right, but already a smirk was tugging at his mouth, "Chi-- Whaa--?" The pale boy snickered, realizing the situation to it's full effect long before his older twin ever caught on. Iridian's featherless wings, despite being scaled, really did look like plucked chicken wings, didn't they? He couldn't help the sudden burst of laughter, nor could he stop it from dragging on.

Otomeza would have been surprised at the disregard the albino was giving to his own shyness, if she wasn't so alarmed by the sudden noise. Blinking back the surprise, she focused her attention back to Damon. "No kidding?" she mused, glancing back to the naga toddler, "Iridian doesn't like making enemies. If they're both like that, I dunno... how..." Not that she really needed to comment on it, not anymore. It was becoming increasingly obvious, and the draconic woman couldn't help but to hide her amused smile behind a shake of her head.

Iridian's throat was tight with fear, making the usually-hyperactive toddler unnaturally quiet, paralyzed. He frowned slightly, wanting to shoot a piercing glare at his brother to get him to cough up what was so funny about the situation, but he couldn't move. It didn't help matters that Seth's explanation was taking it's jolly time reaching his mind, and Ilyrosa's was assuring the boy that Seth was hungry. It didn't matter that the prospect was virtually impossible to accomplish, not to a toddler's imagination.

With the tenseness giving in, Iridian only managed to slide to the ground, shaking a little. He forced a smile to Seth, but his breath only worked as a sigh, buffering out any words that may have formed. By this time, Cheyenne had regained himself, wiping any tears from his eyes at the humor. He was beat, exerting that much energy when he rarely had much to spare on a good day, but he was stubborn -- his long tail was enough to keep him upright, as well as a steadying hand against the wall. "Ir-- R-Riddy, he can't..." he tried to explain, watching Ilyrosa walk past from the cover of his bangs, "He can't eat you! You're too big!"

Maybe it was because Iridian had figured that out already, or perhaps it was because he was still dealing with the adrenaline from the encounter, but he couldn't do more than smile at Seth. He gave a little wave, determined to pick up the pieces before any friendship was irreparable. After a pause, he asked, "Wha' abou' you? You'w name?" Looked as though he wasn't about to get up off the floor for a while yet.

A couple more deep breaths to stave off the anxiety he had felt seconds before, and Iridian was nearly back to normal. He gave a sharp nod in response to Seth's question, happy to note that, despite their initial meeting, the small naga was also very willing to stay friends. Forearm and wing tines braced against the wall, he hoisted himself back up onto his feet before waving a hand enthusiastically toward Ilyrosa as well. Seems the boy felt no need to pursue forgiveness for any misdeed to be pardoned, be it his fault or otherwise.

Ahh, but introductions! Seth was being generous enough to introduce his older sister to him, the least he could do was to also introduce his younger brother to his new friend, yes? "'n tha's my brovver, Cheyenne," he stated, pointing a finger toward the pale figure standing off to the side. Hopping in place, all fear evaporated and normal behavior restored, Iridian perked with excitement, "Have you ever been here a'fore? Wha' should we look a' ness'?"

Cheyenne, meanwhile, was sliding back into feeling uncomfortable. The adults were off in their little world, though at least they were still paying attention; the older spawn was, let's face it, a little intimidating; not to mention, to add to all this, he had just spoken rather loudly in public. They may not have been out in the rain any more, but the toddler pulled his raincoat's hood back up, tugging at the drawstrings lightly in an attempt to hide from view.

Thoughtfully watching the so-called "chicken and snake" interact, Otomeza nodded after a brief pause, just to make sure everything really was back to normal. "Yeeeah, that looks more like it," she concluded, barely stifling another laugh as the normal hyperactivity started up again, "Definitely more like it." Though it'd be nice if the other two got along as well, she sighed mentally, trying to figure a way around that. She couldn't very well stand to see kids upset! "We should probably step away from the door, head further in," she suggested. Not much to do at the entrance, right?

Cheyenne hesitated a bit, catching the introductory wave from the other toddler despite the hood partially obscuring his vision; he decided it best to give a small wave of his own in return, even though he could have easily ignored the gesture as though he had missed it. Iridian, beaming, found it even better that they could all investigate the new surroundings of the zoo together, as he had likewise never been to one. In fact, he was just about to suggest something to that effect, perhaps give a suggestion, when something had caught Seth's attention. Iridian jumped, his frayed nerves still running on overtime, as he watched his new friend take off after one of the exhibits.

It took the colorful toddler to register what it was that Seth had said before he bolted. With quick feet, he followed, gazing bright-eyed at the habitat behind the glass. He looked again to Seth and giggled in amusement -- the boy and the reptiles behind the pane really did have a resemblance to one another! "They so looong!" he noted aloud, scooting in closer beside the naga as he attempted to mimic the boy (minus the flick of the tongue). It felt so warm on his face and hands!

Cheyenne fidgeted, attempting to lean further back into his hood as he saw the two of them take off after an exhibit. So rambunctious... he sighed mentally, frowning and oblivious to the fact that Seth didn't normally react in such a manner. But his thoughts didn't have the time to delve deeper into irritation as an unexpected voice began addressing him. Glancing up, his piercing red eyes belied his hesitation and surprise, but he was quick to try to cover it up. It was only an annoyance to be so shy, unfortunately. In the following moments, he tried to compose himself to respond without the embarrassment of wavering his voice at the attention. "I, uhh... 'm abstinence and... envy," he replied, the last word coming across as barely more than a whisper. He wasn't exactly proud of his genetics, relating more to what the term instilled in the mind rather than true parental lineage. In part as an effort to draw attention away from him, and in part out of genuine interest, he returned the question, "What about you?" He turned his eyes back to her to take in her features. Surely rather unusual for what he had seen thus far, and certainly much more... pointy. He silently hoped she didn't always have such an explosive temper. Then again, he really wasn't one that could complain on the matter.

"Hmm," Otomeza thought on the explanation, "Wonder what it was that he saw, then!" She apparently hadn't heard the exclamation that had popped from his mouth, but at such a volume, it wasn't all that surprising. She giggled at the spectacle, rather amusing and adorable both, despite the concern about the toddlers touching the glass. She gave a swift nod of her head in agreement of Damon's suggestion, "Good idea. We can let the kids lead the way through the place. They can't complain too much that way." Her laugh was slightly nervous, hoping that there wouldn't be any more anger during the visit -- it was going to be difficult to keep all four of them happy at once, wasn't it? At least Damon's smile was reassuring.