The Lunar New Year was particularly fun for the younger generation who had limited knowledge of the Orient before. Learning so much about China, Japan, Mongolia, Vietnam, and all the other countries of the Far East was as much enjoyable as it was educational.
The hosts of Animalia Ambassadoria were having a lot of fun with this. Abby, Sarah, Malice, Jessica, and Sophie were hanging out together before they went to separate events. Abby was going to see Durga and Shiva and spend a little bit of time with the uplifted tigers. Jessica was going to hang out the Shikumatsu family for a while. She was starting to become fond of the Japanese rabbits. The Wesley sisters will be hanging out with their mates after their chat here. Sophie was going back to the buffet. She was grateful her humanity allowed to enjoy a wider selections that the more constricted diets of her friends, thought she'll probably feel bloated for a while after that.
"So, how does it feel to personally know the Miss Zodiac of 2017?" asked Jessica.
"Well, I don't know her as well as you think," said Abby, "The chickens didn't particularly have a lot of personality before the outbreak. I haven't really gotten to know Tara too well after that. I don't want to say I have favoritism, but I kinda paid more attention to the other horses."
"I can understand that," said Sarah.
"Still, it was pretty interesting to watch those hens show off their muscles like that," said Malice. She hadn't considered chickens to be much more than food sources. Of course, the Animalia virus made even the lowliest of species equal in stature as some of the mightier ones. Ok, the bigger animals had an obvious advantage over the smaller ones, but it was still impressive to see what the unassuming ones can do now.
"So they're going to be doing this sort of thing every year?" asked Sophie.
"Well, not exactly on the same day," said Jessica, "The New Year depends on when the new moon is and that shifts a lot. But I think Animalia will be celebrating this each year."
"And we'll be showcasing every animal of the Eastern Zodiac," said Abby proudly.
"Almost every animal," said Sophie, "There aren't any dragons, right?" The other girls paused to think about that. Obviously dragons were mythological creatures, so what would happen when it was the Year of the Dragon? Would they be using Komodo dragons as a substitute? Would Horizon Labs have started experimenting with extinct animals and have created dinosaur Animalians by then? Or perhaps would they attempt to splice an approximation of a dragon from existing species?
"Well, I know what's going to be happening next year," said Malice boastfully, "I'm going to be Miss Zodiac of the Year of the Dog."
"What makes you think you'll be Miss Zodiac?" challenged Sarah.
"Because I'm the best dog here," said Malice proudly.
"Oh yeah? I bet I could beat you in that competition," said Sarah.
Malice chuckled and said, "I don't think you realize who you're up against."
"I should point out that there are a lot more dogs than just the two of you," said Jessica, "You'll be facing really tough competition. Tougher than what the hens had to deal with today."
"I welcome good competition?" said Malice with the same grin that she had when she accepted the challenge of winning Simon's heart against the other dog girls at school.
"Well, don't expect me to be running interference for you," said Sarah, "I'm going to be doing my best to win that contest."
Malice's ears drooped and she said a little sadly, "You aren't going to have my back?"
Sarah's edge of determination softened at that and said, "Ok, we'll both help each other with training, but we shouldn't be holding back against each other. You want to win this fair and square, right?"
Malice perked up at that, "Yeah, I want to see which of us is better. No hard feelings if I win, right?"
"Same if I win," said Sarah, the husky sisters shaking hands. Jessica and Abby exchanged glances at this. It made them wonder what it would be like for them when the Years of the Rabbit and Horse came respectively.