not_that_ray | (no subject)

He's already moved the stack once. It doesn't stop him from moving it again. From one side of the desk to the other. This time though he takes the time to rifle through the layers, looking not just under but between the loose sheets of paper. The stack hemorrhages paper clips and scraps of small scribblings as he does so. Some land on his lap. Others fall onto the floor or into the trash can.

"Gotta..."

The whole thing teeters. Ray is, of course, oblivious. It's abandoned in favor of the top drawer of his desk. He yanks it open and thrusts his hand in, moving the mess inside around with no rhyme or reason. The contents haven't changed since the last time he looked five minutes ago.

"... be here..."

He slams it home, causing the entire desk to stagger. The vibration in turn causes the precariously perched collection of papers to slide in every direction. His eyes grow to the size of saucers as he dives for the unwieldy monster.

"Shit!"

The paperwork just seems to glide right past his hands, his efforts mocked.

From one small mess to one gigantic mess. Nice, Ray. Nice.

"... somewhere," he breathes out in defeat.

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Ray raises a loosely fisted hand to his mouth. No, that's not chuckling he's trying to suppress. No, not at all.

"Whuf," comes the retort. He didn't ASK for it, really. The nice lady gave it to him! That totally makes it not his fault! It was just ... there!

Fraser raises a hand, not taken in for a moment. "I won't have to be the one explaining your gaining another five pounds to the veterinarian next week." He turns away from his lupine companion, then looks back over his shoulder. "Are you coming?"

Is it possible for a wolf to glare? Diefenbaker contemplates this seriously for a moment.

Ray rounds the table and steps in line with the wolf, seemingly oblivious to Fraser's tone of voice. "Hey Dief, you didn't save me any. What's up with that?"

Two peas in a pod.

Diefenbaker's staunch look turns into an unmistakable grin, his tongue lolling from his mouth. Well, his replying bark says. You weren't there. You'll just have to be faster next time.

Fraser's eyes lift ceilingward ever so briefly, hidden under the Stetson's broad brim.

"Hey. Was pushin' paper." As if that explains it all.

"Next time, keep your ol' pal in mind. You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours."

Fraser's mild exasperation isn't entirely an act, as he heads for the door. "Don't overinflate his sense of innate superiority any more than absolutely necessary, Ray. It's bad enough that he's got most of this precinct eating out of his paw."

Can a wolf be smug? Diefenbaker waits for Ray to follow suit before tagging along.

Ray easily falls in step a second after reaching down to scratch Dief behind an ear. "'Most'?"

How could he possibly resist?

Fraser gives him a sidelong look. "I believe he's still working on the staff in Human Resources." Beat. "I suspect it's somewhat more difficult to encourage and foster affection from those who seem to naturally have none."

"Ouch."

A couple long strides.

"There's that new girl though. Seems nice enough."

Cute too. But he doesn't say that.

Fraser's brow creases slightly as they head down the steps. "Something about her disconcerts me, Ray." But surely, this is the case with all women?

"Oh yeah? How's that?"

Fraser pauses as they reach the car, looking across the GTO's roof at his friend, as if wondering whether he should give voice to those concerns. Really, really wondering. He then gives that dismissive, facial shrug. "It's nothing, Ray."

"Nah. Now you got me all curious," he says before sliding in behind the wheel.

The Stetson finds its usual place on the dashboard as Diefenbaker hops into the back seat, settling behind Ray so he can whuffle into his hair and generally be a nuisance en route. Fraser takes the passenger seat, and looks over at his friend. "No, really. It's nothing." But the expression on his face says anything but.

Sometimes he gets it, sometimes he doesn't. Right this very moment? He gets it. He rifles through his keys and slides the correct one into the ignition. The engine roars to life.

But it's bothering him. He's clearly having some sort of moral dilemma about this, but he's not sure how precisely to address it. As the car pulls away from the curb, Fraser chews on his bottom lip.

Ray's chewing on something too. Something he saw earlier as he made his way to work. Something that caused no end of agitation.

"Saw somebody leave Stella's this morning." He blurts it out, inadvertently saving Fraser from his momentary battle. There's a shrug. Even as he says it, he's trying to forget it.

This gets his attention, though it doesn't resolve his dilemma. It just creates a new one. He studies Ray's face for a moment, then turns his attention back to the road. "I'm sure it was perfectly innocent, Ray."

Ever the optimist.

"Yeah," he says a little too quickly. "Yeah."

"I mean, I'm certain that it's perfectly reasonable for an adult to entertain other adults at their place of residence, without any overtures of romance attached to them."

His grip on the steering wheel tightens.

Fraser isn't sure that any further discourse on the subject is going to help his friend feel better. So, what better way to go than a full-on 180 degree turn?

"I don't think she was born female, Ray."

Which causes Ray slam on the breaks, sending both men and one wolf lurching violently forward.

No transition. No TRANSITION! And an admittedly one track mind. The driver of the vehicle still thinks his passenger is referring to his ex-wife.

"WHAT did you say?!? Tell me I didn't just hear what I thought I just heard."