The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster) (Completed)

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

"It's all right," Joseph murmured, letting a bit of old sadness enter his voice. "I made my peace with what happened years ago, and...I can't promise it ever goes away, but it gets easier." His own hand was rough under her fingers, a hand that had spent many hours working with tools and other less savory devices. It released the fork as she touched him, twisting slightly to meet her comforting fingers.

"I'm not sure the lieutenant has ever had a civil conversation in his life," Joseph said with a slight laugh. "It's probably only a matter of time before he pisses off someone in power and gets canned." On the other hand, you usually needed to play politics just to become a lieutenant. The fact that Kinsman had manged it, one way or another, was worrying.

The name Heller...it came from a man who taught me that it didn't matter what I did as long as I didn't get caught and that if I was stronger than someone, I had the right to do anything I wanted to them, thought Heller. "I think it's originally from England," said Joseph, taking a quick drink of water to hopefully silence his violent half. "I looked it up once," as part of an attempt to track down his father and determine whether or not the asshole deserved to become one of his son's victims, "and I believe it originally meant something like 'person living on a hill.' Emile's a bit of an unusual name as well," he added, trying to shift the conversation away from his past. "Is there a story behind it?"

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

Emile nodded her head sympathetically tapping her fingers gently against his in a sign of understanding. "That is reality, not everything is like a book or a movie." She smiled at him a little. "Real life isn't magical." His hands were warm against hers, she noted, they also felt similar in size, but her mind was distracted from that single detail. Emile felt something she hadn't really felt since she agreed to be Dennis's wife, a little spark in her chest, and her smile only brightened.

"Me either." She joined him in his laugh, grinning afterward as she thought about him getting fired, or humiliated or something of those likes. "Is it bad that I'd rather Miller be unhappy and here, then Kinsman be here and I be unhappy?" She snickered a little at her selfishness, it was a trait she had come to terms with.

Nodding the woman laughed a little. "It's a french name-- it's also a mans name. There is a story, but it's not that exciting. When I was born my father signed the papers with my name-- Emile, because they had thought I was going to be a boy. Ultrasounds can be wrong, you know." She snickered again, regaling her story. "So when my father came into the room with my mother and I, waving the papers around that he had signed... the doctor then informed him I was indeed female. It's a running joke in my family now. Dennis was thinking we could honor it by naming our first child a... unconventional name." She shrugged a little, looking down at her fingers.

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

"Sometimes it is," Joseph found himself saying, almost immediately feeling the need to kick his own ass for it. What the hell was that? Heller growled. Even you know how absurdly cheesy that was, the only sort of moron that even considers bullshit like that is- The rant dissolved into a storm of profanity, and yet he was right. Joseph was here to help Emile move on past her fiance's death, not...the thought faded without being finished. He wasn't quite ready to admit to anything like that.

He cleared his throat, rapidly moving on to the next topic. "If Miller knew what Kinsman was up to, he'd probably want to be back here too. he may have complained endlessly about the job and everything it involved," he shrugged slightly. "But he never forgot that the witnesses were people, and that if he didn't care, not a lot of other people would. Besides, his wife's cookies could keep the whole station on a sugar high for a week," he chuckled.

"I nearly had a strange name myself," Joseph said with a smile after her story. "For a while, my mother had her heart set on calling me Jettero. Jettero Heller was the main character in a book series she'd read, something about aliens trying to keep Earth from destroying itself before they could invade it. But the character was this idealistic, noble guy who was always doing the right thing, regardless of the cost. I think she dreamt I'd be some big hero instead of a kid who nearly got arrested twice," he chuckled. It sounded like a funny story, if you didn't know that he was nearly arrested because Heller hadn't done a good enough job at hiding the bodies.

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

Emile smiled at him, and could only imagine the kind of look he was giving her. She nodded her head at him, taking his words as a reassurance, and less of a cheesy, romantic line. It was just so... off... to think of Joseph in that light-- at least yet. She barely felt comfortable calling him by his first name. She was pondering that for a very short moment before he began to talk again, about Miller. Her face brightened as she laughed gently. "Those cookies were very good. If I felt comfortable in front of a stove, I would bake them-- she gave me the recipe. I'd just have to get someone to turn it into braille for me."

Another gentle laugh and she flicked her longer hair over her shoulder, using her thin fingers to brush it from her face. "Yeah? Were they going to call you Pam?" She interjected before he continued, merely grinning from little round ear, to little round ear. Another laugh flitted from her, as she shook her head. "At least we have that in common, I was arrested once-- but you all know that." She said sheepishly.

