Much of the week that lead into Thanksgiving related to helping Elly get better used to Animalia and come out of her shell a little bit. A lot of it related to some shyness on Elly's part. They would spend at least some time after school showing her the sights around Lyre and Animalia and helping her meet more of the people of the area. For the most part, it hadn't gone too badly, though all of the Animalia Ambassadoria members that had taken their respective turns had some concerns regarding the State Department's interpreter, Julius Striker.
He helped and gave some translations when Elly had questions on what was said in English or didn't know how to phrase something in English and slipped into her native Russian, but there was also the sensation that Striker was there to try and serve other interests for the US government that were not so supportive of Animalia. He would occasionally ask questions regarding Regressive Hypersexuality disorder and why Animalia Ambassadoria wasn't pushing Elly into pushing that research with Horizon or why they weren't trying to promote Animalia as a means to "cure" homosexuality. It was something that clearly displayed some other hidden agenda, and it was not thought to be a good thing, but until Elly got better with her English, they were stuck with him. Thankfully, they did manage to get through the week and Elly did seem to like certain elements of Thanksgiving.
"This is very good," Elly commented as she took a forkful of turkey shaped tofu as she sat at one of the long tables set up in the great hall that were set up for the great feast for Thanksgiving, "And this you do every year?"
"Well we have Thanksgiving every year," Abby answered, "this is the second time that we've had a grand feast here in the Great Hall."
"It takes away from family dinners," Striker commented from his seat and then taking a sip of wine that was provided.
"Our family is all here," Josephine Brown said from her daughter's left and her own husband to her own left and with Samson to Abby's right, "But Animalia as a community is happy to be together and thankful as a community to be together."
Martin nodded, "In this we're thankful for not just our families but our community as well."
"Especially as everyone in Animalia has gotten along quite well," Samson added as he leaned to a side nuzzle Abby's cheek with his nose. Abby smiled and soon nuzzled him back.
Elly smiled at that, noting the happiness between the two Horse Animalians. Meeting Martin and Josephine Brown was nice, and in a way it was surprising to her that Josephine was on Animalia's City Council, as it was exceedingly rare for her find people in any level of government that was openly kind as Josephine was. Like Abby and Samson, she didn't quite like Mr. Striker following as an interpreter, partially as he seemed to hover over her and reminded her of how the government operated in Russia. Constantly there and looking to further an agenda that went beyond just helping her with regard to her English and providing translations of her Russia when she couldn't put together the English words for what she wished to convey. It was something that made her nervous when it came to the Animalia Ambassadoria interview and took her away from some of the things that she found interesting. And Abby and Samson's obvious courtship and love seemed to remind her of that.
"And I'm sure you'll be happy," Elly commented as Abby and Samson finished their brief nuzzling of their muzzles and resumed eating.
"Yeah... I got lucky in finding such a wonderful stallion," Abby smiled, "and as you get more used to things here... you could also find some one special."
Elly followed Abby's eyes as they shifted over to a side for a few moments to where she could see a couple of other White Rhinoceros Animalians eating their Thanksgiving Dinner. The various members of Animalia Ambassadoria that had met with her often tried to introduce her to the members of the Rhino Guard in Animalia, who outside of Sherry and Wanda were all White Rhinoceros Animalians, but more often than not, Elly had found herself getting weak in the knees and ended up fleeing with a heavy blush in her cheeks. She wasn't afraid of them, and from a distance, the way their muscles bulged was very appealing, but she just couldn't bring up the confidence to actually say "hello."
"Maybe," Elly said slowly.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"This is all quite good," Jen commented at a different table as she sat next to Andrew.
America's "Thanksgiving" wasn't quite something she was super used to, but the more she interacted with others in Animalia and Lyre, be it something on the street or as part of some of the shows at the Meat Market, the more she learned about it and found many elements of America's culture and activities interesting. Thanksgiving was one of those things, and the collection of vegetables, fruits, and tofu for Animalia's herbivores were tasty and from time to time she turned her head to get a look at the main serving table where there were pumpkin and pecan pies. Some of which had come from the bake sale, though most of those had gone home with those that couldn't stay for the feast.
"It is indeed," Marjorie said from the other side of Jen and with Luke on the other side of Marjorie, "Lots of good food and good friends all around."
"Yes... I'm glad to have made friends with you all," Jen commented to Luke and Marjorie and then leaned over to softly rub her neck to Andrew's, "and to find love with such a wonderful man."
