Chapter 9: The Scent of a Wildehopps
Jake learns that to a wolf every mammal has a unique scent and his date night is ruined.
The quaint bar was crowded, as it was on many Thursday nights, and since it was located not that far from the downtown police headquarters, the Green Dragon Pub was what they called a "cop bar." Twice a month, members of Bogo's team would gather to socialize and generally blow off steam, it also wasn't unusual for Jake to follow along after Nick and when he did, he usually picked up everyone's tab. In the old police code, it was a 10-411 for Runnel's buying, but since the department was transitioning to plain speak, it was now "Runnel's Having a Meeting", which was a creative play on the fact that Jake's accountant had figured out how to write the evenings off as a business expense.
"So, just what you are saying?" the lean grey and black-furred raccoon asked the wolf standing on a nearby barstool. Jake sat with his white dress shirt's sleeves rolled up and his tie undone.
"That every mammal species has a unique underlying smell. A raccoon is going to smell like a raccoon, a lion is going to smell like a lion, and so forth. Then there is the difference between a male and a female's scent within that species. Finally, every mammal has his or her unique scent, you have a scent unique to yourself and different from any other coon."
"Okay, I've got that," the raccoon replied before he waved his paw for Officer Wolford to continue.
The timber wolf in a medium blue ZPD tee shirt and dark blue uniform fatigues grinned at the raccoon. "Then there are changes within your scent, we wolves can smell if you have a bad illness or are afraid and even if you are lying," the wolf continued. "Some scents are more pronounced, such as when a female is in heat and a male's musk in response." Alan Wolford stopped to sip on his beer and munch on a pawful of turkey-flavored kibble before he continued. "So when we train recruits for the K-9 Unit, they have to be able to identify mammals by their scent alone. To do this we blindfold them and parade various cops through the room, most can identify each mammal. Then we send in Nick, only forty percent can identify his species."
"I don't understand?" Jake said after he took another sip of his ale.
"Aw, come on!" the wolf barked out a laugh. "Nick and Judy are so close that they almost smell alike! Nick smells mostly like a fox, but also a rabbit!"
"Huh, I guess I'm used to them smelling like that by now?"
"A fox smells like a fox and a rabbit smells like a rabbit. But the way Nick and Judy smell, we call it the Wildehopps scent!"
"I don't believe you," the raccoon said before he hopped off the chair and slightly staggered towards Judy. She was sitting at a table with several other officers.
"Jake, what are you doing?" the rabbit giggled when the raccoon began to earnestly sniff at her neck and side. He didn't answer but stumbled away to find Nick.
There was laughter from the pool room when everyone in the bar heard Nick yelp, "I'll deck you if you sniff my butt!"
"But Wolford says you have the Wildehopps scent!" the tipsy raccoon objected. "You do smell a lot like Judy!"
Several officers laughed and looked at the wolf. "Still telling that Wildehopps scent story?" Officer Higgins guffawed out. "Another victim!"
The wolf just gave the larger uniformed hippo a grin.
Jake awoke the next morning with a hangover. How he got back to the Regency Hotel, he had no inkling, but the fact that he was only dressed in his underwear indicated he did not get there by himself. "Well at least I didn't wake up in bed with someone I didn't know," he mumbled while he wobbled towards the bathroom. He reached for his phone and saw it was already past ten in the morning. "If I had a full-time job, I'd fire myself."
After peeing for what seemed like forever, he brushed his fangs and then took some pain medication for his throbbing forehead before stumbling into the shower. The water was hot and seemed to burn away the aches from his previous night's stupidity. Reaching for the new bottle of body wash, he sniffed the strawberry scent and it suddenly occurred to him why he liked the smell. Wolford had said every mammal had a scent unique to himself or herself and Marie always smelled faintly like strawberries.
While he scrubbed the shampoo into his fur, he remembered how disastrous their second date had been. It started with his having to reschedule their promised date because he had to work, he had forgotten about a conference when he asked her out. He had come unannounced to her office, thinking to surprise her and break the news in person, but she was at a client's. They spoke later that night and she was disappointed, but they rescheduled for the next weekend. Then she got sick with a very bad cold and their date was rescheduled again to the following weekend.
When that Saturday came, he told her to dress for biking and they took the subway to the Haymarket Station in the Meadowlands on a warm sunny morning. He rented bikes and they peddled the backroads through the quaint farms and had a picnic of smoked salmon, crusty bread, and an apple salad alongside the Pennygreen River. The morning was perfect, but then the weather turned for the worst, and by the time they arrived back at the station they both were sopping wet and cold. He gave her his jacket and held her as she shivered on the ride home. It was while he held her close on the subway that he smelled strawberries. For all his efforts, all he got was a kiss on his cheek from his now sneezing date.
Jake finally got his first kiss and it was after their third date. This time they had decided to play it safe and do the dinner and a movie routine. Jake had resigned himself to having to watch a traditional chick flick but was pleasantly surprised when she chose an action movie called Transferee 3. Dinner was at a restaurant near the theater, a place Nick had recommended. It had a full-sized aquarium, where they dined surrounded by a huge tank of saltwater fish and were served by waiters who were dolphins. The food was mediocre, but it was more than offset by the wonder of all the fish swimming by while they ate. Jake had never been to an aquarium before and he realized afterward that he was almost childlike in his sense of wonder during the meal, something Marie actually found endearing.
