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In the coming of October and November, James continued thinking about the night he had scared Daisy with his temper. Even if he still privately did not believe he was wrong to act that way, he didn't want to upset her and therefore knew he had to make amends. He kept up his routine as always, meeting Daisy, chatting with her, sometimes leading to sex, but not often. Other days he would fish with Rasher or keep working at the coffee bar, all while working on something special. Something he hoped would show his love to her. At first it took him a week of solid pondering to even begin to think what she would love, and never telling everyone for fear of spreading gossip. But before long, he soon had an idea and would spend many days at the museum, debating with Blathers as well as his little sister Celeste whom he barely knew of, who ran the observatory. All for a surprise for Blathers' favourite villager, which he was happy to oblige with. Two solid months of digging was required, as well as luck for his surprise. True to her word, Freya had hired a travelling plastic surgeon she knew to fix up her face and Daisy's to their former glory, of which James was thankful for and even, to smooth things out with her, gave Freya a gift in the form of a dress Daisy recommended. A gift of diplomacy.

As for his special gift, he mainly got ingredients from Nook's store, which around Halloween had expanded itself almost overnight into a small convenience store called Nook 'n' Go, offering a wider variety of items. He tried not to avoid Daisy since he couldn't really enjoy the day without seeing her at least once, even if they had nothing to talk about. Normally she was happy, even still digging for fossils with her or trying to at least. Over the course of two months they found perhaps 20 fossils in all, which kept her happy. Any duplicates were sold by James, but he never told her this. Soon, in the middle of a cold November, his work was complete, and he strided in to Daisy's home with a grin upon his face. "Evening sweetie." "Hehehe, evening...aren't you cold out there?" Even in November, James only wore a T-shirt and jeans, but he took the chill off with a comfortable blue and white sweater he bought. Despite his biological origins, he never really minded the cold, at least compared to the insufferable warmth of the summertime, but he did have less tolerance to it than most others. But here in the first winter he had since his "escape" from Chicago, somehow it didn't feel as cold as he would normally feel. "Mmmm not really." "And I thought you guys were cold-blooded." "Meh, I dunno how it is. I got something to show ya, something new at the museum." "Oh?" "You have to come outside to see it though." "Awww but it's cold out there!" "I'll give you my sweater, if you haven't got one yourself." "No no I got one, hang on." She headed back inside and reappeared at the door a few minutes later in a cute purple parka with a hood, taking James' hand as he walked her to the museum. The raptor had an eager spring in his step as she giggled. "You seem really happy." "Ohhh when you see this, I know you'll be too." "You got the skeletons complete?" "Mmmm something like that..." He grinned down at her as they reached the museum. Blathers was at the door, looking proper as always.

"Ah, good evening sir and madame, will you be attending our special show?" "Show?" asked Daisy curiously. "Ohhh Blathers don't tell me you sold out!" "The only thing sold out my dear, is this show, a very very special viewing only seating two." "And I just happen to have the tickets." James offered two clumsy imitations of tickets which he drew himself. Blathers nodded. "Those are the ones, head right on in Mister James and Miss Daisy." With their thanks, they walked into the Dinosaur Room, the fossils looking different somehow. Daisy at first could not quite place it, other than the fact the ones whose heads were missing were now restored. But they were not complete yet, just very nearly so. All of their heads however were gazing towards the ceiling. "Oooookay...what's going on James?" She sounded worried, and James merely smiled as he lead her to a large picnic blanket in the middle of the room, yet there was no food. "Why is there a-" "Well, we can't eat in the museum, that's not allowed." "Well of course...but why the blanket?" "Why don't you lie down with me on it and find out?" He gently took her down onto the blanket, the sight above showing all the fossils around them staring upwards at an empty white ceiling, the two lying side by side. "So...okay you better tell me now what's up." "Well, lemme see. Lights!" With his command, the lights went off making Daisy yelp. "Camera!" The ceiling was lit up in spotlights. "ACTION!" The ceiling suddenly transformed into an entire blue sky of stars. Projected from unseen lights were millions upon millions of tiny little lights, in a possibly perfect projected rendition of the night sky. The dinosaurs gazed towards them, their large skulls shadowed against the illusory depths of the universe. "Oh...James...I..." "Do you like?" "I...oh wow...but I can see the stars outside anytime why would you-" "Because, I have a message from all the dinosaurs here...and they want to tell you something with the stars you love." Her confused yet agasp expression was soon rectified when he pointed to a message slowly being drawn among the stars. A constellation of consonants and vowels appeared across the length of the ceiling to read:

