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Nowhereville, Boringtown, whatever the locals wanted to deem their village sized town, Oak Creek was nothing to be shunned at. It had all the features that a small town would want, with some of the convenience of a larger city. A small population of a meager ten thousand set them apart from the rest in the state as one of the smallest townships about, but still boasted a few popular restaurants and a shopping center. Everyone always seemed to be in relation to one another. Friends of friends, family, cousins, you name it, everyone seemed to be linked together by some connection. So when the murders around town started occurring, panic spread like wildfire around the city. Bars on the windows, privacy fences were put up separating out the houses into their own square blocks, not one lot bigger than the rest, save for the more privileged folk that lived more on the outskirts of the town. No one knew what was going on, but they knew people were turning up dead in their town's river, floating up against the bank where the police station was set at, a ploy perhaps to strike fear into their hearts? Well, this cop can tell you, that's just what it did.

Let's just take a few moments to backtrack a little. Name's Tobias. Officer of the law for the second year now, running the backstreets with the higher classed neighborhood. The children of the area all knew his car, good ol' 431, and often came to greet him as he sometimes had to tell them to get off the streets when there were cars about, and make sure they were generally indoors by the time the sun settled. Fall was fast approaching, and the chilly air was striking harder by the day, getting the population ready for another harsh winter. Two years, and he's only written up one ticket, and that was for littering the streets. Lame? Probably so, but he was that kind of cop where the badge and uniform didn't make a difference in his personality. If something was amiss, but not truly breaking the law, he'd let it slide regularly, or if there were other cases, he'd even help correct the issue. The other cops scoffed at him, prodding playful jokes at him as being the 'too good cop' that didn't have a mean bone in his body. He didn't mind of course, but all that prodding did start to have an effect on him. Who knows? Maybe he'd been too lenient with those that he's found doing wrong, but it wasn't like him. He didn't want conflict; he just wanted to keep people safe. They were already doing a good job of things, granted, but apparently it wasn't good enough just letting the people live on their own, and let the law be lax.

That first murder, he could remember everything crystal clear that fated day as he drove over in the driving rain slamming the windshield, nearly blinding him from the street itself. The wipers weren't able to keep up with such a torrent, but it was urgent. Every car was called in to secure the area around their station. He could feel those pangs of nervousness striking within his core as he imagined what it would be like. There hadn't been a recorded murder in town for over 15 years, why was it happening now? Even the streets themselves had a ghostly dread to them, empty, devoid of life and even other cars on the road left the premise. Off in the distance, he could see the flashing reds and blues, showing just where the scene was. He couldn't help but think to himself, shaking his head.

"This is...seriously, seriously close to the station; I could throw a can out the window and hit it. Who in the hell could be behind this?"

_ _

Pulling up, he ripped open a new package containing a raincoat, the simple yellow piece of plastic just to throw on over his uniform, slipping his head through the hole on it. The plush mane of the stallion cascaded down the backside of it, the mottled black and white even shrugging down over his shoulders. He wasn't anything to look down against, just toned, working on getting stronger due to what his job requires. Well, more like what -could- happen in case things were to go badly with a criminal. Looks like that extra training on the side might be useful in the upcoming weeks...or even months that it may take to solve this crime. Snorting softly, he pulled up, tires sinking down into the mud, surely to get stuck later on when he'd like to try to leave. Slamming it in park, he shoved himself out into the rain, almost deafened by the near monsoon that was hammering the landscape, trees bowing down from the wind racing against the tops. Stepping forward, his hooves settled deep into the mud, already cursing this day and everything that was to follow. Today was just going to be one of those days.

