[IC] A Thin Blue Line - Paranormal Police RP. (Prologue and Azseth)

[Azseth]

Stan sat the living room of the small house, surrounded by a sea of boxes, packages, and bags. There was a couch and loveseat and several end tables that weren’t placed anywhere appropriate, just where they’d fit. This was it, another new beginning. Hopefully the last one, at least for a long while. In the past year, his life was chaotic at best. He’d been let go from one department, then demoted and put to desk work at another. Eventually he found out the cause: his past. It wasn’t fair, it wasn’t right, but it simply was. And there was nothing he could do about it except move on.

He was bitter about it. He enjoyed his job, the people, and the citizens he’d helped and now that was compromised unfairly. Whoever had linked the information made sure it went to people with a lot of friends and people with the biggest mouths. It worked.

So he put in for a transfer for a federal job, partially out of frustration, and he was accepted. It kind of surprised him as he was not expecting it, but it couldn’t have come at a better time. Riding a desk while given no real responsibility and being looked at sideways by people who, the week before, were drinking buddies after work, it wasn’t a happy scene.

He had to report in tomorrow and would spend the rest of the day and night unboxing and setting up, eating pizza and falling asleep. He woke up and got dressed, deciding to grab food and an energy drink on the way in. He hadn’t set up the kitchen and hadn’t gone grocery shopping yet, so it seemed a wise choice. He drove himself downtown to the Agency building, parked and entered. It was a nice building and the first floor had several doors and a moderate level of security.

He went to the EMPLOYEE entrance, checked his personal weapon, signed in and was escorted up to the third floor having been told he’d get his weapon back once he left the building since he wasn’t in the system and didn’t have identification granting access to the building.

He was brought upstairs and left to his own devices after exiting the elevator. He moved to the locker room for males, checking it out quickly. He found his locker with his name stenciled in and nodded to a few people making their way in or leaving, not knowing who was who at the moment.

He looked at his watch and realized he should go to the office area and see where he should be checking in. He stepped out and made his way out, taking a few deep breaths to steady himself as he went. “Let’s go do this I guess.”

[Prologue]

The first thing that ran through her mind when Skye woke up that morning was how desperately she craved coffee. She had been up too late for her own good the previous night, struggling to fall asleep as her mind kept racing with thoughts that would have been best left at work where they belonged. The bits and pieces of their latest case at work had just come together, but there was something about it that had kept her captivated until the night slowly faded to dawn.

As the sound of her alarm rang through the air, she turned around in her bed, opened her eyes, and found herself looking around the small room that was her studio apartment. A small kitchenette in one corner, chipped paint on thin walls, and a tiny bathroom that barely closed when there was anyone inside was all that made up her home, and yet, she quite liked the quaint and rugged feeling of it. What she did not like, however, was the thought that crept into her mind and reminded her that she hadn't gone grocery shopping in ages, and that there was most presumably no coffee to be found inside her apartment at all.

Sighing heavily, Skye made her way out of the comfort of her bed, stumbled across the wooden floor and quickly got dressed. With the knowledge that she would feel better once she got her much needed dose of caffeine, Skye quickly tied up her hair, hurried out of the apartment to the nearest coffee shop and ordered her usual cup with just a splash of milk. After the first sip, she felt the strange soothing sensation of the drink waking her to life—ready for yet another day, Skye decided to take the opportunity to soak in the early morning sun by walking to work. One upside of her apartment was its convenient location downtown that definitely made up for its shabby appearance.

After the walk and with the caffeine in her system, Skye arrived with a reignited, bright mood at the ASA office building and cheerfully greeted the old man positioned behind the desk as she signed in with her ID.

"The weather's quite nice today, isn't it?", a voice suddenly asked behind her just as she was about to head up to the office. Upon turning around, she met the gaze of a slightly older woman whose tired eyes revealed that she might have needed the cup of coffee more urgently than Skye herself did.

"Good morning, Emily", Skye said with a smile as she threw the now empty cup into a trash can next to the staircase.

"Except for the weather, I'm not sure if the morning is exactly good", Emily replied half-jokingly. Before she could go on into the tiresome details as to why her morning had not been good, Skye intervened by chuckling politely.

"After you", she said instead, and together they walked up the stairs to their office space like any other day. The two women kept exchanging friendly words and phrases, occasionally pausing to greet other colleagues passing by when Emily suddenly stopped.

"Who's that?", Emily mouthed to Skye as she bobbed her head at the man who had just erupted from the men's locker room.

With a quick glance, Skye shrugged her shoulders. Somewhere deep inside her mind, she did recall that the replacement for that stupid fool of a man that had just left the team would come during the week—they were in desperate need of a new one and the man did look like he might fit the role. "New guy, maybe?"

Upon realising that the unfamiliar man might have heard their hushed conversation, Skye smiled slightly and bowed her head at him in acknowledgment of his presence. If he indeed was the new man, his nerves surely would not be calmed by seeing his colleagues already whispering around him.

[Azseth]

Inside of the conference room, which is where the morning roll call and meeting took place, a handful of members were already seated, casually talking about several different topics from sports, to last night’s dinner, to the weather. Seated in the large room were Ken, Tom, Christy, Nicholas, and Audrey. The room itself was more than accommodating in terms of size with a table in the center. There were nice office chairs, computers in the table, and several large screens on the walls. Most of those were never really used.

Sitting in casual clothing that consisted of some loose khakis and a collared, long sleeve shirt, Ken checked his watch. As Ken listened to the group talk, he waited, and then when it got quiet enough, he interjected a new topic of discussion. “So you know we got the new guy starting today, right? Anyone get any news on him?”

Christy spun in her chair to look over at Ken, her black hair spilling out and framing her face. She was always the one dressed on the borderline and the first one to make inappropriate comments, and neither was an exception at this moment. Wearing a pair of tight black jeans and an equally tight black and red v-neck shirt, with a very deep V of course, she quickly responded before anyone else could. “I just hope he’s easy on the eyes. Younger. Fun. Most of you, most of you are getting kind of boring. Need some fresh meat.” She smirked and looked from one to the next, not giving away who exactly fit into the MOST group.

Tom chuckled and shook his head slightly, speaking up next. “I looked him up in a few places. Seems well enough. Capable. Mundane. Clean criminal record. Former cop, but the last year, he’s been bounced around. When it comes to the whys, people are hush hush.” He shrugged slightly. “Nothing really screams out shitbird or anything, so I guess we’ll see. Raised in Misery. I didn’t look that far back though. Divorced, single.” He looked over at Christy as he said it and she put her hands on the table and gave a few pumps and moans. Again, Tom shook his head and continued. “Anyway, I’m surprised they didn’t take him into Tactical. He has a bit of experience that would put him up there. Aside from that nothing much. Except some online dating profiles.” There were a few laughs at that last one. Tom didn't laugh, he used to have a dating profile or two himself...

