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✄ Making Cold Cases Hot Again [Mousen & I; E]

Postby Atoli01 » 07/15/2016 3:32 AM

Image
Verniy Valkova
#B51316

Today was the day. Verniy didn't know what nutcase recommended her for the position--what did she do to garner this mystery man's attention?--but like heck she was going to decline the invitation. She had been brought in at an earlier date to accept the job offer, but she never did get a good look around the office. They had tossed an ID at her and told her the official start date of her employment: today.

Verniy fiddled with the plastic card in her hand. Her short, blonde hair was frizzy that day. It filled her with pride to see her gender marked as "male", though she had to wonder if her co-workers would believe it. Would the "a" at the end of her surname give it away? She prayed that no one there was familiar with Russian. Verniy had long since decided that her identity at work would be "Mr. Valkova", lest she seem weak and fragile.

Flashbacks to her time in high school came flooding back to her in waves. Predatory glances as she answered a question in lecture hall. Staring. Always staring. Her counselor, laughing at her. "You can become a detective, sure dear, but good luck climbing up that ladder." Yet she wanted to fit in with the other girls! She wanted to buy cute lingerie. She wanted to prance around the mall, boyfriend in tow, with a fluffy skirt that showed off her chicken legs.

And oh, how she craved to have curves like the other girls. Instead, the stick thin wrists that poked out the sleeves of her oversized duffel coat drew her attention. She looked unhealthy by some standards, and maybe she was, but how well can you afford to eat when you're locked in a deadly tango with student debt?

But now... now was the start of her new life. Verniy could kick that student debt right where the sun don't shine. She was a girl at heart-- she had struggled for hours to night before to strike that perfect balance between casual and formal. Casual enough that she didn't seem to her co-workers a stiff, but still formal enough that she wouldn't leave a sour taste in anyone's mouth. She had done little with her hair, and nothing in the way of makeup. It would be a dead giveaway. She sprayed some cologne and tucked her white button-down into her jeans. Couldn't go wrong with a classic look.

Keys. ID. Phone. Each had a place in her coat. Right, her meds. Had to fend off those killer headaches.

Verniy did a second look-see around her room, and then she was off to work. As it turns out, traffic permitted her to arrive a whole fifteen minutes early, which she used to grab a coffee. A good shot of caffeine in the morning always woke her up. She had to restock at home.

It was 8:59am on the dot when Verniy stepped foot into the agency, at which time the receptionist greeted her with enthusiasm. Crystal? Chrysanthemum? Probably Christina. Verniy already forgot her name by the time she called out an older employee to act as her tour guide. She took note of all the important locations--like the break room with the coffee machine; and the copy room, which she assumed she'd be frequenting as the new detective on the scene. The tour guide didn't seem too shabby. The pair made small talk over the course of the tour, and Verniy felt as though she was really hitting it off with the older woman.

If there was one thing she took out of the tour... It was that she could really get used to to the aesthetic. It looked like some late-1800s detective agency.

What she was the most interested in was the last stop on their little tour. New detectives always get paired with a senior detective to teach them the ropes, the woman had told her. That individual was the one who was sitting right behind the door in front of her. Just the thought made her positively giddy!

The door swung open. Verniy bowed at a perfect 90-degree angle. She'd be a right triangle if she wasn't a human!

"Please don't mind the intrusion, Abner. Meet our newest detective, Mister Verniy Valkova."

"It's a pleasure to meet you!


A beautiful moon shines above again tonight,
And it sheds light happily over the world.
As for me, I'm just worthless, good for nothing,
Dreaming at daybreak, creeping at dawn.

Still I'll scream into the sky, hoping that somebody will find me.
I want to run, but there's no way out--
No bright future in sight.
But I still fly up like a butterfly, hoping that you'll find me.
A crescent moon, ugly children of the stars, flying with broken wings...!


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Re: ✄ Making Cold Cases Hot Again [Mousen & I; E]

Postby Mousen » 07/15/2016 5:06 AM

Abner was rarely at this office anymore, if he wasn't doing some of his other work he was at the precinct looking over cases, usually with his beady-eyed police liaison hanging over his shoulder like a bad omen. However, for one reason or another, someone had taken an interest in this guy, and so Abner was babysitting. He'd  come into the office a little early, dumped the contents of his pockets on his desk (keys, business cards, the lot), and had spent the past half an hour tapping away on his phone. Anyone who thought Abner was doing work would have been sorely mistaken, but he had managed to beat his hi-score on Tofu Run, so in Abner's mind all was well.

