Participants:
| Scene Title | So You're The One |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Cooper isn't exactly making good impressions his first day with the NYPD. He gets to meet a few of his fellow co-workers in the process. |
| Date | October 23, 2009 |
The New York Police Department Head Quarters is an old stone building, rennovated many times over the years. The plaster walls are not as cracked and in need of repair as the various Precinct buildings around the city. The fluorescent lights give the room a rather sterile glow. Old posters, civic reminders, duty rosters and newspaper clippings are tacked up on the walls, rustling every time one of the doors opens. A high, wooden desk sits on the north wall, manned by two clerks, who records all visitors and arrests.
The way out to the street lies to the south, while doors to the offices of the Head Quarters lie to the northwest.
It's been a hell of a morning for the the newest member of the New York Police Department, Cooper. For one, finding a clean shirt was a bitch and a half. Really.. he needs to remember to do laundry tonight. Then ex-wife #1 decided to call to - - again - - chew him out for the move.
"Your daughter is just devastated that you left her like this."
What she was really saying was… "Damn you, for leaving me babysitter-less.. Now how am I going to go out and pick up guys at the bar." Okay well.. maybe not, maybe Cooper was just bitter that she could still make him feel guilty.
All in all, it wasn't looking up for Cooper, as he marches his way up the stairs into the room that housed the detectives. A beat up cardboard box clutched in his arms and a sugar coated donut lodged in his mouth, he follows one of the sergeants to an empty desk. He nods a thanks to the helpful officer and making a sound that might be a 'Thank you.' The box gets dropped on the desk with a loud thump, a lidded tall cup of coffee is extracted from it, and Cooper can finally take that bite of his donut. Chewing and brushing the graduals of sugar off his jacket and tie, he takes a seat in the chair of his new desk and shifts a bit, listening to it groan and squeak. "That can't be a good sound."
The man dropping his gear on the desks that used to belong to Cassidy O'Shea and Coren Shelby draws Elisabeth Harrison's attention up from her laptop. Her phone's to her ear at the moment, and she says, "Yeah… yeah, thanks. …. Okay, I got it. … YES. … Sheridan, fer chrissake, I'll have it there in half an hour, okay?" There's a roll of her blue eyes and she growls, "If you keep talking in my ear, sir, I can't type at all! …. Yes, sir." She finally hangs up and eyes the newcomer. "Name, rank, and serial number," she demands, her tone casual. "And the WD-40's in the bottom left drawer. O'Shea said you'd need it."
Twisting the chair side to side and making it bounce forward and back some, Cooper is taken off guard by the demanding voice. A push of a tennis shoe clad foot, turns him enough to look at the blonde. Well, lookee there. "Heeeey." Cooper draws out, leaning his chair back, trying to act all smooth. Of course, the effect is ruined by the pop and snapping sound and Cooper almost getting thrown backwards as the chair breaks. Good thing for reflexes, a grab at the edge of his desk, prevents him from looking worse then he already does.
The man is clearly embarrassed as he gets to his feet. "I — uh.. Names Thomas Cooper. Detective Thomas Cooper." Grabbing the broken chair he pulls it from behind his desk and proceeds to trade it with the one next to his desk. Woe to he who goes to claim that desk. Turning back to the blonde he flashes her a grin. "Nice to meet you… ah…"
"Harrison. Liz." Elisabeth is hard-pressed not to giggle at the attempt a smooth so rudely distorted into comedy. "You're the other new guy, huh? Where you coming in from?" She's apparently in no hurry to get back to whatever it was that Captain Sheridan wanted from her. "And yes, I'm nosy and annoying, just ask anyone." The squad room's not very full, else there might have been a lot of shuffling and coughing at that.
