Thumper Connelly

**Prince Thumper Connelly** is a main character in *War.*

In terms of the series narrative, Thumper Connelly is the younger brother of Bentley Connelly and a prince of Canis. He eventually becomes an original founder of Toontown.

## Appearances

### *War*

Prince Thumper Connelly made his first appearance in "Winter of Discontent." He comforted his only brother, Bentley Connelly, after the assassination of Victoria Vixen and the subsequent outbreak of war. Thumper and Bentley were very close. Thumper has a daughter, Evangelina Connelly, the product of an ill-fated and unplanned marriage. His wife has since died, and it was reportedly loveless. Thumper was present at the death of his father, King Ewan I and the coronation of his brother as King Bentley II. In "The Lamps Are Going Out," Thumper and Maximilian Walters shared a drink in Highland Castle in March 709 as the neutral nations of Cartonia declared war on each other over the abolition of the Harmony Crown. Max remarked to Thumper that "the lamps are going out all over Cartonia."

Thumper briefly appeared in "Infamy" following the Siege of Talonclaw Castle in 712. The Lazoy Royal Family sought refuge in Leprolia but later made a personal plea to Canis to sponsor their exile. Thumper arrived in Sylvia to do just that.

The War Plague ravaged Cartonia starting in 713, devastating much of the population. In "Remnants of the People," Thumper and Bentley learned that their mother, Queen Libby Connelly, had conspired with the Vixen Queen to organize the Victoria Vixen assassination. Bentley confronted her in a rage, demoting her to nothing higher than a Lady and banishing her from Highland Castle. Despite Thumper's protestations, Libby was forcibly removed from the castle. Thumper was forbidden from seeing her again. She died a few months later from the War Plague.

While wandering the castle in 718 in "Something Wicked," Thumper caught two courtiers, a dog and a cat, kissing. Despite the illegal nature of their activities, Thumper noticed that the two were not afraid of retribution because Bentley would not disapprove. Thumper was inspired to lead the charge to overturn the ban on interspecies marriage. He appeared before the Commons Council and advocated for such a change. The Commons granted the appeal and interspecies marriage was legalized in Canis. Thumper served as a groomsmen in the first interspecies marriage ordained on Canisian soil.

During the 719 Granite Bloc summit, hosted at Highland Castle, in "Two Moths Drawn to the Flame," Thumper and Evangelina watched as all the foreign dignitaries arrived.

In 723, 38-year-old Thumper came out as gay to Bentley Connelly ("No Matter What"). He had long hidden this part of himself for fear of persecution, as homosexuality in any form was illegal throughout Cartonia. His relationship with Esme Stewart, which resulted in the birth of Evangelina, was a deliberate ploy to hide his homosexuality. Bentley supported him, and encouraged Thumper to tell Jacquetta Lazoy, who had a gay son. Thumper did so, earning another ally. He then told Evangelina.

A plan to escape Cartonia was underway in 725, but in "The Good Must Associate," Thumper chose to stay behind with Bentley and Evangelina, fearing the failure of the mission and a worse death if caught by the Vixen Queen. However, he was deceived by his brother and daughter in "Bless My Homeland," when they tricked him onto the train south in order to give him a chance at survival. Bentley and Thumper had an emotional farewell at the train station in West Terrier, after which Thumper and Evangelina escaped faltering Canis and pressed on until they reached the Vulpus Dam. Despite Thumper's misgivings, he was a willing participant on the expedition. At the Vulpus Dam on November 11, 725, Thumper fought the foxes as they attempted to thwart the escape attempt. Thumper was saved from carnage by Jacquetta Lazoy and Dane Mastiff, who secured him a spot on the departing waste receptacle shortly before the Vulpus Dam collapsed. Thumper and Evangelina escaped Cartonia on the flood.

Thumper wandered the Expanse for a year in "Until I Die" until the group reached the site that would become modern Toontown. During the drafting of the town's constitution, Thumper insisted on the legalization of same-sex marriage, honoring Bentley's wish that Thumper find happiness in the new town. The motion was adopted and became an integral core of Toontown's social policy. Thumper changed his name to Charlie Bentley Wolfe to distance himself from his royal past and start fresh. The "Epilogue" revealed his married a fellow founder and worked throughout his life to encourage equality and rights for gay Toons.

## Character

### Namesake

Thumper is named after the author's first dog who shares the same name. The surname Connelly is Scottish and means "love."

## Trivia

* Thumper is the first openly LGBTQ+ character in Toontown Storytime.
* Thumper is the first character to come out in the series.