Meanwhile, out in the hall, Stan moved into the hallway and nodded to a few people he passed. No one looked at him rudely, but he could tell people stared a little longer and could feel them turning around to look as he passed. Normally he wouldn’t care, but in light of the circumstances behind his past two work related issues, now he found himself always wondering if someone knew something.

He turned from side to side, unsure which was to go, then moved his head towards where he heard some voices. He saw two females looking over in his direction, one of which nodded slightly, after they stopped talking which he took to mean they were talking about him in some capacity. He looked around for another option but these two were the closest people and he didn’t feel like making an exit in a way that indicated he was avoiding them, so he started to move over to them. “Excuse me ladies. I’m here--it’s my first day. Sorry. I guess, I’m looking for wherever I should be going for any kind of morning muster. I’m with the ASA as of today. Can you point me in the right direction?”

[Prologue]

When the man suddenly approached them and began introducing himself, the two women exchanged a look that confirmed their suspicions. Yes, the new guy. Believing that their silent confirmation was discreet enough, both of them quickly looked back at him and smiled.

The older of the two put her hand to her waist as she leaned her weight on one leg. "Investigative, huh?", Emily asked, who, all while smiling, was critically surveying him from head to toe as if she could judge whether he would be a good fit for the team or not. The fact that he didn’t know where he was going seemed to her to suggest that he was not. ”We could point you in the right direction, or walk you there. Might as well, seeing as we’re heading there too—the usual morning meeting in the conference room. I’m Emily, part of the team, and this is…”

"Skye Asselta", Skye interrupted to present herself as she extended her hand to shake his. ”I’m in Investigative too. Welcome.”

Skye allowed her gaze to linger on his face for some time before she let his hand go. Darting a quick look at the clock on the wall, she pulled her bag closer to her body. ”We better get going, I bet the others are already there.” Without further ado, Skye made her way past the others as she started leading the way to the conference room.

---

Back in the conference room, an impeccably dressed man with his well-ironed shirt tucked into a fitted pair of cotton pants was one of the few who didn’t laugh at Tom highlighting the dating history of their new colleague. While he was avoiding standing in the bright sun that shone through the windows, he seemed to be engrossed in peeking through the glass from the shadows, looking at the people passing by on the street below the window. "We'll see how long the poor lad lasts, so I wouldn’t grow too attached to him, Christy, even if he is easy on the eyes”, Nicholas finally commented absent-mindedly, forgetting that the conversation since long had moved on as his eyes were still occupied with scrutinising the pedestrians. The pessimistic cynic inside him doubted the new guy’s abilities. The fact that he was both divorced and had been tossed around between different jobs didn’t bode well—there must be something wrong with him. Nicholas shook his head before suddenly turning around to wander about the room. Failing to prevent a smirk from playing on his lips as he looked at Christy, he continued, ”Especially not if he is handsome.”

At that moment, the door to the room opened, and Skye stepped inside. ”Morning everyone”, she said as she threw her bag down on the chair closest to the door. Upon seeing most of her colleagues already sitting around the table, the young woman smiled apologetically. ”I hope we’re not late—we met someone new on the way.”

Emily, who had followed Skye inside the room, sighed heavily as she let herself fall down on a chair. "Can’t believe he hasn’t been assigned to anyone that can help him and show him around yet—shows just how efficient things are run at this damn place.”

A tired, but not all too serious voice that asked Emily to keep her mouth shut sounded through the room, causing a suppressed laughter to ripple across the group yet again. Most of them, however, were too curious to see who the newcomer was to continue the conversation once the laughter had died down.

[Azseth]

They voice of Chief Givens continued over a speaker and he was very brief. “I am not going to be in today, another staff meeting out of state. You know the drill. Granderson is in charge in my absence. I should be back tomorrow and be in the office the following morning.”

There was no sound after that to indicate that he was done, or that he had disconnected, just the absence of his voice. At that point, Ken stood up and looked around, then realized someone, besides the new agent, was missing. “Where the hell i--.“

As soon as he spoke, the door opened and in stepped Darrius. “Sorry, sorry. I got stuck in traffic.” The group wasn’t one to beat individuals up about tardiness, as there were many days agents didn’t come in because of their current investigations keeping them elsewhere. But that didn’t mean they couldn’t ride one another when it happened.

“Yeah, your uh, traffic jam left some of its red make-up on your collar there boss,” Tom rubbed his finger along his own collar as a few others laughed.

Then, Christy sniffed loudly, smirked and said “man, it sure reeks of traffic in here. Like someone spend all night and most of the morning in...traffic.”

“You know what, haha fuck you guys. You’re just jealous. Laugh all you want. I may be a few minutes late tomorrow too.” He held up a middle finger on each hand and waved it to everyone. “But hey, that the new guy out there waiting?”

“It is indeed. His name is Stanley Humes. He comes to us by way of the Detroit Metro PD. Clean record, outstanding physical and mental assessments. I’ve asked around and generally people have good to say or won’t say anything. So I’m not sure what to make of it. Even those with the good comments don’t seem to want to say too much too loudly. That could mean he was into some bad shit, or simply he doesn’t rub his commanding officers the right way. That’ll be Givens’ problem, not ours though. Skye, you’re going to be his primary partner. I’ll be rotating with you two for a few weeks to evaluate things and give my reports to Givens.”

He looked around at those in the room, waiting for any responses or questions before calling in the agent waiting outside.

[Prologue]

Upon hearing that she would be partnered with the newcomer, Skye simply nodded in acceptance of her fate. Luckily for Stan, she was one of the few who had yet to make up her mind regarding him. The majority of the people inside the conference room seemed to have decided that something was off about the guy. Emily, who had already doubted his compatibility with the team when he didn't even know where to go, didn't even try to hide her loud snort as she heard that people avoided talking about him. Perfect on paper, but dubious in reality—there must be a reason as to why that was.

Skye, however, gave a mental shrug. She didn't want to assume that the reason was necessarily negative in nature, and he had seemed alright during their brief meeting. If he was a weirdo that would show soon enough and he would be thrown around to the next place. So instead of complaining, Skye cleared her throat as she sat down on the empty chair next to her bag. Having not heard the conversation before, she opened her mouth while moving the bag to the floor to leave the seat next to her free for Stan. "So, what is this guy? Supernatural?", she asked, looking curiously around the room.

"Nah", Nicholas said, who, like Skye, had finally sat down. "Mundane, apparently."