Andrew smiled back and nuzzled his neck to Jen's. He also noted that Luke and Marjorie shared a similar nuzzle of their necks against each other, probably because some of the other things that they'd have interest in probably wouldn't appropriate for Thanksgiving. Luke and Marjorie also had to be careful that their longer Diplodocus tails didn't trip anyone up.
"And for the opportunities for new friends," Luke commented, "I got to meet the White Rhino female in the serving line... Ellen..."
"Elly," Sophie corrected from across the table where she was seated with Roland to her left, JC and Pauline to her right, and her parents to the right of Pauline. Roland's parents were seated on the other side of Roland.
"Elly," Luke corrected at the Pterodactylus Dinotopian's correction, "she seemed rather nice... though a bit nervous."
"Yeah..." Marjorie said slowly, "it's like she backed away... but as strong as she looks... and while she isn't as big as Jen or me... she has plenty to be proud of that should make all the male Rhinos go crazy for her."
"I think she's just a bit shy," Roland commented with a glance to his parents and then to Sophie, "probably because of some things that went on in her child hood... in that she grew bigger and stronger than other girls her age in Russia... and as they got jealous of her, they picked on her for it."
Sophie nodded in agreement as she and Roland took another bite grilled salmon that had been provided. She and Roland had found that they could eat just about any kind of meat, but a lot of their instincts drew them more to fish than others, likely the result of the fact that Pterodactylus lived in an environment where it would be near seas or lakes, and made fish a more common food item. And with the wider array of foods that were brought to the big Thanksgiving Day dinner at Animalia's Great Hall, it was also something that many enjoyed coming to. Even their parents were happy to enjoy it and joined their children at the table where most of the Dinotopians had congregated. And they both nodded at Roland's comment.
"That's horrible," Lizzie spoke from the other side of Sophie's father and pausing in her chewing on a tough piece of turkey.
"It would appear that jealousy can lead to a great many acts that are horrible," Mrs. Albers commented to the Dimetrodon Animalian, "Though... Sophie and her friends have been trying to help her... and she is rather sweet, even if her English is a bit shaky."
"She is getting better, though," Pauline commented, "I think much of it is gaining the confidence to actually say something."
There were a few nods from the others that were there at the table and had been engaged in the conversation. Heather and Jeremy didn't say much from their spot across from Sophie's parents, but Heather did hang on to what was said on what Animalia Ambassadoria had been doing to help the young woman.
"Well... I'm sure your group can do it," Heather commented a small smile as she thought over a lot of the help that Sophie had given her, even after her attack the previous fall.
There were a few claps that came as a response to that.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
At another table, the Wesleys had gathered with Simon and Travis's families as well. A set of baby chairs were set up for Belle, Bash, and Simon's younger siblings. It lead to some happy barks as the two sets of pups interacted with each other and engaged in the standard sort of game that always drove parents crazy, throwing food or their plastic bottles. It was something that triggered a host of giggles from them.
"You know you two don't have to do that," Thomas Wesley said to Belle and Bash as he collected the small pieces to cut up turkey and placed them onto a sort of "garbage" plate that was in front of him. While there was some indication that Animalians could better deal with things like bacteria than normal Humans, that didn't mean he was about to let his youngest eat anything that had ended up on the floor.
Belle only answered with a few short barks with Bash joining in, which almost sounded like laughter. It only set Simon's younger sibling off again, and the plastic bottle was grabbed and tossed backward over the high chair. Thankfully it was plastic and the rubber tip didn't come off, but it did lead to a fairly loud sounding "click" as it bounced off the floor. Simon's mother gave a soft groan and went to retrieve it with a small smile.
"At least we know they're having a good time," Malice commented from her seat next to Simon, and looking across to her sister and Travis, with Travis's parents, Dallas and Dot Fleck sitting on the other side of Travis.
"You'll only encourage them," Simon's mother answered, though with a small smile on her muzzle.
"That's still good," Dallas commented, "better than what some families are going through."
There were a few nods from the gathered Wesleys, Trumans, and Flecks. While the Lyre and Animalia Police Departments had largely trained to deal with potential urban fires and had their jurisdiction for both Lyre and Animalia, with the huge scale and scope of the fires in northern California that had been blazing, some contingents from Lyre and Animalia had both offered services to help the embattled California departments trying to save lives and desperately trying to save homes. Dallas was among those that had been sent to try and help. It meant a lot of ditch digging to try and create fire brakes and running to help other firefighters try to control the blaze. Then as the fires began to subside, to help with search and rescue efforts, but by that point, much of what he'd found wasn't necessarily happy. The finding of people who had been burned to death was heart wrenching.