"You seem like a big Hero to me." Emile admitted, pointing a finger to her chest, "You rescued me from that Trent guy, who was taking me out the wrong exit. You've saved me from the hundreds of reporters I hear on my lawn almost every morning, and I'm sure the day will come when you'll have to save me from Kinsman." She snickered at herself, searching for the glass of cold water on the table. Being very careful, she took a sip, thankfully not spilling any down her front.

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

Joseph's brow furrowed slightly, the question of her using a stove making him wonder about her home life. If she wasn't really able to cook anything, than what was she eating? For that matter how did she do the shopping? Presumably some of her friends and neighbors must have been helping out now that Dennis had met his just end, but- Oh my God, who the fuck cares? Heller snarled. Maybe if she starves we can leave and I won't have to deal with your- Shut up, Heller.

He chuckled slightly at her mention of the arrest. "No one except Kinsman's going to worry about that. And maybe Mrs. Vardabinian: she's in the station every other day complaining about how the moral fiber of this city is causing us to remake Sodom and Gomorrah, as evidenced by the fact that her neighbor's dog continues to dig up her tulips and those darned kids are always," his voice took on a high, old lady falsetto "playing their heathen music in front of God-fearing households."

Joseph waved his hand a bit dismissively, shaking his head a little. It was so hard to remember that there was no need for the little motions of conversation, not when speaking with Emile. "I don't feel like much of a hero when I'm out on the job. For every person that's actually glad to see me, there are dozens who just think I'm looking for any opportunity to beat the freedom out of them or something." Heller rarely seemed to have that problem; he enjoyed his work, all of his work, whether it was arresting punks or slowly slicing apart a rapist.

He was about to go on when Emile carefully took a drink. "Oh, shoot, sorry, um..do you need, I don't know, a straw or something?" His voice was hesitant, not sure how to broach the subject when he really had no idea whether she needed any special considerations when eating and couldn't really ask without fear of insulting her.

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

Emile snorts in laughter, her face grinning. "Met her once. Told me that it was my fault I was both blind, and my fiance was dead, for being a heathen and a whore." She nodded with another laugh, able to joke about things now that had previously stung. Her shoulders were shaking from laughter as she swung her fingers through the air. "Had a lady around like that when I was growing up... we used to sneak into her yard at night and draw satanic circles in her flowers pots to provoke her." She snickered, but then stage whispered to him, "Don't tell the police."

"That may be true, but think of it the other way around. For every dozen bad guys around, there is at least one person cheering you on. It's like saying the cup is half full, instead of empty." She smiled at him warmly, having no idea about Heller and his fantasies.

Emile merely smiled at him after taking her sip, shaking her locks out. "No no. Straws would be even harder, they always move around on me." She laughed softly. "Once I find the glass, I'm usually pretty good."

She had forgotten about Sparky as she moved in her chair, her foot connecting with his belly-- he made a soft noise and she gasped. "Oh! I'm sorry!" She bent down to pet him, her head narrowly missing the edge of the table. After reassuring Sparky she sat back up, a little smile on her face. "Did you ever have a dog Joseph?"

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

Joseph and Heller both laughed aloud at the satanic flowers, though admittedly for slightly different reasons. "God forbid Mrs. Vardabinian actually gets a real reason to complain; the rookies are terrified of her because they know they'll be the ones stuck listening to her for an hour every day. One pentagram in her petunias and she'd probably call the national Guard right after phoning Billy Graham," he said with a chuckle. "But if it weren't for the fact that we'd be the ones having to deal with her, half the force would be down there with you writing foul words like 'booty' on her sidewalk. We might even get her to call the Pope about that one," he snickered.

"I suppose," Joseph said with a slight sigh. "I can't help but wish the numbers were reversed though; it would certainly make things easier if the dozen was willing to turn in the one instead of the one being attacked by the dozen." He took another sip of water. In all reality crime was fairly low in this city, except for the Bogeyman of course, but that didn't make things any easier when the crimes that did happen usually took the law-abiding citizens completely by surprise.

"Right, ok," he murmured, trying to move on from the subject. Things would probably only become more awkward if he pressed the question, and he immediately took the opportunity to change the subject when she surfaced from beneath the table. "My family did, when I was a kid. She was a stray we took in, a little mutt of a puppy that had somehow gotten separated from the rest of her family. We never did figure out where she'd come from, so we took her in." It had actually been the first indication Joseph had that maybe he and Heller could reach some sort of compromise. Heller had cut a bloody swath through the local wildlife whenever he had the opportunity, but he never hurt Lucy.