"Great", she replied, actually happy that he was. There were too many people inside the room with all sorts of weird skills already, so his apparent lack of magical abilities was definitely needed. "And no worries, Ken, I'll take care of him."

A voice that up until that point had remained silent erupted from the corner of the room. "I bet you will." A woman with thick dark curls that fell heavy across her shoulders leaned back in her chair, slowly chewing on a piece of fruit-flavoured gum. Audrey gave Skye a teasing smile as Skye rolled her eyes in response.

Silently cursing the immaturity of her team mates in her head, Skye only mustered the energy to answer a sarcastic, but tired "Very funny".

For a brief moment, Audrey laughed dryly before she suddenly stopped, putting her hands together in a loud clap. She looked around at her colleagues excitedly. "Y'know what, I don't wanna wait anymore", Audrey said impatiently. Being relatively new herself, she was eager to see someone else come and fill the newbie position—perhaps the others would stop babying her and calling her out on her so-called lack of experience if there was a new guy to tease. "Any more questions and you can ask this Stanley directly. Just let the guy in already."

With those words, Audrey looked with her round eyes at Ken. An unusual silence fell once more on the room.

[Azseth]

Ken hid a smirk and just nodded. The team was a mix of a few veterans, a few people with some time under their belt, and then some very new blood. He was always interested in the dynamics of the groups, seeing how well they mix and then on his end, adjusting the group to make sure things are cohesive. It wasn’t just about their powers, it was about the case and it was about the individuals. In this case, he selected Skye for two main reasons. First off, and the most obvious, she was an enhancer and he was a mundane. When it came to mundanes, the majority of them were only as useful as their enchanter. There were a few individuals that could hold their own, but most mundane were better suited for office work or scenarios that didn’t involve potentially dangerous supernaturals. The other part is that Ken wanted to see how well Skye did in a role that was less “follow” and more “lead.” It wasn’t much, but it was something and he was eager to see how she performed.

After the nod, Darrius moved to the door as he was the closest one, opened it and motioned with his head for the other to come. Stan stood up, cleared his throat and walked in, closing the door behind him. He moved to the table and gave a quick look around the room at the individuals. Some he recognized from what little information he was able to dig up about the team, but his eyes immediately went to and stayed on Christy for a fraction of a second longer than the rest. He rationalized it off as her simply standing out with the black hair, clothes, and red splashed. Red naturally drew the attention, but then again, so did a deeply cut v-neck...

He looked and then set his eyes on the man at the table’s end, who he assumed to be the person who was in charge to some degree or the other. They met eyes and finally the other man spoke. “I’m agent Ken Granderson. I’m the senior agent, I essentially run things at this level. I answer to Chief Givens who is out on official business today. Welcome to the team. Take a moment and introduce yourself as you see fit and we’ll give some nice little introductions also. Agent Humes, go ahead.”

Stan only took a brief moment to mull over what to say. He didn’t want to make it long winded, boring, and seem like he was trying to pump himself up, but he didn’t want to leave out anything relevant or make it seem as if he didn’t care. “Thank you Agent Granderson. I’m sure most of you have either read something on me, or talked about it, or if you haven’t then you don’t really give a shit either way. So, I’m Stan Humes. My last assignment was working narcotics and gang cases in Detroit until I put in for a transfer to here. I worked a lot with tactical also as that area is not the most ideal vacation spot.

Originally, I was raised in Missouri, or as I say, Misery. I don’t really plan on going back. Prior to that, I did one enlistment in the Marines,” at this point he looked over to Tom and nodded. Tom nodded back, mentally noting that apparently, Stan had done some homework. “I did a tour in Iraq and Somalia. Skip to today, I’m extremely happy to be here and plan to be an asset to the team. I enjoy doing this line of work and hope to be here for the long haul.” He looked around one more time, eyes once again falling to Christy and lingering before looking away. “I’m very excited to be here and help the team.”

He nodded and looked over to Granderson to indicate he was done, at which point Ken said, “Agent Mashinski, why don’t you start. Agent Humes, feel free to sit.” Stan moved to take a seat as Darrius stood. “I’m Darrius Mashinski. I’m born and raised around Indiana, but I... traveled a bit in my time before joining the Agency. Willfully I might add. I am a shapeshifter and can change my characteristics pretty much at will. I also sing karaoke on Fridays.” He ended with a grandiose bow and sat back down.

At that point, Tom stood up and nodded to Stan. “I am Tom Groves. Semper Fi. Born and raised in Chicago, go White Sox, and did my time in the Corps. Then I started transitioning into various federal jobs, working my way up to here, which to some is considered a promotion I guess,” he said with a sarcastic smirk. “My power is that I can summon inanimate stuff.” He held up his empty hand and there was suddenly a coffee mug in it. Just like that, it was gone and in front of Stan, who chuckled. Then there was a pocket PDA in his hand. “Let’s see who Christy was calling last night.”

“Hey asshole, that’s enough!” She actually blushed slightly, but just as quickly, the phone was gone and back in her purse.

“And I can’t sing for shit.” With that he sat down.

Christy got up and gave one last ugly look to Tom before smoothing her clothes out. “Hello beautiful. I’m Christy Mareno. Twenty two years old. My powers are those of seduction. I’m able to charm and win over any man, or woman, into doing whatever I want, when I want. No person has ever been able to tel--.”

“Seriously?”

“Ken, shut her up.”

“You’re so full of shit Mareno.”

“Fuck you guys, you know it’s true. I mean shit, it may not be my ‘power’ but no one has ever told me no. So shit, maybe it IS a power. Anyway. Fiiine.” She put her hands on her hips and locked eyes with Stan, who was smiling despite his best efforts to keep a straight face. The room was just too much...as was the look in her eyes. “I’m an elemental mage. I cast fireballs and lightening traps and shit. I’m also single and looking, so if you--“ there was another chorus of boos and comments to shut up and she just threw her hands up in a dramatic fashion. “Ok ok, shit. I was just going to ask if he had any friends. Anyway. Thanks.” She said that, winked and sat back down.

[Prologue]

Emily, who just had enough with Christy's liberal way of introducing herself, loudly sighed and turned her head away from the disaster that she felt played out before her eyes. Of course, anyone who had taken the opportunity to properly get to know Emily knew that she never had any bad intentions—and her honest approach could be quite amusing—but sometimes, she wasn't really careful with how she presented herself. "Well, I better get going then", she said, raising her hand to silence everyone. "Even though I've already met you and whatnot. I'm Emily, Emily Soto, and I'm just like you. No fun powers going on here, but I reckon I do a pretty darn good job anyway. When I'm not here I'm probably at home taking care of my boys." With the last words, her harsh tone softened and she even let out a slight smile. Unlike most of her colleagues, she deliberately avoided any gimmicks, and sank back in her chair as soon as she was done. 

