The day was a calm one for the circus, no performances going on just yet, Azarion was settling his animals in after the travel from Cairo. The beasts were used to moving at this point, and the young ones remained calm for the most part because their parents did. He had finished setting up the temporary fencing that would keep them where he wanted them unless he chose to move them. It was also for the safety of those in the circus who thought to see the animals without him around.

He wasn’t liable for injuries or death, and everyone had been warned away from going near the fences if Azarion was not there. While they were trained animals, they were still animals. They felt loyalty and fear towards the large man from distant lands, but felt no such things for anyone else in the circus. And these animals were dangerous, if they weren’t, his shows would be boring.

While the ones he was currently tending to weren’t the most dangerous he had, they could still cause some serious injuries if not death if they were mishandled. He had been very specific to Nem when he had joined first with his hyenas, and then with each successive animal he had added to his collection. If someone was maimed or killed by them when he was not there, it was their own fault.

He tossed a few decent sized frogs into the waterhole that he had dug and filled for the animals. They liked to swim, especially on days that were a bit hotter. At the sight of the live food, a few of the older Mongoose leapt into action, going after the tasty meal.

He had more, along with some plain meat to ensure that they all had the chance to eat their fill. But he enjoyed watching them go after the live animals, watching them hunt and attack and kill. He held affection for dangerous animals, and though the Mongoose were the newest addition to his collection, he had grown to love them. Their size didn’t stop them from being vicious and deadly.

He could appreciate their tenacity.

He also found humour in the fact that they could fight and kill snakes, and often threatened to release them on Kesi’s pets as a joke. He obviously wouldn’t do that to her, or at least he didn’t think he did. But the prospect of one of the small beasts taking out the snake charmers animals was pretty hilarious.

In fact, he laughed out loud to himself about the thought as he watched them tear into the frogs, ending their lives and securing themselves a meal.