And What Remains ((RP with 12yrs_life))

[control_issues]

((OOC: Takes place after this thread!

It always struck Dani as fucked up that out to the two of them, Charlie was the one who’d been to prison, when she was the partner who had committed actual felonies. But she’d had Karen on her side, she’d had her father’s reputation on her side, and those things were enough to keep her name out of papers and off the case reports.

Charlie hadn’t had anyone protecting him. Not anyone. But he did now. He had Dani, Ted, Stark, Tidwell. Even Karen had shown up for Charlie’s bail hearing, along with some of the other people in the office whose names Dani sometimes pretended to forget. He had a lot of people on his side.

But when visiting hours were over, he’d still been in that cell, alone. Dani didn’t know what that meant, or what that was going to mean.

He got bail. He got bail, and that was the important thing. And when the thing was called and people went off to the bar to celebrate, for some reason it was just Charlie and Dani left in the courtroom. She walked up to him with her arms crossed, not sure what to say.

“Crews?”

Comments

Just realized I have no sunglasses icon. How is that possible D:

[notsopowerless.livejournal.com]

All Crews got in response to his "thanks" was a shrug, which was essentially Dani speak for, "don't mention it".

Keeping up with him a little easier now -- and that was good, because the sooner they got back in step, the sooner Crews was here -- Dani put on her sunglasses. Wasn't that bright out, but she didn't have any fondness for press, either.

There were one or two reporters loitering out back, but not a horde. That was good, right? Dani pulled out her badge, prepared to clear them away if need be.

I don't think I have any either, but I have very little space for icons.

[12yrs-life.livejournal.com]

Charlie beat her to the reporters, who once they spotted him had rushed forward with hand held recorders and eager faces.

"No comment," he said calmly. There was no Zen brush off, no half-hearted attempted to charm the reporters away, just a simple, cold statement.

He still wasn't Charlie Crews, free man, yet. That would take a little while longer. Stepping around the reports, who were still trailing after him, he kept his stride level for Reese but clearly wanted to go.

Ditto~

[notsopowerless.livejournal.com]

"I brought my tazer," Dani muttered under her breath, quiet enough for Crews and no one else. "Just saying."

[12yrs-life.livejournal.com]

He flashed a brief, honest smile before his features went carefully blank again.

"That'll just give them a story."

[notsopowerless.livejournal.com]

Dani nodded and looked down as she walked, considering the headline.

"LAPD Detective tazes the paparazzi: gets key to the city and anger management training."

[12yrs-life.livejournal.com]

"I don't think that have keys to the city anymore. Do they?"

He cocked his head as they neared his car, tried to consider that problem before he shook his head and went to the driver side door.

"Anger management will never go away."

[notsopowerless.livejournal.com]

"I don't know. I don’t even know what a key to the city would open."

She slid into the car, slouching back. She took a pen out of her pocket and started to fiddle with it unconsciously.
"Not until people stop getting angry." She glanced at the reporters out of the side of her eyes. "I don’t see that happening."

[12yrs-life.livejournal.com]

Charlie turned the engine over and with one last look at the reporters, roared out of the parking lot without looking back. He turned on the lights so he could speed.

He wanted out of the city.

"Anger is a poison. Anger is pain. I give up my anger, I give up my pain."

[notsopowerless.livejournal.com]

Dani couldn't really argue with that, could she? She looked over at Crews, at the city behind him, at the buildings that were becoming nothing but blurs as they sped by.

"I'm angry for you," she admitted. "Is that poison?"

[12yrs-life.livejournal.com]

"We don't need more poison in our lives, Reese. Let's just... let it go."

But it was hard for him. He was pissed and scared, wavering back and forth between the two and while it was getting easier the farther they got from the city, it was still not that great.

[notsopowerless.livejournal.com]

“Okay.” Dani didn’t think anger was poison. Anger had gotten her through a lot – but she wasn’t the one that needed to get through this.

“How are you right now?”

[12yrs-life.livejournal.com]

He glanced at her for a second and then looked back at the road.

