Alkai handed Sel an ice pack which he promptly pressed to his left eye. 

"Howzit look?" 

"Still really bad... not gonna lie," Alkai murmured. "Sorry about Harbnet."

"What do you mean you're sorry for me? He started it!" Harbnet barked. Kira was holding Harbnet's arms down on the ground and Shino sat on Harbnet's chest, knocking the wind out of him. "Can't say anything now can ya Harby?" The oak coloured otter squeaked quietly in response under her weight. 

"You sure it's not a shiner?" Sel lowered the ice pack so Alkai could take a better look. "It's no black eye, so no worries." Kraim, who had been sitting on the couch trying to understand how Kira left the paintball game and somehow got dressed to fight the fire, stood up and excused himself to the restroom. 

"You shouldn't have spat at him, Sel," Shino said, her brows furrowed together. "He shouldn't have punched me in the face for a little spit," Sel retorted. "Maybe if you stayed on your tails, we wouldn't be in this situation," Kira grumbled and stood up. Harbnet gave a thumbs-up in agreement, then gestured to Shino, still sitting on him and limiting his movement. "Can't... Breathe..." 

Shino got up and promptly stomped her booted foot on his stomach. Harbnet gagged and coughed, making in Sel smirk with a vengeful gleam in his eye. Shino leered at Sel with a deadpan face, her eyes thin slits like those of a cat. "Don't think I won't curb stomp you too." Her face suddenly lights up and she smiles widely. The group was taken aback by Shino's sudden bipolarity but clearly said nothing. 

Out of the blue, Kraim saunters in with a bowl full of peanut butter and a spoonful of it. "So are we going to work together?" Alkai nodded as did Kira and Shino. Sel looked at Harbnet one more time before nodding as well. 

"I have no reason to," Harbnet wheezed from the floor. Alkai stepped lightly over and murmured, "if you help us then I'll buy you a new Xbox." Harbnet sat bolt upright and slapped his hands together. "Well looks like we got a mystery on our hands!" 

After the friends had slept over the night in Kira's livingroom, they set out at sunrise to see what they could find. The group was split in two with Kraim, Shino, and Alkai (now called Kay by Shino) in one while the other consisted of Sel, Kira, and Harbnet. Kraim was slightly uncomfortable being in a group with girls but it was better than being stuck with Harbnet. 

Group 1 went to Kraim and Sel's home which was still burnt and crumbling. Kay looked up at the tree house and placed her hands on her hips, looking at Kraim with confusion. "Your stairs and ladder are looking a bit crispy..." Shino started walking away from the house with a pep in her step, wagging her tail from side to side. 

"Where are you going?" 

"Inside the tree house!" 

She ran straight at the tree and pressed her foot on the trunk, pushing herself upward to a height rabbits wish they could jump. Kay's eyes got wider as Shino ran up the tree with aid of her hands. Shino grabbed onto the remains of the porch that weren't warped or scorched by the fire and hung from her paws. 

"Come on Kraim, don't be a slow poke!" Kraim looked up, his jaw dropped. Shino pulled herself up onto the porch and yapped with self satisfaction. Kay smiled nervously and shrugged. "Squirrels and otters aren't that far apart," she said. "I'll be fine. Not as good as Shino but..." 

Kraim and Kay climbed up the tree using the hug and kick technique all tree rodents use, wondering how Shino was able to run up the tree with such ease. They went inside the house, the walls and floors were scorched black and white. The rooms of the house were dimly lit by the sunlight on the horizon that barely reached through the balcony window. 

"We could use some light in here," Shino as she reached in her pocket and took out a match box. 

"Are you trying to burn this place down again?" Kay raised an eyebrow. 

"It's already burnt, Kay. A little spark wouldn't reignite the place. It's been oxidized and its hard to start a fire again." 

Kraim stayed quiet for a minute as Shino took a match stick out. His father had told him that charcoal is actually in fact easier to burn and that it was the best to keep a campfire going. 

"Maybe we shouldn't," he started. "Y'know, burnt wood burns easier than just plain wood. That's what my father told me." Shino's eyes searched Kraim's face for a moment, then put the match box back in her pocket. 

"Alright... I won't. Only because I don't want to risk cooking us alive." 

In town, Group 2 was investigating the home of the stallion who's home was burned just yesterday. With permission of the equine, they walked inside to see the damage done. 

Kira stepped inside, confident in the layout of the house since he had been here before. He sniffed the air and his head whipped toward the bed room. Sel followed close behind, reluctant to be left with Harbnet. "Over here," Kira said, skillfully weaving through the kitchen and around the toasted left overs of chairs and a table. 

After turning the corner to the bedroom, he opened up the dresser and pulled out a box that fit in the palm of his hand. He sniffed the burnt exterior and nodded to himself. He offered it to Sel who leaned his head forward for a whiff but was quickly shoved away by Harbnet who took a deep snort. 

"It reeks of tobacco. Are those a pack of Winstons maybe?" 

Kira nodded and stuck the pack in his pocket despite the ash still coating it. Sel raised his snout flippantly behind Harbnet's back and wandered elsewhere and stepped on a sharp piece of metal. "YEOWCH!!" Kira ran into the livingroom and grabbed Sel by the shoulders. "What is it??" 

Sel gave a pitiful whimper and his mouth quivered as he lifted his foot. Kira cringed and looked around for something to rest Sel on but everything was covered in dust and ash. Kira threw Sel over his shoulder and made his way to the front door to take Sel to a vet. Harbnet scooped up a handful of ash and pinched it up with his other hand with a devious smile. 

All along the way to the vet, the pain in Sel's foot began spreading up his leg in shockwaves. Harbnet took advantage of Sel who's face was not in Kira's peripheral vision by throwing pinches of ash into Sel's eyes. 

Sel had objected multiple times so Kira decided to have Harbnet walk in front so Sel would stop complaining more than he already is.