1931 Winter: The Time of the Oasis/Chapter 1: Dance with the Stray Rabbits

Synopsis
The evening of December 30, several members of Jacuzzi's Gang gather in the woods of New York attempting to take a headcount of their members. The group gets to twenty-two before Chaini and her follower Parrot interrupt the flow of counting. The group begins to bicker amongst themselves before Melody cuts in, declaring that the entire headcount is pointless since they hadn't bothered counting how many people were with them before they set off anyway. After further bickering, Melody declares that the group has wasted seven hundred seconds on this headcount and the ensuing argument.

Several days earlier, the gang gathers around Jacuzzi Splot in Chicago as he explains the plan: Himself, Nice Holystone, Donny, Jack, and Nick are going to board The Flying Pussyfoot, so the rest of the gang should catch an earlier train to New York in order to retrieve cargo that the group on the train plan to offload into a certain river. The gang goes on to discuss the contents of the cargo, revealing that it consists of high-grade explosives, before devolving into bickering. Jacuzzi attempts to calm the group down, but that only turns their collective teasing in his direction, and the subject of the plan is temporarily dropped.

Back on the evening of the 30th, the delinquents chatter amongst themselves and go over the plan again. They'd arrived at the scene with two trucks and several boats loaded into the trucks, but as the night began to get darker and colder one of the boys pointed out that they might just freeze to death without shelter. Melody points out a spot on the map where there appear to be several bungalows, at which the group might at least be able to find some fire and blankets while they wait for the train to arrive.

Not too far away, the Vanishing Bunny's car is running low on gas, and Pamela stops them on the side of the road, asking Lana to get out and use one of the oil drums in the truck bed to fill the tank up while she checks the map. While Pamela marks down the location of some nearby bungalows—the very same that Jacuzzi's Gang have set their sights on—Lana shrieks, gathering Pamela's attention; without their noticing, Carzelio Runorata had entered and fallen asleep in the truck bed.

Back in the woods, a group of men in military uniforms discuss the movements of Jacuzzi's Gang, who they had been observing. After concluding the gang must have left the area due to the cold, they begin following their leader towards the bridge where the Flying Pussyfoot will be crossing. The men are revealed to actually be members of the Lemures stationed outside of the train to negotiate for the release of Huey Laforet while Goose Perkins takes a senator's wife and daughter hostage aboard The Flying Pussyfoot.

With the Vanishing Bunny, Pamela and Lana ask the now-awake Carzelio about his circumstances. Cazze explains that he ran away from home, and Pamela asks Sonia, who has also woken up, to keep an eye on him while she talks with Lana. Once out of earshot, she speculates that Cazze must have entered the truck after Sonia fell asleep. Lana replies saying that his clothes are fancy enough that he must be from "that incredible mansion," then comes up with the idea that they should kidnap Cazze and collect a ransom. Though Pamela had also considered the idea, she only agrees reluctantly, thinking that the name 'Runorata' sounds a little familiar.

Sonia takes very quickly to Cazze, comparing him to her childhood friend Nader Schasschule and cuddling him, much to his dismay. Lana and Pamela return quickly, and Lana asks Cazze if he knows his family's phone number. Thinking they might call his family to come pick him up, Cazze hesitates, but Lana reassures him that they only want to make sure his family knows he's safe, and he eventually gives her his home number.

Back at the Runorata mansion, Bartolo Runorata is engaged in a conversation with Cazze's father over a note he had written before running away. Bartolo praises his gumption, but Cazze's father scolds him, saying Cazze has no idea how dangerous the world is. Furthermore, Bartolo has refused to send out more members of the family to search for Cazze than strictly necessary, displaying a desire for Cazze to gain experience and independence as opposed to Cazze's father, who has been frantically concerned over his son's well-being.

A subordinate of Bartolo's enters the room, saying something privately to Bartolo that causes him to rise suddenly from his chair: a call has been recieved demanding a ransom for Carzelio Runorata's safe return. A few minutes later, a pair of identical twins take off from the Runorata mansion on motorcycles, singing a hunting song.

Characters in Order of Appearance

 * Chaini
 * Melody
 * Jacuzzi Splot
 * Nice Holystone
 * Lana
 * Pamela
 * Carzelio Runorata
 * Sarges (unnamed)
 * Sonia Bake
 * Bartolo Runorata
 * Gabriel and Juliano (unnamed)