The scene was nothing like he had seen before. Taped off already, the area was a small cove off of the river right next to the station. The body was there, already being photographed by the forensics team, hovering over it, getting every angle that they could muster. Spotlights were being set up on the bank overlooking the corpse, cords strung out to the generator chugging away off to the side. Nothing seemed to be getting done; of course, he just had the opportunity of arriving last, so he got to do the boring tasks. Stand around, overlook things, and pretend like he knows what he's doing. But above all, get an idea of just what's going on. Peering over the edge, the stallion's sharp aquamarine eyes focused down on the body, seeing a paw halfway sunk into the muddy bank, but as the coroner started to step away to reveal the face, he blinked to himself, seeing that heavy snout of the canine laying there, instantly recognizing just who it was. Mr. Davis, the owner of the small bar down the street laid there, lifeless, even water filling up his maw as he had his jaw slack, open, drooling rainwater out the corner of his tilted maw. Dressed in a plaid blazer, soiled with mud, it was impossible to tell just how he was murdered until they could cart him away. One thing for sure though, is how high he was propped up against the bank; the water hadn't carried him there, or rose up nearly that high. He'd been planted there, mockingly to the police that would find him.

The equine's stomach twisted into a sharp knot, that washing flood of sickness striking him from head to toe. It was hard to look at, really hard. He had known him ever since he moved there. Everyone knew him, but seeing him face up in the mud struck a hidden chord deep within his body. He'd experienced loss before as his father was no longer with them, his grandparents never having been around since he was born, but his mother was still alive and well. They had been a technically younger couple; he could only figure that they had quite the honeymoon night. His birthday fell within the same year, for goodness sakes. Flattening out his ears, he turned his head away, looking out over the devoid street for a few minutes to try to catch his breath, his fur having soaked straight through his uniform right to the skin, his coat's neck hole being too large to really protect him from the elements. Shaking his arms lightly, he tucked his hands in underneath of the rain slicker, rubbing his paws together.

"Listen up everyone!" the chief barked, as he literally having to yell with everyone in the area in close proximity the rain. It took a brief moment, but everyone had to look around past everyone to find him, quite used to how well he could hide in a crowd. Revered to as 'Big Ben', his stature was anything but. A surely runty brown bear he was, he more than made up for it in sheer attitude. Even compared to the stallion, the tips of those ears only came up to about his collarbone. Did anyone dare say such a thing to his face? Of course, but they only had one chance to do it before they were thrown on street patrol, looking after kids coming out of school to act as their crossing guards, and on top of that, cleaning out the bathrooms with the complimentary toothbrush. He'd make them suffer, and if they didn't learn their lesson then...well, no one dared provoke him further yet.

"Turns out the stiff here is showing remarkably similar familiar marks to a string of murders that happened in the next state over. Unfortunately for us, they are just as lost as we are in how to pursue this. They have the chief investigator coming over to assist, but until they can clear up what they have, we are basically all we can get until CSI shows up. He'll be over in the morning when the roads clear up, and since we need all the help we can get on interrogations. Officer Keegan!"

The stallion winced sharply, knowing just what the chief was going to say. Having been tricked into putting 'Big Ben' on a little wild goose chase for his stapler by setting it under a mocked up poster behind his desk with the famous clock tower, it was more out of fun, but the bear took it quite sharply. The bathrooms had been cleaned and he had an anger spout happening about him at that time. The bear had simply snarled and pointed at him before slamming the door, yelling after him. "I'll make yours EXTRA special, Keegan!"

He reluctantly stepped forth, brushing past a few others to stand at attention before the diminutive bear, feeling those steely eyes glaring at him, that dread washing over him already. "So, you are going to be partnered up with this new guy. Basically? You are going to be his little bitch. Drive him around town, get him coffee, kiss his ass, lick over his toes, and pray to hell he gets this worked out. I'll make sure that he stomps all over you if you even THINK about screwing up. I'll have your ass on the street so fast, you'll be wondering how you even got out there." He tilted his head and glared at the new set of lights coming down the street, everyone knowing what it was before it got there.

