While everyone was getting ready for Spring Break, and Spring Carnival in particular, there was still some bumps and hiccups, though they weren't unappreciated.
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Clara was paged for by the PR-MD office with something really surprising, though why was more surprising than others.
"You do know that what makes most people nervous is meeting their in-laws for the first time, right?" asked the agent.
"I've seen enough movies where that was the case, especially if said in-laws were somewhat insane." answered Clara, not saying that she liked any of them.
"Well there was a minor incident when Iphis and Ianthe met Lily's parents." said the Agent.
"Hopefully it wasn't too bad." said Clara.
"Don't worry," said the agent, reading the article, "It was both funny and lucky at the same time. As a 'reward' for giving them so many grandchildren, Lily's parents made Ty, Lily, Iphis, and Ianthe clean out their storage unit. In what was an otherwise ordinary filing cabinet was actually an extremely valuable collection of rare comic books put together by Lily's great uncle."
"Why would that be lucky?" asked Clara, not getting it.
"First of all, most of them were rare gems from the 1930's and 1940's, which is often considered the Golden Age of Comic Books, which make them a lot more valuable than they would be if they were made today."
"No wonder." said Clara, only getting that some comics were way older than Animalia.
"But what makes some more valuable than others is who is starred in the comic book." continued the Agent, "For instance, Action Comics No. 1, which was part of the collection that was found by our anacondas, features the debut of DC superhero Superman."
"Okay..." said Clara, already a little lost.
"But what is the most important part of the comic's worth was what condition it is." finished the agent, "The closer it is to when it was first printed, or mint condition, the more valuable it is." But that was the final straw to completely lose Clara. "Well because of that, we've decided to include a comic book convention as part of the already planned Carnival Games. It will help you understand some of the things that originated well before Animalia."
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Because there was still one week until spring break, and Animalia Ambassadoria would be spending the first weekend before that covering the new Roman ruins discovered on Dorian's land. While getting their late passes filled out, there was also an "official debriefing" about what was already known.
Dorian (formerly Lord Chumlee) had managed to discard his old nickname with his physical improvement drive, and during a do-it-yourself landscape renovation, he had discovered the remains of a Roman-era bath house on his land. The British Museum had decided to include it in the planned Animalia Colony in the United Kingdom. They were doing a 'preview' over the weekend, but there was going to be an official coverage during Summer Vacation.
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The most recent hiccup, but also the most surprising was when Sarah and Malice (bringing Bash and Bell with them because their parents were getting their latest checkup/grooming) went to the apartment complex where Ella, Simone, and Annie lived to do an interview about the planned dance hall/club in Animalia. While most of it went without a hitch, there was a surprising thing found on the grounds of the apartment complex.
Bash and Bell, all ready for spring, were digging in the grounds, when they found what appeared to be an old, dirty towel. While rebuking Bash and Bell, an accidental tap on the towel caused a hollow metal sound to be heard. At that, the police were notified, as well as the Animalia Construction Company.
One tenant joked that it was a car or a buried bank heist. But when it was fully uncovered, everyone was surprised. It was indeed a car, but it was completely wrapped in towels and with taped seams and more towels shoved into the vents, but the windows weren't completely rolled up, so there was some interior damage. After some research, it was determined to be a 1968 Ferarri 365 GTB4 "Daytona" that was registered as stolen from Las Vegas in the same year. But due to a tip that it might have been an insurance scam, the registered owner eventually confessed that he had hired a couple to steal the car, drive it into a lake, disassemble it, fence the parts, and pass the money on to him. But clearly they had botched the job and buried it intending to come back for it later.
The police eventually sold it to a mechanic from Las Vegas who not only owned a garage and specialized in both restoring and customizing antique cars, but who also had a little sister who happened to be one of Annie's friends/clients. So it was a little less surprising that she gave it to Annie as a bridal shower gift (mainly because there was going to be a summer group wedding for Homosexual Anonymous program members, mainly because the members were developing true love with their assigned mates). Though it was even less surprising when it was revealed to be given a zebra stripe paint job and showroom finish for the event, but it was also customized to be comfortable for Annie and Stuart. Because of that, Annie and Stuart were considered, in car circles, as the coolest Animalia couple ever, especially since the license plate read "A&S HRD" (license plate slang).
While Annie and Stuart were planning to keep it, they were also planning to show it off as part of the Spring Carnival.
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While they were some hiccups before spring break, they weren't bad at all.