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Post by Terenzio DeVito on Dec 31, 2009 19:03:00 GMT -5
Nikkie growled in annoyance as she slammed her locker door shut, Lyx staring at her with worried brown eyes by her side. Today had been worse than usual, what with all the idiots getting caught doing stupid stuff that could have been easily avoided. And it didn't help that she was pulling the graveyard shift for once, as opposed to her normal six A.M. to three P.M. work day.
As it was, it was 5:30 in the morning and granted, Nikkie was usually up at that time anyways, but still. She'd stayed up all night, dealt with idiots all night, and even had some drugged-up asshole shoot at her. Lyx had quickly taken care of him, having chomped down on the guy's forearm shortly after firing, but still. It had put her in a worse mood than normal.
Tapping her thigh once, Nikkie stalked out of the locker room and then out of the building, waving goodbye to her fellow officers as she passed them. Lyx followed her calmly, trotting along beside her as she strode out to her squad car and opened the rear driver's side door. Lyx obediently hopped into the back seat and Nikkie shut the door behind him before climbing into the front seat and starting her car.
After making sure no one was driving towards her, she pulled out of her parking spot and drove away from the police station, heading for a nice cafe she usually went to in the morning. Unfortunately for her, traffic was terrible and, after fifteen minutes of stop and go traffic, she growled a low, "Fuck it," and flipped her lights and sirens on. Almost immediately, she was given passage and drove on, speeding past the other citizens and even passing a fellow cop.
"Hey, Nikkie! That tired or are you just that pissed off?" Came a laughing voice through her radio. Nikkie snorted and scooped up her radio before replying, "It's a mixture of both, Lee. Now leave me alone; I'm about to go eat breakfast and get a cup of coffee." She said, expertely flicking her lights and sirens off as she pulled into the cafe parking lot and parked close to the doors.
Lee laughed and said, "Okay, see you later Nikkie." just moments before she shut off her car. Looking over her shoulder at Lyx, she sighed and frowned. He wasn't allowed in the cafe, even if he was a police dog.
"Sorry, Lyx. You're just going to have to wait for me to get back. Watch the car for me?" She apologized as she got out and opened Lyx's door, her door still open. Lyx barked his consent and hopped into her seat calmly, sitting tall proudly.
Chuckling, Nikkie shut both of the doors and walked up and into the cafe, ignoring the light jingling of bells overhead. The place was cute, quaint. It had the feel of a safe, happy place to it that always managed to make Nikkie feel a little better no matter how bad her mood was. Today was no different.
Feeling her anger decrease, Nikkie walked up to the counter and smiled politely at the guy behind it. He looked a little older than her, about 26 if she had to guess, and seemed like someone fun. She smiled a little more warmly, then, and said. "Early morning for you, too?"
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Post by Mr. Peace-and-Logic on Jan 1, 2010 0:56:12 GMT -5
The cafe was brightly lit and warm, filled with the orange light of the sunrise, but empty of customers. Scruffy was the only one in the small room, staring at the large glass window from behind the counter. He sighed and rested his elbows on the glass surface, eyes still fixated on the fiery pink and orange sky. It was ridiculously early; fifteen minutes to six, to be exact. Any other person would be just waking up, or even catching a few more moments of precious sleep. Not Scruffy, though. His shift had started a good two hours ago, and he still had the day ahead of him.
Scruffy sighed, running his fingers through the red-brown ponytail that rested on his shoulder. This was boring. He had stood there expectantly since three in the bloody morning, and not a single soul had walked through the doors. Worse yet, customers wouldn't really start showing up for a while yet. Is this some sort of punishment? he thought, rolling his head back to glare angrily at the ceiling. Did I do something horrible in a past life that pissed off the Big Kahuna, and this is what I get because of it? When the ceiling didn't answer - not that he really expected it to - Scruffy turned his gaze to the dull, unmoving door. He desperately needed something, ANYTHING to distract him. The crushing silence and mind-numbing boredom were going to kill him.
Suddenly, salvation came in the form of the door's bell. The usual silvery, jingling sound filled the air as a stormy-faced woman pushed the door open, letting a rush of cold air blow in. Scruffy instantly straightened up, silently thanking whatever god that existed for answering his prayer. The woman was obviously a cop, from the way she was dressed, and she looked extremely unhappy. Her eyes, though initially cold as ice, seemed to soften as she looked around. Scruffy flashed her a friendly smile as she approached the counter.
