[Maximus]

Max opened his locker with a grin, as he stood in the changing room of the New Alexandria Police HQ. He couldn't help himself smiling as he spied his name on the front of the dull grey locker door. He'd had his name on an actual door at the surgery, but this seemed to be more important. Before he'd left the shelter of the surgery, he'd never felt insecure with himself as a human in a world full of shapeshifters, demons and anyeli. The people that came to see him were there by choice, and always polite; obviously really, since he was the one they needed to provide them with relief from pain or injury. However, the minute he stepped out on his own to travel, he'd felt vulnerable. Walking into a bar, he'd notice bulky Anyeli checking him out, trying to work out if he was a shifter, or a well-disguised Zanyaran. When they were confident he wasn't, he'd be subject to taunts, mocking and on a few occasions, physical violence. It hadn't been the best of times, at least until he'd bulked up a little, and ensured that he was capable of handling himself a little more. Only a human, yes, but Max had learnt that talking through the medium of his sword was very effective against those whose minds were thoroughly against the idea of humans, viewing them only as Xanth's pets. Personally, Max didn't exactly consider being a pet of Xanth a bad thing; she was a goddess, after all.

He snapped out of his reminiscing, and quickly stripped off his t-shirt, swapping it for a button up regulation shirt. It strained a little around his biceps, but Max didn't mind that. He was no longer the slightly muscular doctor that had left Elysia. He was now, to coin a term the kids were using, ripped. He hoped this job would finally give him the respect that he seemed to crave after feeling the wrath of so many non-humans. His only worry was that he'd be partnered with someone who had a similar attitude to so many that he'd met on the road. As a rookie, he wouldn't be doing anything on his own, it was protocol, so he'd be joined by a more senior officer. But who could that be?

[Aiden]

Munching on a recently toasted bagel, Aiden strolled on the streets of New Alexandria. He glanced around and took in the signposts and landmarks of the city. The buildings grew and spread so vastly, and Aiden believed that the city would make anybody feel small, especially if they’d been in the country for the past two years. It felt strange and almost surreal to be in this large city again. When he was in Dardanos, he never saw a city that people flocked to because of its name. People went to Parthis to sell, buy, or arrange to buy goods. Most of the time, people left Parthis for other cities on the mainland. But here in Alexshire, thousands of people came merely to experience the culture of the heart of the realm. New Alexandria bustled and buzzed all the time. Wherever he went, there was energy and people were always up to something…

Which was why he was excited to be back again. Busy streets meant busy people; busy people needed watching over, and Aiden liked to watch over people. As patrol officer, his job in Dardanos had been mellow. Oh, he’d help solve some crimes, but he felt that he could be doing more. So after he settled his affairs in Dardanos, he’d requested to be transferred back to the mainland. Well, he got what he wanted. Now that he was in Alexshire, Aiden had the feeling that things were going to get busier. Call that an instinct.

Finishing up the bagel, Aiden swiped his hands to brush off the crumbs. He’d made it to the station within a decent amount of time, he thought, considering how he’d taken the long route. Aiden had arrived to New Alexandria five days ago. Since then, he’d taken a different route each day to get to the office, just to re-acquaint himself with the city. There were many ways to get there, too, because his apartment was closer to the side of the walls whereas the department was in the center of the city.

Aiden grabbed the handle of the door and strolled into the department. He waved at a few familiar faces, and barely glanced at the delinquent who waited glumly on a chair. The station had grown since the days when he, Zephyr, and Dora worked there. They’d all left, but now Aiden was back. Passing through another door, he made his way to the offices. It was less than a week since he’d returned, and the station was still figuring out what to do with him. Glancing around, he looked for the chief to see what he’d do for the day.

[Maximus]

Max heard someone walk through the building, passing past the locker room. He wondered who it could be; the chief was settled in his office from what Max could tell. After speaking with him for a few minutes, the chief had buried his head in a pile of paperwork, and Max had taken this as his cue to leave and change. Unless the moody teen who'd been brought in on vandalism charges was on the move, it could be his new partner. Max slammed his locker shut, giving the combination a spin with his finger, before leaving the room. He nodded to the receptionist as he passed her, and made his way to the offices. The open plan space was filled with cluttered desks, each overflowing with paperwork on various cases. Each wall was lined with whiteboards, the majority of them blank, which were used for outlining major cases. Apparently there wasn't large crimes unsolved at the present in New Alexandria, which Max assumed could only be a good thing. At the end of the room were frosted windows, behind which were more private offices. The one of the chief was at the end, larger than the others and with a nice view over the city. Max spied the source of the footsteps he'd heard, but didn't quite believe what he saw.

