The sun poured out its heat onto a long snout full of sharp teeth. The crocodile's slitted eyes narrowed even further in the light of day. It had been a long time since he'd been outside. The embrace of the sun felt amazing on his scales. He was free.

The alpaca beside him sighed. This herbivore was nothing more than prey to the croc. They all were. They were inferior. He knew just how to mess with them, too. "You're free to go, Mr. Salazar." The officer adjusted his hat. The croc only smiled. How was one to mess with an officer, and frighten him, without getting arrested? "I'd better not ever catch you selling hides again. You're already not allowed near schools." The cold look of the alpaca only warmed the croc's heart. Not as much as fear might have, but it felt so good to be hated. "The fourth offense is a year. You know it doubles every time, don't you?"

With a smirk, the croc held his wrists out to the cop. "I'm thinking of the next rug, actually. Do you have any idea how pricey an alpaca can be?" The officer didn't look afraid, but sneered in disgust. Close enough. "Could you remove the bracelets now? Pretty please?"

"Your type makes me sick. You never do anything decent with your life. You never want to reach for more, even with your potential." A lecture made it a lot less fun to mess with him. The croc supposed that maybe the police had figured out how to harden up the herbivore cops. It was certainly unusual to see such a frail one in the force. It was embarrassing that such a weak animal had been the one to arrest him.

"Too bad you can't get me locked up forever unless I killed those animals, huh? Good luck getting evidence for that. My claws are clean." The croc's eyes narrowed. He gestured again to his wrists. The alpaca's anger heated his face. The arrogant criminal would repeat his crime again. They both knew it. This time he might hide in a better spot, or he would target someone who nobody knew existed. Perhaps an orphan, or an isolated widow. That was the kind of creature this croc was. Still, he walked free.

The reptile basked in the warmth of the sun. The park he walked through had plenty of families running about, but only the parents kept their eyes on the large carnivore. It wasn't that he was a known criminal to the public, but he was a large creature with muscles and a powerful jaw. He wore a shaggy tank-top and combat boots, to appear even more intimidating.

The only thing that didn't make him seem like a thug was the way he walked; it wasn't sluggish with his pants dropped low or his chest puffed out in pride. Rather, he strolled. His shoulders rested, and there was no tense muscle in his body. Perhaps he knew he was the most dangerous creature out here. Or maybe his conchalant pace was because this was the first breath of fresh air he'd breathed in months.

"I guess I should lay low for a few weeks." Once he'd passed the park, the croc dropped on a bench. He'd ask Jerome to meet him. He would let him stay there for a while. The croc's phone was cracked and aged, but it was functional. "Hey there, Teddy bear! Guess who it is?" The croc, unlike most animals, was forced to have his conversation on speaker phone. His mouth was too large and stretched out too far from his ear otherwise. It would've been fine in most cases, but when someone was a criminal trying to hide out somewhere...

"Tyrone, you's out? It's been six months!" The voice on the phone was rumbly, and deep. Jerome didn't speak like a thug, because he wasn't. He was merely... uneducated. A country bumpkin, one might say. The way he spoke was slow, and stupid, but he was smarter than the average bear. Or at least, he was kinder. That was a weakness Tyrone looked to exploit. A mammal's kindness could so easily be turned against them.

"That's only because the sentence doubles every time. I'm back in the big bad world now. I just want to ask a favo-"

"I'm gonna just bet you need a place to stay for a while? You's always welcome here, Tyrone." The sluggish tone became a growl. "As long as you stay away from them kids. I ain't want you influencing 'em. Not like before."

Personally, Tyrone didn't have much of a problem with that. He'd never like the brats that Jerome kept around. Especially that impala kid. Maybe he'd been adopted. One could only hope it was by a pride of starving lions.

"Tsk, no problemo. I don't care what they think. They don't me, and I don't like them. I'm not going to be hanging around anyone younger than me if I can help it." After a pause, he stood. "I'll wait at the corner. See you soon, Teddy bear." It didn't take long after that. "Hey, how's it going-"

"I guess I'll know based on your behavior at home, Tyrone. Let's go, then." Not even a hello. The mammal had never been so cold. It surprised the croc, despite the circumstances.

"Yeah, yeah. I won't be a terrible influence. Cross my heart. I got it." He rolled his eyes. Jerome was a huge bear. The grizzly was probably the only carnivore he'd ever met who was larger than himself. Sure, Tyrone was picking on him now, but if the bear ever laid down the law, even the croc would have to shut his jaw and snap to attention.

"You have tuh unna'stand somethin'. Your old room is taken now. You jus' got the couch," It sounded like there was more to that. Tyrone ignored it. It was the perfect timing for witty banter, in his opinion.

"Sure, that's fine. I'm six months behind on rent, anyway. As long as I still get to eat whatever's in the fridge, I'm a happy gator." He slapped his webbed claws together, a wide grin on his face. Oh boy, he was ready for a real meal. Eating nothing but sloppy, overcooked, mushy tofu for six months had almost made him want to starve instead. But a real meal, with some sort of meaty steak especially, would be the best thing in the world. He salivated just thinking about it.