Seems like the sound came from over on the east side...

Skipper waddles slowly through the zoo. Nothing seemed to be out of place; everyone was sleeping encaged in their habitats under the crescent moon, or if nocturnal, minding their own business. The silence was so crushing that Skipper could hear his own heart thump unnaturally in his chest, like a percussionist playing the bongos.

Before anything else, I need to find witnesses and clues.

A whimper comes from above Skipper's head. He looks up to discover that he is standing right beside Leonard's tree.

Maybe I can get some info out of him; of course Leonard was awake to see the crime.

Skipper pulls out a measly LED flashlight and tries to turn it on. The switch sticks in place, and he knocks on it a couple times with his flipper.

"Come on, work!"

Problem solved, a beam of light shines out of the mechanism. The light reveals Leonard shivering and clinging to his eucalyptus tree.

"W-who's there? Is it the beast? Oh please don't eat me! I've got sharp teeth, you know... well, no I don't, but..." Leonard grabs a branch from the tree. "I've got a stick! Just look how scary it is!"

"Calm down marsupial, it's just me! I've come here to ask you about, uhh, a "beast", you say?"

"Oh yeah! He was huge! Like, this long!"

He stretches out his arms to emphasize the length of the creature.

"And I saw a couple teeth on that thing! They were sharp.. and pointy...."

Leonard shivers again at the mere thought of the beast, and clings tighter to limb of the tree.

Skipper rolls his eyes and sarcastically remarks, "Hmm, I see, and can you give me a better description besides it being deadly?"

Because Skipper is not a penguin of patience, sarcasm is just another way to get what he wants.

"Well, actually no. But I bet Joey can help you! I heard him yell "Blimey!" when he heard the scream."

"Thanks for the tip."

..............

So, Skipper is walking alone in probably one of the most dangerous times at night to see an always irritated and fuming mad Joey. (Figures....)

"Hey Joey! Did you happen to see, oh I don't know, a murder or something while you were awake?"

Joey turns around and spots Skipper standing on the brick wall of his habitat. He hops to his way and looks up, eyes narrowed, and snorts right in his face.

"Murder, ey? Mate, I've only heard that scream coming from the spidermonkeys! I don't know what it was that made them yelp like that, but if it ever comes 'ere..."

Joey cracks his knuckles and a malevolent grin darkens his face.

"Details man, details! Did you see at least any specific characteristics? Slimy, furry, spiky-"

Joey cuts him off, "It was scaly, and big. Actually, you know what bloke it looked like? That alligator from the Children's' Zoo! Yea, his size was about right. Maybe I could teach him a lesson for messing with this fair zoo, have a couple rounds with 'im."

Skipper hops down and lands nimbly on the floor.

"Now's not the time for action, Joey. It's nearly 0040 hours, so I'll need to wake the rest of the team for help. Since I've got the witnesses, all I need are the clues and suspects."

Skipper turns around slowly to face Joey, his flippers tucked behind his back to give a polished and informal look to his stature.

"Now's the time for questioning."