The man in front of him was a brown haired man, a little shorter than Max but no less muscular. And oddly enough, used to be Max's employee. Aiden Roy had worked as his assistant in the surgery for a time, during the period when he'd been really busy. Then Max had run out on his surgery, and...well he wasn't really sure what became of Aiden. He already felt guilty that his part-time receptionist had been laid off because of his reckless departure, but had received a lovely card from her regardless, telling him all about her new employment. But he didn't know what had happened to Aiden, and he might not have been so lucky. Would there be any ill-feeling between the two men?

“Aiden Roy?” He asked, hoping that the shifter didn't hold grudges.

[Aiden]

Someone behind him called his name, so Aiden naturally responded by turning toward the voice. Briefly, he looked confused as he tried to figure how the person recognized him. The speaker looked familiar and was dressed in the clothes of an officer, but Aiden could have sworn that he’d seen the guy in doctor’s clothes before. Realizing who the person was, his confused expression disappeared as he exclaimed with a grin, “Dr. Mills! Or is it Officer Mills now? It’s great to see you!”

Over a year ago, Aiden had worked part-time as a doctor’s assistant in the Alexandrian hospital. While he didn’t work directly with Maximus, he occasionally helped out at the doctor’s surgery. They rarely chatted and were usually covered by surgical masks, but Aiden could at least recognize the doctor and notice the change. Whereas the old doctor had been lanky and lean, this one seemed as if he lifted heavy weights each day.

As he walked toward the doctor, he continued saying, “How have you been? I didn’t know you were here now…” Nearing Maximus, Aiden propped an arm over somebody’s cubicle and asked, “When did you start working for the NAPD?”

“Aiden Roy!” barked another voice.

Startled, Aiden whirled around to see the chief coming forth with a stack of papers in his hand. The shifter blinked nervously and hoped that those papers weren’t for him. “Er, yes?”

“Call in the COM came in just a while ago about a loud sound in the area. The location is in south city.” The chief held a paper forward, which Aiden quickly took. Glancing behind Aiden, the chief nodded at Max and said, “Go with Officer Mills. You’ll find the approximate address on the paper.”

((OOC: Hey Nattie? Your previous post sounds as if they’d never met, but Aiden has worked briefly as a part-time assistant at the hospital. Would you rather alter these two ppl’s backgrounds and make it so they don’t actually know each other, or would you mind editing? I don’t care either way.

Also, I hope you don’t mind that I had the chief send them to do something? I figure they could chat and work at the same time. ))

[Maximus]

Max grinned as Aiden turned, all worries about the attitude towards humans of his new partner forgotten. It would be fun to work with Aiden again, especially now the roles were reversed and the student had become the master. Max was still slightly awestruck by his new status as an officer of the law, and so having a responsible guy such as Aiden as his Yoda would be both entertaining and educational for him. He went to reply, but allowed the chief to interrupt and give Aiden his orders. His heart skipped a little as he heard his name mentioned, excited to be out actually doing something already. He supposed his almost child-like excitement towards the job was a little immature, but he honestly didn't care. He gave Aiden a quick smile before answering the questions he'd asken before the chief had spoken.

“I'm Officer Mills now I suppose, but it's still Max to the good guys. And I'm glad you didn't know I'd be here, it's my first official day on the job...I mean, I've been around a little for training and stuff, but this is the big first day. So at least I know people haven't been talking about me, be it good or bad.” Max supposed, still a little giddy that he'd been placed with someone he actively knew and liked. He couldn't really believe his luck. He'd expected some stiff old stick, amd anything different to that was very much welcomed by him. He strode over to Aiden and attempted to read the address on the page.

“Where are we headed then boss?” He asked, keen on getting started.