He put his phone down before the new detective entered, and turned to face him. Well, turned to face his back, as he gave an astonishingly low bow the moment he entered the room. Abner was surprised, but gathered himself by the time the detective introduced themselves. He was kind of amused, even if he hadn't known that Verniy was new, it was written all over his face.

"Abner Laforte," he said, holding out his hand. On first glance it was clear that he wasn't much older than Verniy, a couple of years at most. Surprising for someone apparently in a senior position with the agency. Abner wasn't particularly tall either, but his frame suggested someone who worked out reasonably frequently. His hair was thick curls, the slightest bit longer at in the front, a few of them fell over his face a little, reminding him of the need to get his haircut. He was dressed less formally than Verniy, in a mustard corduroy shirt with the sleeves rolled up, and dark jeans, although there was a blazer hanging on one of the hooks behind the door.  The woman that had given Verniy the tour seemed quite content to leave the two detectives to their work and had already slipped from Abner's office.

His office was definitely one of the larger ones, with large old-fashioned windows looking down onto the street. There were very few personal touches in the room, a couple of framed old movie posters, and a small statue (possibly marble?) of a woman reclining set on a plinth by the windowsill were the only indications that this room belonged to Abner. "Pull up a chair and I'll go through the basics. I assume you'll have heard most of this before, so I'll make it quick."


We’re all hysterical & going nowhere together.

C’mon rapture. Let’s go bedazzling.

Nothing gets futured without its own spitshine
& I’m already not not not not not not miraculous.


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Re: ✄ Making Cold Cases Hot Again [Mousen & I; E]

Postby Atoli01 » 07/15/2016 3:07 PM

Verniy was expecting someone... older. Maybe the peak she stole from behind her bangs was misleading. She straightened herself out and... well, in truth, there was slight hesitation in her as she reached out to shake the man's hand. "Verniy Valkova, although it appears my introductions were done for me."

This Abner fellow had to be around her same age. Had he already graduated from university? But how would he have had time to rise so quickly in the agency if he had? Was he one of those childhood geniuses Verniy saw in all those old detective shows? One thing was for sure-- the man before her commanded a certain sort of respect, but within her dwelled suspicion and a sliver of fear. What cards did he have up his sleeve?

"Y-yes, sir," Verniy stuttered. She obeyed his command without question, and pulled one of the chairs of the desk out just far enough out to allow her to sit. "Please continue," she said with a smile. Back straight, hands folded neatly in her lap, and legs crossed at the ankle. She tried her best to exude an aura of confidence, but she had the impression that she was coming off as a scared little rabbit instead. How unfitting of a detective.


A beautiful moon shines above again tonight,
And it sheds light happily over the world.
As for me, I'm just worthless, good for nothing,
Dreaming at daybreak, creeping at dawn.

Still I'll scream into the sky, hoping that somebody will find me.
I want to run, but there's no way out--
No bright future in sight.
But I still fly up like a butterfly, hoping that you'll find me.
A crescent moon, ugly children of the stars, flying with broken wings...!


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Re: ✄ Making Cold Cases Hot Again [Mousen & I; E]

Postby Mousen » 07/19/2016 6:09 AM

...Valkova? So, he hadn't misheard the first the first time. Shouldn't it have been Valkov, it being a Russian name and all? And didn't they...? Honestly. Abner couldn't decide if he was remembering or not, so put the strangeness of Verniy's last name from his mind.

He sat down, giving the new detective a once-over as he did so. Young, maybe a little underfed, but well-dressed and presentable. He seemed especially fragile and nervous in comparison to Abner. "Okay, being a detective is getting a lot of shit cases until someone takes notice of you. Even then, the police don't really like us, they won't hire us unless they're really stuck, have a cold case that's got public interest or they think a big-name detective will make them look like they're doing something. The work isn't glamorous either, it's a lot of running around after leads that don't have a big chance of turning out and bribing forensics to work late so you can get the information you need. Ideally, you should have done something sensible at university, like forensics or psychology or whatever, which will make you a bit more hire-able. Honestly? Hate to break your heart, but most detectives here haven't done anything but find out for Mr. Smith whether or not Mrs. Smith is screwing the gardener." Abner doubted this was what the kid wanted to hear.