WITHOUT YOU, DAISY I WOULD NOT BE COMPLETE

Understanding the words, she started to cry. "Wh-wha...you...you did all this?" "It took a while...I wish I could have been able to finish all the fossils for you though." "It's...perfect James. Oh...b-b-bow-wow..." Her face slowly pressed against the raptor's snout with pleasant tearful shock, as he accepted it into a kiss. His lips were slow and gentle, her tears running down her face too overcome with emotion to speak for now, except for shaky barely audible moans. They were shared with by James, hands wrapping around each other slowly. After the long kiss that seemed to last as long as the dinosaurs had lived themselves, the two laid on their sides and she asked softly: "Why did you do this for me?" "Because...I love you?" "Awww now, you could have done this any other time." "I just thought of it now was all." "Come on...tell me." "I...I wanted to show you that I still love you." "Heehee, you know that already surely." "...okay I did. Come on, give me a chance at this will ya? I never done anything this big before, I mean it was a hell of a time." "Hehehee...okay." With a coy smile from each other, they hugged each other tightly, the stars continuing to shine above them as the ancestors of James gazed silently upon his proclamation of love. Daisy silently guessed the reason for this gesture, which she nevertheless appreciated. James was now content that he had won her heart back 100%, as well as ridding his own heart of doubt.

Three weeks after the special message in the museum, James had barely changed out of his routine, other than the coming of the New Year. Apparently they didn't celebrate Christmas in the town, which confused James until upon asking the mayor, who said: "Christmas is a religious holiday and being a town that has no religion, we have had no cause to celebrate it for years." He wanted to argue but he did make a point, even if Christmas for him never was about religion. To him and millions of others, it was about the opportunity, or perhaps obligation, to be charitable and cherish the blessing of family and friends. He started to remember the times he and Sarah had their small Christmas parties, with various patrons of the bar and members of the Fishnet. The only day of the entire year where Sarah reduced the prices of her drinks, the countless songs that were sung in at least four different languages, the occasional fight that ended with a good round of buddy back slapping. And in the midst of all these memories James sat upon Daisy's doorstep, the snow falling lightly with a soft breezy wind, sighing. "Somethin' wrong James?" "Ohhh...just remembering when I had Christmas with friends back home." "Awww...but at least ya got New Year with us!" "Hehe, true...hmmm...but still, having all your friends in one place, lights all over the place, drinks all round-" "That's all happening at New Year yanno." "Hmm? The town does that?" "Oh yeah, Mabel told me about it, it's a huge party on the 31st of December, they have drinks, one biiiig party too, kinda like the festival we had but more of a party!" "...do they have a big tree?" "There's lotsa trees around here if ya hadn't noticed the past...year?" "...shit you're right. Well awesome then! Damn you know how to cheer me up Daisy." "Well I try, bow-WOW!" "Hahaha awww." He kissed her wet nose to make her blush, before a harsh cold wind blasted at the two of them as they shivered. A storm was starting to pick up clearly. "Ur-r-r-r-rrrr, that was COLD!" "Jeez I know...better get inside eh?" She nodded as they went into her house to snuggle down on her bed together. The heater was on for them to relax to as they listened to the radio. A few minutes passed and after they began to warm up, James asked cheekily: "I know a way we can warm up faster." "Hehehe, ohhh?" "Well...we have your bed here...maybe I can stay the night again..." "Awwww James I'm too cold for that." "Exactly, you need to warm up quicker, and I may be cold-blooded but I know how to use some body heat reaaaaal good."