Glancing around the room, Audrey's eyes met Nicholas', who kindly gestured with his hand at her. "Ladies first."

Audrey jumped up in her seat and pulled her hair back as if she needed preparation for her presentation. Waving her hand in the air, she started. "Hi there, I'm Audrey. I'm actually so happy to have you here. Gives all these people someone else to pick on—I'm kinda new too. As you can probably tell, this isn't always the easiest place to work at, but don't be afraid to bite back when they tug at you."

Realising that she hadn't said anything about herself, Audrey hastily continued. "I'm just an ordinary girl too, just like Emily, except I haven't got any kids. I love hiking and sailing though, so if you're into that, cool! Uh, I've moved a lot but spent most of my time in Virginia... and I kinda ended up here by accident."

Noticing how some people in the room were struggling to hide their condescending smiles, Audrey could see what everyone else was already thinking, but she hoped that they would spare her any remarks asking whether, if by accident, she meant her father. Luckily, before anyone could say anything else, Nicholas cleared his throat. "I'm Nicholas Forster. If you ever want to hear my life story, I'll drag you all the way back to the Little Red Dot in the early 20's", he smiled slightly. "That is, I was born in Singapore quite a while ago. Yes, yes, I know you're probably wondering why I look like I do, and yes, you're right, I'm indeed a vampire."

"Meaning that one does bite for real, so watch out", Audrey threw in as she smirked and winked jokingly at a chuckling Nicholas.

"But I wouldn't worry if I were you, Stan. If you're keen on nicknames, you may call me Nick, but I do prefer my full name. I'm an old man, you know, and my dear old mother would be shamed to find out that people didn't take the time to call me by my full name. " With those words, Nicholas nodded in Skye's direction. "You're next, young lady.”

"Well, you know my name already.” Nonetheless, the sudden thought hit her that the poor guy was probably flooded with impressions—new names and smiling faces, Christy throwing herself at him and Tom showing off his abilities—so she repeated it again to be sure. The young woman was already taking her commitment as his partner seriously. Rather than recounting anything specific about herself, she launched into explaining that she and Stan would work together. ”I don’t know how much you’ve been told, but I’m guessing not a lot. I just heard that you’ll be my partner for a while, so you’ll be stuck with me. It shouldn’t be too bad though, I’m an enhancer, so if we work together we could do some neat stuff. I’m pretty nifty with healing too, so don’t you worry about getting hurt”, she said, disregarding that a fear of pain was probably not all too developed within a former Marine and cop. ”What else… I was born and raised in Connecticut, but now I live just a couple of blocks from here.”

Although she had decided that that was enough introduction for the day, Skye ended her presentation with a closed-lip smile. ”Please don’t hesitate to ask me anything if you’re feeling lost.”

As soon as Skye had finished her introduction, it did not take long before Audrey looked anticipatively at Ken again. ”So, boss, what’s on the agenda today?"

[Azseth]

Ken looked around the room as the last person went through their intro, mentally shaking his head at the antics, but also taking a slight appreciation for it. No one liked working in an environment that was like working in a graveyard, or one filled with competition and negativity. He, and most likely all of the others, would take this over those any day. And truth be told, he was happy about the group and the way they worked. He had no complaints, besides maybe a slight lack of professionalism, but when it mattered, they could fake their way through it long enough.

He took one last moment to put things together in his head and then put his elbows on the table. “Ok, as mentioned, Asselta you’re going to run with Humes. No case immediately, spend a few hours showing him around here and all that before you pick a case, and run it by me. James, we’re going to finish up our case. Groves, Mashinski, Mareno, you all are working that case with the human trafficking with the state troopers, get back to it. And Forster, you and Soto are still closing out your case, try to get that done in a few days. Keep me briefed on it. Nothing crazy. Keep in mind this next Monday and Tuesday are a sweep slash warrant day." There was a chorus of groans at that bit of information. Sweep/warrant days meant rounding up SNs that needed to be checked on, serving warrants, checking leads on fugitive SNs and other things of that nature. Basically, a bunch of phone calls, door knocks, greetings, and people telling the agents they didn't know where whoever they were looking for way. It was a big game of chasing one's tail. Best cast scenario, they find a person--but that was rare.

"If no one else has anything, fall out.”

[Prologue]

While the others returned to their work, Skye immediately took Stan for a tour of the building. Throughout the first half of the day, Skye busied herself with showing her new partner around the facilities and introducing him to a couple of people from other units that he would most likely collaborate with at one point or another. The people from Tactical, most of them guys with a background that resembled Stan’s, were almost all of them quite easy-going, fun and caring once one got past their crass attitude. There was also the administrative group who, although they often seemed tiresomely meticulous with paperwork, actually deserved a lot of credit for the massive amount of work they had been dealing with ever since the ASA had been launched.

If Skye had doubted that Stan would remember all the names of his own team members, she highly suspected that he hardly even tried to process all of the information she threw at him. She foresaw that he would probably run and ask her questions that she had already answered, but she made a silent promise to herself to be as understanding as possible. Skye knew that it was hard being thrown into an eclectic group of people and expected to get to work at once. In fact, she hardly remembered her first days at the ASA herself, only that she had been incredibly overwhelmed.

After the tour, Skye decided to go ahead with a case that seemed relatively straightforward, and, while perhaps not particularly exciting, would give Stan the opportunity to grow into his role. Quite frankly, Skye also chose the case for her own sake. She had never led anyone new and wanted to make sure that she kept her head above water. While she had worked for the agency for a couple of years, she had always been kept under the guidance of one of the more experienced agents—especially the recently departed idiot who Skye, although she disliked him, must admit had been quite good at his work.

Suddenly erupting from another door into the room where she had left Stan, Skye waved a folder crammed with papers at her new partner. "Here we go. I just briefed it with Agent Granderson and it should be alright for the two of us—nothing major, just something to get you into this whole thing that we do here.” Skye opened the folder, but before looking through the papers she gazed gravely with her light green eyes at Stan. ”Honestly, I have no idea how experienced you are with investigations of this kind, but you’ll get the hang of it. It’s really not that complicated, and once you get into it, I promise it gets really interesting—perhaps not this case, but it usually does. It’s nothing like working in Tactical, where it’s all brawns—here you might get a bit of that, but it’s mostly your head doing all the hard work.”