"Harrison.. Harrison.." Cooper's eyes narrow a bit as if trying to remember something. "Someone said something about a Harrison. Or maybe I'm just thinking of Harrison Ford. Who knows." He is careful to settle into this new chair, giving it a test wiggle and seeming satisfied that it doesn't squeaky. Leaning back in it, he sighs. "Yeah, I'm one of the new guys. I'm from the New Jersy PD… and isn't nosy kind of in our job description?" The donut is picked up from where he set it on the desk and takes a big bite. How he manages to talk around it is a feat in itself. "Is it really as crazy around here as they say?" He asks, while digging in his box and pulling out the picture of a young girl, and setting it on the desk… followed shortly be a mug declaring he's the 'World's Gratest Dad' misspelled just like that with little lop-sided red hearts all over. It all has been painted on by little hands.
There's a derisive snort from Elisabeth at that info. "I'm sure," she comments dryly to the 'someone said something about a Harrison.' "If it was rude, believe it. If it was nice and sweet, it was a lie," she tells him. And then grins slightly. "And it's crazier. Especially right now. We've got a gang war going on in Chinatown and an Evo-human war going on in the streets too. Watch your back when you step outside." She watches him unpack his pictures and stuff.
"At least the health plan is.. oh wait.. that's right it's HMO." Cooper comments dryly around another bite of donut. "Its no wonder they are asking around for replacements." The picture of the girl is adjusted, his head tilting a bit before he leans back again, feet moving to prop on his desk, obviously he's done unpacking for now. The white tennis shoes on his feet are a striking contrast for the rest of his outfit. "So… gang wars and race wars.. so to speak.. I saw that they are getting that one building next door cleaned up fast. I mean.. we usually had our share of evolved problems…" the last bite of the donut is popped in his mouth, "But nothing like that so far."
"Welcome to the big leagues, Cooper," Elisabeth tells him dryly. "Where stepping out your door every day is an adventure. Join the NYPD, see the universe… get shot at all the time. It works out in the wash. But hey, the perks are great! … not." She moves to get up out of her seat and heads toward the coffee pot. "And don't drink the coffee if Granger makes it. It's worse than sludge." She pours a cup, doctors it with unholy amounts of sugar and nondairy creamer, and comes back. "They assigned you to a partner yet?"
Cooper pops the lid off his Starbuck coffee cup, exposing the black liquid in it, man obviously takes his black. "That bad, huh? No wonder my exes were so against me coming here." He blows on the hot coffee and takes a small sip, "I die they stop getting my money." There is a sort of cheerfulness in how he says that, the thought bringing him some sort of joy. Another sip is taken before Cooper answers her. "No, no partner yet. I imagine they will get around to it someday."
A woman in a business outfit, slips between the two and drops forms on Cooper's desk, gives him a disapproving look and moves on. "Crap. I thought I had ditched her. I told her that skirt makes her ass look big." Cooper's voice drops low when he mentions that. Heaving a sigh, he picks up the forms and starts flipping through them, "I don't remember it being this much work when I joined the force. So Harrison…" The chair twist back towards her again. "Where do the cops go for fun around here?"
Elisabeth grins at the woman in the skirt, and then snickers. "You pissed off Ellen? You are so fucked," she tells him. "Caramels. Bring caramels to apologize with. Or she'll make your life hell every time you have to file an insurance claim for being shot. Seriously." As to fun, she purses her lips. "Depends…. if I trust you to act like a reasonable guy, I send you to Old Lucy's, where the bartender and owner'll do right by you. If you're gonna be a jackass or if you're anti-Evo, I got noplace to send you."
"Yeah.. yeah I did." Cooper admits sounding a bit hang dog about it. "The words kind of just… slipped out." The paperwork is slapped on he desk. "And how would I apologize to that one chick.. Um.. Debbie? Down at the front desk? Not the Sargent. I got caught staring at… ah.. Know what.. never mind. Caramels… check. " He makes a check mark in the air. The mention of anti-evolve he arches a brow at her. "Am I suppose to be anti-evolved and a jackass… cause not too sure I could pull that off. I knew this one guy Frank.. He freakin' had acid saliva.. Seriously, it was awesome…. and disturbing all at the same time. Felt for him tho… couldn't French kiss or risk…." he trails off realizing where he is, ".. anyhow. Old Lucy's… gotcha."