OOC: I'm a dummy!! Really sorry Joy, I counted on Max's journal being more up to date than it actually is. Edited to include Aiden's past with Max

[Aiden]

Woah, the Chief had given him something specific to do! Over the past few days, it had always been patrol market street! or go train with Gerard (or some other officer)! Wondering how this task would turn out, Aiden took the paper and waved goodbye as the chief walked away. As the chief disappeared into the office, Aiden started walking to exit the department. He assumed that Max would follow. “ Alright Dr. Mills, I’ll just call you by Max then. Congratulations for getting through training!” He grinned at Max in a friendly, conversational manner. “I’m kinda intimidated with how he’s so confident in my abilities though. I’ve only just recently transferred back here and he’s already sending you with me.”

He chuckled before realizing that what he said wasn’t exactly confidence-boosting material. As they exited the department, Aiden continued sheepishly, “Er, I mean I know the way around and general policing, so yeah. We’ll be okay. We’ll just watch each other’s backs, yeah?” He grinned at Max, confident that the other man would back him up if something happened.

Standing at the front of the police station, Aiden lifted the chief’s paper and so that he and Max could see the address more clearly. “Ninth Street and Market Lane. Let’s get going.” He pocketed the paper, double-checked the presence of his police baton, and started to walk.

The Chief hadn’t made the call sound too serious, otherwise Aiden would have broken into a run. As he strode briskly in the general direction of the area, he said toward Max, “So what do you think the sound is? The caller could have described it better, doncha think?”

((No problem. <3))

[Maximus]

Max smiled. It was a great relief to have Aiden with him, taking responsibility, and the nerves Max had felt on his first day had completely evaporated. He was glad that Aiden had retained his sense of humour. Keeping pace with the shifter, Max put a mock curious look on his face.

“Hmmm, a loud sound? I think they've been too specific with that, we've got no chance of finding it....only every sound in the world open to us. ” Max responded, a smile in his voice. He tried to think ahead as to where they were going...Ninth and market street. Despite having lived here in Alexandria for a long time, he'd never ventured very far, so his knowledge of the area was still pretty sketchy. He had a vague idea of where they were going, and figured he'd follow whatever route Aiden had decided to take.

“So, you just got transferred back here? Where've you been then?”

Max asked, genuinely curious about what had happened to the shifter. He'd felt out of sync with everyone since he'd returned to Elysia, not knowing what had gone on with Piper or Elise, or even Tom and Scarlett. It was nice to just be able to ask and see what was going on, instead of having to step round potentially objective subjects. He assumed Aiden would be up-front with his story, and supposed he should be the same if the shifter returned the question. He hadn't really gone into much detail about his travels with anyone, but got the feeling Aiden might appreciate his story, since he'd known Max before the journey.

[Aiden]

As they went through the city, Aiden visualized a map within his head with face-icons of himself and Max bobbing toward Ninth and Market street. It was only a few blocks away, and though his direction sense was fuzzy, he believed they'd get there soon. If not, they'd just get a real map. There were plenty of tourist-map-sellers in the city.

“Yeah, we'd probably have to follow like, ten, twenty leads when we get there. I hope you know how to be in many places at once,” he grinned at Max.

Everybody in the station knew that Aiden had transferred over recently. Although it was a touchy subject, he was already used to giving the same short reply: “I've been in Dardanos, had a job in patrol.”

Aiden thought that the answer was too short to tell to somebody who was his sort-of friend, and now partner. From his time working in the hospital, Aiden knew of Max as a good listener. It would be nice to have somebody listen to his story, he thought.

After what seemed like a while of silence, he decided to spill. “There were family issues at home in Dardanos.” Aiden paused, “My family's separated...there were some custody issues with my younger brother.” That was barely the tip of the iceberg, but Aiden thought that it told enough. “We've figured it out, and he's living with my older brother now.”

Not wanting to let that past experience ruin his mood, Aiden shrugged and grinned with nonchalance.

He didn't know a thing about why Max had left. If he did, he would have phrased his question more carefully. But he didn't. He assumed that the doctor simply went on vacation, and asked, “So how have you been? Were you on vacation or something?”

