▻ I view (my interpretation of) the world as a furryverse with multiple types of anthros in it, and where this takes place just has a rodent majority.

• (I'm fine with limitations most of the time but monospecies furryverses are just not fun for me)

► Russ first "met" Zo by giving him a monthly $15 donation.

• At the start, Russ was simply a person who paid for Zo's risque's photos. He didn't have anything that distinguished himself from the others, and that was what Russ was comfortable with. He's not a fan of standing out more than he already does to begin with. Also he found that rat really cute but that's obvious.

► Russ didn't even know that Zo lived nearby when he started doing this, but when he saw the rat for the first time when he was out and about, it was kind of dreadful, actually. Did he actually recognise...?

► This became a recurring thing. Russ would go out in public, do some shopping, work, whatever, and he'd bump into Zo. Constantly. Russ nearly became convinced he'd been unconsciously following this guy.

• Russ started off pretty anxious about it. He'd doubt himself a little bit, but he knew he recognised him.
• And, as they saw one another more, the more they'd get familiar with one another. Polite conversation here and there, "Hello"s and "Are you doing alright?" transformed into further conversation.
• On Zo's end, they naturally considered the snake was nervous. Russ didn't really hide his anxiety, he stammered a bit when he talked, curled in on himself a little bit, but he actually engaged with them and seemed happy to see them, despite his outward nervousness.
• Over time, they've gradually grew to mutually friendly terms. The worry kept on gnawing at the back of Russ's head, sure, but ultimately it didn't stop him from one day blurting out- asking Zo if he'd want to go anywhere after work.
• From then on they get to know each other better >:]