She gave him another one of her slightly visible smiles, mentally biting her tongue not to make a rude comment about his background in the military and the police probably making him a better fit for Tactical, before pulling out the first paper in the file. ”Take a look at this. It’s a complaint filed by a woman who’s property has been ravaged by what she suspects is a supernatural.” Skye couldn’t help but to roll her eyes at the thought that ever since the supernaturals were revealed, mundanes had become too quick to judge animals or oddballs to be cases of supernatural people, while most of the time, weird occurrences had perfectly normal explanations. Often, that judgment could have severe consequences on either people’s lives or the cluttered work schedules of already busy ASA teams across the country. ”Apparently it’s not the first time this has happened in the neighbourhood”.

Pulling out another paper, she read on. ”Another victim reports that there is this old man in a neighbourhood close to town who’s been acting weird lately—throwing tantrums and behaving aggressively, even threatening people. According to the source, the old man has always been a bit of a recluse, so it might just be anxious neighbours, but he has never been aggressive. Recently, the man was reported lost, but the property damage reports have continued. The rumour around the neighbourhood is that he has turned into some kind of were-beast still running around—you know how people talk, it's ridiculous. Hopefully though, his neighbours are wrong, and there’s some animal living in the area and the old man might just have a case of severe dementia kicking in, in which case he shouldn’t do the Test or report to the League of Magic, but simply go to the hospital.”

She handed Stan the papers and continued without waiting for any intervention from his side. ”Anyway, there’s a lot of things we can do from here. Talk to people, ask around, look for evidence, examine any records or lawsuits related to the man, you know the drill. I suggest we start as we usually do once all the paperworks' started—head out into the area and take a look around. If we’re lucky, we might see something interesting or meet someone who can tell us something. Either way, it’s always good to get acquainted with your case."

Skye looked curiously at him, as if she was testing to see whether he would be brave enough to go against any of her conclusions and suggestions, or facile enough to go with the flow. She wasn’t sure which option she preferred.

[Azseth]

The first half of the day was what Stan would consider dull and uneventful. He met people but forgot most of them and what they did, and was sure they did the same and would not remember who he was if he seen them tomorrow at the office, or tonight in the bar. It was nice to get a better grasp of the grounds though, so he was appreciative of that. Then came the part he was looking forward to the most: business. Actual business.

Truth be told he wasn’t happy at the nature of the case, but it wasn’t like he wasn’t used to it, or expecting otherwise. Even when he was in good graces with units, there were slow days and slam dunk cases that needed to be made. Sometimes, the day consisted of simply busting a drug dealer on a corner because it was that kind of day. He also knew every day wasn’t shaking down crime lords, extortion rings, or chasing down cold blooded killers. Some days, there were no doors that needed to be kicked down.

And, he was the new guy. He smirked, thinking about his old training officer. She told him, “starting at a new department is like dating a prude. You don’t get to stick your dick in the first day. You start off slow.”

He didn’t say much after Skye finished with her case introduction and instead busied himself looking through the file at pictures, statements, and reports. He flipped back and forth a few times, raising an eyebrow curiously. Something seemed to be screaming out at him from his psyche but he couldn’t quite lock it down.

“Why don’t we go take a look around the suspect’s house first Agent Asselta? Best case, he’s home. Worst case, we see if we can get some profile up on him, find something telling, or maybe even remove him as a suspect. But going to the areas, the witnesses, we won’t get anything new. The pictures will be the same, the damage will probably be removed or cleaned, and the witnesses will say the same thing.”

They made it to the car as he finished and they stopped a few feet in front of it. “I mean, sorry Agent Asselta. I didn’t mean to just commandeer things. I just, I guess I know how things move like this, at least where I have been.” He stood there somewhat awkwardly and waited to see if she’d be driving or if he would.

[Prologue]

While they made their way to the car, Skye pondered over his suggestion. Although a visit to the old man’s house had definitely been a part of her plan to look through the neighbourhood, she hadn't really expected Stan to suggest that they were to go there first. According to the case file, the old man hadn’t been seen for a long while, so she was highly doubtful that they would find anything interesting there. But at the same time, Stan’s reasoning behind his suggestion seemed solid enough, and a tiny voice at the back of her head whispered that she should follow it. After all, as a new guy he might have a case of beginner’s luck, and, Skye thought to herself, she felt rather bad that he felt the need to apologise to her.

”Don’t say you’re sorry.” The fact that he had been courteous enough to realise that not everyone would be happy to be bossed around by a newcomer softened her. Besides, they were partners, and although she had been assigned to show him how things were done at the Agency, she felt no need to push him down to assert her own power. She had already seen too much of that. ”I’m not your boss, you know. No need to be so formal about it, I want you to talk. Besides, if we’re gonna work as a team you can’t go around apologising to me whenever you open your mouth.”

There was a moment of prolonged silence between them, and Skye felt as thought the all too serious tone in her voice hung heavy in the air long after her voice had trailed off. Suddenly, she smirked at him and shook her head in joking disbelief. ”You know what, agent, off to his house it is." She ushered with her hand for him to take the driver’s seat. ”All yours, since you seem to enjoy being in control.” Skye quietly laughed to herself as she walked to the other side of the car, jumped into the passenger’s seat and turned on the radio on a low volume.

Once in the car, she kept quietly looking out the window while chewing in the insides of her lower lip. ”So, Stanley Humes”, she said after a while, carefully drawing out his name to taste it. ”You said you applied for a transfer? From the police? What all of a sudden got you interested in working with the supernatural?"

The emphasis on the last word dripped with sarcasm, but a kind smile on her lips remained. A lot of people seemed to be intrigued with working with the ASA—some of them, of course, mundane people who wished to know more about the worlds that had been hidden from them for so long, while others were supernaturals finally finding a use for their gifts. Most of them, however, were disappointed to find out that while the work could be exciting, it entailed a lot more than the action-filled visions many had, and she quietly wondered whether he was already disappointed.

[Azseth]

Ken told Audrey to get her stuff and meet him out be the car in about 20 minutes. He went to his office and went through what he called a 1 minute function check. He checked and made sure there were no voicemails. Then he skimmed any notes left on his desk and glanced through his email list to make sure nothing jumped out at him as urgent. Everything seemed fine for the moment. Good.

His case he was working with Agent James wasn’t anything major, it was actually a pretty slam dunk case. There was a unsanctioned mage using his magic to shake down street vendors at night near the sports arena. They had worked with local PD because they weren’t sure about the extent of the SNs power and didn’t want to go in without good information and have some mage fry a bunch of people. It was nice that the locals reached out on this one because sometimes, various departments had various levels of bias against SNs and tried to keep things “in house.” It was not uncommon for those incidents to end up with a body or two and then the ASA being assigned to take over the case.

James and Granderson spent the last few days talking to people who knew him, following him and made an assessment that if he was confronted, he wouldn’t react violently. Today, the ASA had a judge issue a warrant on several counts of extortion and threatening use of a deadly weapon.