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

Emile laughed loudly at this, wiping a straw tear of happiness from her eye. She sighed contently though, as he began to speak again about the police work. "The good people in the world have to work, and work hard at that. Or so my grandmother said, she had worked for everything she had." She nodded her head, grinning. She licked her lips before going in for another sip of water. Her hand finding the glass easily, as she remembered where she had placed it in the first place.

"Mutts are the cutest, if you ask me." She said, offhandedly. "Because, you know, no two mutts are the same, it makes them unique and all the good stuff. Plus, they're generally healthier than pure-breds. Because you have to breed them other pure-breds and there is a lot of incest in that, it's a little sad."

As Emile openly talked about incest at the dinner table, the young waitress from before came up beside them with warm bread and some butter for it. Her face was blushing, as she didn't hear the first part of the conversation. "Uhm, your warm bread is here.. your food should only be another 10 minutes or so..." Placing it down, she scurried away.

Emile laughed a little at herself, her own cheeks pink. "Whoops. I should watch my tongue. I never know who's around." As if to demonstrate her point, she turned in her seat to 'look' around the restaurant.

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

"She sounds like a wise woman," Joseph said with a nod, laughing slightly. "Although we do our best to make sure that the bad people have to work too. If it was easy being a thief no one would do anything else. Not that the ones who do try are any good at it," he chuckled. "There's this guy, calls himself Fingers, and he's brought in at least once a week for failing to commit a crime. Last week he tried to snatch an old woman's bag and ended up being savaged by her scottish terrier."

Joseph chuckled as she looked around the restaurant, though the laugh died on his lips as his eyes fell upon the man a few tables over. The man was sitting alone, and had apparently been here for a while, long enough to have finished his meal at least. Right now he was simply sitting at his table with a dirty plate that hadn't been taken away yet and a mug of coffee, but his eyes were fixed upon Emile. It was entirely possible that he had simply recognized her and was struck with wonder at the thought of seeing a local celebrity. It was possible that there was nothing to worry about.

But there was something in the man's eyes that Heller recognized; he saw it every time he looked in the mirror.

The man was doing nothing; perhaps he never would. Still, Heller kept a close eye on him while Joseph smiled and said "Don't worry; when she brings us our food I'll just start talking about cannibalism or something. Then we'll be even." He reached out and picked up the basket of bread, holding it out to Emile and nudging her hand with it so she would know where it was. "Bread?" he offered.

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

Emile grinned, "She was. A scary one too, broke a wooden cutting board over my father's head once because he told her she was wrong." She snickered a little, although nodding her head along with Joseph's words. "It's a little sad to say, but I think I could have pulled that off better." She laughed a little, grinning openly. "Guess I shouldn't be telling a cop about my wild teen-aged years." She rolled her shoulders in a shrug as she settled back into the seat, fingers resting on the table.

Sparky was laying on her feet by this point, his head turned and watching the same man as Heller. His brown doggy eyes fixed on the male who was entranced by Emile, knowing she was his ward, he would protect her.

The woman was none the wiser, as she simply rattled on about things with Joseph, a smile on her lips. This was the most talkative, free, and happy she'd been since Dennis died, she wasn't even thinking about it in the back of her mind, as she was distracted by the male's voice in front of her. "Well, that would make us even. Though, I doubt you'll e welcome here again if you frighten away the server girl." She snickered a little.

She jumped a little when the basket touched her fingers, she laughed at her jumpiness and nodded and whispered a soft thank you as she retrieved a little piece of bread, she ripped small pieces from it, and ate them like that. Constantly brushing her chest, making sure no crumbs had fallen. "Mm, warm bread..." She muttered after a moment, "This is really good."

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

Joseph laughed. "Please don't suggest to the Sergeant we start arresting kids for being kids. It would be months before I could get a night off again." He shifted slightly in his chair, moving it back slightly away from the table. It left him a clear path up to his feet, as well as making it simple for him to reach down and grab his gun. The man at the other table didn't seem to notice, or care that Joseph was there and in uniform. That also made it more likely he would try something foolish.

"It is good," Joseph agreed, taking a piece of bread for himself and setting it on the small bread plate before putting the basket back down on the table. His other hand dipped below the table for a moment, snapping his fingers twice to give Sparky the wordless command: Ready. The loyal dog ruffed softly, briefly standing and turning so that he was facing the strange man before settling back down. To Emile it would seem as if he had simply shifted his position to be more comfortable, but now, if the strange man did approach, Sparky was ready.