"Meat wagon is here. Let's get Davis loaded up here, and then all nonessentials take off. This is going to be hell week this week trying to play catch up with all the evidence that's going to be piling up on our desks. Get your sleep tonight. We'll start fresh in the morning."

The vehicle was getting turned around, backing up to the site where they were getting the victim loaded up into the back, the stallion getting one last look at the poor canine, dripping wet, heading off for autopsy. Watching those doors close, the officers that helped load him in slammed a hand against the back of the vehicle, and a second later they took off into the rain slicked streets, disappearing from sight within seconds. Shaking his snout, he loaded himself up into his own car to head home for the night. But even as he was pulling back out, those familiar thirsting pains struck again. It was going to be a hellish night trying to sleep through just what he's seen today, and the only solution he knew of to get past it? Head to the deceased owner's bar that he ran, get a few...or several drinks in him and then stumble his way home to go to sleep.

The bar's parking lot was small, and most that visited there knew where everyone parked, like unassigned parking spots, and with his usual spot next to the street to overlook it, he sighed softly, shutting off the car. Going to the same bar that the owner was missing out of? Surely he was asking for trouble doing it, but at the same time, everyone would find out in the morning regardless when he never shows up at home. Slamming the door, he shoved his way into the dimly lit atmosphere of the main floor, stools all lined up along the oaken countertop. Mild rock was always playing in the background, much to the horse's delight as he settled himself on his spot at the corner of the bar, instantly being recognized by the main bartender that ran the counter and the grill, grinning as she already clapped a glass down before him, filling it to the brim.

"Why the long face, Tobias? Had to pull over a kid on a bike today?" Har har. Very funny Misty. Misty was the face behind Davis's bar, pretty little lass of a daughter to the owner. Sleek fur pulled back into a ponytail, the wolfess was always bouncy and giddy, despite what was going on around her. She was always one to dress...explicitly. After all, why wouldn't she? Tips flowed faster when she bent over just that extra few inches to show off some of her heavy cleavage, giving the patrons a drink and a show to go with the smoke that always seemed to hang above the patrons' heads. Davis had always tried to limit what she would wear, but with customers in and out as much as they were to see just what she was showing off that day, he couldn't say no after all that cash came in. The stallion shook his head and sighed, looking down at the glass, taking it all in one shot down his throat. That familiar burn welled up in his throat, letting him have the first drink of the night to try to settle his nerves.

"Hilarious, Misty. No, something big is going on around town here, but you know the rules. I can't divulge anything to anyone, not until the chief makes a statement about it. But between us? Make sure to lock up your doors tight. Don't leave any windows open. And oh, leave the bottle. I'm gonna need it all tonight." Shaking her head, she nudged it towards him, tapping it against the side of his empty glass. She soon furrowed her brow and glared at him, lowering her voice.

"This doesn't have anything to do with my father does it? I haven't seen him since yesterday morning. I mean, he isn't like that, he at least checks in to see what's for dinner if he's going to run late." She lowered her ears a bit, slowly tipping up that bottle to refill his glass, letting that booze's aroma strike the stallion's snout. If she made him drink himself under the table, he'd spill, she know he would. After all, they dated a few times in the past, those nights ending up with him trying to rearrange her dresser and even her room, the stallion always having been known to be a bit...overbearing when it came to arranging things in his liking. That happened, up until the stallion was caught drunkenly rummaging his paws through her underwear, even having a few hung off of his ears for ease of holding as the top of the dresser was full of other randomly strew about fabrics. Her father, Mr. Davis, had booted him out so fast, he didn't even know where ended up, having slept overnight in his squad car on the street. Boy, he limited his drinking after that something stout.

"You know I can't say, and I'm sticking firm on this. I'm not getting in trouble again for revealing information before the statement can be given." The horse's fingertips drummed across the counter edge as he slowly tipped back the next one, already feeling that light headedness starting to strike, the pain of seeing her father dead just before he rolled in starting to ebb away. "So don't even start asking, alright? You'll find out about everything in the morning. Just...please Misty, I just want to think for now, alright? I'm stuck on bitch duty until we get this solved." Obviously, something of that nature wasn't going to be known outside of the department, but she could understand his wanting for privacy.