He then proceeded to playfully nom on her neck and cheek, making her squeal and giggle as she tried to playfully push him away. "AGH JAMES, noooo!" "Mmmmm but you are a tasty tasty doggie, and I'm a hungry hungry raptor!" "Noooo please spare me!" "Ah ah aaaaah, you're my prey and you're all mine to nom!" He started to grope her rear and make her yelp and blush, getting a little carried away in naughty gropes all along her body as a silly little foreplay. They barely even noticed a knock on the door. "AH, haha, ha, who is it?!" She made James be quiet as she only saw a note be slipped under the door. "Hey, you can come in!" "Awwww." "Shhh!" No reply, but keen ears picked up the trundling of footsteps away from the house, the window too dark to see through. Daisy cocked her head curiously. "Weird." "I guess they heard us and didn't wanna bother us." "Mmmm, but still, lemme check that note." "Don't wait up." He let her go as she headed to the door and checked the note, a pink slip of paper that read: "A package is waiting for you at the Post Office...oooh maybe it's a gift for me?" "Ahhhh I wonder who it's from?" "Maaaaaaybe you?" "Mmmm nope, I'd give you your presents myself, I guess someone couldn't drop it by?" "Well...you mind getting it for me?" "You don't wanna get it yourself?" "I'm coooooold." "Aw that's no fair, I've got scales and you got fur!" "But Jaaaaaames...please?" "...you better let me nom you good and hard when I get back with it, I am really gonna need to get warm when I come back, okay?" He made a mock angry face and poked his tongue out stupidly to make her giggle as she nodded. The raptor put on his sweater and headed out into the cold windy night, hearing her shout: "HURRY BACK NOW!" He left hastily towards the Town Hall/Post Office, the blustery blizzard starting to pick up, but not horrendously so that he couldn't see. It was just enough that he could not walk straight, or run too fast for that matter. He barely started to knock before he barged into the place with an almost dramatic flair, wielding the pink slip. "SCUSE ME!" Pelly looked up a little flustered at his entrance, startled slightly as she put down her book. "OH, hello James, what are you doing out on this night?!" "Package for Daisy, she got a note and asked me to get it." "Ohhhhh, lemme see now hang on." Pelly went around the mailbag and looked through the various letters and parcels before unearthing a soft package, handing it over to the raptor. "Here you are!" "Great, thanks, g'night!" He rushed out before the wind got any worse, and barely heard Pelly's own goodbye as he hurried towards Daisy's home at a frantic pace, seeing the familiar roof over the rise. The shadows of trees occasionally obscured his view when he soon saw it disappear again, by falling into another pitfall trap. He was barely able to hold onto the package "AGH dammit! Awww...stupid assholes! Who the FUCK would leave a pitfall trap in this weather, you tryin' to freeze people to fucking death!?!!?" James struggled to free himself with nobody to help him, wrestling for a short time before he eventually managed to tug himself out, pushing his hands in the hard earth around him. He tugged his hips out, then his legs, and pushed himself forwards, grunting with exertion as he got one leg then the other out. He grabbed the package and soon rushed to Daisy, feeling a little irritated and also feeling he had arrived late. Unfortunately, he was. But he wouldn't realise how late until he came upon what would be the most soul-shattering sight of his life, up to this point.

The door was not closed entirely, left slightly ajar as it swayed slowly back and forth in the wind. That was a small worry, one that made his heart tense up a little since she'd never leave the house in this weather by her own admittance, and also because she'd never leave it open in such weather. But then he saw her upon the floor. "D-d-d-daisy?" At first his stutters were from the cold. But upon walking closer, they were soon of fear. How he wished so hard there and then to be given a reply. Something, anything, even if she was suffering a stroke and lost the ability to speak coherently, he wanted something of her to move. At first he feared she had fallen asleep, but being on the floor that seemed unlikely. He then feared she had collapsed or so, maybe she got too warm and had a little heatstroke. He rushed over to her, gazing upon her face. He didn't even accept the fact at first that her eyes were slightly bulged and glazed over, the sparkle of life and joy gone from them. Her tongue hung from the side flatly, her face forever trapped in an expression of choking fear. Daisy's beautiful white neck was now bruised purple with strangle marks. Her body was warm, which made things both better and worse. Better for being found early when warm, but worse for being found too late to save. "Ohh...g-g-god...no...no...no no no no please Daisy get up, please wake up, please be asleep...p-p-please...PLEASE! NO! G-GET UP DAISY, I-I WAS ONLY OUT A...a-a...D-DAISY!" Tears unconsciously welled up in his eyes at refusing to accept the first thing that came to mind at the sight of her. He gently held her in his arms, shaking with a slow festering sorrow that soon evolved into a violent fury. His body shook harder, warmed by his rage, fearful for touching her anymore, as if his worst fears had become real for doing so. He refused to accept it, struggling to face it as his claws tensed up into vicious daggers. Then he screamed.