"Franco likes to boast that they make everything here the same way they did hundreds of years ago, assuming that they had modern kitchens hundreds of years ago," he chuckled, the words meant to distract her from Sparky's motions. "I once saw him nearly assault a guy for asking what brand his tomato sauce was."

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

She laughed briskly, waving a hand as she tore another piece of the bread off, popping it between her lips. After she was done she cleared her throat a little, "I'd never do such a thing, I can just remember when I was a kid, if I got arrested for everything I did... yeesh." She laughed to herself, shaking her hair out a bit. "I'd already had been pinned for this case, for sure."

It was loud in the restaurant, so Emile couldn't hear Joseph's movements very well, she could tell he was moving but not how or why. She assumed he was getting comfortable and just smiled at him. She wiggled her toes in her shoes when Sparky finally settled back down across her feet, staring in the correct direction, she used the top of her shoe to brush his belly, in appreciation for keeping her feet warm.

"Well, if the rest of the food is as good as this bread, then I'd be insulted too!" She chewed on some more bread, "I once went to this Italian place back home where they had just gotten this new chef and some new waitresses. And every other time when I'd gone it had been fantastic, but this time was horrid. The girl spilled the rosé sauce all down my brand new white blouse, then the food was all over cooked, and ugh. Horrible. For a while, I vowed never to eat Italian again." She grinned a little, "I'm glad I changed my mind."

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

"No chance that'll happen here. Franco swears his vengeful ghost will burn this place down before it gets taken over by someone who doesn't understand..." Joseph trailed off, his voice falling to silence as the strange man stood up from his table. His gaze was still firmly fixed upon Emile and he was sweating slightly, his hand hovering near a suspicious-looking bulge under his shirt.

Joseph fell silent. Heller kept his eyes focused upon the suspect, the target, his prey as he began to move slowly towards them. "Emile," Heller said quietly, his voice the same as Joseph's and yet so different. "When Sparky moves, I want you out of your seat and under the table," He said in a quiet, serious voice. "Stay there until I tell you it's safe." The man was closer now, the hem of his shirt being lifted as his hand gripped the butt of the handgun beneath and started to draw it.

"Weapon!" Heller snapped, and Sparky responded with a vicious growl. In an instant the two of them were moving. The stranger had his gun clear of its holster and pointed towards Emile when the snarling mass of fur and fang fell upon him and seized the wrist of his right arm in powerful jaws, a convulsively fired bullet slamming into the floor and causing sudden shrieks of fear throughout the restaurant. The man was cursing loudly, striking at the beast holding him trying to gain control of his gun, but suddenly Heller was upon him. Heller's fist slammed into the stranger's face, sending him reeling back with a screech of pain and throwing him off balance, enough for Sparky to leap up and send the stranger crashing down to the floor.

When the pain cleared the stranger found himself on the ground, with a furious dog's teeth around his wrist and the barrel of a gun pressed against his forehead. Heller spoke quietly, but perhaps not low enough; Emile at least heard every word he spoke.

"I'm in uniform right now you fucking piece of shit, which means I have to give you a chance. So you're going to let go of your gun, or I'm going to kill you."

"You don't understand," the man moaned through the pain and confusion. "She has to die, he won't ever leave us if we don't finish his work, she must-"

"I am getting really fucking sick of you people," Heller snarled, rage blazing in his eyes. How dare these worms presume to know his mind, how dare they think they had the barest inkling of his purpose? "So go ahead and keep the gun, because all I need is an excuse."

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

Emile was listening intently when his voice dropped off. Her brows knit in confusion, her head cocking. "Something wrong Joseph?" She asked in a sweet voice, only a slight tremble even noticeable. It was just like with Dennis! Her mind raced and her palms got a little sweaty, though she resisted the urge to call his name or reach out for him, sure he was still there.

When her name was spoken she could almost sigh in relief, if it wasn't for the tone of it. "Joseph?" She questioned, not even sure it was still him. But she listened, nodding her head vigorously. Nervously Emile began to chew on the side of her cheek, unaware of what was going on around her. It was the worst part of being blind, she found, when people wouldn't explain to her what was happening. Some said it was because she'd been through enough, others said because her blindness was a blessing. She cursed it. Had she been able to see, she could have helped Dennis-- hell even Joseph right now!

She when the dog moved Emile dived. She was under the table so swiftly, she wondered vaguely where she got the energy from. She could hear the noises, as she was straining to hear it. The shot caused her to jump, smacking the top of her head against the table underside. Only a small whimper passed her lips.