"I suppose that's why you got thrown my way, since I'm usually doing something worthwhile. I started out with the police a few years back, and I'm currently more useful than troublesome, so they haven't fired or arrested me." Many of Abner's other business interests were less than legal, so it was a delicate balancing act to maintain the roles of detective and criminal. "If you really want to do this, then I'm not going to stop you. You can tag along on my next case and provided you don't mess up, I'll put in a good word for you. Just, don't be too disappointed if you don't end up where you wanted."


We’re all hysterical & going nowhere together.

C’mon rapture. Let’s go bedazzling.

Nothing gets futured without its own spitshine
& I’m already not not not not not not miraculous.


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Re: ✄ Making Cold Cases Hot Again [Mousen & I; E]

Postby Atoli01 » 07/19/2016 12:02 PM

Roadblocks. Of course there would be roadblocks. If you were going down a road with no obstacles, then it wasn't the right road. That's what her grandmother always told her. As she listened to Abner speak, it became obvious to her that the road she would walk would be far from dangerous. Her professors and colleagues had warned her of this type of thing, but it's not something you fully realize or accept until you're staring it straight in the face. She would be lying if she said she wasn't at least a little disappointed at hearing that.

"I understand," she said. "I studied Criminal Justice in school, and received a minor in Criminal Psychology. I find forensics interesting, but I'm better at connecting the dots than collecting evidence, if that... makes any sense?" Verniy's voice began strong, but fell to something just short of a whisper by the time she finished speaking. She did her best not to spit her resume out on the table--if Abner wanted to know, he could just read it himself--but it was best to know the other's strengths and weaknesses if they were going to be working together, was it not?

Verniy had to look on the bright side. At least she had been placed with Abner, and not together with some old man in the agency to investigate the disappearance of a cat. She didn't know what she'd do if her years of hard work landed her in that sort of position. Verniy would have to thank whoever put in that recommendation for her. From the sound of it, she at least had a chance where she was now. Still, something about what Abner said caught her attention. "Arrested? Why would they arrest a detective? I doubt you do that bad a job, if you still get cases from the department." A nervous chuckle escaped her lips. Really, who was this guy?


A beautiful moon shines above again tonight,
And it sheds light happily over the world.
As for me, I'm just worthless, good for nothing,
Dreaming at daybreak, creeping at dawn.

Still I'll scream into the sky, hoping that somebody will find me.
I want to run, but there's no way out--
No bright future in sight.
But I still fly up like a butterfly, hoping that you'll find me.
A crescent moon, ugly children of the stars, flying with broken wings...!


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Re: ✄ Making Cold Cases Hot Again [Mousen & I; E]

Postby Mousen » 07/19/2016 3:41 PM

Abner slight nod and roll of the shoulders seemed to be acceptance. The boy seemed to know what he was doing in one respect at least. Still, it wasn't as if Abner could judge anyone based upon their qualifications. Abner had always found school pretty easy, but never had the patience to apply himself. Without a scholarship university had seemed like an expensive waste of time. Plus, by that point, he'd found things that really did catch his interest. "Criminal Justice is fine, it shows that you didn't pick this career yesterday."

Oh, so he had picked up on that little quip. "My case record is spotless." Well, near enough. There'd been a few things that hadn't ended up with a satisfactory conclusion, but there was no doubting that Abner was good at what he did. "But, being a detective wasn't my first choice of career," he shrugged. "It's not like I got up to anything too bad, but the long arm of the law likes to keep a short leash on its pet detectives, apparently." Abner was clearly being dismissive, he'd decided it was probably best to keep the kid in the dark regarding the true extent of his criminal activity. His liaison had a particular fondness for bringing it up, so it was best for Verniy to hear it from the horse's mouth, as it were. As it was, Abner had a few projects on the go that were less than legal. His association with the police made him less than popular in some circles, but many appreciated the extra safety it offered. So long as he didn't ruffle too many feathers, Abner was allowed to continue pretty much as he liked.

((Still getting used to his character. Aghhh ;u;; ))


We’re all hysterical & going nowhere together.

C’mon rapture. Let’s go bedazzling.

Nothing gets futured without its own spitshine
& I’m already not not not not not not miraculous.