The blonde eyes the man and says, "So you're the one. There's always one in every squad — can't get his foot out of his own mouth to save his life. It's gonna be you, isn't it?" She rolls her eyes. "Old Lucy's. If you insult Abby or the women who work there, though, your life won't be worth a plug nickel, man – seriously."
"If I say.. more then likely.. would you hate me?" Cooper gives Liz the hurt puppy look. "Don't hate me Harrison." He whimpers, then breaks into a toothy grins. "But yes.. My file is probably full of complaints. Could probably wallpaper the place." So aware of the fact, it doesn't seem to bother him as it should. He pulls out the thin top drawer and exclaims, "Hey look, she left me pens." Plucking one out, he scoots his chair in to start filling out the monsters amount of paperwork. "I don't plan to insult anyone if I can help it." He finally comments after a moment of writing.
Elisabeth snickers. "Naw, I won't hate you. I'll just know ahead of time that kicking you in the ass is going to be the norm," she comments with a shake of her head. "So what's your specialty? Coming in from Vice or Narcotics or what?"
"And I imagine I'll look forward too and enjoy every ass kicking." Cooper quips lightly, sticking that foot in his mouth already, but he's too busy filling out his paperwork to notice. "My specialty? Homicide. Figured I did that my first few years as a detective.. But I'm coming from Jersey's Narcotics. So you could say I bounce around as needed." One paper set aside and he starts in on the next. "You?"
"I have no problem kicking someone's ass. Got someone in mind?" Of course, he's missed half the conversation, but Nash steps around the corner and moves towards his desk. He practically collapses in his chair, "Fff.. " He sees Cooper is filling out the dreaded paperwork, and he grins. "The answer to number 4 is 'Sheep'. That would be the question asking for gender.
When Nash joins, Liz gestures to the man. "My new partner. I can't decide if they put you guys near me in the hopes I'd be nicer than everyone else or chase you off. I've decided the latter is my job," she comments mildly. "Nash, this is Cooper. You just officially graduated off the noob status."
And yes, Cooper actually looks at question four with a look of confusion. "And here I thought the answer was 'stud.' " It's commented a touch blandly, as he turns to eye the newcomer. He glances at Liz and smirks. "Your partner? That's a relief." There could be many reasons why he said that, but he doesn't plan to elaborate. Her gives Nash a tight lipped smile and quick single wave. "Hey there Nash."
There's a dramatic pause as Nash yawns, lazily lifting up his hand to cover his mouth as he does so. When he's finished he glances from one to the other. "Sorry, only one of you can be the lucky one to be my partner, and I'm afraid Coop, that she's got you by a mile in the 'babe' department." He smirks as he taps the keys on his keyboard. He hasn't even got a password yet, so all it does it stop the screensaver.
Elisabeth smirks evilly. "Yeah… but I'll extend my largesse to you and mute him when he gets too obnoxious for words," she tells Cooper. Oh, she didn't miss his comment… time will tell exactly what he meant by it. She does turn her head back to her computer, though — the email she was working on needs to get sent. "And my specialty was hostage negotiation… until SCOUT. Now it's Evo crimes."
"It's been an interesting gig, really." Nash comments as he turns to watch the man off load his desktop items. Seriously? He's gonna be sitting next to sugar dusted Mister Rogers? "Especially when Harrison tried to run down some kid in the middle of the street." He grins at Liz.
"Fffffffffffff," Elisabeth retorts with a snort. "Fuck you, Nash. Goddamn kid stepped out from nowhere. He's lucky I was driving; you wouldn't have been able to stop that quick." She flashes her partner a quick grin and sends out the report Sheridan's waiting for. Then she looks at the men. "Evo crimes. Like…. two serial killer cases in the past two months. Humanis First cases. Your day-to-day mass suicides, robberies with powers, rapes, attempted rapes, murders. It's kind of a catch-all for any crime that had to do with powers. Trick is, now that they're disbanding SCOUT, there's no actual squad to deal with it… so EVERYONE gets to take part in the fun."