Officer Heller's voice wasn't right, she concluded as she listened in over the frightened din of the restaurant. The man's voice said she had to die... she was the last piece of the puzzle. With a grunt, the woman crawled to the other side of the table, to get closer and listen. Heller's voice echoed in her head.

"N-no! Don't kill him!" She begged from her hiding spot, almost daring to move out towards the voices. "P-pl-please don't kill..." For a long moment she could almost feel those slick gloved hands on her own, covered in her fiancé's blood.

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

Heller nearly yelled at the bitch to shut up, but Joseph yelled louder at him. Too much, he couldn't kill now, didn't dare reveal himself yet. The lust for blood and agony roared in Heller's mind, but his weaker half was right. How satisfying it would be to simply end the life of this filth and leave his body as a warning to all those who dared question his actions, but it would end the game and force him to run. Hunters did not run. So he stared down into the eyes of his prey, saw that the foolish lunatic was nearly broken, and pressed his gun harder into the man's forehead. "Three. Two."

The man whimpered in pain and fear, his gun suddenly dropping from nerveless fingers and clattering onto the floor. Quickly Heller released his grip on the man to knock the gun away, slamming the bastard back onto the floor when he tried to stand. "On your belly," he growled, Sparky releasing the man's wrist and backing away slightly as Heller roughly forced the man to roll over onto his gut. Soon enough the man was cuffed, but he was still blubbering. "No, please, we have to end her, you understand, you know what he'll do, we can't-" His words were cut off by a cry of pain, Heller's fist slamming into the back of his head. "Shut up."

With the suspect secured Sparky returned to Emile's side, sniffing at her and licking her face comfortingly; the bad man was gone now. He whimpered a little as he waited for her to respond, his eyes still glancing over to where the strange man lay bound. Meanwhile Heller was forcing him up to his feet, the gun at his back prodding the stranger forward towards the front door of the restaurant. "It's safe, Emile. Be right back," he muttered down towards her before forcing the man forward.

Eventually he managed to get the man outside, dragging him towards his squad car. Unfortunately, the man chose this moment to start pleading again. "You know what he is, you know what he wants, he'll never leave this place until his work is finished, until the survivor-" Heller slammed the stranger into the door of the car, pulling him away just long enough to open the door before virtually throwing him into the back seat.

"You talk too fucking much." He should have left it at that, but instead he smiled as he looked down at the helpless worm. "But trust me. He'll leave when he's damn well ready." He opened the front door just long enough to grab a roll of duct tape from the glove compartment, returning to force a long strip over the worm's mouth. "Now sit down and shut up. You'll be taken to the station when I'm damn well ready." The door slammed shut, leaving the stranger trapped and Heller breathing a sigh of disappointment. How sweet it would have been if the fool had put up a more convincing fight, if he'd had just enough excuse to kill him in self-defense.

He let himself pine over what might have been for only a few moments, finally turning back to the restaurant. "Ms. Burns?" Joseph asked as he approached their table, quickly glancing around to gauge the mood of the other patrons. A quick departure might be in order.

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

Emile was trembling from under the table, the men's words ringing in her head. She wished she could see, verging on prayer. The rest of the place was quiet right before his gun hit the floor. She let out a little breath. As much as it was her life in danger, she couldn't have another person die around her, it would be too much. A larger shudder ran down her body when his hand connected to the man's face. She could hear every impact just barely over the rapid beating of her heart in her chest.

She winced with the last punch, cowering under the table like some failed heroine, clutching the leg of the table with both of her hands, her knees drawn up to her chest. Sparky actually started her when he came back to her side, jumping and once more smacking her head. She muttered an apology to the dog and fell against him, petting his fur and letting him lick her comfortingly.

The man speaking to her was not Joseph-- not the one she'd spend half of a nice dinner with, at least. She only nodded her head and shifted out from under the table. Franco rushed her from where he had been at the kitchen, lifting her to her feet and patting dirt off of her. She merely shivered against him, her hands still holding handfuls of Sparky's fur.

"You gonna be okay Ms. Burns?" He asked her softly, brushing some of her hair back soothingly.

Her tight-lipped nod was all he got. He helped her sit back down in a chair-- the one Joseph was sitting in. And Sparky laid his head across her lap once more. She couldn't see the other patrons, but she could feel their eyes on her. Now that attention had been brought to her it was starting again. 'Hey, isn't that the Bogeygirl?' 'I thought she'd been arrested for the murders?' 'My father thinks she killed Mr. Kohr and set it up like the Bogeyman's kills.'