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Re: ✄ Making Cold Cases Hot Again [Mousen & I; E]

Postby Atoli01 » 07/20/2016 3:48 AM

Well Abner's analysis certainly wasn't wrong. When she was little... "When I was little I..." Verniy paused. Her brother. "Someone important to me disappeared. That's why I'm sitting at this table now. I still can't tell whether fate is kind or cruel to me." His disappearance shaped every aspect of her life. There wasn't any fighting between them; they were two peas in a pod. Verniy was just a sliver away from being that sister who declared to her brother, "I'm going to marry you when I grow up!"

You look at it on one hand, and she had been granted so many opportunities, learned such a great deal, and made terrific acquaintances as a result of going into the criminal field. You look on the other, and where would she be now if he hadn't gone missing? Would she be an engineer like her father? Work with the government like her mother? Both made for much more glamorous careers than inspecting dead bodies and trying to piece together the circumstances of the poor soul's murder. Verniy was convinced that no matter how many dead bodies she was faced with, they sight would still get to her.

Verniy's eyebrow perked up. "Nothing too bad? So what, a few municipal traffic violations? Everybody has those," she replied. It was clear that she wasn't going to wring much more out of the man, so she let the subject die. The most she could do at the moment was to pray she hadn't been paired with a serial killer.

"Well, I think I digested all you told me earlier. Mind if I inquire as to what else is on today's schedule?"



[Haha, it's fine. I'm doing the same with Verniy. I love these two so far. Remind me to send you really dorky headcanons later omg. I redesigned Verniy juuuuust slightly, so she's pretty much spot on now, finally. My precious bab.]


A beautiful moon shines above again tonight,
And it sheds light happily over the world.
As for me, I'm just worthless, good for nothing,
Dreaming at daybreak, creeping at dawn.

Still I'll scream into the sky, hoping that somebody will find me.
I want to run, but there's no way out--
No bright future in sight.
But I still fly up like a butterfly, hoping that you'll find me.
A crescent moon, ugly children of the stars, flying with broken wings...!


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Re: ✄ Making Cold Cases Hot Again [Mousen & I; E]

Postby Mousen » 08/05/2016 3:45 AM

Ah. That explained a lot, then, the determination despite the nervousness, the choice of university degree. Who was it, then, that had vanished? Could have been parents of course, other family members, close friends. The possibilities were fairly vast. Abner could make educated guesses all day, but it would be far, far easier to have a look for old newspaper articles on the web. It would have been wrong for Abner to deny that he was a snoop, he was a detective after all. Besides, he wouldn't look too deep into the case, no. He'd leave that to his protegee, no doubt they'd already scoured over the details a thousand times. "Sorry to hear that, " Abner remarked.

Fate was a concept Abner had never put much stock in. The world sometimes did shit things to good people and there was no real explanation for it, no master plan or destiny, just some folks with their lives ruined. Eh, it was realistic. The idea was to pick up the pieces as quickly as possible, to keep moving. "Nah," he said. "I always make sure the department gets the bill for those."

"First," said Abner, brushing a couple of curls out of the way as they fell into his face, "you're doing all of the boring stuff, like the good rookie you are." He turned his laptop to face him. "There's a short course for consultants that you've got to take, it goes through the usual, procedure, how to not contaminate a crime scene, then there's some legal forms for you to fill out. There's a few non-disclosure ones, one where you promise to give over case-relevant information to the police, and there's one I've drawn up where you promise that your family won't sue me if you accidentally die on the job or something. You know, the usual."

He stretched out a little, catlike, and got to his feet. "As for this jaded and decrepit gumshoe, I'm going for coffee. Want one? My treat." Well, it wasn't as if he was going to drink the swill the coffee machine downstairs spat out when there was a real gem of a place two streets over. Abner liked his coffee much the same way he liked his women, strong, sweet and preferably topped with whipped cream.



((Verniy is so cute, meanwhile, Abner's an ass. Ahah;; ))


We’re all hysterical & going nowhere together.

C’mon rapture. Let’s go bedazzling.

Nothing gets futured without its own spitshine
& I’m already not not not not not not miraculous.


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Re: ✄ Making Cold Cases Hot Again [Mousen & I; E]

Postby Atoli01 » 08/05/2016 2:14 PM

Verniy's eye twitched. If petty traffic violations weren't the thing that concerned this man, then what was it that did? She knew there were those in law enforcement who were... much more liberal with the law (she was hesitant to pin the word "corrupted" on someone she was supposed to be working under), but she thought they were fewer and farther between than this. Or maybe she just had bad luck. Let's go with that. A knot grew in her stomach at the thought, but she pushed the feeling aside.