"Hey, Misty! Our glasses are parched over here! Come on over, give em a good bath will ya?" Two of the older regulars tapped their glasses down, the insides of their aging ears already reddened with the alcohol making them warmer, and clapping each other on the back. Laughing back at one another, they nearly fell out of their chairs, the one stumbling off of the stool to head back towards the bathroom instead and ended up walking sideways back into the pool table. Of course, this just made his partner in drinking bust out all the more with laughter, nearly falling over backwards from his stool as he watched the guy fall off onto the side, paw stuck in a corner pocket of the table. The stallion shook his snout, lightly grunting as the scene was typical for such a night. Emotions were running high, the stallion wanted to drown out his emotions in a bellyful of liquor, and with Misty already pouring the pair another set of shots, he laughed lightly himself, a light grin tugging along his lips. Those two guys were always pulling pranks on one another, and drinking themselves under the table. It was just the release he was looking for, thankfully, and with shot after shot sliding down his throat, that pain of the moment was starting to drift away with his conscious thought. Pretty soon, the world was growing bleary, dark, and yet he kept on drinking, soon ending up with his snout against the countertop.

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

The flashing numbers on his alarm clock screamed at him to rise and shine, 6AM had come so fast...How was he home? How did he even get there? Stumbling out of bed, he slammed his snout against the edge of the night stand and groaned out, knocking the beeping clock to the floor where it shattered the plastic, thankfully ending its noisy greeting to the new day's sun. Landing on all fours on the floor, the stallion's nearly nude body landed in a tangle of blankets, leaving him shaking his head, mane brushed over his snout, hiding part of his muzzle under the silken strands. With the night stand having been jarred so hard, a piece of paper fluttered to the floor, landing in front of his snout to his surprise and as he tilted his head to read it, he knew just what it said without even looking at it. Misty had taken him home again, and stripped him down, leaving the confused horse in his boxers. Stripe patterns flowed along the fabrics, a light blue contrast to his black and white fur.

"Nnngh...fuck...Morning already?" he blinked, rubbing at his eyes, the hangover he had was at least less powerful than what they had been before...unless his tolerance was just sinking down that low and he passed out quicker than he thought he would. Things had gone a bit downhill on him since his father passed away years ago, killed in the line of duty like he was in, though a firefighter by career, it still found his downfall. Just in a far more painful way. Fire was rather...unforgiving to fur after all. He grunted and pushed himself up to his feet, his socked hooves caked in mud from the previous night, along with his lengthy tail, having trailed along behind him the prior night. Though as he realized there was mud all over, he winced, seeing just how he was going to have to clean up later. The rest of his apartment had been spotless, every trinket, every remote control for his modestly furnished apartment to a near spotless finish...save for where his muddy hooves had struck the floor in his late night stupor. But as he looked back to his uniform hung up neatly on a chair for him, the realization of the moment hit him hard.

"Fuck fuck fuck! I gotta go!" Cursing himself out the entire time, he realized that today was the beginning of 'hell week' for them. They would be trying to collect all the evidence and attempt to get a list of suspects pinned down to begin the investigations so they could go about their business. The horse threw on those pants of his, yelping out in pain as he zipped up that fly of his straight into his balls, wincing out as he nearly fell over backwards, crashing his rump in against the table, nearly knocking over the vase containing a few carnations, something he had been keeping there for awhile, but in his stupor, he didn't notice it just yet. Quickly, he threw on his uniform, tucking it in tight underneath of his belt, to make himself look somewhat presentable. Trying to adjust himself quickly in the mirror, his eyes looked bloodshot, heavily so. The stallion was hoping for at least some sort of bright sunlight today to have an excuse to wear his sunglasses at the very least to try to hide that feature of his hangover. The heavy belt strung onto his waist and was snugged up tight, strapped in close around his middle. Patting the gun at his hip, he took his leave, throwing his coat over his shoulder as he slammed the door shut to the apartment, clattering his hooks that he had for his keys and for hanging coats up with on the other side. Usually, he never bothered to lock his door, unless he had someone inside of the apartment with him, and today was no exception. Leaving it, he went down the stairs from his second story home to jump in his squad car.