[Maximus]

Max listened as Aiden explained his family issues, and felt a pang. Having trouble with his family life wasn't exactly something he expected himself to envy Aiden for, but it did push home the fact that he, Max, had no sort of family. He could visit his parents on earth, but he knew that wouldn't be fair. They were getting on in years, and wouldn't be able to get their heads around the world that Max now lived in. Plus he doubted they'd even recognise him anymore. He'd changed a lot in the time since they'd last seen him, and he didn't want them to have to see how he'd become different in less savoury ways. He'd continue with the same story as before; he was in America, treating underprivileged kids with medicine's they couldn't afford. That would have to suffice. This way, they were happy and proud, and didn't worry about him. But still...it would have been nice to have someone to help out, and have around. As Aiden finished explaining his absence Max nodded sympathetically. Hearing Aiden ask him the same question, he decided to be honest too.

“The vacation from hell, I suppose. I had to get out of here, after Piper brought me the news about Kaida's death.” Max paused for a moment, making sure he was still able to compose himself. Talking about the demise of the girl he once loved had been tough in the early days...but no, he seemed fine, and fit to continue his story.

“So I just wandered, kind of aimlessly. Tried to find myself, I suppose. Got a lot of stick, which I wasn't expecting. At least the experience opened my eyes I suppose. I'm a little less naive now. So, I got fed up with the looks and the abuse, so I headed home, and here I am.” Max explained, aware that he hadn't gone into a lot of detail over what had happened.

[Aiden]

Aiden could not claim to know Kaida well. Nevertheless, he was very shocked to hear that she was dead. When he knew Kaida, she had been a wayward shifter who was prone to causing trouble. Although he didn’t approve of Kaida’s behavior toward others, he was still disturbed to hear about the death of a fellow shifter. Glancing over, he saw how grim the other officer looked, so he didn’t question about it. He could sort of sense that Kaida was somehow important to Max, and Max didn’t want to explain any more of it. Maybe Chenoan would know, though Aiden hadn’t seen the birdboy for ages too.

Sighing, Aiden shoved his hands into his pockets and averted his gaze to the crowd. “I’m sorry to hear about what happened to Kaida…” He truly was, and he hoped that whatever killed Kaida had been destroyed as well. As chaotic as she had been, Kaida didn’t deserve to die so young.

So that had been the reason why Max had left. Aiden walked in silence as he contemplated the doctor’s story. Though his family was dysfunctional, Aiden could always turn to them in times of need, so he couldn’t imagine how Max had been while wandering alone.

He caught onto the last few words that Max said, and echoed, “Abuse? What sort of fights did you get into?” Growing up as errand runner for his brother's trading business, Aiden knew many humans and other Others. Aiden learned to respect any person that would benefit their business, and was totally unaware of how other people might not be so open.

[Maximus]

Max had expected Aiden to ask about the fights; after all, they were both supposed to be protecting people, rather than getting into fisticuffs with them, so his curiosity was no surprise. He could recall all of them in pretty good detail, but the first one was always the one he remembered the clearest.

“The first place I went outside of Alexandria were the Flatlands in Daire. I got work on an Anka farm for a while, which was great. Huge beasts, but these ones were tame...so friendly. Anyway, there was a whole bunch of us on the farm, mostly younger lads, but there were a few old hands like me. Mostly Anyelos, they work better with the Anka...something about having wings I guess. It was a nice atmosphere though, we did some good work. Then this new guy came along. Slight little thing, but cocky as anything. Thought he was something special. He started rallying a few of the younger lads round, wanted to disrupt the group...then he started on me. I suppose I was the obvious target, no wings, and I'm obviously not a vampire...so he figured out I was just human. Started with a bit of teasing, which I could take, water off a duck's back really. A couple of the older guys took him aside and tried to settle him down, but the next day, they were all gone. Turns out this kid is the owners son. The guys that stood up for me got laid up on his word, and then it was just me and the kids that attached themselves do this guy who thought he was all that.” Max paused for a moment, licking his lips. He couldn't remember a time when he'd talked for so long about being away, probably cos he never had.