That is right live it up Nash… You are stuck with him. Cooper brushes granules off his paperwork and fills in another blank. "Why the hell do they need to know what kind of tree I think I am.. What.. I put weeping willow they call me Emo?" He sighs and sets the donut on the edge of his desk and grabs his coffee. "I think I heard of SCOUT.. Jersey was thinking about starting one, then this FRONTLINE stuff came about, now they are suppose to call them. Yay Government!" The pen is held like it's a little flag and waved a bit, his word rather bitter. "Always sticking their noses in our business." He glances at Harrison. "They have Homeland here too? And do they come snatch up cases like it's a candy store?"
Nash lives it up all right. You're damn skippy, pops. He's still getting the hang of things around here and so far he's had no dealings with Homeland Security or FRONTLINE, so he doesn't comment on that. He leans his head back and his eyes drift shut, only to snap open again as he nearly loses his balance in his chair. "Shit.." he mutters under his breath as he listens to the conversation back and forth. He's mostly here for the photo op and to get laid. Not necessarily in that order, and preferably not at the same time. You gotta love being a cop.
"Yeah, we've got Homeland. Depends on who you get and what kind of case drops in your lap whether they bother to get involved at all or suddenly swoop down and act like God himself ordered they should take over." There's a bitterness to Elisabeth's tone that she doesn't bother to hide. "FRONTLINE I'm still withholding judgment on. Seems like overkill to create a whole new team that doesn't actually report to anyone in the legal chain of command. But we'll see how much they abuse it."
In response to Homeland's involvment, Cooper blandly states, "Oh good.. It'll be just like home." He tosses the pen on the desk with a look of disgust. He takes a moment to down the last of his coffee before saying, "Anytime the government makes anything like that.. its a bad idea. Not that I'm saying bad things about the evolved mind you, just anytime the government gets these grand ideas." A now empty coffee cup gets tossed into the little trash can near Cooper's desk. "I can just see it going all wrong. Either it'll bite them on the ass, or they will just ignore the trouble and plug along." Shrugging, Cooper picks up that donut again, "Who knows."
"Might not be such a big deal. I think in some cases the additional help could be handy. If half of the things I've read about that's gone on here in the last couple of years are true, the more help the better, I say. Shit, that list you read me of our caseload was pages long." Nash reaches for his coffee and takes a swallow. "We're definitely undermanned all over the city, from what I've heard. But whatever, I have a job that I love and there are plenty who don't even have that, so I'm not complaining."
Elisabeth chuckles quietly. "Yeah… well, you know… it's kinda the way it is. I actually turned one of my serial killer cases over to Homeland — had to quit following up on in it — because they already knew who the suspect was and didn't want NYPD involved." She shrugs a bit. "I have enough other shit going on that I'm not getting into a jurisdictional pissing match with the liaison these days. She can handle it or not, her problem." She grins slightly. "Now, if I happen to come ACROSS the suspect, that's a whole different kettle of fish, you understand."
Cooper eyes Nash with a small smirk, "Wait till you've about cracked a case and they come swooping in take it and claim all credit." Personal experience? Maybe.. maybe not. "And besides.. this undermanned thing, that is why they brought you and me in, Nash. With hope they get more though, since the situation sounds worse then they made it sound. False advertising."
"And here I thought it was because of my good looks and sex appeal." Nash grins at Cooper, "Besides, there are plenty of ways to get around that whole Homeland thing. Let them come on in and try and steal a case of mine. They may not get everything they've come looking for." He turns to Liz, "What's on tap for today, Harrison? Got any more kids you wanna run over today?"
"Nope. Just a partner I wanna dump coffee on," Elisabeth comments with a smirk. "I gotta go see Sheridan. You two play nice." She moves to get up and heads for the captain's office to make sure he has the report she sent in email.
"Wow.. I wouldn't have guessed lookin' at you." Cooper comments, his tone flat as he gives Nash a once over, "But you know.. whatever makes you feel better about yourself." He smirks a bit as he pushes away from the desk and stands. Scooping up the stack of papers and his donuts, he declares, "And I better go turn these in…." He pauses and tosses the papers down, "I better wait till Ellen isn't so pissy about the skirt making her look fat comment. Okay.. well… I'll go find out what I'm going to get saddled with." With that he wonders away donut in hand.