He looked at his watch. He had over 10 minutes until he had to meet his current partner at the vehicle, so he sat on the corner of his desk and looked at the file labeled S. HUMES. He didn’t need to open it, he’d read it twice over. He mulled over it and tried to get his head around the new agent. On paper, everything about him looked squared away. He seemed like a great addition to the team, and even meeting him briefly in person, he got that same feeling.

But something was up. Granderson knew that. He could almost smell it.

Humes had been released from one department citing “budget cuts” but upon a quick look into the department, Humes was the only budget item cut. Additionally, there were other officers with less time in the department and others with negative paperwork that should have been the first people let go. It just didn’t make sense, and no one at that department seemed willing to talk about it.

Then, his most recent stint at a department was going well until, for no explainable reason, he was simply placed on desk and office duties after performing, according to case files, admirably on the streets as a detective. That, according to his initial phone interview, was the reason he requested the transfer, casually mentioning that he simply didn’t mesh well with his command--which didn’t seem like an outright lie. Sometimes, half truths were harder to see than outright lies.

He looked at his watch and shook his head, pushing those thoughts aside for now. He was going to go meet Agent James, and they’d go to the local police HQ, get a tactical team, and place the suspect under arrest.

He got to the car a bit earlier than he expected and got in, starting the car. Just as it fired up, his partner stepped out of a door and made her way into the vehicle. She set her things in the car and nodded to Granderson. He put on his seatbelt and asked quickly, “all set James?”

[Prologue]

Today was the day. If there was one day that kept Audrey going, it was the day when the cases culminated in actual action, the day where they could finally start archiving all the papers, and, of course, the day that she could go home from work, feeling that for once, they had actually done something useful. Although their current case was relatively straightforward, she had been looking forward to the finale ever since they started it. She always did. She didn’t enjoy the chase half as much as the actual catch, and it was always rewarding increasing the number of cases finished under her name. 

Today was the last day out on the field where the suspect, or suspects, finally got what they deserved, and Audrey got to demonstrate to any doubters that yes, she was a woman capable of her work. 

As she sat down in the car next to Ken, threw her stuff in the backseat and nodded at him, she couldn’t help but to feel the tingling sense of excitement in the pit of her stomach that only came on days like these. ”All set”, she repeated with a wide grin. ”Today’s gonna be a good day. Let’s get the tacts and then go bust this guy.”

The car came to life and they went ahead on the road leading to the police headquarters. The soft purr of the motor running through the car and the houses flashing by as they drove past them didn’t calm her down. Instead, the impressions only added to her excitement—they were finally on their way. Turning to fiddle with the air con, Audrey started to involuntarily shake her leg out of restlessness as her thoughts ran wildly in her head. 

Like most of her colleagues that day, Audrey kept thinking about Stan. That he occupied most of their minds was not surprising. The team was a tight-knit group of people. Most of them had known each other for a long while. They had seen the best and the worst of one another—it was a natural part of the work they did—and letting someone new in inside that dynamic was naturally unsettling. Whatever the rest of them were doing, the name Stanley Humes most likely haunted their conversation. 

”I’m curious to see how Skye will fare with the our newest addition.” While Skye had been on the team for some time, she was new to the whole leadership thing. It intrigued Audrey that Ken put her together with Stan. It was natural, seeing as her latest partner had just left, but if Audrey were to decide, she would switch the teams up instead of grouping Skye and Stan together. And yet, a part of Audrey was happy that the decision wasn’t hers to make. She looked forward to seeing whether the two would succeed or not, and while she didn't like to admit it to herself, she partially hoped for the latter option. ”Tell me, something’s off about the guy, right? He seems like way too good of a guy to be so easily let off. What’s the catch?"

Audrey hoped that whatever professional facade Ken put on when talking in front of the group would crumble when the conversation was only between the two of them. He must know something.

[Azseth]

He was put off balance by her responses. Don’t be sorry, I’m not your boss, and the ‘enjoying control’ comment were all just coming in with mixed vibes and he wasn’t sure what was sarcasm, what was a snide remark, and what was genuine.

He hated first days.

There was an awkward silence where he found himself wanting to apologize after being told it wasn’t necessary to apologize, so he just kind of hung out there awkwardly when tasked with driving. He started it and adjusted a few things after putting on his seatbelt, not making a comment about the radio as it didn’t matter to him anyway.

Then, she asked a question, and while physically he didn’t react, inside, he cringed slightly. He’d have preferred the awkward silence to this question. The issue wasn’t really his past, or what had happened. He wasn’t ashamed of anything. The issue was not knowing what these people knew or didn’t know, and if they DID know something, what their thoughts were about him and his past. He found it odd that he thought of it as “his past” when in reality, everything started after he’d left...

He debated going one of the “it’s complicated” or “I don’t really talk about the past” routes, but all that did was left room open for more assumptions and raised more questions--neither of which he wanted. So he took a moment, feigning on focusing on exiting the parking structure before answering.

He opted to go with half truths, because they were always a lot more believable and lot less detectable than lies or deceptions. He also decided to add a little humor and see how it went. “Well, ever since I was a little boy, I dreamt of being that guy who saved the village from the boogy men, you know?” He gave his sideways smirk, assuming she was insightful enough to know that between the look, and tone, it was a joke. He turned out into the street and made his way to the address. He’d spent the last few weeks studying the roads and layout of the city as best he could. It wasn’t necessary, he knew, but it was an oldschool beat cop thing. If you were a cop and didn’t know the city, it could be the difference between someone living and dying. He didn’t want to depend on GPS if another officer, or a victim, was bleeding out in a house and he needed to get there.

“So anyway, my transfer. My command didn’t think too highly of me I guess. Working inner city, you get a lot of people claiming dirty cops, or brutality, and over there, it’s a political circus. When you have people, lawyers, news papers and politicians breathing down your officer’s necks, it rolls downhill. Sometimes, it’s easier to relieve pressure and make an example of one of your own than deal with the constant bullshit coming at you about what’s going on down on the streets. I guess I was that example.”

He took another few turns, looking around and trying to get a feel for the city. The whole time he was talking, he didn’t really look over at the passenger, for no real reason other than trying to focus. “I mean, it’s proof enough it’s bullshit because they didn’t fire me. If they had any legitimate dirt on me or anyone else, they’d have tarred and feathered him publicly before crucifying him.”