...It probably wasn't a good idea though. Wasn't a detective's most valuable sense their intuition?

She just had to get through today. She had to get the preliminary duties out of the way before she could cast judgement.

At mention of the word course, Verniy groaned. "I just got out of school,," she hissed. "Weren't the courses and the tests and the finals supposed to end there?" With each additional form that Abner listed off, the composure Verniy had mustered faded bit by bit. Her body sunk into the chair and she let her head slump against the chair's back. For a solid minute, Verniy's eyes glossed blankly over the ceiling as she absorbed all that Abner had just unloaded on her. All those all-nighters and group study sessions came flashing back to her, and it was from that moment that she finally, fully realized that things wouldn't be easy sailing from here.

Verniy took in a deep breath and sat back up. She was about to bite the bullet and ask for the stack of papers when Abner invited her for coffee. Immediately a smile crept its way onto her face; coffee was her weakness. "And here I thought I'd have to be a good little rookie and make a coffee run for you. I can't leave you to run off on your own, so I guess, yeah, I'll just have to go with accompany you." she replied with a shrug. "What a shame." Verniy shot him just the tiniest little smirk.

You could learn a lot about a person based on how they liked their coffee.


A beautiful moon shines above again tonight,
And it sheds light happily over the world.
As for me, I'm just worthless, good for nothing,
Dreaming at daybreak, creeping at dawn.

Still I'll scream into the sky, hoping that somebody will find me.
I want to run, but there's no way out--
No bright future in sight.
But I still fly up like a butterfly, hoping that you'll find me.
A crescent moon, ugly children of the stars, flying with broken wings...!


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Re: ✄ Making Cold Cases Hot Again [Mousen & I; E]

Postby Mousen » 08/05/2016 4:50 PM

Was that concern? Abner was kind of enjoying this. So, maybe he didn't really want to tell-all about his risque business activities, but equally, keeping his pet detective in suspense was too good an opportunity to pass up. Especially since they were becoming more suspicious by the minute. (A good trait, he thought, for a detective.)

Aw, maybe he was being too harsh. Poor thing. "Not a fan of the learning is a lifelong venture thing, then?" He caught sight of Verniy's expression and softened a little further. "The course is just a go-over of the basics. It takes about three hours, but honestly you'll do it in two. As for the papers, if your family has a lawyer you can pass it over and get them to look everything over for you. They need to be done, but provided they're signed eventually I'll look the other way if it takes an extra day or two."

Abner had to admit that Verniy could be pretty endearing when he wanted to. "Shirking on your workload already?" he asked, smiling. "Atta boy, let's go." He picked up his blazer, folding it under his arm and opened the door for Verniy. "After you."


We’re all hysterical & going nowhere together.

C’mon rapture. Let’s go bedazzling.

Nothing gets futured without its own spitshine
& I’m already not not not not not not miraculous.


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Re: ✄ Making Cold Cases Hot Again [Mousen & I; E]

Postby Atoli01 » 08/05/2016 5:48 PM

Verniy thought about it for a moment. "Not... necessarily," she started. "It's just my belief that I've already learned everything in this field that a classroom can teach efficiently. Maybe I'm being a bit haughty, but I think there's more to learn from being out on the actual field and conducting investigations." That's not to say that her time in class didn't have value beyond words, but she was confident that any online course provided by an agency would be little more than review, and thus a waste of time to her. This is a field she had been pursuing since elementary school. "Thank you, though. I doubt a lawyer will be necessary. I'll look over what I can manage, and trust the the agency isn't making me sign my soul over to them. And if they are... well, I'd sign it anyway." In fact, if they were asking that of her, it'd make for a good laugh.

She'd worry about her work after they got back. Coffee ran in her blood. Following suit, she slid her coat from her shoulder and draped it over her right arm. "Don't misunderstand, though! As your assistant, I'm supposed to be learning from you. I can't do that when you're all the way down the street, now can I?" The red tint on her cheeks grew as she spoke. Verniy was pretty sure they were supposed to put in for a lunch break or something if they were going out, but it was still first thing in the morning. She really was shirking on her work, wasn't she? She strolled on past Abner with a quiet hmph, and started down the hall. First day on the job and she was already breaking the rules.

She came to a stop in at the top of the stairs. "U-uhm, one thing though: where is this place?"


