Participants:
| Scene Title | Good Cop, Bad Cop, Maverick Cop |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | … or agents. Dante and Isabella introduce themselves to Veronica, who is less than welcoming — but that might have to do with Isa's bad attitude. |
| Date | June 9, 2010 |
Fort Hero Gymnasium
Now that the snow has thawed and spring has finally come, commuting to Fort Hero is easier than it has been for months, and Veronica is no longer spending her nights sleeping on a rec room couch or her own office chair. Arriving at work at the crack of dawn, she resumes her habit of starting her day with a long workout. With a five-mile run on the treadmill already beneath her belt for the morning, she is now in the sparring area, kicking and punching the hell out of one of the attack-dummies set up for practice purposes.
Headphones in her ears, the 5'5" brunette is in her own world as she kicks and punches — the slaps and smacks against the dummy's vinyl making a sort of frenetic rhythm and beat, no doubt matching the music only she can hear. The moves are a mix of Hapkido, Taekwondo, and just plain ol' street brawling, if one knows their martial arts.
It's early. Isabella does not do early. Or, well, not usually. But ever since the thaw, she's been needing to feel productive, which she foolishly told Dante. Now her life is a whirlwind of early starts and new workout routines, getting a jump on the day before it begins. Today is one such early start, and the petite agent is as surly as ever as she stumbles into the gym with her unruffled compatriot in tow.
It's clear that she's taken the time to look nice, at least, though looking nice for the Company gym is an odd aspiration. She has her hair neatly pulled into a ponytail, makeup dutifully applied— understated, but not dull— and and she's wearing a pair of track shorts and a black tanktop. Still, she looks tired, and cranky as ever, which for Isa means she's very cranky indeed. "Fuckin' early morning starts, swear to god, I'm gonna murder everything." Very possible. Crawling onto the treadmill, she shoots a venomous glare at Dante and then looks at Veronica, her attempts at soothing her temper and looking personable only marginally successful. Is that a smile? Not…really, but it's a start.
Early to bed and early to rise, and all that. Dante had always been a believer of the benefits of getting up before the sun does. Foolish Isabella, expecting something non-masochistic from the workaholic. Dante is dressed down moreso than Isabella, which gives a hint as to who's more used to going to the gym. His hair is combed but unshowered, and he's dressed in trackpants as well, though he's wearing a white undershirt instead of a tank.
"I've told you, Isabella, no matter how much you complain, I'm not going to let you have any coffee. It fucks up your system." He drops a towel from off his shoulder, taking up a spot on a treadmill near Isabella, looking very pleased with himself. Getting himself started on his exercise, his eyes wander…and fall on Veronica. Brows furrow, and there's the look Isa may recognize as him finding something interesting to look at.
Finally stopping, Veronica bends to reach for her water bottle, picking it up and taking long, deep drinks before noticing the arrival of the two agents. Reaching up with one taped hand to pull the headphones out of one ear and then the other, she raises her chin in what serves as a nod to Isabella and Dante. Her hand drops down to turn off the iPod at her waist while she takes another few swallows of water and begins to move toward them.
"You must be agents Lupinetti and Sawson," she says, her voice husky and a touch breathless from her dance with the mannequin. "Welcome aboard. I'm Veronica." She bends to pick up a towel, wiping off her hands so that once she's close enough to shake, they won't be sweaty.
Isabella gives Dante a somewhat bratty look, mouthing his words back at him in a snitty fashion before regarding Veronica as she approaches. She sizes up the taller woman, eyeing her as one might eye a potential opponent. Or a steak. But the name that's passed isn't missed. "Veronica," she greets in a clipped manner. "Yes, Isabella Dawson. Ryans said we ought to find you about the case you're on?" The woman does not deign to take the no-longer-sweaty hand, at least for a long moment. But she finally gives it a weak shake. Gross!