Unfortunately for romance, the movie was too action-packed and had them on the edge of their seats. Jake had planned to slip his arm around her and steal a kiss or two like a teenager, but that was forgotten in the excitement. Marie did find his paw and arm as she gripped them tightly several times during the movie. Afterward, they held hands while they walked back to her apartment where they shared a brief first kiss, which was spoiled when her parents called.
Now standing naked in the shower, Jake sighed when he realized he was acting like a teenager in love and not an adult. This would be their fourth date and he knew others his age would be screwing each other's brains out by now, but to do that to her seemed wrong. He knew she deserved more than that from him and was bound and determined to treat her like a lady. "She deserves better than me," he spoke to himself.
He skipped the gym again because his head wouldn't be able to handle the workout. Instead, he ordered coffee and dry toast from room service before he sat down and opened his laptop to the schematics of Tail's newest alarm system. It was late afternoon by the time he took a break, the empty cup and half-eaten toast sitting on the table. He sighed and stretched before realizing he had only an hour to get ready for his date with Marie.
"So this is what, your fifth date?" Karen called out to her roommate. "Are you two ever going to do more than kissing?"
"Fourth date and no…I don't know?" Marie sighed while she buttoned up her pink blouse and tucked it into her dark brown skirt. "We're going to have a nice simple dinner and then take a stroll through the market in Sahara Square."
"You're not going to the casino? I heard the Palms is the bomb, maybe you can convince him into spending the night in one of those fancy suites!"
"I'm not planning on sleeping with him tonight."
"Wait, it wasn't that long ago that you would have if he asked," her roommate replied. "What happened?"
"It's not that I don't want to, but Jake seems so innocent when we're together," Marie answered. "It's like he's never had a true relationship before and I want our first time to be special."
"Don't tell me he's a virgin?" the skunk snickered. "At his age, that would be weird."
"I'm sure he's not, at least I don't think he is?"
"Are you getting the fancy car and driver again? You haven't been in one since the first date."
"I told him not to waste money like that, the subway will be fine. He was cute when he told me that spending money on me was not a waste. I reminded him I was an accountant and knew better."
"Cheapskate!" the skunk yawned before she turned on the news.
"Jake is not a cheapskate!" the raccoon grumbled.
"I was talking about you and not him," Karen laughed.
"I'm a farmer's daughter," Marie laughed back. "That just makes lil' old me frugal."
Jake arrived early and he was mad. Marie opened the door for the handsome raccoon in the light yellow polo shirt and khakis, but she was met by a frown. "I'm sorry, but I have to break our date tonight, I have to go to work," he snapped. "Someone tried to break into a very important client's warehouse and I've got to go there to meet with him."
"Oh!" she sighed. "Did they get anything?"
"No, the security system worked and the cops have them in custody. I've just got to show myself and have a few drinks with the client to convince him about some upgrades."
"Darn, can we reschedule?" she asked as she bit her lower lip. "Maybe next weekend?"
He stared at the floor for a few moments, before looking into her eyes. "I don't want to wait that long to see you again, maybe we can have brunch in the morning?"
"Don't you usually have Sunday lunch with the Big family?"
"He'll understand," Jake replied with a smile. "I've already told him and Fru Fru about you."
"Oh?" Marie replied and she found herself blushing. She knew that Jake had high regard for Mister Big, the shrew was a father figure to him. As he turned to leave, she grabbed his paw and pulled him towards her for their lips to meet in a kiss. She wanted to giggle when he stumbled backward with a startled expression. Instead of leaving, he stepped closer and took her in his arms again for another kiss.
"Work…" she sighed.
"What?" he asked as he gazed into her eyes.
"Go to work, Sugar," she giggled.
"Oh yeah, Work!" he said. "It sucks sometimes being a responsible adult! Tomorrow at nine-thirty?"
"It's a date," she replied before she began to close the door.
The arresting officers had kept the two perpetrators at the scene of the crime and the sergeant in charge wanted to laugh when Jake Runnel arrived and angrily threw open the patrol car door to growl at the two thieves inside. "RACCOONS!" he yelled. "What the hell were you two thinking trying to break into one of my firm's clients? Just because we are born with a mask doesn't mean we have to live up to our stereotype!"
The arresting officers began to protest when Jake physically hauled both bandits out of the car before he launched into an angry tirade. "Do you two idiots even know who owns this place?" the raccoon snarled. The two coons eyes widened when they looked over at the large black limo parked down the road. The cops were astounded when Jake began pushing them toward that vehicle. The door opened and both climbed into the car.
"Can he do that?" an officer asked.
"Probably not, but let's see how this plays out," the sergeant grinned while he replied. The rhino watched with renewed interest.
Moments later the two raccoons staggered out of the limo and practically ran toward the cops, before climbing back into the police car.
A few moments Jake joined them and tossed the door open again. "I HAD TO BREAK A DATE BECAUSE YOU TWO ASSHOLES!" he snarled. "I don't ever want to see you two near any of my buildings again!"
The two other raccoons vigorously nodded before he slammed the door. "Thank you for your indulgence, officer," Jake said in a kind tone to the police officer. Then turning, he walked back to the waiting limousine and opened the door. "Good evening Mister Catpone."