They stopped at a light and he took a moment to actually look over at her as he spoke. “So I got desk duty and looked for a way out. They looked for a way to say they ridded the department of a bad cop. Here I am. And working with--“ he caught himself almost saying ‘you people’ but caught himself, “supernaturals, honestly. It’s part of the job no matter where you go. Sure, here it’s the majority of the cases, but there, sometimes it’s an abusive husband. Next a drug dealer. Next a gang retaliation. And then you have some SNat burning down a liquor store. Another day in the office.” SNat was a term used by many local agencies, easier off the tongue than supernaturals.

He looked away from her and as the light turned green, and muttered something that over the noise of the car and the city, may have been lost to her ears unless she was paying attention. “The sky’s the sky, people are people. Everywhere you go, it’s all the same.”

“So, what’s your story. You’re a magical enhancer, right?”

[Azseth]

The day would be slow at first. Once they got to the Police HQ, they’d go through a few briefs, meet some detectives and brief the locals one what was happening. Tactical was gearing up and would be down there in about an hour. Essentially, at this point, it was the local PD’s job to go ahead and try to keep the area as safe as possible without letting the subject know what was happening.

Ken was fairly confident after the investigation and profile that the subject would not put up much resistance but one could never be too sure. That is one of the ASAs underlying objectives: reduce collateral damages as often as possible. Keep a lid on things. Make things at least appear to be in control.

The fallacy there was that it could be done. Every day, mundane criminals murdered, raped, and stole. It just didn’t make the headlines anymore, because the media worked its magic promoting fear and agendas.

After getting situated in the car and pulling out, Audrey started to talk, pulling Ken’s thoughts back into the vehicle. He listened to her mention both Asselta and Humes and grinned. It was somewhat annoying, but he was no fool. He knew that for the next few days, things would mainly focus on the new guy. It’s the nature of things like this.

The last part of her dialogue made him furrow a brow. He didn’t want to see fire before there was even smoke, so he didn’t say too much. “Asselta will do fine. She’s finally hitting her stride. I’m very content with her progress of late. And Humes.” He shook his head, but the motion could have been interpreted as him simply checking his mirror and traffic around him. “He seems Ok. I mean, shit, a better fit than a few of the other members, at least on paper. But yeah. Something is off. I mean, no one seems to want to say shit about him other than enough to be accused of NOT saying anything. I’ll talk to the Chief when he gets back, see what word he’s gotten.”

He took a drink from a bottle of water and continued. “Keep in mind, Detroit was a big city. It’s messy, rife with politics and corruption. He could be a dirty cop, or he could have done something right that pissed off the wrong person in power. We won’t know until we know. For the time being, let’s focus on this. I think this should go down smooth. Guy isn’t prone to violence, no priors, no drug abuse. We have the locals tailing him and once they get him in a spot where they can lock things down, they’ll radio us so we’ll be on standby until then. You up for this?”

He knew she was, the question was just to ruffle her a little bit. She’d know this and respond in kind, but he was eager to get her focus on where it needed to be, not off on two other detectives.

[Prologue]

The whole time that he was speaking, Skye remained silent as she watched him carefully. Occasionally, she nodded in understanding or gave a slight smile, but otherwise, she kept still. The voice of a radio host announcing commercial break was the only sound that waded through the few quiet moments when Stan did not speak, but surprisingly, he did talk a lot. Perhaps, she thought, too much.

There was a reason why she worked where she did. While he told her of his background, Skye felt that kind of itch that she couldn’t quite scratch—the itch that told her that something else was behind his transfer than mere disagreement between him and his superiors. While his story did match up with what little things she had heard about him so far, there was something remarkably generic about the things he said. As far as Skye was concerned, there were no blatant lies, but his words sounded too well-rehearsed, and more importantly, too detailed and yet still lacking in substance. He listed too many details that covered up anything directly related to him, which further rubbed her the wrong way. He seemed to blame anyone but himself for what had happened. People, lawyers, news papers, politicians, and even the officers were mentioned, but he seemed to take little responsibility himself.

Still, it was his first day. She couldn’t expect anything else, and she shouldn’t blame him for being reserved or nervous. In fact, she should be thankful that no matter who he and his background was, he at least had the sense to keep whatever had caused his transfer to himself. It was possible that he was completely honest too. It was not her place to doubt him—while questioning him was inevitable, she was sure that the departments knew what they were doing. Had he been a complete jerk he would, as he’d put it, have been fired.

”Well, perhaps you won’t fight the bogeyman, but I’m sure we can find you a scary vampire or two to wrestle”, she finally said and, for the first time since he opened his mouth, turned her gaze away and instead looked at the road ahead. She thought she heard him commenting something about people and people, but before she could ask him what he had said, he fired questions back at her.

She knew he would ask sooner or later. It was her turn, and rightfully so.

”Indeed I am”, she nodded again. ”Which means that I'm useless without you since my powers can’t do anything on their own. Magical enhancers, which I’m sure you already know, use their powers to cast enhancements on humans, causing things such as increased strength or agility, but it won’t work on supernaturals.” Many of the enhancers she had met thought their gift quite dull—they could never enjoy the extent of the powers themselves. It was like baking a cake you would never get to taste. When that happened on a day-to-day basis, it easily became frustrating.

While explaining what enhancers were was simple, telling her own story was another fact. Skye didn’t even know what parts of her story he wanted to hear; however, she decided to follow his lead and focus on her career. It was all he needed to know. ”Before joining the ASA, I got my education. You know, the mandatory League of Magic qualifications and all, and then I went on to college. I always knew I wanted to work with supernaturals though, so applying to the ASA came naturally to me. They’re almost always in need of good people, because supernaturals seem to breed like rabbits. And yes”, she admitted with a hint of playfulness in her voice, ”I know I’m one of them. Anyway, I got the job soon after graduation, so I think I’ve been working here for maybe two, three years.”

As they drove through the city and left the downtown areas, the surroundings turned less bustling and more lifeless.

”So, just to make it clear. We’re going to his house to take a look and see if he’s around. Depending on what happens, we’ll see where we go from there. Quite simple, you should know how it works. Turn left here.” She pointed her finger at a road leading to the outskirts of the city. ”And if you have any questions or feel like you want to take a break, just tell me, okay? You don't have anything to prove on your first case."

[Prologue]

While she was aware that Ken was only trying to remain professional, Audrey was still disappointed with his answer. If he knew more than he’d given away during the morning meeting, he evidently didn’t want to elaborate further in private either. He wouldn’t even make any wild guesses, which Audrey herself was busy doing. The new agent could’ve been corrupt, caught using excessive force, sleeping with his boss’ wife… the list seemed endless. Ken, however, quickly took her mind off possible offences through returning to talking about their case.

Audrey should have known that was where she was supposed to direct her attention. Yet, she had to look away so Ken wouldn’t see how she closed her eyes and rolled them defeatedly. ”Anyway, I’m just saying I think it’s weird that we’ve got this new guy that we hardly know anything juicy about when there obviously is something going on. That’s all. Definitely talk to the Chief about him."