Another typical fall morning. Dew all over the windshield, cold, threatening to rain...again. Why not? Everything was still in puddles from yesterday's torrential downpour. Casually hitting the wipers to clear away the moisture, there soon came a slamming down atop of his hood, drawing a sharp yelp of surprise from the stallion. Wide eyed, he was staring into a new face glaring in at him through the windshield; teeth flashed a bright smirk, the sight of a feline's brilliant green eyes shone in at him through the fog that formed on the glass already, the poor stallion's heartbeat leaping through the roof. Light grey spotted fur covered his frame from head to toe, the snow leopard's sharp growl heard even on the inside of the vehicle. The girth of that fluffy tail of his flicked about wildly behind him as he could almost feel those eyes tearing into him, pure anger seeming to radiate from the leopard.

"YOUR LATE!" he roared out, paws slamming down against the hood, making the car bounce mildly, the steam further fogging up the inside of the window, further shielding him from view.

Good grief! I'm not late...am I?

_ _

He had to think for a second, and even as he looked down at the radio's clock, he heard the door opening, taking him further by surprise as the male forced himself inside, crushing down some of the fast food bags he had sitting on the fabric.

9 AM? What the hell...? How was it THAT late already...Oh...oh wait...Misty! Why...why TODAY?!

_ _

Back when they were dating, they had liked to play pranks on one another, simple, little things usually, not at all harmful to their careers. But always, there was that one joke that went a little too far, and with alcohol involved, it went too far, too fast. Seems as though the stallion had a bit of a thing for tassels, and given that she was rather fluffy, especially with the tail, it did its part in firing him up rather strongly. Erections and public display normally went hand in hand with him, but this time, he made her even more of a show than she knew of, for awhile. During their cuddling, he had taken his time in tying a few tassels within her tail and down along her thighs, making a runway of sorts towards that firm rump of hers. The bar had been in full swing that night, and with all her running about the countertop, it was only a matter of time before she had dropped something, a ritual that most in the bar knew of that when it happened, cheers would ring up and she'd make a grand little showing of it. Bending over and hiking that fluffy tail of hers nice and high, it didn't take but a few moments before the cat calls rang out and one of the old geezers he saw the other day reached over to slap her across the rump, calling her a tease of a tramp. When the paw hit, she felt the tassels, knowing just who did it and why. Ever since then, she had vowed her revenge, and today, she got it as payback from the previous night, no less.

"An hour late for your own job? Is this how you run things around here? Lazy ass punk kids...Regardless, are my bitch driver for however long this takes eh? Better hope you know your shit, rather than sleep on the job." The feline's nose twitched, snorting back at him.

"Rough night last night too, eh? Trust me, however much you drink isn't gonna make things right in the end, especially when we nab this guy, you got me? Think of the look on the guy's face when we break down his door and catch him with his dick out! Aw man!" He laughed heartily, slamming a strong fist down against the dashboard, knocking off a few of the empty chip bags that he had resting up there. The frown returned to his snout once again as he looked over the interior of the car, sighing to himself.

"Though at the rate your car is looking here, might only catch him if he's at a convenience store trying to buy the last bag of doughnuts out from underneath your muzzle, hossy. But anyhow, name's Alex. Alex Ivanov. And before you even ask, yes, it is Russian, so don't break out the vodka without me."

