There were many people, mostly foreigners and/or Animalians who were confused about the 4th of July and why it was such a big celebration. Fortunately, there were plenty of people who were more than willing to explain it, as well as the events that led to the ratification of the Declaration of Independence. Unfortunately, there were also plenty of snide morons who used this to mock/insult others while being "patriotic", but these were ignored, per usual.
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Tuxing had a lot of fun in Idaho with Lenard, but she had a bit of a surprise of her own toward the end of the visit. She was also extremely interested in Yellowstone and its many wonders and found it funny that doomsayers were claiming that Yellowstone was a super-volcano ready to erupt at any moment, but Lenard debunked it by saying that they weren't getting the "any moment" right. As it turned out, the "any moment" that scientists reported was actually reported on a geological scale, which functioned in millions of years.
When it was time for Tuxing to head home, she revealed what her surprise was: an invitation to Heiya Island for Lenard to celebrate Animalia's Birthday Celebration. Mikey immediately accepted because, at his age, birthdays meant cake, but Lenard was a little reluctant (having heard of Heiya Island's reputation as a "girls' dormitory island") but he still accepted.
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The Fourth of July was also the official release of When Worlds Collide...: Season Two. As it turned out, the people who were knocking at the door were a group of dwarven wanderers. The first part was to do another cross-cultural thing, mainly by showing the difference between Japanese and dwarven societies, mainly on what is considered polite and what isn't. Afterwards, the dwarves began a meeting with their king, who had arrived "fashionably late", which also revealed why they were there.
It turned out their kingdom had been captured 150 years ago, not by enemies, but by the evil dragon Ancalagon the Black (this was another cross cultural thing, mainly on the differences between dragons in the East and West), who had somehow been resurrected by the power of the Spirit Stones, and the dwarves were driven to take back their home, even though they were mainly, as one dwarf put it, "merchants, miners, tinkers, toymakers, and old warriors".
During the meeting, when they presented the contract to Lord Ieyasu, it was revealed that Hide was illiterate and also didn't know how to speak (William's son was the one who suggested this). "Oh, that won't do at all." said one of the dwarves, "We can't have someone who can't talk, read, or write in our company." While Tokichiro and Otakemaru initially took offense to this, said dwarf revealed that he was actually going to educate him, and then they allowed it. While Ieyasu was initially reluctant to allow samurai to leave Japan to travel to the fallen kingdom, the fact that Spirit Stones had been used to revive Ancalagon eventually made him give consent.
While on the way to the port where the ship to take them to the mainland was docked, they were ambushed on a bridge by a really unusual Tengu. However, they were unexpectedly aided by a really unusual warrior, who eventually pinned him in a submission hold. It was in that hold that the Tengu unexpectedly recognized Hide. Intrigued, Tokichiro used the power of the White Spirit Stone to reveal that the Tengu was actually Minamoto No Yoshitsune. The unusual warrior also revealed himself to be the Nordic warrior Beowulf, much to William and Arthur's surprise, because both of them had heard of/read Beowulf's story.
When they got to the port where the ship was docked, it was revealed that an unusual Umi-Bozu was preventing ships from leaving port. When Hide and Willian decided to vanquish it, Arthur, Yoshitsune and Beowulf offered to aid them. When the Umi-Bozu revealed itself however, it was revealed that it was actually an Uminyudo. Beowulf decided to show off his great strength by grabbing it by one of its tentacles and flinging it onto dry land, but this only made it more mobile and added magical lightning and water attacks. William, fortunately, remembered his own fight with an Umi-Bozu and handed over Fire Amulets to enchant people's swords with. This eventually weakened it enough to allow Hide and Yoshitsune to vanquish it, but it was what the Uminyudo said while dying that confused everyone.
"That accursed black stone, clutched in his four-fingered hand, twisted me into this. My fever, burning like hot coals. The ghosts of my past, like torture. Now, let the most honorable Taira no Kiyomori show you the way."
"'Black stone'? Kiyomori?" asked Yoshitsune in confusion. However, the inhabitants of the port city were delighted that they were now free from the terror of the Uminyudo, and decided to have a parting feast before everyone departed for China.
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Of course, it wouldn't be Fourth of July without fireworks and there were plenty in Lyre/Animalia to go around. Lyre/Animalia Fire Department was on full alert for sparks/fires that fireworks might cause, while Horizon Light was also on alert for people who burn themselves with fireworks, though those who did so through stupid things would have part of their insurance nullified because of that. Of course, those who weren't able to buy/launch fireworks on their own were able to watch firework displays from around Animalia, whether in real time or on tv.
It wasn't just 'traditional' fireworks displays that were being watched. One of the most popular was Mieni Atoll's Starlight on the Water. What made it so spectacular was the way the light from the fireworks were reflected on the ocean's surface, especially at night. The cool ocean breeze helped keep everyone cool enough to enjoy the display while the summer heat inspired everyone to wear swimsuits while watching.
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Another celebration, of a different kind, was going on at the Meat Market. Its main celebration was a semi-amateur strip contest, with "patriotic"-themed stripper outfits equally divided among male and female strippers and "patriotic"-themed alcoholic drinks, some with Pop Rocks or similar candies mixed in. Though not everyone there was watching the strippers or enjoying the drinks.
"So, this is another veteran suffering from RHS?" asked a Horizon agent as a female, muscular, bald eagle morph, wearing nothing but star-shaped pasties (in patriotic colors) twirled around one of the poles on the stage, much to the delight of many guys. What the pasties didn't show was that her nipples were pierced, though the bumps could be seen.
"She is, indeed." confirmed a second agent.
"We'll let Dr. Jones know." finished the first agent.
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While 4th of July was a lot of fun, in Animalia it was considered a warm-up act for Animalia's Birthday celebration.