His scream was almost unearthly, like a mythical creature's dying howl that crossed the entire village, his claws gripping her body tightly to his chest, pinching into her stiffening hairs. The raptor's mouth gaped wide with abject misery, eyes turning red with drying tears. His throat struggled to speak in hiccups of shock and fury. "A-ah..H-h-h-hhh...D-d-aisy...Daisy...Wh-why...Why...WHYYYY!?!??! I WAS ONLY OUT A FEW MINUTES! I WAS COMING BACK! I WAS JUST HERE!" His claws started to twitch with the urge for instant balance in the life of the world. Revenge burned in his eyes as he screeched with all of his vocal might that shook through his arms, storming out of her house. He screamed against the windy December sky, roaring out to the howling void with incoherent vile threats, the worst he could imagine to express. "WHO DID THIS!? WHO KILLED HER!?!? YOU FUCKING MONSTER! YOU FUCKING BASTARDS! WHOEVER KILLED DAISY, I KNOW YOU'RE OUT THERE! WHY!?!? FUCKING WHY!?!?! I SWEAR, ON MY MOTHER'S GRAVE THAT WHEN I FIND YOU, I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU FOR THIS YOU MOTHERFUCKER! I'M GONNA FUCKING MURDER YOU, I'LL RAPE YOU UNTIL YOU BLEED INSIDE YOUR FUCKING GUTS, AND THEN I'LL EVISCERATE THE FUCK OUTTA YOU!" Another unearthly-sounding scream set everyone off in panic within the seemingly-innocent village, thrown into shock at the bellowing death of a fellow resident. They all heard what he said, a mixture of shock and grief hitting them twinfold. They tried, briefly, to understand the pain he felt. But none would never want to feel his pure anguish, not from the horrifying anger-driven things he was saying, his fury taken out on a tree beside Daisy's house as he slashed and kicked it. He roared with every punch and swipe and kick, wanting to scream more violently profane things, wanting to find some phrase, some word even to fully express himself. Regardless of the pain that welled up in his limbs from bashing against it, or when his limbs turned too sore and started to bleed at the knuckles, he continued to attack. He soon turned his hate upon himself in a flash of rage, and bashed his head upon the tree over and over again, screaming every time he did so. "I'LL KILL YOU! I'LL KILL YOU! I'LL KILL YOU YOU FUCKER! I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU! I'LL FUCKING VIOLATE YOU! I'LL KILL YOU! I'LL KILL YOU! I'LL...kill....you...."

James soon felt himself start to black out, his blind anguish forcing him to collapse as he bludgeoned his head enough to knock him out. The pain was so intense was intense, the worst pain he had ever felt in his life from within his head, but one he was thankfully not going to experience conscious. If he realised he had risked the chance of freezing in the snow to be found dead and frozen, he would only have lamented the fact that he would never find who killed her.

Waking up the next day with his head still throbbing, James looked around to see he was lying on a sofa in the post office/town hall. He stared upwards at the worried faces of Tortimer and Pelly, as well as the stern face of Copper. As soon as he remembered why he had been unconscious, he instantly wished to be asleep again. "Son, you okay?" asked the old tortoise politely. "What do you fucking think?" was the raptor's tense reply. As much as he liked Tortimer, he didn't care to be polite. "Now don't talk to the mayor that way," warned Copper, "Just tell us what happened." "I was...running back to Daisy's place from...from the post office here...she..." He tried to remember what happened before finding her body, feeling it was almost impossible now to think there was a time before it. The shock of it doing so as he tried to think on any details. "I had just been out like five minutes or something, maybe three, getting that stupid package. When I found her door was open I went in...and there she was...warm and dead..." His eyes looked sunken, as if he didn't believe his own mouth. His voice was monotone for now, thoughts reflecting on every part of the event. "Was anyone else there?" asked Copper. "No...I think I wouldn't have been screaming for revenge if someone had been there, officer." He said the last word as if it were a racist insult, openly showing his sheer contempt for authority. If you're so good an officer, he thought privately, how come you weren't fucking protecting Daisy? Despite knowing full well Copper only guarded the gate of the village, and the fact the night had been a difficult one to guard on, his bias showed. Copper only ignored it considering the witness' state of mind. "Any objects out of place in her home?" "No...everything was just as she left it...except her door. She'd never have it open, she doesn't like the cold." "Do you know anyone who may have had any motive to harm Daisy?" "No...nobody. If I had any idea who would have done it, you'd find their body too by now." "Now let's not get too out of our heads here-" "No, YOU listen!" James stood up fast and faced the guard directly. "My girlfriend is DEAD, this isn't someone losing a fucking T-shirt or some wallpaper, this is a MURDER, don't you fucking get it?!?" "Sir, if you talk to me that way further I will have to detain you." "Go ahead, that gives the killer more time to escape from me! Because when I find him or her, I will fuck him UP. I will cut him up like a fucking cheap piece of meat, I will disfigure him, eviscerate him and hang the fucker with his own fucking guts and THEN kill him, just when he runs out of blood or air in what's left of the body. I don't care if you think that's sick in your perfect little village, but NOBODY gets to kill someone close to me and think they can run from me."