The leopard tossed a casual smirk back at the stallion whom was sitting there, dumbfounded by his behavior already as he shoved some of the bags onto the floor around his foot paws and shook his head. "Well? Come on...Keegan, let's get a move on shall we? Got places to go, things to sniff around at, you know...Investigation!" He tagged on after peering at the badge on his chest, shaking his head. "Don't worry about being late either, I already told the chief you were on the job, and just asked around where your apartment was. I figured you'd come out sooner or later. So let's get a move on, alright? I totally understand if you are a man of few words, or if I'm being overbearing. We'll work on it on the way."

Thankfully, the car had broken the silence between them, even as the engine was turned over, the mild roar it gave off briefly overshadowing the CB as it crackled to life.

"Car 431. Car 431. Follow up reports on a new lead at Watson's Diner. Possible witness to the murder of Edgar Davis."

"Well well, a witness? Hot damn kid! Get the car moving! We're on the hunt!"

Shaking his head, he already could tell it was going to be a long...long day with this loudmouth rambling on every second of his life right next to his ear, and even before he got the vehicle back out onto the road to head towards the diner, he was already getting told about his family, how they had moved over from Russia to...blah, blah, blah...

The stallion tilted his snout down slightly as he peered out over the hood of the car, looking up at the diner's sign as they pulled in, the gravel crunching beneath the tires as he settled himself into a spot, but before he could even say anything, the car's door was slammed, and the fluffy tail of the leopard was already bounding towards the door, trailing behind the ever eager detective. No time to warn him now. Or maybe he should just stay put in the car, let him handle the talking, since he loves doing it in the first place, and hang out away from the owner of the place, Reggie. Reggie was one of those types that if he even thought you were trying to dig him, or cut away from his business by spilling your drink on the floor or putting a hair in your eggs, it would have ended with it on your face with your back on the gravel, staring up at the sun. Several tense seconds went by and there hadn't been any yelling yet, or chairs getting thrown. So, he decided to slip his way inside, flicking his tail a bit to make sure it didn't catch in the door.

It wasn't a bad place. Mildly run down, faded white paint chips having come off of siding, and the sign was hanging off by a single length of chain, but inside was far different. Hardwood floorings made up the majority of the customer area, with a tiled area underneath the stools where the patrons could sit at the counter directly and get their coffee and doughnuts. A favorite of the police to stay here...well, the ONLY place to go for your morning fix. Curse this damned town... The tables were neatly set, and with the constant clatter of dishes in the background, he saw just what happened to the leopard already as he was chatting with one of the waitresses, a vixen by the name of Camille.

She was an older mother of two, settled down and working her waitressing job, and the years of stress had shown on her fur. Already mildly graying in spots, she flicked her tail about irritably as the leopard made due with his introduction and asking her about what happened the other day. Shaking her head, she tried giving off the best explanation that she could with the leopard's tail twitching like an eager dog out behind him, pen and paper already out and ready.

"Well, I saw ol' man Davis taking out the trash just before his daughter would take over for the day, and saw that he'd been stumbling a little, maybe drunk, I don't know. Turns out there was a car in the back there with him. I never knew him to drive anywhere, since his house is just a few places over, but as he walked over to confront whoever was in there, I saw him fall over backwards, knocked out cold. Whoever did it to him had to have been strong to load him up in that car, Davis was no little guy. After that? They drove off into the rain. It was so heavy, I couldn't see a plate or make on the car or anything, just a set of tail lights heading down the street."

Tobias had taken his seat at the counter while he was listening to the description, and seeing as though Alex was heading up the interrogation, he looked over at that twitching tail, seeing as though he was being quiet at the time, a shock already, but as he peered over at the pad of paper, he sighed, realizing just what he was doing. He was doodling a damned picture! And...it wasn't even relevant! Just a stick figure...or whatever it was showing on the lined paper, but soon the leopard snapped out of it, his tail halting in its flicking and looked up from his paper at the vixen.

