New Angeles: A Hard Case to Crack

[RealisticFantasy]

Genevieve saunters up to Oasis, one of the Myriad District’s most popular bars. But beneath the layers of glitter and trendy furniture, this bar was just like any other bar. And bars attracted clientele Gen wasn't all too fond of. After all, the scumbags here were just the same as the scumbags in the Diamond District, just better dressed. On top of that, she wasn’t trying to scope out a victim seeing as she just cashed in a rather large payload. Tonight, she just wanted to be herself which was a harder task for her than it was for most.


Gen pushes open the ‘yin’ of the yin and yang symbol that make up the door into the bar and, as if the men can sense her presence from a mile away, every head that she can see has fixed its gaze upon her. She absolutely hated it and it was a retched thing was she was trying to be subtle. Walking into the bar, she pretends not to hear the whistles and whispers. She takes a seat at the bar as far away as she can get from other people. “Can I have a--?” Before she finishes, she’s cut off by an oh-so-kind gentleman.


“I’ll get that for ya, sweetheart. I’ll have a shot of vodka and the lady here will have a margarita.” He flashes her and the bartender a charming smile. “Thanks, but no thanks. First off, I’m not your sweetheart. Second, I’ll have a Corona.” She directs the last statement to the bartender which a pointed look and a small smile. He chuckles, reaching out to tuck a piece of hair behind her ear and she flinches away from his touch. “Are you sure you know what you’re ordering? That’s a man’s drink, sweetie. And, I do love a challenge.” Her eyes narrow for only a moment before she lets out a laugh of disbelief. A man’s drink? What the hell is that supposed to mean? “I’m not playing hard to get. I’m saying no.” He smirks, taking a step closer to Gen and looking down at her in a way that sent chills down her spine.. “I’ve found out that, a lotta times, no means yes. Women just don’t know what they want.” He turns his gaze back to the bartender, nodding away from them. “And, those drinks?”


She inhales deeply, studying the man for a moment. If she had really wanted, she could have put him in his place. But she wasn't in the mood and she really didn't want to make a scene. “I’ve got to… powder my nose.” Getting off the barstool and heading to the bathroom, she hears him shouting to his buddies about some chick he had 'in the bag' and, assuming he meant her, she scoffs. Men. She had kept her fashion choice for the night pretty low key - a white shirt with some abstract decal in black and white and some skinny jeans - in an attempt to avoid attracting attention. But, she still did. In retrospect, undressing probably wasn't the best way to not stick out like a sour thumb in a crowd of people that probably wore dresses lined with gold.


She pushes the door for the ladies’ bathroom open, one with a weird inverted triangle with a dot in the center to signify women somehow. The first time she came here, it took her three hours to figure out which was the women’s. Apparently that night no one had to pee but her. She leans against the cool tile of the wall, looking at herself in the mirror across from her. The bright color scheme wasn't helping her headache that was slowly forming. “This is turning out to be a wonderful night…” She says to her mirror self with a sigh.

 

[Steely]

Hans grunts as his hand tries to adjust the rather tight business suit the police department had given him to carry out this little undercover mission. They could have at least gotten him a looser fit, or maybe baggy fancy clothes, if there existed any kind of baggy fancy clothes. Upon having no success at all in trying to reduce the feeling of suffocation caused by his dislike of this type of attire, as well as the fact that no one back at the HQ cared to take measurements to give him a proper set, the tall man inhales a deep breath as he eyes his target, the Oasis, one of the most popular bars in Myriad District. Should he hope that his disguise works properly, he would have to show no signs of discomfort at all. Even if he was internally agonized because he couldn't move his toes inside the shoes he was wearing.


A few steps forward, and he adjusts his tie, rakes his hair with his hand, checks his watch, and gives the doors one last look before opening them. The smell of alcohol hits his nostrils almost immediately, yet it is not followed by any others scents that one would find in cheaper bars. Rather, he detects a mixture of perfumes and fragrances, seeing that this bar was mainly populated by people who looked way more than well-off. Hans decides not to waste time, walking slowly towards the counter as only a few men notice his entrance, shrugging it off. Perfect. He must look like some kind of businessman who just got out of service, and is just looking for a few drinks to drown the feeling of tiredness from a hard day of work.


Upon approaching the counter, Hans sits down on one of the stools, trying to look as tired as possible, yawning and subtly cracking his joints with satisfying 'pops'. When the barman is done attending to another costumer's request, he goes directly to the newcomer, shooting him a look that asked him the question without having to use words. "Whiskey, please."





And within a few seconds, a glass filled to the brim with the requested drink appears in his view. Working on his facade, Hans hunches over a bit over the counter, resting both his elbows on the hard surface before taking a sip. He would have to go easy on the drinks if he wanted to find who he was looking for. Just as this thought crossed his mind, his eyes started to scan the bar around him as normally and casually as he could. A few seconds pass, and no sign of the target. Hans sighs, and sips again.

 

[RealisticFantasy]

"Come on, girl. Pull yourself together." Gen pushes herself off the wall and sauntering over to the line of sinks. She turn on one of the faucets, watching the water run for a moment before splashing some on her face. "You got this. Couple'a drinks and you'll be feeling alright. Right? Right. Excellent." She yanks a few paper towels from the nearby dispenser and pats her face dry. Taking a few deep breaths, she examines herself in the mirror once more before walking back out into the bar. The night crowd had decided to roll in during the few moments where she isolated herself, being both new and familiar faces. Deciding to use this to her advantage, she lowers her head and shields her face from the stranger who had taken an interest in her earlier.