"What can I get you this morning?" he asked, his tone light and casual. Upon closer look, the woman looked like she had been up for a while. Her sleek black hair was coming loose from its tight braid, and patches of purple-gray were starting to appear under her eyes. No wonder she looked pissed, thought the taller of the two as he waited for her answer. He felt a small twinge of empathy; he wasn't the only one with a crappy shift, it seemed.
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Post by Terenzio DeVito on Jan 1, 2010 1:54:35 GMT -5
Nikkie let a soft sigh breeze past her lips as the tall guy behind the counter gave her a friendly smile and said, "What can I get you this morning?" He sounded competent, thank God. She'd had enough of dealing with incompetent people for the day, thank you very much.
Glancing at the menu above and behind his head, Nikkie stayed silent for a few moments before giving a smile and replying. "One large regular coffee, black, with a toasted cream cheese bagel, please." She requested, feeling her bad mood slipping away slowly as she listened to the quiet sounds of the cafe and the smell of coffee wafted gently up her nostril. She drew a long breath in through her nose, smiling placidly, before releasing it in a calmed sigh. As bad as her night had been, the morning seemed to be doing all right.
Taking a moment to look closer at the guy behind the counter, whose nametag read "Scruffy", she fought back a grin as she realized why, exactly, he was called that. Along his jaw was short auburn scruff, most likely the cause for his name. Smirking lightly, almost imperceptibly, she mentally noted his warm brown eyes - were those lines under his eyes wrinkles? - with copper hair tied back in a ponytail and resting on his shoulder. He was considerably taller than her; hell, he was taller than her dad! Not that it mattered. He seemed nice enough, if his friendly eyes and lazy smile were anything to go by. Absently, she noted that she was happy to be able to talk to someone older than her that wasn't on the police force. They always talked to her like she was a baby, always called her things like 'kid' and 'rookie'. Of course, it was all with love and they did it to all of the newer officers, but still. It annoyed her. She knew she was smart; hell, she knew she was very smart. She preferred to be treated like it.
Deciding she was tired of idle silence, Nikkie stuffed her hands into her pockets and slowly closed her long fingers around her boyish wallet. "So, you the only one working right now? Seems awfully quiet here." She said, her voice soft and yet still sounding loud in the building. They were the only people in there as far as she knew; again, not that she minded. She wasn't really in the mood to deal with a bunch of people right now. And Scruffy seemed like he'd be fun to talk to, even if it was only for a little bit.
Suddenly, a thought struck her. If they were the only ones there, would he mind if she brought Lyx in? He was a good dog; he wouldn't do anything other than lay at Nikkie's feet unless she told him otherwise. "Hey, is it okay if I bring my partner in here? He's a good boy and won't do anything." She shrugged, looking away from Scruffy and feeling kind of embarrassed now. Geez, why did she have to speak before thinking sometimes? She stubbornly ignored the fact that she had, indeed, thought about it before asking. "I mean, I kind of feel bad for leaving him out in the car when he's done nothing wrong." She mumbled, trying to get her emotions under control again. Was she really that tired that she'd lose control of her emotions so easily?
....
Yes, yes she was. And she knew it. 'Damn. I should have just gone home. I shouldn't have come here if I'm this tired.' Sighing, she ran one hand through her bangs tiredly before pulling her long hair over her shoulder and lazily pulling the hairband keeping it braided out. Weaving her fingers through the ebony locks, she undid the braid before pushing her hair back over her shoulder and tying it back in a low ponytail with her silver hairband.
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Post by Mr. Peace-and-Logic on Jan 1, 2010 23:16:20 GMT -5
Scruffy waited patiently as the woman looked at the menu above his head, her eyes darting around the different options. After a few seconds, she moved her gaze back down to her server. "One large regular coffee, black, with a toasted cream cheese bagel, please." Well, that was simple enough. Though she ordered with a neutral expression, her voice was rough, and a little worn; it sounded as though she really had been up all night. Scruffy gave her a sympathetic smile - she definitely had it worse than him. He may have lost an hour or two of sleep, but she had to have been trekking around for a lot longer. "Gotcha," he said before turning around to prepare her food.
As he performed the menial tasks that he had grown accustomed to doing, he heard the woman sigh deeply behind him. She sounded a lot happier than she had seemed when she first walked through the door. Scruffy smiled to himself as he finished up with the order; maybe now that she had cheered up a little, she would be willing to talk. Watching someone eat their breakfast in silence and waiting for another customer to walk in was not on the top of his to-do list, so even a small conversation would be nice.