"Um...Right! Gotcha. We'll have to look into that, thank you for your...Ah Keegan!" He blurted out as he saw the stallion's snout being covered by that hand of his, shaking his mane lightly.

"Yeah, yeah, I heard it. Are you done with your...questioning, Alex?" He knew it wasn't professional to deem him by his first name, but at the same time, after that sorry display, he wasn't caring much anymore, he just wanted to leave. Back in the academy, if you even so much lead on that you weren't paying attention, you would have been booted out on the spot. Interrogations were important, and normally could potentially lead to arrests. But as he snapped out of his mild daze as he got off of the chair, he tilted his head back towards the vixen, pondering.

"Did you see what color the car was? We can try to narrow it down a little better if you saw that at least." It was a long shot for sure, since the downpour last night really did have quite the effect on the road.

"Hmm..." She pondered, thinking back a bit, the tip of that white furred tail flicking around out behind her waitressing apron as the gears started to turn, remembering back. "I can't remember that well sweets. It was a darker color though, that I'm about positive of. Blue, black, whatever colors go with that scheme of things. I know it's not much to go off of, but damn that rain...and are you really tracking that mud around from yesterday? Show some class, Tobias, its falling off of your tail all over here!"

Flicking his gaze towards the floor, he quickly saw what she was talking about. The mud his tail had dragged through the previous night was all over the place, cracking off and falling to the floor in a messy pile, just like off of his hooves all over. He winced and got up off of his seat, spinning around on the stool to face the door and grumbled to himself. Drinking was going to be the death of him, and he knew it.

"Thank you for your cooperation, Camille. Call us if you remember anything else, alright?" The vixen had already been off in the back, preparing a bucket of water and a mop to clean up after him, the irritation having already set her off into a bad mood; the likelihood of her even coming up with anything else at this point was mute. No matter, it gave him a good excuse to leave. Pushing out through the front door to stand with a hand in front of the car, he picked up his hooves and began to brush them off one at a time, knocking off the caked on mud from each of them with a low grumbling, his tail snapping around irritably as he shook off the dirt caked on against the front bumper of the vehicle, knocking it off with each sweep. Just as he started on the second one, the leopard came bouncing back out, a muffin in his hand and already having a mouthful, he grumbled out.

"Chum un! No tyme...dawdle!" Bits of raisins pattered against the hood as he tried speaking, and as he tapped the car hood, he flicked that tail tauntingly back at the stallion, a deep groan escaping his lips.

"Why is this happening to me..."

He kicked his other hoof against the tire to knock off the last bits of the mud caked upon it, knocking it off more or less, leaving the stallion cleaned off, more or less. A shower would be taken when he got home at the least. But even as the car doors slammed, he couldn't take it, the rage was starting to build up and his voice had to be heard. Quickly turning his head towards the leopard, he no more than opened his maw when those words began pouring out again, stopping him dead in his syllables.

"I know that was a little awkward in there, I'm not used to questioning people. I'll do better on the next one! I get a little...anxious when I'm talking to others, I have to have something to do otherwise I tend to not listen completely. I...guess I have ADD? Or is it ADHD? Whatever it is, it's hard for me to sit still unless I'm really into something." Already, those claws of his were tapping against the arm rest on the door and the middle console behind where the computer was set up at within the vehicle, his smile still spread.

"Funny thing is, alcohol helps settle me down. Makes me think straight. It makes me wonder if I'm part Irish...but I don't get violent when I get too much in me, at least not that I can remember, but whatever!" He tried being jovial about things, but they both knew at that point it was just strained conversation, Tobias being less than willing to listen at this point. Already this day was turning out be rather unproductive, and time was ticking away until lunchtime already. Having missed breakfast, Tobias could already feel his stomach starting to churn and twist, growling its protest. Though as on cue, Alex perked his head up, grinning from ear to ear, shattering the stallion's hope that lunch might be around the corner for them.