Emile had shrunk into her chair went Joseph returned, his voice much more like the one she was used to. "Officer Heller." She returned, not sure what to call him after that display of rage. She swallowed hard and pushed herself up. Even though she was still trembling, her voice had been steady, but the din of people speaking about her, and Dennis's death, was almost louder.

"I feel bad for Franco, I had to bring this here on him, he seemed like such a sweet man.."

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

Joseph grimaced slightly at the soft drone of noise as he re-entered the restaurant, the people already having mostly abandoned their meals to watch the center of the maelstrom, the poor woman at the center of the chaos. With a sigh he walked over to the table, briefly bending down to pick up the would-be gunman's weapon and tucking it into his belt before he spoke. "I'm sorry. I should have tried to do it more quietly, but when he pulled the gun," he stopped himself, shaking his head. She didn't need to know all of the gory details. "It may be best if we left," he suggested gently.

Emile didn't have a chance to respond when Franco swept up, shaking his head vigorously. "No no no, no need to apologize, my dear," he said with a sudden laugh. "The noble hero and the fair damsel, here in my restaurant. They shall be talking of this for months. Come, come," he exclaimed, briefly reaching down to wrap an arm around Emile's to gently pull her up to her feet. "You eat in my back room, yes? Enjoy your meal without the wellwishers and onlookers trying to peek at the day's heroes."

Joseph blinked slightly in surprise; business owners typically had a much more critical view of things when there had just been a shoot-out in the middle of their establishment, but Franco seemed to be excited at the idea of having had a local celebrity almost killed in his place. Well, they did say there was no such thing as bad publicity. Joseph turned to look at Emile, saying "That's very nice of you, Franco. Is it alright with you, Ms. Burns?" For all he knew she just wanted to go home, a sentiment he could hardly fault her for.

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

Emile blinked at him, she went to grab Joseph's arm, but Franco got to her first. Her lips had even been parted to speak, but she was cut off. So she turned her attention to the man grasping her. "Oh." was all she could manage over the surprise of him not even being phased by the danger in his shop. A little blush touched her cheeks as she managed another little smile at Franco. But once more, she wasn't able to speak first.

"Well.. they've already started cooking our food yes? It would be rude to leave now." She held back her trembles as she smiled at the other two. "I don't want to be a burden Mister Franco--"

"No no! Not a burden! You're my personal guest and I wish for you to have the best time possible here!" He swept the two up at the same time, gently touching the side of Joseph's arm to lead him towards the back room.

The back room smelled more strongly of spices and herbs, and less like people. It was much more quiet from the din of other guests, but the sounds of the kitchen were much closer. Emile swallowed hard, the scent of the food so strong that were this another day, she'd be salivating. Franco seated the two on a little wooden table, with equally wooden chairs. Sparky came down to rest with the two, laying at Emile's feet and keeping his eyes directly on the door.

After Franco left, Emile cleared her throat a little, "He... had a gun?"

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

Joseph settled down across from Emile, angling his seat slightly so that he too could keep an eye on the door. Crazies tended to breed crazies, and where there was one there might easily be another. But the sounds of the kitchen, orders being called and the occasional angry shout when someone added to much salt or not enough parmesan, drowned out the speculations and insensitive remarks of the people outside. It was probably the best place they could be that wasn't Emile's home, or somewhere else entirely. He nodded a thanks to Franco as the man headed back into the kitchen, his loud voice easily dominating the other cooks.

He was about to say something calming, try to make a joke of the whole thing even though it would probably fall flat, when Emile spoke first. Joseph sighed slightly; he'd been hoping to dismiss the entire incident without worrying her any further, but it seemed that that wasn't to be. Besides, she did need to know what sort of lunatics were out there. Like us? The better prepared she was, the more likely she wouldn't fall victim to one of them. If he and Sparky hadn't been here...but then, he was the only reason she was here in the first place. "He did," he finally said after a moment. "Tried to come up behind you. I had seen him earlier, but I didn't think he was actually going to try and-" he cut himself off. "I'm sorry. For, a lot of things. If I hadn't taken you here, or tried to scare him off before he actually got too close," he stopped again.

Sparky glanced up from Emile's feet, whining a little; the bad man was gone, but Emile still smelled worried and unhappy. Joseph reached down to try and comfort him, scratching him behind the ears. "Good boy," he murmured. "Good job back there."