“Then it got messy. I still saw my old mates down the pub, and they urged me to keep going there. They'd worked hard to make the farm what it was, and if I stuck it out there, the chances were this kid would get bored and move on. He'd done it before apparently. So I stayed on, and he cranked things up a notch and got physical. He was only a scrap of a kid, like I said, but when you've got two burly mates to hold a guy down, you don't need to be a heavyweight champion. It was like that for two weeks...I didn't look too pretty by the end of it. But my guys were right, and he realised I wasn't leaving, and so he went instead. Within a few days, the old guard were back on the farm. Grateful as anything, but I couldn't stay there anymore. Bad memories. So I moved on. Still keep in touch with a few of the guys there though.” He finished. Reliving it wasn't as bad as he thought it'd be, but still. The whole experience had left a bad taste in his mouth. This new breed of human prejudiced Elysians wasn't something he liked.

[Aiden]

When he asked about the fights, Aiden had assumed that as a traveller, Max may have mistakenly joined a bar brawl. But when he heard about what happened in Daire, the shifter's expression grew more solemn and troubled.

He sought for something to say. What he heard about those anyelos...was wrong. He'd grown up among different people, and he's met grouchy and belligerent people. Aiden has met bullies and people who fought for just the heck of it. But hearing about what happened to Max, just because of his humanity...it made Aiden so disappointed about being an Other.

It Aiden were Max, he would have left the farm. He'd taken enough abuse for this lifetime. But Max was brave to have withstood the pressures and stayed for the sake of the old guards. It took a lot of courage to do something like that for other people.

“I'm amazed you were able to stick it out,” he said finally, “I know I couldn't have...some people are such assholes.”

A lot of people were in the streets, but amid the noise of chatter and clattering wagons, Aiden heard the distinct sound of a roar. It echoed in an alleyway and was accompanied by clanking sounds. He started walking toward that area.

((OOC: Sorry this post took so long. If you want, do you want to introduce the firefox-stuck-in-a-trash-can?
...Does it require an ONPC? I'm perfectly fine if you just roleplayed it via Max's account too.))

[NPC]

The day had been horrible to her and Turnip was peeved. It all started when she went out for a morning stroll last week. Usually her owner never let her out alone, but she'd found an open window and snuck out onto the roof, explored a bit, and pretty soon she was on a street without a clue to where her home was. The firefox spent so many days wandering alone through alleyways without a clue to where her home was. She saw many tall people outside on the streets, and so was too afraid to wander out of her alleyway until nighttime when fewer people were around. Only then was she able to sneak food from trashcans and the floor.

And then today, a group of scary big people (they were Elysian children, but Turnip didn't know better) woke her up with a ruckus and started chasing after her. They cornered her in the alleyway and threw things at her. Before she knew it, they'd grabbed her and thrown her into a large trashcan, snapping the lid on top. She'd burst into flame then, but even after she'd heard screams from outside, nobody came to save her. That's when she started rocking back and forth, and toppled the trash can over. But it still didn't let her out.

So now here she was, too resigned with her fate to make fire, but still determined enough to try scraping her way out of the trashcan. Turnip raised her paw against the lid and scratched at it repeatedly. Oh, she was so censored at those people.

((Player: Joy | Animal : Firefox named Turnip))

[Maximus]

Max tailed Aiden into the alley, and realised where all the commotion was coming from. An overturned trash can was clanking around on the pavement, rolling gently along the ground. From inside the sounds of frantic scrabbling and scratching could be heard. Max moved closer to the can, and used a foot to steady it. He wasn't exactly sure what to do now. He looked to Aiden for guidance; he hadn't taken the "dealing with a noisy trash can 101" workshop yet. And perhaps this was demonstrated as the hot metal casing of the can began to transfer heat onto the sole of his boot. Making sure that the can would remain stationary, Max gently removed his foot from the bin and stepped back. His knowledge of Elysian creatures had increased since he'd been away, but he'd still rather have Aiden handle this, since it was his first day. He nodded towards the bin whilst turning to Aiden.

“What are we thinking? Tiny burglar trying to hide from us? Or something more sinister?” He asked with a grin, not sensing a great deal of danger from whatever was in the bin. He wanted to lighten the mood; his tale of woe of the past two years was a bit of a downer, and he wasn't sure he'd have told it to anyone he hadn't known before the trip had happened. Either way, he didn't want to drag Aiden down, not when the job they were doing could get grim enough without his tragic back story.

“Either way, I guess it's your responsibility to poke your head in there first...I'm too handsome for that you see.” Max continued with a grin, raising an arm as if to welcome Aiden to the realm of the dust bin.