Water off a duck's back. Dante must be some kind of Buddhist master to only give her a small smile back. As Veronica comes up, Dante slows his run to a walk, reaching out to give Veronica's hand a friendly shake. "Yes, a pleasure to finally meet you, Agent Sawyer. What is this case about that Ryans thinks you could use our help with?"
Their talk of a case that she needs their help with gets an arched brow from Veronica. "I didn't requisition any help on any particular case that I'm aware of. The cases that are open I'm sure you're both familiar with. The only case I'm considered lead on is Samson Gray, but there is nothing particularly new or relevant that I'm seeking assistance on at this time," she murmurs, glancing from one to the other before taking another sip of her water. "Unless you're negators with really big ranges, I don't suggest you go looking for him yourselves, either," she adds.
Isabella snorts and turns back to her treadmill to punch buttons into the machine, to quick-start it. "Well. I don't know, he just said to talk to you. So whatever. And I'm not retarded. I'm not going after that asshole." She starts jogging on her treadmill, looking quite venomous. Perhaps it's time to leave the talking to Dante.
"Isabella," Dante says in that typical quelling tone you hear from the more levelheaded person of any pair. Veronica gets the focus on Dante's attention again, his eyes flicking down her body, lingering on her shoulder, her thigh, her wrist. "We specialize in finding the trails others might have missed, Agent Sawyer. If you don't have any new leads, we may be able to help."
"I'm sure you're not retarded," Veronica says slowly, emphasizing the word that really no mature adult should be using, "as the Company wouldn't have hired you if you were. Well, there is Elle, but she's an anomaly." She glances at Dante, and nods. "The trouble is that any trails have probably been snowed over, iced over, and melted by now. It's possible, however. The weather made it pretty much an impossibility to find him except by chance, and that went over pretty horribly due to the bad luck of having other agents," not to mention Gabriel, "involved, or we would have him now. If I get any leads and need your help, I will let you know."
Isabella rolls her eyes and scoffs at Veronica. "Thanks for that, Captain Obvious," she snaps, as her treadmill comes up to speed. "Well, whatever. We have a lead with…what's her face. Whatever. Blondie. Flower, or whatever her name is. We'll be working on that Thursday. But yeah. You need any investigations done… Well. We're on the Investigations team for a reason." And that reason is, apparently, to Isa, glaringly obvious and a sign of their inherent greatness. People should be grovelling to have them on their team. Duh.
"Flora," Dante says automatically, like Isabella's mocking tones were some kind of Pavlovian trigger for him, "I think we're all just getting over a little cabin fever, Veronica. Add to that Isabella and I recently arriving here, only to have to sit on our thumbs for a while…well, we'd like to get back into the rotation."
Sawyer's brows lift higher on her forehead as she stares at Isabella, before turning to regard Dante coolly. Apparently the two play good cop, bad cop, and he's the charmer of the two. It certainly isn't Isabella. Her whiskey-brown eyes flicker back to the woman on the treadmill. "Agent Sawyer, and second lead field agent on the investigations team. I usually do my own investigations for a reason, or request agents I can trust at my back. Nice to meet you both."
Veronica moves toward the locker room before glancing over her shoulder. "Good luck with Anderson. She's pretty special herself."
This morning is apparently the morning for playground antics, as Isabella gives Veronica a bad-tempered snort, even rolling her eyes for effect. "Nice to meet you too," she mutters between breaths as she jogs. As for the comment about Flora, it gets a short bark of a laugh, and an unfriendly "You're telling me." No, Isabella most certainly is not the charmer. Especially not at dawn when she's being forced to exercise, but let's be honest: she's hardly charming when that's not the case either.
"Have a good day, Agent Sawyer," Dante says, eyes follows her out with a curious curl to his lips. Tapping a few buttons, he starts the treadmill back up, picking up into a brisk jog. Exercise gets the blood moving, and gets you ready for the day! What could be a better start? As his heart gets up to pace, Dante looks over at Isabella. "You're on the right track to be making lots of friends in the department."