Looks of shock and horror came from the mayor and postal worker. Copper had little change in his expression as if he'd heard every sort of phrase in the world. "Well that makes up my mind, yer not walking out that door and going off on a killing spree of assumptions, you think Daisy would want that?" "Oh believe me officer, if I started killing, there'd be none of you left." And with that, Copper merely brought out his handcuffs with a practiced world-weary sigh. "Turn around and put your hands behind your back, yer gonna sit down somewhere nice and quiet until you calm down. I don't wanna hurt ya considering yer anguish, but you can't just go running off all over town like a psycho." James merely stood his ground and kept mouthing off. "Oh that'd be just perfect for the killer, if anyone here is that. Just leave me in a cell all vulnerable and let them run away...or maybe you did it...officer." "I said put your hands behind your back, or else I will be forced to detain you." "Don't bother, I don't think you can do it anyway...after all, you didn't do anything to save Daisy." "Alright that's it." Copper raised his trusty spear towards the raptor in defence, who merely grabbed under the bladed tip, jammed it into the wall nearby and bitchslapped Copper to scar his cheek. The guard in return punched the raptor in the face and then in the back of the neck, piling on top of him with handcuffs ready as James struggled underneath him. "I wanted to do this nicely since yer very distressed right now...NNGH...but if you can't play nice, you get a time OUT!" "FUCK OFF PIG, LET GO OF ME!" "No, you gotta behave or else you'll do things you'll regret!" "NO!" He rolled to one side to elbow Copper in the face and ran off into the village angry and sore, while Tortimer tented his wrinkled fingers with a solemn sad look on his old features. "Oh dear...what has our village come to? ...assaults, murder and now not even the smallest respect for our own officer..." "I know he's angry but this isn't the way we do it here," said Pelly with worry for their newest visitor, "he must have come from such a terrible place to have such awful thoughts." "Indeed," replied Copper, rubbing his face sorely and retrieving his spear. "I knew something was strange about him when we took him in...he's young and confused, and love makes him even more irrational. If he ever comes back, call me soon as you can and try to keep him here." "Wait wait wait, surely you can't ask us, an old tortoise and a bird to hold him here?!?" Tortimer panicked slightly enough making his bifocals askew. "What if he attacks us!?!?" "He won't. He's just a boy who demands justice and I know he trusts you two absolutely. He'd never hurt a girl and an older gentleman like yourselves, I feel that. If anything I worry for everyone else..." Copper then left the town hall to search for clues and inquire the locals on what happened last night.

While Copper kept his cool and sensibly began his own investigations at the scene of the crime, James was looking wildly around for anyplace to start his own private investigation. He trudged across the snow, retreating up to the waterfall and sitting beside it, letting the rushing sound of the water try and drown out the screams of vengeance in his mind to think properly. Of course he had to get his tears out as well, slowly accepting what had occurred despite his mind fighting against it. He sat on a rock hunched up, and wept into his knees for a while, shuddering with his whole heart, letting the last of his tears trickle out of his body. The flashing torturing images of his dead lover ran through his mind's eye until he felt drained enough of his sorrow. He reflected on the fact that to him, being raped was better than losing the one he loved. Even with the nightmares that came to him. Minutes seemed to pass by into hours as his body shook with confused rage. He wanted to scream but he had done enough of that last night. Right now he wanted to kill and maim, horribly. He flexed his claws, silently blessing himself for having such lethal weapons of his ancestry, and began to ponder as the tears dried on his cheeks. "Alright...think James...think...who would kill her? Someone must have had a reason, SOMEONE killed her here...unless they left...no not already surely...yes, someone had to stay here, they'd wanna gloat, gloat at ME, show me I can't fucking do anything ohhh but they're wrong...so very...very wrong." With a not-very-intact mind flailing around for excuses, he decided to go to the gate and talk to Booker, the reliably shy guard who would undoubtedly know if anyone passed him by. The fat pathetic self-conscious excuse of a guard would never put up a fight.