"The crime scene! We have to go there and check it out. If it's the same guy, we should be able to find his trademark! Well, calling card that is. He normally leaves something there at the scene of the crime."

Granted, it was a good idea to go after it, but they had already worked it over well enough, hadn't they? What could they have missed? The leopard was drumming his hands across the dashboard as he anxiously waited for the stallion to drive off. But when seconds passed away and nothing happened, he looked over, head cocked to the side. "What? Did you guys already look it over well? Did you find something of importance on him?"

It had seemed like a blessing of sorts, finally being able to speak without getting completely cut off or have his ears assaulted by the feline's words, so he took a few seconds to recollect what had happened for him, trying to explain in detail.

"As you know, the other night, it was pouring rain. Blinding sheets of it slamming down around us, even as we tugged the body out from that riverbank, we took everything of interest there to properly catalogue it later. There really wasn't anything of note. His driver's license was in his wallet, a few dollars there as well, the key to his bar in another pocket. No marks on the body from a fight, just a knife wound in the back where he was stabbed."

The leopard's eyes brightened at the sound of that, his tail flicking around, even smacking the stallion in the face, blasting a few strands of his mane about to get into his eyes, getting a little groan of irritation out of him as he jumped right back into the conversation.

"I KNEW it...I think so at least. To the station! We have to count it out!" He grinned, bouncing in his seat to make the entire car squeak and twist with the weight, the shocks wincing in their protest. The key twisted the ignition and with the roar of the engine firing up, it sparked the stallion's curiosity. Perhaps there was actually something with it that the crazy cat might be onto? Maybe then, he'd actually see him flourish as a police officer. Though with his doubts already in place? It would take quite a bit to convince him otherwise.

The station was just but a short drive away, and with the leopard flinging off his seat belt and dashing out the door before he even had it in park, the stallion's tail flicked around swiftly in his agitation as he stood outside of the car for a few moments, resisting going inside right away, not wanting to be seen with the cat. Everyone knew, of course, that he was with him, but as a subliminal way of showing that he didn't want anything to do with him, even after the first day. Crossing his arms in front of his chest, he leaned back against the car, thumping his rump back against it with a low snort.

At least the weather is picking up. Clouds are starting to go away...Good grief, what is he DOING in there? He thought to himself before snapping his head to the doorway, expecting the cat to be standing there, or at least bursting out of it, waving the money around in his hand. What if he's telling the boss that I was hung over this morning? He'd never let that slide...Or boasting about his 'interview'...

"Rrnngh! Damn it all!"

There wasn't any time to waste, slamming a hand down on the hood, he quickly made his way over towards the door, almost in arm's reach and growling out to himself, the door flung open, catching him square in the side of the face, knocking him back into the hood of his car with a sharp cry of pain. Clutching his snout, a mild trickle of blood coming from that bruised nostril of his, he opened his eyes as he sat against the front bars of the vehicle, turning his gaze upwards to see that striped tail wagging and bouncing around, a glint of the badge on his chest catching his eye, further insulting him. "Woops! Sorry there, too carried away. But it turns out I'm right! Two dollars and sixty-three cents! It hasn't failed yet! Now then, we are hot on the trail! Though where he might strike next? That's the big question. We don't know too much about the killer himself, other than the fact that he likes being unpredictable."

"'Unpredictable'? How is that in any way going to help us figure out how to catch him? It seems like we are chasing a ghost then?" the stallion snorted lightly, rubbing lightly at the end of his muzzle, trying to relieve himself of the pain that persisted, his entire face feeling his heartbeat pulse throughout it.

The leopard didn't even let that phase him, and with a snap of his tail, he was already heading towards the car, patting the stallion on the shoulder with a broad grin, flashing those teeth of his off in the sunlight dancing off of them with a mild glimmer, that fluent length of his tail snapping around as the door was flung open and he got situated inside. "Come on! To the diner! After all, its lunch for us!"