"Yes," Julia Wesley nodded, "Do... do you know on who would be the best to donate to? To help with the clean up and everything?"
"They've had some numbers that they've flashed in some of the ads on the football games," Travis commented, thinking back to the earlier weeks while his father had been out fighting these fires, "Though... some things like the Red Cross, the Salvation Army, and many of the others would be able to help in general."
Dallas nodded in agreement with his son, "we also have some donation boxes down at the fire house. It'll have all the forms that will be there to help see to it that the people there get the financial help they'll need."
"Thank you," Julia said.
Dallas nodded before getting a comforting pat on the back from Dallas. Though some of the happy barks from Belle and Bash and Simon's younger sibling soon raised some of their spirits, giving all three families something to be thankful for.
"And I'm thankful we can all be here... after everything," Sarah agreed, "and hopefully... everything will get better."
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"You know the best part of this... is that we can cut down on the cooking," Jessica's mother commented as the Mariana family sat with Roger and the Lightfoot family. Shyra was also there.
"Of course," Mrs. Lightfoot chuckled, "saves on time and makes cleaning easier."
That was a part of the major part of the main Thanksgiving Dinner in the Great Hall. The only admission to the dinner was that families coming to the dinner prepare at least one dish of appropriate size to feed more than one family. Some brought deserts or items for the bake sale, but others also brought main dishes. Carnivorous Animalians often brought meats, ranging from turkey to beef to pork to venison and others. Herbivorous Animalians brought yams, potatoes, cranberries, and other salad type dishes. Things like tofu were also included.
"I thought the best part of this was everyone coming together as a community," said Roger, "we all share what we're thankful for."
"Well there is that," Mr. Mariana smiled, "and we are probably all thankful for those things... that we're together and that my daughter has found someone kind and responsible."
"And soon to be a martial arts master!" Codey added, making Jessica chuckle a little.
"Well... I'm thankful for second chances and real shots at friendship," Shyra commented as she looked across the table to Jessica's parents, "though... if you ever decide to become bunnies... I'd be more than willing to offer the milk for it."
"We're fine as we are," Mrs. Mariana said firmly, "we don't need to be Animalians to support Animalia or to love our daughter."
Shyra shrugged and then nibbled at the pile of various vegetables that she had on her plate. A part of her thinking was more in that the Mariana family should match, but she had gone through plenty of sessions with Doctor Jones and the smaller field sessions with Jessica and her family, and sometimes with Roger present, that had helped her get her own case of Regressive Hypersexuality under control. It was really that she was thankful for, as it had helped with controlling her own sex drive, which was considerably higher than even the average Animalian's.
"So... what do you think on the new White Rhino that joined Animalia?" Shyra asked to Jessica, "Elly, right?"
"She seems nice... though a bit shy," Jessica answered.
"Yes... from what Roger's told us... it would appear that there were a fair number of people that bullied her for the condition she had," Mr. Lightfoot commented, "a shame that people can't seem to accept that people are different."
"I think some of it is just jealousy," Jessica spoke after taking a sip of water, "I mean... she has to be in her late teens now or early twenties... and she was taller than you, dad, even BEFORE her conversion and had breasts bigger than Sarah and Malice. I'd guess that there were some teenage boys in Russia that saw her and wanted her for... well... sex... and many of the girls that she'd normally want for friends got jealous at the fact that Elly got more attention than they did."
"Well... I don't think she'll have that trouble here," Cody commented, "Every Animalian seems to be built the same..."
"Codey..." Mr. Lightfoot said sternly.
"Well... in a way he is right," Jessica said weakly as she looked to Roger, "Animalians are very healthily built. In this... there really isn't anything that Animalians have to be jealous of... and with our edicts, that any Animalian looking to have children MUST be with one of their own species. In this... I have Roger, who I can hopefully one day marry after college and start a family with."
"Don't get ahead of yourself, dear," Mrs. Mariana said to her daughter, "you never know what the future holds."
"Right now... I'd be looking for more Thanksgiving dinner," Roger commented and held up an empty plate as he stood up.
"Save room for dessert," Mrs. Lightfoot commented, "I did bake a pie and it will be good for all... and hopefully it'll still be there."
"Maybe we can all go for dessert now," Codey suggested, which only earned a few chuckles and they all moved to get up and head for the desserts.