[Aiden]

A medium-sized trashcan clattered along the pavement in the alleyway. It rolled aimlessly, and whenever it bumped into a wall, it would seemingly recoil and move the other direction. Walking toward it, Aiden heard scratching sounds that were muffled by the louder clanking of metal. As Max stopped the trash can from moving with a foot, Aiden surveyed the bin with curiosity.

“What are we thinking? Tiny burglar trying to hide from us? Or something more sinister?”

He could tell that Max was trying to lighten the mood, but Aiden could only reply with a “Mhm...” His mind was preoccupied with an approach to this matter. There must be a creature inside it. After all this clanking around, it was either very scared or very angry, and it would react adversely to whoever approached it. As the senior of the two, it was Aiden's responsibility to do whatever they had to do, which was free the animal.

Finally, he hunkered down beside the can and looped an arm over the cylinder. He waved for Max to move away from the can, and as he began to pry it open, he grinned jokingly. “Well you better thank Xanth for your pretty face, then.”

[NPC]

She was disoriented by movement of her container, but the more it moved, the more it made her nervous. She skittered against the side and squeaked each time her container bumped into something, and each time it did, she'd run the other way. Fear suffocated her, and she squeaked and mewled.

After some time, she bumped into something that stopped the can from moving, and as she stood disoriented, she heard voices outside. The voices were deeper than the ones before. Something landed on the top of the can, and as she backed away from the opening of the can, she saw the cover crack open.

She was mad. She was scared. In fact, she was mad and scared, so she did what she did best. Bursting into flame, she charged against the cover and rampaged outside. She saw two men, and Turnip smelled predator from one of them. Turnip was raised as a domestic firefox, but she'd do whatever she could to get away from these large creatures. Skittering past the human-smelling one, Turnip made a run for freedom. If anybody tried to grab her, they'd get burnt, and she wouldn't care.

((Played by Joy. Turnip = Firefox.))

[Maximus]

Max couldn't help but gawp as the bundle of fire grazed his legs as it tried to leave the alley. The bundle of fire didn't exactly look like the sort of thing that should be running around the streets of Elysia unguarded. With this in mind, he quickly pulled his sleeve down over his hands and reached for the skittering creature, ignorant to just how powerful the flames were. As he went to throw his arm over the escaping fox, he felt his shirt, and the skin beneath it begin to blister and pulse with pain as his brain told him how stupid his actions were. He'd be amazed if he'd done anymore than just propel the little beast slightly further to the edge of the alley, possibly giving Aiden a chance to corner it and get the thing to calm down before it went out and roasted anymore innocent Elysians. Max sunk to one knee, as he figured Aiden would be able to decide on any further action, and began to swear under his breath as he looked at the state he'd made of his shirt and arm - he'd have to buy a new shirt, although the damage to his arm looked superficial at worse. Thank Xanth he wasn't an arm model, he supposed. Still, superficial was still painful, and he wasn't looking forward to having to rip off his shirt sleeve once this mishap was sorted. He sighed. With all he'd just told Aiden about working with amazing, dangerous creatures around the realm, and now he got savaged by a smaller than average Firefox? He sure was earning the title of rookie, that was for sure. He looked up at Aiden, not sure whether he'd be focused on the fox or doubled up laughing, but not really minding either way.

“You handle this, I'm as useful as a chocolate teapot, and about as hard-wearing.” He called, before breathing out sharply through his teeth as he rose back to his feet.

[Aiden]

It was amazing how the power of deduction could of eluded Aiden, but even as he felt the trash can heating up, he continued to pry it open. So when the cap came off, a rope of fire leapt out of the can and snaked out like spider-legs. One of the flames licked his hand, and he recoiled. “Gah!” Out of reflex, he dropped the lid and clutched his increasingly reddening hand. The creature took the opportunity to bolt outside of the can. Realizing that belatedly, Aiden scrambled for the trashcan and lid, and he run after it.

Inwardly, he berated himself for acting so stupidly. They'd been taught more than once during training about how to treat sentients and be wary of them. And here he just showed a new officer how not to do it.