"So, you the only one working right now? Seems awfully quiet here," the woman asked out of the silence, her tone casual. Scruffy mentally fist-pumped; finally, his morning was looking up! "Yeah," he replied, turning around with her order. He placed it down on the counter, then tapped the keys on the register in quick succession. "And you'll probably be my only customer for at least another hour. That'll be three dollars and fifty cents, please."
The silence fell once more as the woman went about eating her breakfast, and Scruffy's hopes ebbed away. It was a little dumb of him to expect his customer to continue the conversation, really; to her, he was only there to serve her, and past that, he wasn't worth paying attention to. It was the typical consumer mindset, really. The auburn-haired man sighed inwardly, and leaned back against the wall behind him. So much for escaping boredom, he thought dejectedly. Still, I was kind of hoping for something a little more, especially from a pretty lady like he-
"Hey, is it okay if I bring my partner in here? He's a good boy and won't do anything."
Scruffy blinked stupidly as he snapped back into correct posture, eyes now turned to the seated woman. She was looking at him with a serious but somewhat curious face, eyebrows raised expectantly as she waiting for his answer. He, however, stayed silent. Why on Earth did she need to ask for her partner to come in? And to call him a 'good boy'? That's not creepy at all, said the bitter, sarcastic part of his mind. It wouldn't be so weird if she at least looked like she was joking...but she still fixed him with a calm, patient stare.
In the short moments it took Scruffy to wrestle out sense from the question, the woman looked away. Her dark, hard eyes were downcast, and her lips were now set in a rather stern frown that matched. "I mean, I kind of feel bad for leaving him out in the car when he's done nothing wrong," she muttered quietly, voice now filled with an angry kind of shame. Almost instantly, Scruffy was filled with regret; he didn't want to embarrass her! "Well, it's fine with me," he said quickly, giving her an almost apologetic grin. "I don't see why he didn't come in in the first place."
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Post by Terenzio DeVito on Jan 2, 2010 20:08:25 GMT -5
So. He was the only one working, and doubted anyone else to be coming in for a good while. That was good. At lest, to Nikkie it was. The less people the better right now, she believed. Paying the small amount of money and sitting down to eat, Nikkie's stone gray eyes watched with mild fascination as Scruffy stared at her after she asked if she could bring Lyx in. He looked wholly confused, as if he thought she was talking about another human cop. Which he probably did, if she thought about it.
Feeling laughter tickling her throat, Nikkie turned her gaze to her coffee for a moment before looking back at him. He was talking. "Well, it's fine with me," he said, grinning at her almost apologetically. "I don't see why he didn't come in in the first place."
That was it. Nikkie couldn't keep from laughing now as she quickl brought one hand up to cover her mouth and nose, trying not to laugh too much or too loudly, while her eyes squinted up, forcing the laugh lines not many saw to appear. Snickering with a big grin, she stood up from her chair and pointed to the badge on her shoulder that showed the head of a German Shephard and had 'K-9' stitched across the top. "I-I think you misunderstood me." She replied, chuckles in her voice. "My partner is a dog; I'm a K-9 Officer!" At that, she started laughing, her hand doing nothing to stop the sound from filling the cafe.
Getting herself under control again, she waved her hand apologetically. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to laugh. I just figured it was kind of obvious," She paused, a smile on her tired face. "But I guess that it makes sense; most people don't notice it, either." She gave him a pleasant smile, her laughter officially under control now. "If you really don't mind though, I'd like to bring him in. I understand if he's not allowed, though. He normally isn't." She looked thoughtfully around the cafe for a moment, a small smile still in place. "It's most likely for the rest of the customers' sakes. You never know who's allergic and who isn't." She added with a light shrug.
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Post by Mr. Peace-and-Logic on Jan 2, 2010 21:11:27 GMT -5
The sound of laughter suddenly filled the cafe as the woman brought her hands up to her face, covering the smile that had unexpectedly appeared. Scruffy's eyebrows shot up into his hairline; where the heck did the gigglefit come from?! He could do little more than stare as the woman attempted to regain her composure. Her breath came out as short, hysterical gasps between laughs, the corners of her eyes beginning to crinkle.
After a short while, the laughs slowed, and the woman gave him a happy, amused smile. "I-I think you misunderstood me." She replied, chuckles in her voice. "My partner is a dog; I'm a K-9 Officer!" Her well-trimmed fingernail tapped against an official looking badge, the shape of a dog's head stitched into the fabric. Scruffy almost visibly flinched; he suddenly felt incredibly stupid. Well, NOW it makes sense, he thought, cursing himself mentally. Meanwhile, the woman had broken out in giggles again, unable to contain her mirth.