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

Emile swallowed hard, but nodded swiftly. "How many times have people tried to pull guns on me now, I wonder. Would be easier to keep count if I could see them, right? Hah, do you guys have a bet down in the station on things like this?" She asked these questions quickly, trying to joke, but still obviously shaken. "No. I suggested food. But I can't just hide myself up in my house, no matter if this Bogeyman gets caught or not, I'll always have people think I'm 'supposed' to die too." She smiled softly at him, listening to him coo the dog after a moment of silence.

She rubbed her hands against her knees before reaching out for Joseph, it was a silly thing to do to a man who was probably still jumpy after somebody pulled a gun. But still she did, finding his hand on Sparky's head and grasping it tightly, trying to smile. "Thank you. You've saved me from all sorts of things now." She gave his hand another gentle squeeze, before pulling herself back up, and placing her hands on the table.

Her fingers were trembling visibly, and she kept trying to stop them from moving. Screwing her eyes closed only once before breathing out deeply, calmingly. "Has anyone... tried to kill you before?" She asked this timidly, staring blankly down towards her hands. Straining to see past the curtain of darkness.

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

How many times had she almost been killed? More times than Joseph or Heller knew probably, and certainly more times than she deserved. "No," he tried to explain, shaking his head slightly. "This guy was crazy, an anomaly. After a while in this job, you learn to see it in their eyes. No except crazy people thinks you should die, and the crazy people are usually too scared of themselves and the world to actually act on it. And," he added, his voice taking on a harsh tone. "If anyone did make a bet about something like this, I'd kick his ass."

His own hand was trembling slightly when she placed hers atop it. In most people it would have been suppressed fear slowly making its way out, but in Heller it was excitement and frustration. He had come very close to killing someone, but the moment of truth had been ripped away from him at the last minute. Intellectually he knew that it had been for the best, but the blood didn't know that. We might just have to make another compromise in this city after all, Heller whispered, though he knew it would fall on deaf ears. Joseph wasn't done pining over his little project.

Joseph was quiet for several moments before he spoke to her again, knowing he had to answer and yet fearing what would come next. Once he admitted that people had tried to kill him, it was only a matter of time before she asked whether he'd had to kill one of them. No one had ever asked him, point-blank, whether he was a killer. He wasn't quite sure how he was going to handle a question like that. Could he answer without Heller chiming in? Or would the talk of blood and steel draw his brother out and reveal everything? "Yes," he finally said in a quiet voice, his eyes watching her closely to gauge her reaction. "People have tried to kill me before." Please don't ask. Please don't ask.

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

Emile smiled a little at that, nodding her head slightly. His sudden harsh tone caused a shiver to run down her spine. Since meeting Dennis, no one had spoken to her in that tone of voice-- since becoming blind no one had spoken to her like that. It was a little... exciting? Was that really the word she wanted? A flush touched her pale cheeks and she coughed a little to cover it up, fingers looking for a glass of water that wouldn't be there.

Her hands stopped searching as he hesitated after her questions. His voice told her more than his face ever would, so solemnly she merely nodded in his direction. "I'm sorry to hear, you deserve it less than me." She added softly, not truly aware of who or what she was really saying these things to. To Emile, Joseph Heller was a savior after her former had been cruelly taken from her. A savior who brought more emotion forward than her former fiancé had been able to, she noted on a subconscious level. Her lips pursed for a moment, almost as if she were becoming angry that someone would dare try to take away her second savior. The more she thought about it, the more she felt that this messed up world had thrown Joseph at her to pick her back up. As much as she loved the other officer down at the station, none of them could match the blank honesty he showed her.

A rough sigh passed through her lips as she moved to straighten up, forcefully stopping her hands from shaking. "Well, that was entirely too dramatic." She declared in the strongest voice she could muster. "I vote no more of that, ever. I ought to change my name, cut my hair and dye it. Make people think I'm someone else, right?" She laughed a little, trying to lighten up the quickly darkening mood of the room.

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

Joseph couldn't stop Heller from snorting in sudden laughter; the oh-so-innocent blind girl thought that he was the perfect and noble cop who'd never hurt a fly, who'd never even so much as gotten someone angry without apologizing profusely. It was wonderful. It was more than wonderful, it was absolutely hysterical. "I'm sorry," Joseph nevertheless managed to say, quickly bringing his voice back under control. "I'm not laughing at you, I..." he chuckled himself, just a little. "I am a cop, after all. I can't do anything without someone getting pissed off about it. Back when Davies was out on the streets, he used to say that if we weren't making someone angry, we weren't doing our job," he chuckled.