Situations worsened as Max ran after the firefox, only to get burnt as well. Kudos to Max for reacting so quickly, but Aiden had to cringe when he saw the shirt burst into flames under his co-worker's arms. “Crap! You okay?” he hollered as he reached Max, trashcan clanking against walls and all. The firefox had nowhere to go but the bottom of the alleyway, so Aiden spared a moment to make sure Max was okay. Hearing Max, Aiden nodded and dashed toward the firefox again.

With the open trashcan in his right hand, Aiden attempted to capture the firefox, but it ducked to the side. It almost even started to turn and run past him, but he deterred it with a feint to the right. It started to run deeper into the alley. Taking long strides, Aiden skidded until he was mere feets away from the creature, and then he leapt. The trashcan slammed over the firefox, effectively trapping it once more. He felt slightly evil for trapping it again, but he'd be damned if it ran loose into the city.

Breathing out a sigh, Aiden sat on top of the trashcan and tried to ignore the scrabbling sounds within. Now that the excitement was over, the side of his left hand started to bombard him with pain signals. Grimacing at his swollen, blistering, hand, he blew at it lightly. He glanced at Max and grinned ruefully, “Hell of a first job, eh? I should have known better than to open the can, sorry.”

((OOC: Godmodding of firefox w/ Joy's permission (b/c she plays both Firefox & Aiden). I hope that you don't mind me catching it so quickly, but it was just Aiden chasing after it and I didn't think a burnt Max could react much if the FF ran back up the alleyway toward him.))

[Maximus]

Max had turned to watch Aiden's progress with the animal, and was pleased to see it safely contained once more. He walked towards the can and Aiden, having finished wrapping a strip from his other sleeve loosely around his burnt arm, to keep the elements out for the moment. He nodded towards the rattling bin.

“Good job, I don't think people would have been pleased with getting their shins burnt by that thing.” He commented, knowing there were busy shopping streets not too far away. He supposed his first callout had gone vaguely well. He'd done little but get himself burnt and then watch Aiden actually do the job efficiently, but still, there was no price you could put on experience. Plus he'd had a good chance for a chat with Aiden, and caught up with his old employee, which was nice. Now he supposed they should go back to the station, and take the little firey beast with them. He wondered how they'd transport it; after all, the trashcan had felt hot between his boot when he'd put a boot against it, and the firefox was undoubtedly angrier now than it had been. Max worried slightly for Aiden's backside, but supposed the creature might be down the bottom of the can now.

“So how are we getting this thing back to the station then?” He asked, whilst having an idea. He still had enough sleeve left on his already tattered shirt to manipulate into crude protective handholds that he and Aiden could loop around the existing metal ones at the top of the bin, and then their hands would remain protected even if the creature got even more aggravated as they moved it. He conveyed this idea to Aiden, and waited for a response.

[Aiden]

Under the can, the firefox seemed very jittery and spontaneous, and Aiden could feel the can become warmer, which was not a comfortable feeling, given that he was seated on top of it. He could feel that it was still agitated, and wondered if it would get violent again. Thank Xanth this firefox had been contained. If it had gotten into the streets, it would have injured people, made damages to buildings. And it would have made the both of them look like fools, Aiden more so.

Anyway, the can was becoming increasingly warmer, so when Max suggested using his tattered shirt to hold onto the can, Aiden readily agreed to it. “That's a good idea, but hold on while I get the cap on...”
Warily, he placed a hand on the top of the can. When he realized that it wasn't too warm yet, he got off of the can, and with his hand still resting on top of the can, reached with his other for lid. He tilted the can slightly to test if there was fire, and when he saw that there wasn't any, he slowly slid the lid under the can. With the fox effectively trapped again, he very slowly tilted the can to the side.

With the fox safely contained, Max had already begun wrapping the tattered fabric around one of the handles. Taking another shirt-tatter from Max, Aiden wrapped it multiple times around the other handle. “It would prolly be easier if each of us held a handle...” he mentioned as he finished tying the handle. As he began to lift that side, he noticed the tattered fabric that was wrapped loosely around Max's arm. Remembering Max's initial attempt of capturing the fox, Aiden worried if the arm had been burnt badly. “Hey...your arm okay? ” he nodded toward the arm.

((OOC: I took some liberties to Minor-ly GM Max. Please PM me if you want me to edit out the GMing. ^__^
Also I'd be totally fine if you had Max & Aiden go back to the PD or start walking there in your next post. Do whatever you think is fun ))