A beautiful moon shines above again tonight,
And it sheds light happily over the world.
As for me, I'm just worthless, good for nothing,
Dreaming at daybreak, creeping at dawn.

Still I'll scream into the sky, hoping that somebody will find me.
I want to run, but there's no way out--
No bright future in sight.
But I still fly up like a butterfly, hoping that you'll find me.
A crescent moon, ugly children of the stars, flying with broken wings...!


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Re: ✄ Making Cold Cases Hot Again [Mousen & I; E]

Postby Mousen » 08/07/2016 5:20 PM

Abner shrugged. "That's how I learnt." Further education hadn't interested him much until after he started working at the precinct. He'd worked on his degree part time on one of the schemes they'd had going at the time. Maintaining the balance between study and work had been pretty difficult, especially since he always had two jobs on the go, if not more, depending on how many cases he was working on. Typically he didn't mix cases, but cold-cases were different for him. They could be so mind-numbing, combing over the details, it was often relaxing to switch to something different, even if it was equally mind-numbing.

At his comment, Abner rolled his eyes a little. "Sure, sure," he agreed, knowing that she wasn't finding her excuse all that convincing either. "This way." They continued out of the building, round a couple of streets to an area of town with a few small shops and businesses,. He made his way to a coffee shop situated between an Italian restaurant and a thrift store. It was a modern looking place, dark wooden floor and counter with herring-bone pattered booths, succulents decorating the tables. Seeing the girl at the counter, Abner smiled. "Juanita!"

"What? Here again? Haven't I banned you get?" The woman looked stern, but a small twinkle in her eye suggested amusement.

Abner made a point of looking offended. "Me? Your best customer?" He clutched his chest, wounded.

The woman, presumably Juanita, rolled her eyes. "What do you want anyway, you ridiculous creature?"

"For you to impress me with your psychic powers, of course. If you can guess my order I'll tip you twenty buu-uucks."

She was remained unimpressed. "A mocha with one sugar and whipped cream, because what real detective drinks their coffee black? And no, I'm not taking your money."

"I'll wait until you're not looking and put it in the register. Or worse, your clothes."

She took the money off of him before he could act on his threat, straightening out the crumpled bills. "Oh," Abner said, suddenly remembering about Verniy. "The agency sent me a new pet, this is Verniy. Apparently I have to walk him and buy him coffee and give him cases to solve." He turned to Verniy. "Verniy, this is Juanita, she's a good barista but has terrible taste in men and never laughs at my jokes."


We’re all hysterical & going nowhere together.

C’mon rapture. Let’s go bedazzling.

Nothing gets futured without its own spitshine
& I’m already not not not not not not miraculous.


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Re: ✄ Making Cold Cases Hot Again [Mousen & I; E]

Postby Atoli01 » 08/07/2016 6:21 PM

Verniy committed the route to memory. She wasn't yet familiar with this part of town, and figured it would be best to take note of the shop's location come the day when she would inevitably have to stay at work until ten at night. There were a few businesses along the way--a tailor's and a dry cleaner's, among others--that she also jotted down in her head. She was unsure of what to say to Abner, so she just let the trek pass in silence.

She drank up her surroundings as they stepped into the coffee shop. It was a quaint little place, with a feel you couldn't get from one of those big, chain cafes. It was easy for her to imagine herself sitting in one of those herring-bone patterned booths, pouring over case files at 8 PM, her second, maybe third cup of coffee in hand. Now she just hoped Abner's tastes were up to par.

Abner's squabbling with the barista caught Verniy's attention, and she watched on in amusement. It was apparent that Abner came here often, if he was familiar enough with the barista to bicker like that. A chuckle escaped her lips, watching the pair. The thought nagged at the back of her head-- what sort of person was Abner? Meanwhile, she trailed behind him like some sort of shy pup. She took her introduction as cue to step up to the counter, in full view of the barista.

"N-nice to meet you. He more or less summed it up, but he also forgot to mention that stack of papers he shoved in my face first thing in the morning. Welcome to the job, right?" She threw Abner an almost playful sideways glance as she spoke to Juanita. There was no way Verniy was going to let herself be upstaged today. "Oh, and, I'll take a caramel macchiato with extra whipped cream," she said. She was going to order her coffee black, but after hearing Abner's philosophy from the barista--Juanita, was it?--she decided her love affair with black coffee would have to remain her little secret for now.

