doctormagnus | The Beast of Bray Road, Part Two

The evening is colder than she expected, and the sun seems to be setting unusually early. Helen looks up and is greeted by angry clouds, billowing on the horizon. The entire sky looks dull and overcast, and she wonders to herself how long this investigation is going to last tonight.

She shuts the car door, shoulders her pack, and turns on her flashlight, leaving the venison for James.

"Ready?"

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From:

doctormagnus

She's not remotely surprised that he sees it before she does. It's only a broken branch, but closer inspection reveals an animal trail that is far too big to be left by a deer and far too slim to be left by a bear.

From:

dr_jd_watson

James crouches at the start of the path, shining his light on the ground. "Gait varies between bipedal and quadrupedal. Either it can comfortably walk either way, or one of its legs is injured, forcing it to occasionally assume a bipedal posture. I'll need more tracks to tell for sure..."

From:

doctormagnus

She gets out her tweezers and very carefully picks up a patch of gray fur caught on the broken twig.

From:

dr_jd_watson

"Oh, splendid, darling!" he exclaims quietly, producing an evidence-collection bag and holding it open for her.

It's only a routine mission, but after decades on the bench, he feels as exited as if it's his first, and he can't help but beam at her.

From:

doctormagnus

She beams back and nods towards the trail. "Shall we?"

From:

dr_jd_watson

He climbs to his feet, gesturing for her to precede him. With any other woman, he'd be tempted to protect her by going first himself. But Helen Magnus, he knows, can handle herself just fine.

From:

doctormagnus

She slides her gun out of her back holster and checks her ammo. "Tranqs only," she says, sliding her magazine back into place and heading down the trail with her gun and flashlight crossed.

From:

dr_jd_watson

"Good, because that's all I have loaded at the moment..."

From:

doctormagnus

She senses he's being a smart arse but ignores it, pressing on down the trail. It's not her fault she's usually giving orders in the field to people far less experienced than James.

From:

dr_jd_watson

James smiles and follows her. He's so absorbed with following the trail that he barely even registers that magnificent bum of hers.

From:

doctormagnus

She stops and squats down, examining a section of the trail that seems heavier laden than the rest.

From:

dr_jd_watson

James moves next to her, crouching and studying the ground himself, eyes darting keenly.

"It stopped here, for some minutes. Resting perhaps?"

From:

doctormagnus

"Hmm. Seems that way." She looks around the area to see if someone may have caught its attention and if that something is still in plain view.

From:

dr_jd_watson

James studies the ground with her, making a soft noise of surprise as he notices a blood-spot on the ground.

From:

doctormagnus

She nods when she sees it, too, quickly reaching for a swab to take a sample.

From:

dr_jd_watson

"It could have fed here, or it might be injured. It's hard to say for sure. An analysis of the blood will tell us more."

From:

doctormagnus

She carefully contains the sample and hands it to him to put in her pack so she doesn't have to waste time taking it off. They work in near-perfect sync after all their years together.

From:

dr_jd_watson

James remembers the routine well. He knows exactly which pouch each sample-type goes into, and he tucks it away in seconds, snapping a few photos of the area before nodding for her to continue on.

From:

doctormagnus

She pauses and smiles for a moment, just long enough to tell him that he's getting lucky tonight.

From:

dr_jd_watson

He beams in answer to that, tongue darting out to wet his lips in anticipation before he returns himself to mission-mode and reacquires their trail.

From:

doctormagnus

She steps back and lets him take the lead, partly because she wants to admire his ass in Levis, and partly because it makes sense given he's more likely to see a clue before she does.