She wanted to add that Ken should let her know what Chief Givens said about their new agent, but for once she stopped herself before she blurted it out. Sometimes, Audrey struggled to remember that certain things weren’t hers to know, and if they were, she was positive that Ken would tell her. If not, she would remember to ask him.

In an attempt to shift her focus to their case, she nodded at his question and put her hands together in excitement. "You know I’m always ready”, she said and flashed a smile at him. ”Do you even know I used to be in the Girl Scouts when I was a kid? They have this mantra or whatever that you always have to 'be prepared’, or something like that. I don’t really remember, but I have it in me. To always be ready. Even though I did quit the Scouts after a couple of months, tying knots and selling dry cookies to old ladies wasn’t really my…” Upon realising that she unconsciously digressed into the opposite direction of where Ken seemed keen to take their conversation, Audrey suddenly trailed off. Ken had explicitly asked her to focus on their day ahead, and she had gone into talking about her short venture into scouting when she was nine years old. Audrey quickly drew her shoulders up to her ears and wrinkled her forehead. ”Sorry, Granderson. Yes, I’m up for this. And I agree with you, we shouldn't have any problems with this suspect.”

Focus, Audrey, she thought as she straightened her back in the seat and looked out the window. She knew that maintaining focus wouldn't be an issue once they got down to business, and she didn't quite see why Ken preferred talking about the case when they were only starting to get on their way to get the police. The police headquarters were not located all too far away from the ASA office, but the remnants of the early morning rush hour traffic meant that the car ride took longer than usual. Some chit chatting was more interesting than the briefing on the background of a suspect she already knew too well, but then again, Ken only tried to do his job.

[Azseth]

He could see the wheels spinning in her head, but he couldn’t be sure of what the subject was up there. Sure, part of him thought it was him, his story, and him being new, but he didn’t know that and didn’t want to be too presumptuous. The truth of the matter though, was that if she WAS, it wasn’t a surprise. It was all part of the first day.

Yes. He hated first days.

He didn’t understand the issues that went along with being an enhancer and he probably never would unless she, or another, explained it. It just wasn’t something someone outside of that circle would think about or imagine. Most other, if not all, other SNs were looked at as “cool” and as being envied for being able to do unimaginable things. In a way, it was like they were viewed as rock stars, including the negativity, self destruction--the metaphorical double edged sword.

While he was mundane, he did understand certain aspects of the things supernaturals went through. As an eccentric, he had to worry about perceptions and how people would react if they knew he was capable of “abnormal” things. Basically, there was that issue with wanting to be viewed as normal, not as a thing that can do something.

As she continued, he kept his eyes on the road, nodding occasionally if she happened to be looking his way, just so she knew he wasn’t just blowing her off. After she mentioned how long she’d worked there, he nodded and then things got quiet for a shot moment. He was about to ask a question about her time in and keep dialogue open in that area when she started talking about the task at hand.

He bristled slightly at the ‘just to make it clear’ part of her statement but didn’t say anything and tried to brush it away. It just seemed as if she thought he was going to kick down a door, or start shaking down people. He wrote it off as just her being unsure of his methods, which was completely understandable. It just wasn’t his nature to assume the worst of people. Then again, he understood with all the questions floating around. While it was completely unnecessary, he did appreciate her giving him a bit of breathing room and reassurance, and he turned the vehicle to the left. He knew where he was going, but it didn’t matter if she felt like guiding.

They pulled to the address a bit later and parked the car. While he didn’t make mention of it, he was extremely particular about how and why he did certain things. He made sure that the vehicle was parked in a manner that would allow then to drive straight out, but also one that would allow them room to turn the vehicle around in one motion if necessary. From the moment they were near the neighborhood, he went into a different kind of zone. Looking at him, it could be noted that he was simply more focused. His eyes were always moving. He was taking in the entire scene. Part of this was from his military time, some from his detective and beat cop time.

In his experience, he noted there were different kinds of detectives, or in this case, agents. He was slightly unsure about Asselta and the other agents, but part of that was his own issues with being hyper vigilant. He had been in all kinds of situations and environments where things can go from calm to a shitstorm in the matter of a few seconds, and generally, you could either see the storm coming and take measures, or get swept away and hope for the best.

Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.

He turned the car off and continued to scan the area, waiting for Asselta to take the lead. "Well, we're here. All set?"

[Azseth]

Ken smiled as Agent James went on about it. He, like everyone else, was somewhat curious Humes, but not everyone was curious for the same reasons. Mareno, she probably just wanted to know enough to either tease him into agony, or fuck him. Some wanted to know because it was gossip. Some wanted to know just to know, and others wanted to know so they knew what they were dealing with in the field. For most, it was some combination of the above things.

Ken cared because it was his job, and lives of people and the agents depended on him knowing what was going on.

James was a prime example of how important it was to observe and make calls based on his own thoughts and experiences and not on other less important things--like the opinions of people who didn’t realize how unimportant their opinions actually were.

When James was recommended to him via Chief Givens, there was a LOT of flak in the air. There was politicking, posturing, and veiled threats here and there. The short of it is that her father was someone important some where, and some people thought that her getting recommended was simply an extension of that. The good news was that if anyone cared less about pushing weight around and catering to egos than Ken himself, it was Chief Givens. Sure, the Chief would dance the dance often, but it was generally only if it ultimately meant nothing. He didn’t let his own ego get in the way of things or worry about placating people just to get favors. It was refreshing.

So James was thrown his way, emails and calls were made, advice was given but ultimately the call fell on the shoulders of Ken and the Chief knew to trust his judgment. The end result was that she was as squared away as it gets--not a total package, but everyone had faults and flaws. Ken himself included.

Ken ignored the apology that was thrown his way and just smirked out the side of his mouth. It was tough being in charge. He knew that had he been anyone else, there would have been no apology but instead some form of joke or ribbing. But there had to be SOME level of respect and he understood that. “We’ll be there in a few. You feel like taking point today? Giving the brief, delegating out tasks and setting up? You know the drill. They block off, we go in, our TAC on standbye, their own SWAT ready behind that. The normal drill.”

He was curious how she’d react but he assumed she’d take the chance to step up and run with it. She was eager, he’d give her that, but his challenge with her was getting her to look at the reason for that eagerness and assess whether it was positive or negative. She was prone to want to do things to prove people wrong, or prove herself to be right, and there was no real place for that. Decisions had to be made from a place of common sense, logic, and insight.

He studied her out of the corner of his eye as he drove, already knowing what the answer would be but eager to hear it come out.