"I am..."

He thought about lying to her, because well, he'd lied to her before about things but really what was the point? It was Reese.

"I want to drive out of LA and never look back."

[notsopowerless.livejournal.com]

“I know.” Who could blame him? “I wanted to do the same thing, after...” She waved her hand. The drug thing. Charlie knew.


“I’m not saying it’s the same, ‘cause it’s not.” Dani actually deserved to be in prison. Crews didn’t. “But I get when things all seem too close together. Like you can’t trust the same streets you used to walk every day.”

[12yrs-life.livejournal.com]

Yeah, he didn't need the hand wave to know she was talking about the drugs. They didn't talk about the drugs though.

He shook his head a little. "I trust the streets, the streets don't change. I don't trust the people. I thought it ended with Rayborn and in that SUV, but... someone still wants me."

[notsopowerless.livejournal.com]

“And we can find out who that person is.” Dani leaned forward, looking at the dashboard. “We can find out who that person is, and what that person wants. And we can put a stop to it.”

She didn’t know how, exactly. Crews had more experience with that kind of thing. But they’d manage it.

“We’ll put a stop to this, and then you can drive away to wherever you want to drive away.”

[12yrs-life.livejournal.com]

"I took down the wall."

He was angry with himself for that now. He had assumed and he knew better than to assume. He didn't have everyone in the conspiracy, but he thought Rayborn was the leader so having the leader meant he was safe.

He was wrong.

"I kept it, but I took it down. Shouldn't have stopped."

[notsopowerless.livejournal.com]

"You needed to stop, for you. It was good that you stopped. You took it down, we’ll put it back up."

Was that Zen? It didn’t feel Zen. But Dani didn’t know what Zen felt like, really.

"Maybe putting it back together will give you a fresh perspective."

She wondered, idly, if she’d still be on the wall when it was back up.

[12yrs-life.livejournal.com]

He thought about bringing Reese in, once, when he had started looking into her father, but hadn't. It hadn't felt right. Bringing her in now felt right, but too late.

"I need to know," he said quietly as he turned onto the road that would lead him home. "I have to know."

[notsopowerless.livejournal.com]

"No shit." Dani thought she recognized this road as the way to Crew’s. That was a good sign, that he wasn’t driving off to Mexico. At least not with Dani in the car.

“You’ll know. We’ll figure it out. And in the process, you get to order some decent take out for dinner.”

Crews had told her about prison food before. She was guessing that it tasted worse a second time.

[12yrs-life.livejournal.com]

"What do you want?" he asked, focusing on the food instead on why Reese might be bringing that up.

He was trying to get away from prison, not go back. It was easier in the rolling hills near his home, but it was always with him.

[notsopowerless.livejournal.com]

"I don't care," Dani replied, reaching back and tightening her ponytail. Then, after a moment: "Chinese."

More because it was the first thing that popped into her head, than want of any particular craving. It didn't occur to her to question that she was staying for dinner that night.

[12yrs-life.livejournal.com]

"We've got... three Chinese take out menus. You can pick who delivers."

He didn't question Reese staying for dinner either. They'd shared take out and meals together, usually across their desks but it still counted. This was just at his house, where he was just pulling into the driveway.

[notsopowerless.livejournal.com]

Frankly, Dani was amazed that anyone delivered as far out as Charlie lived.

She got out of the car. Her own vehicle was sitting in Crews’ driveway, where it had been since seven in the morning. It hadn’t been a big couple of days for sleep.

“Tell that me you have coffee.”

[12yrs-life.livejournal.com]

"We have coffee and tea."

He unfolded himself from the car and strolled towards the door, which he still left unlocked even though he'd been shot. He couldn't lock himself in.

"But you'll want coffee and not tea."

[notsopowerless.livejournal.com]

“I’ll want coffee,” Dani confirmed, trailing Charlie into the house.

She didn’t say anything about the lock. The worst that could happen to Charlie had already happened – what else was someone going to do? Steal his TV? Dani wasn’t even sure that he had one.