Just outside the populated city of Hyder, built into the hills of the suburban plains, is a fairly large city-side zoo. On warm, sunny days, the ticket booths and entrance gates are jammed by long lines of parents with their children, groups of friends, animal lovers, and everyone else, some even lining up before the zoo's opening at 9 am. Pushing through the three-pronged gate in the red plasterboard entrance way, guests will find themselves in a crowded splitting-off sidewalk and come face-to-face with a large map of the entire zoo. Smaller maps in the form of pamphlets are shoved upright into multiple holders beside the large map, free for the public to take. From here, guests are free to observe the range of exotic animals along with the typical selection of household names from all around the world, organized into neat sections by continent of origin, until the zoo closes at 7 pm.

The zoo was started 57 years ago by a biologist named Theodore Redgrave. Theodore worked in a zoology laboratory in the city, and realized that several projects in the lab would be made cheaper and easier if they housed some of the species nearby rather than having to travel to them far away. With funding from the lab, he initiated projects to build habitats in the suburbs near the city. Several species were brought in, and studies proceeded within this new convenience. It was only a few years before the government passed new laws that caused lab funding to dwindle. Realizing more money would be needed to keep these animals alive, Theodore proposed some slight renovations to convert the study area into a small zoo for the city. Construction immediately went underway, and after about six months, the location opened up to the public as the Hyder Zoo. Theodore, now the principal investigator of the lab, was named Zoo Director.

Over the next generation, the zoo expanded from several animals to dozens, growing further into the hills. The zoo attracted more visitors, but the cost of maintenance grew exponentially, and the zoo struggled to meet demands. Through obvious but tolerated nepotism, the role of Zoo Director was passed on to Theodore's son, Marvin Redgrave, a businessman. With little knowledge about the care and study of animals, he relied on the scientists from his father's lab to take care of the species in the zoo. He did, however, have inside information about doing business and making money, and thus tasked himself with managing the continued expansion of the zoo in a cost-efficient way. He began finding animals in the sketchiest of places, fooled by sellers claiming they were fit for a zoo. Strange things began happening in the zoo, and rumours had started to circulate about what the animals could be up to. The rumours were never confirmed, and Marvin assumed the scientists were taking care of the biotic factors of the zoo.

Once again through nepotism, though this time justified, the role of Zoo Director was passed on to Marvin's son, Sebastian Redgrave, who was studying to be an animal researcher. Sebastian Redgrave now works in his grandfather's lab, spending his time off from doing research managing the zoo.

Rumour has it that "the animals in the zoo act normal by day, but at night their true motives come out to play." Sebastian, having inherited his father's strategic wit and his grandfather's scientific curiosity, wants to find the truth behind these rumours. He fears they pose a danger to the zoo's reputation, and also indulges in the unlikely idea that strange behaviours of animals could benefit the lab's research and reputation. He pops in unannounced every once in a while to observe, usually as his public persona, Bass.

Once in a blue moon, the evening guards will do their final checks and close the zoo gates at 7 pm, oblivious to the fact that not every single person has made it out. It isn't hard to wait out the night since there are many tables, benches, and patches of grass to sleep on, and no one has been harmed as a result of being locked in. In fact, these instances usually go unreported. Little does anyone know what these temporary prisoners might see in the wee hours of the night...

Name:
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Personality:
Backstory: (Can be added later, after hello post of character. How did they get stuck in the zoo? If you want to put additional backstory you can but I probably won't :P)



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Powers (if any): (If this animal isn't a typical animal, why?)
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Backstory (optional): (How did they end up in the zoo? Why do they have whatever goals they have?)



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