He laughed again in response to her suggestion; anything to move the conversation away from killing and killers. Somehow she hadn't asked the question, and Joseph was determined not to give her any more reason to wonder about Heller's little performance when the gunman had been taken down. "We could always put you in Witsec, get you one of those beach-front condos the drug dealers get when they rat out their suppliers," he suggested idly, his voice treating it as little more than another joke. In reality she had been considered for Witsec, or at least police protection, but they had finally concluded there was no reason to believe her life was in danger; the Bogeyman had every opportunity to kill her, and hadn't. After today though, he might be able to get them to reconsider. "Plus you get to tell people whatever you want about your past, be whoever you want to be."

The door to the kitchen behind her suddenly opened, their waitress emerging with a food and drink-laden tray. "Here she is," he murmured to Emile before raising his voice. "Of course the Polynesians ate people all the time. Called it long pork; apparently they'd tenderize it with-" he cut himself off, trying to keep the smile off his face as the increasingly flustered waitress set down their plates and fresh silverware along with a bottle of wine.

"Compliments of the house," the girl said with an awkward smile, briefly crouching down to set a plate with several meatballs on it on the floor for Sparky, who very nearly savaged her with doggy kisses when he realized it was for him.

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

Emile smiled a little at his laughter, the most free she'd heard him. Her cheeks dimpled from the unusual presence on her face, white teeth flashing brilliantly. "He's right. But I respect your work--" Oh the irony of her words, "So I can be a little naive, can't I?" She cocked her head to the side, letting herself smile for moments more before snorting her own laugh in his direction.

"Knowing my luck I'd end up in some dark dingy hole in the northern part of the world. Only getting sunlight four months of the year or something crazy." She gestured her hand wildly as she said it, some of her previous nature coming out in her hand talking. "I could be... be... a Canadian or something!" She laughed, flicking hair over her shoulder boldly. "And if I did wind up in the cold weather I could be all 'Oh no, this cold is nothin' like... uhm.. Toronto there, eh?'" She snickered at herself, shaking her head as she sighed, only catching his whisper and shutting herself up. Trying her best not to snicker out loud.

Emile as laughing so hard she was rocking in her chair by the time the girl had left, her hands clamped down on her sides hard. Once her laughs died down a little, and she wiped a stray tear of happiness from her left eye she merely grinned. "Now I'm curious. What did the Polynesians tenderize their 'long pork' with?" She cocked her head to the side fingers creeping along the table to find the wine glasses provided along with the bottle of wine-- though the blind girl opening the bottle was possibly the worst idea ever.

She moved her feet away from Sparky as he slobbered all over her shoes in the process of gobbling up every last morcile of edible particles from his plate. Happily licking the juices from it afterward. Now content in watching the door for intruders, his belly was just filled enough he wouldn't be sick if he jumped!

"Did you like that Sparky?" She cooed, rubbing her moist foot against his underbelly.

RE: The Killer and The Victim (I_Am_Nobody x CyanideDisaster)

Joseph laughed along with her as the waitress left, a truly genuine smile on his face as he watched her. It was good to see her like this, to see her laughing and joking as though nothing in her world had ever gone wrong. Never mind her Dennis was dead, never mind someone had tried to kill her less than ten minutes ago. Right now she was happy, and smiling in a way he hadn't ever seen. Maybe he really would be able to help her move on, and atone for what he had done. About fucking time, Heller snarled. But hey, I can't say it's been all bad. In fact, I think I might tell her. That was ridiculous, it would just end up with them being arrested and- Oh, I know. And it won't happen for a long time. But I'm thinking that the look on her face might just be worth it.

"To tell the truth, I have no idea," Joseph said with a laugh as he reached out to take the bottle and corkscrew that had been left behind by the mildly terrified waitress, trying to ignore Heller's dark imaginings. "The long pork was something I heard on tv once, not even sure it was the Polynesians. But if I had to guess," there was a pop as the cork came free, briefly interrupting his words. "I'd say that they tenderized fresh missionary by pounding it with the bones of other missionaries. Makes you wonder how they developed a taste for the first one though," he added, pouring wine into one of the glasses and sliding it forward along the table until her fingers brushed against it. He poured wine into the other glass as well, though only a half glass when he'd given Emile a full; partially because he was on duty, but mostly because he needed to keep his wits about him. She hadn't asked any more questions about his personal life, but if they did come he needed to be ready.

After a moment's thought he reached over to her silverware as well, moving them slightly and bumping them into her hands so she would know where to look. It was the only thing he could think of to do without asking her point-blank whether she needed help eating, something he did not want to do. "So," he said with a smile as he raised his glass. "Shall we toast to Canadians and cannibals?"