She probably thinks I'm an idiot now, thought the man behind the counter, drawing his fingers through his ponytail again. The smile was gone, replaced by a dejected frown, and his eyes were directed off to the side. He didn't seem to want to look at the woman. Instead, he wrapped himself up in his own thoughts, which were growing more pessimistic by the second. Leave it up to me to ignore the totally obvious badge on her uniform...am I losing my touch with the ladies? The particularly unpleasant thought struck a chord within Scruffy, and his eyes quickly darkened.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to laugh. I just figured it was kind of obvious," the woman said, laughter still evident in her voice. Scruffy merely turned his eyes back up at her, expression neutral. Way to make me feel worse, whispered his sarcastic side again. He chose to ignore his own little comment, though it did carry an element of truth. I must really suck right now. "But I guess that it makes sense; most people don't notice it, either."
The following statement had a positive effect on Scruffy; almost immediately, his dull, uncaring expression was transformed into a warmer smile. He reached up to his ponytail and dragged his fingers through the long strands, and gave the woman a sheepish grin. "Sorry about that," he said, tone just a little ashamed. His sudden melancholy was already gone.
"If you really don't mind though, I'd like to bring him in. I understand if he's not allowed, though. He normally isn't. It's most likely for the rest of the customers' sakes. You never know who's allergic and who isn't," the woman continued. Scruffy smiled at her, and gave her a small, confident wink. "Go ahead. No one's coming in for a while," answered the man.
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Post by Terenzio DeVito on Jan 2, 2010 21:39:09 GMT -5
"Go ahead. No one's coming in for a while," Said Scruffy with a sly wink. Nikkie smirked at him, very tempted to wink back, but instead settled for saying, "Y'know, I could almost hug you right now."
Feeling much happier, she left her food and coffee on the table and walked past Scruffy and the counter, her smirk still in place. She ignored how loud her boots were on the tile floors, the dull thump they made, and the bells as the jingled when she opened the door. Lyx looked at her curiously, his great head tilted to the side in confusion. Wasn't she supposed to be in the building eating? His confusion grew as she opened the door and told him to follow her.
Obediently, he hopped out of the squad car and stood beside her as she locked the doors and pocketed her keys. Smiling down at her partner, she led the way back into the store, holding the door open for Lyx before following him in.
"This is Lyx, my partner. Lyx, this is Scruffy." She introduced, the massive German Shepherd tilting his head to the side for a moment before letting out a low, loud bark in greeting. Making her way to her seat, Nikkie calmly translated. "Lyx says hi and wants to know if you have... coyotes?" Turning to look at her partner with a confused frown, she asked, "Why would he have coyotes? As far as I know, coyotes don't live anywhere near Shelpey. Unless..." Trailing off, her suddenly keen eyes shot to Scruffy. Could it be he was a Shifter? Lyx was usually really good about letting her know whenever she was around one and if he said he was a Shifter, then he was.
Kneeling down to look Lyx in the eye, Nikkie softly whispered, "Is he?" to her partner. Lyx, looking at his owner for a moment, turned his intelligent eyes back to Scruffy and nodded, barking softly again.
Well. This was interesting. Scruffy was a Shifter. Idly, she played with the idea of asking him outright if he was a Shifter before deciding not to. She didn't like being asked outright and doubted he would either. She offered Scruffy a pleasant smile and returned to her food. "Sorry about that. Lyx just told me something interesting, is all. Don't worry, it wasn't anything bad." She gave him a disarming smile that, most times, when a guy saw it it was moments before he was knocked out. "I just didn't expect it is all."
Lyx, after trotting up to Scruffy to sniff at him, returned to Nikkie's side and calmly laid down beside her chair, his head raised proudly and forepaws crossed one over the other. All in all, he looked like a proud police dog, what with his choker chain and police badge hanging around his neck and being flashed shamelessly.
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Post by Mr. Peace-and-Logic on Jan 5, 2010 17:48:23 GMT -5
Scruffy grinned, feeling extremely happy with himself, as the woman left the store to fetch her partner. She actually said that she could have hugged him! Though in the previous moments his pride had been damaged, his self-confidence had returned full-force. I've still got it with the ladies, he thought smugly, as he leaned against the wall with a smug smirk.
Soon, the woman returned, an impressive looking German Shepherd in tow. He walked in with an air of pride, his healthy, full coat shining slightly in the florescent lights. He was rather large, but he carried himself gracefully, taking long, powerful strides. Scruffy raised his eyebrows slightly at the sight of the dog, but said nothing.