No matter. She wasn't afraid of a little whipped cream mustache.


A beautiful moon shines above again tonight,
And it sheds light happily over the world.
As for me, I'm just worthless, good for nothing,
Dreaming at daybreak, creeping at dawn.

Still I'll scream into the sky, hoping that somebody will find me.
I want to run, but there's no way out--
No bright future in sight.
But I still fly up like a butterfly, hoping that you'll find me.
A crescent moon, ugly children of the stars, flying with broken wings...!


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Re: ✄ Making Cold Cases Hot Again [Mousen & I; E]

Postby Mousen » 08/08/2016 4:29 AM

"Nice to meet you too, honey." Juanita greeted. She gave Verniy a once over, considered him for a moment, and smiled. Whatever mental test she'd put Verniy though, he seemed to have passed. "Abner, are you being mean? It's only his first day, poor mite."

Abner held up his hands in surrender. "It's not my fault."

At the mention of Verniy's order, the barista smirked a little. "Like detective like protegee, I guess. Anyway, it won't be long. You sitting in?" Abner nodded.

The little coffee shop wasn't that busy today, it seemed most patrons had opted to take their coffee out. Abner took a booth towards the window. After a moment or two, he steepled his fingers and leaned slightly towards Verniy. "So," he said. "did you follow me with a particular goal in mind, or are you just that desperate to avoid paperwork?"

Verniy was a smart kid, with a good friend somewhere. He was determined and clearly hard working, if a little reticent to dive into things he felt he'd already covered. Abner felt confident in assuming that there was more to them than met the eye, even if he hadn't yet seen how they performed in the field.


We’re all hysterical & going nowhere together.

C’mon rapture. Let’s go bedazzling.

Nothing gets futured without its own spitshine
& I’m already not not not not not not miraculous.


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Re: ✄ Making Cold Cases Hot Again [Mousen & I; E]

Postby Atoli01 » 08/08/2016 5:28 AM

Just follow Abner's lead and stay cool. She followed him over to the booth, and sat opposite to him. Verniy decided better than to play with the seemingly "fuzzy" cactus perched on the table; she remembered the last time she did that. It wasn't pretty. She waited, hands folded in her lap, and wished there was something, anything else to draw her attention while they waited for their coffee. Initiating conversation was not her forte, which she hated.

Thank the gods, Abner did it for her. He leaned in, steepled fingers and a serious look on his face, and Verniy was in stitches. The most innocent, childlike laugh escaped her lips-- a laugh entirely unbecoming of a man. Abner must have thought she was some sort of extraterrestrial creature, but, "I just couldn't help it!" she cried. Verniy wiped a tear from the corner of her eye, and the laughs began to subside. "I'm sorry, but for a second there, you seemed just like one old detectives you see in the movies!" She flashed the most genuine smile she could to a man who was still, more or less, a stranger to her. "I guess it's just now hitting me that I'm finally a detective. I've been working toward this since elementary school! And it's finally happened! I can help people. I can help him."

Verniy was fully aware that this bliss would only be temporary. Eventually, coming into work every day would become little more than routine for her and lose the novelty it had to her now. She would bask in that enjoyment now, though. Well... as much as one could enjoy looking under, over, in, and around dead bodies for potentially useless evidence and following cold cases that led one in an infinite series of circles. "But I digress." She still had a few giddy laughs to suppress as she spoke. "Here, I'll give you the breakdown: maybe ten percent of it, let's say, was to avoid the paperwork. I hate that superfluous stuff. I admit, the promise of free coffee was also very tempting. No, I think that was the main reason. My brain registered "coffee", and then it registered "free". The rest of it... well, I have to try to be a good little rookie, right? Am I succeeding? Any brownie points for me?" Her fingers suddenly had gestures to accompany each word as she spoke and by the time she finished, that little grin was back on her face.

It was a trick her friends back in uni all learned pretty quickly: if you wanted to get the girl to let loose, get her to laugh first. In Abner's case, it was a total accident.


A beautiful moon shines above again tonight,
And it sheds light happily over the world.
As for me, I'm just worthless, good for nothing,
Dreaming at daybreak, creeping at dawn.

Still I'll scream into the sky, hoping that somebody will find me.
I want to run, but there's no way out--
No bright future in sight.
But I still fly up like a butterfly, hoping that you'll find me.
A crescent moon, ugly children of the stars, flying with broken wings...!


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