"This is Lyx, my partner. Lyx, this is Scruffy," said the woman as she seated herself once more, her partner taking a spot near her feet. The dog looked up at him with curious brown eyes, then barked. Scruffy laughed, then raised a hand in greeting. "Hey there, Lyx," he said in response, lazy smirk now present. He felt a little silly for talking to a dog, but hey, who cared?
The woman smiled down at her partner, then back up at the man behind the counter. "Lyx says hi and wants to know if you have... coyotes?" She ended her translation with a question, and turned her puzzled gaze back to her partner. Scruffy's eyebrows now disappeared into his bangs; the dog could talk? And further more, he could smell the scent of his other form? The auburn-haired man couldn't imagine why. It's not like I transform here a lot...unless he's smelling it on me? He suddenly became very self-conscious about his personal hygiene. There's no way...does this mean I ALWAYS smell like a coyote? The thought was worrisome.
After kneeling down to quietly converse with her partner, the woman returned to her stool. She now wore a mysteriously veiled smile, completely neutral and mildly creepy. "Sorry about that. Lyx just told me something interesting, is all. Don't worry, it wasn't anything bad. It was just unexpected," she assured him, her tone perfectly pleasant. Honestly, Scruffy didn't really believe her. Did the dog - er, Lyx - just tell her that I'm a coyote? He gave her a smile, light and friendly, in return and returned to a standing position. "Sounds interesting indeed. Hey, I never caught your name. You probably already know mine by now." He indicated the name tag pinned to his lapel, the corner of the plastic rectangle catching the light.
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Post by Terenzio DeVito on Jan 5, 2010 18:13:54 GMT -5
Lyx wagged his tail a few times happily as Scruffy returned his greeting with a friendly smile and wave, saying, "Hey there Lyx." He laid at Nikkie's feet like the excellently trained canine he was, even when he sensed Scruffy's sudden mini-panic attack. What was he freaking out over?, the dog wondered idly with a yawn. Nikkie's stone gray eyes shot down to glance at him, not missing the movement, before they went back up.
Scruffy was speaking again, this time asking Nikkie something. "Sounds interesting indeed. Hey, I never caught your name. You probably already know mine by now." He said, easily changing the subject. Nikkie let his Shifter status slide.
For now.
Flashing a smirk at her current companion, she took a lazy swig of her coffee. Mmmmm, this stuff was heaven. Without it she wouldn't survive in her line of work. "I'm sure I know some kind of name for you, Scruffy." She said, her tone almost teasing. "My name is Nikkie O'Hara, though. Take your pick of which name to call me; I respond to both." She then added pleasantly. She took a moment to finish off her bagel, letting it sit on her tongue for a couple of seconds in order to savor the flavor, before swallowing it. She washed it down with a nice, slow gullp of coffee before humming almost silently in happiness. Today was turning out to be better than expected.
OOC//: I really don't like how short this was. :/ But oh well, right? At least I've posted. xD
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Post by Mr. Peace-and-Logic on Jan 26, 2010 16:57:57 GMT -5
Scruffy watched passively as the woman took a quick glance at her partner on the floor, then as she took an appreciative sip of her coffee. Now that his initial panic of being discovered had worn away, the ex-bartender could think clearly. It wasn't likely that the woman would make the connection - after all, it was kind of a crazy truth. Scruffy relaxed ever-so-slightly, confident that his secret was safe.
After the question of her name, the woman looked up and gave him an impish smirk. "I'm sure I know some kind of name for you, Scruffy. My name is Nikkie O'Hara, though. Take your pick of which name to call me; I respond to both." Scruffy merely smirked, but inside, he was extremely pleased with himself. He could have been wrong, but it sounded like she was flirting with him. Even if she's not, he thought, this only goes to show I still have it! He smirked to himself before returning to reality.
"I think I'll stick to a first-name basis, Nikkie," he said with a trademark smile, leaning against the wall once more. Out of habit, he ran his fingers through his ponytail, separating it into slightly wavy sections. Afterward, he crossed his arms, and thought of things to say to break the silence.
Looking around casually, Scruffy's brown eyes landed on Lyx. The dog was sitting there patiently, with his legs crossed elegantly. The coyote shifter was a little surprised; all the dogs he had ever encountered would have been barking madly with boredom by now. "Your partner is awfully well behaved," he remarked, turning his gaze back up to Nikkie.
((AAAAAUGH SUCK. It's so horrible. OTL))
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