Squeezing into a more densely populated portion of the bar and figuring the crowd might hide her from further advances, she catches the bartender's attention with a small hand gesture. "How 'bout that Corona?" He gives her a nod and a smile before walking off to grab her drink. She wasn't one to sit in a bar and keep to herself but that was a line where conversation wasn't an option. No one came to a bar to be alone and stay alone. That just wasn't how thing worked in a town like this. The ones that kept to themselves always had a hidden agenda. After receiving her drink and paying for it, she seeks out a gentleman who was sitting alone with a whiskey. Maybe tonight could be a fun night...


She sidles up to the stranger, taking a sip from the bottle before turning to him to speak. "New suit?" With a small smirk, she nods to his attire. The colors were too crisp for it to be old. Plus if sitting with his elbows on the bar was a common occurrence, the fabric would be worn there and it wasn't. But she wasn't saying it to be Sherlock Holmes. She was just making casual conversation and she knew that everybody in this area loved talking about themselves.

 

[Steely]

Hans grunts in frustration as the bar becomes more and more filled with people. For all that he knew, his target could be blended in around somewhere, and telling from the reports he had read, finding a considerably short person in a heavily populated bar wouldn't be an easy task. His eyes continue to search around for the slightest hint of Genevieve, but to no avail. He, however, wouldn't be giving up so easily. The entire NAPD was counting on him for this undercover assignment, and he couldn't just give up at this moment. To pass the time and help keep his facade going, he gulps down a larger sip, lowering his head for a moment and staring at the counter. This is all about knowing how to impersonate, he notices.


He was about to take another sip out of his whiskey when a voice said something right by his side. If not by his quick return to the world of the non-daydreamers, he would've missed the question made by the lady...


Wait a minute...





The man wanted to allow his eyes to go wide and his eyebrows go high as he looked to the side, but that would drop a lot of hints to her. Well, his assignment surely just got a lot easier... or maybe a lot harder. He takes a moment to examine her and her smirk, the appearance fitting the description given by the reports, and then gives the ghost of a smile as he sips again. While he found it uncommon for women to approach men in a bar, this was Genevieve, and he didn't have time to fathom over such a trivial fact.


"Yeah." Yeah? He mentally scoffs at his weak reply. What was there for him to say? Acting like a high and mighty rich man wouldn't get him anywhere, and stretching his line wouldn't give any different results as well. Still eyeing her with the corners of his eyes, he downs his drink, setting the empty glass on the counter.

 

[RealisticFantasy]

Clearly this particular man was not intending on be approached now or maybe ever. She laughs at his short response, swirling the liquid around in the bottle in her hand a moment. "Yeah? That's all I get?" She takes another sip with a small smirk. "Is that your way of telling me you want to be left alone? You don't gotta spare my feelin's. M'not made of glass." She adds teasingly, taking a seat on the stool next to him as the man that was occupying it before heads off after some girl. What are you hiding, mystery man? It takes a strong fella to keep his gaze on their drink when I walk over.





She scolds herself for trying to analyze the stranger and settles on drumming her fingers on the bar instead as she scans the crowd again. A lot of the men were your typical bar scum, too far up their own asses to even notice when they were getting robbed right under their own noses. But this guy had a different air about him. A air that was somewhat familiar but she just couldn't place it. It was something that made Gen a bit uncomfortable but it was also nothing new and thrilling. "Well, doesn't matta what you think 'cause I think I'll be heading out soon. Too many assholes in one bar tends to stick up the place." She chuckles at her own joke before taking another sip. She decided she'd finish the drink and find somewhere new to party.

 

[Steely]

Way to go... Hans thinks as he mentally slaps himself for the weak response. He should have really trained his people skills before going out on this, but it's not like HQ would allow it. They sent him on this quite hurriedly, after all. Noticing her taking a seat by his side, he already understands that she would be staying there for a while. Maybe he didn't screw things so badly, after all. All he needs to do is to play along, and probably things would go smoothly for the operation. As she finishes her joke, Hans gestures to the barman to get him another glass, now turning to his side to face Genevieve.


"Like if the other bars around had any less assholes." He says, taking the now filled glass and sipping from it. The man would have to keep her next to him in order to make a good acquaintance with New Angeles' Robin Hood-y figure, and while he knew that the "I'm leaving soon" talk could be just teasing, he would definitely try to enforce her presence even more. "Bars attracts assholes. Specially at this time in the night. It's not like there are any asshole-less bars in the city." There. Just non-sense logic. It worked in the past, and it may work now.

 

[RealisticFantasy]

"Well, well, well. Only the king of assholes could have such knowledge. A pleasure to meet your acquaintance. Now if you could just anyone from the asshole kingdom off my radar, we'd be just dandy." She laughs again, taking another large sip from the bottle. It was only about a third full now but the stranger was on his way into charming her to stay for another. So far he hadn't made any crude joke and was playing along with her silly banter which was more than could be said for most of the men that currently populated the bar.


She lean forward with her elbows on the bar, giving the stranger a sideways glance as she lifts the bottle to her lips again. He certainly was something. She couldn't put her finger on what exactly. Whatever it was, it hadn't gotten her curious enough to wait until she finished off her first drink... or maybe her second. This fella might even actually be a bit of fun if he loosened up.

 

[Steely]

He couldn't help but to raise an eyebrow at her new silly comment, even rewarding her with a a light chuckle. "I guess that such knowledge is available to all those who have been in a bar more than once, you know." Hans adds, sipping a lot less than usual. It was already obvious that befriending Genevieve would be much easier if she was drunker than he was, so he would need to slow down the drinking process. Setting his glass on the counter, he turns around just enough to face her, still holding his eyebrow high before assuming his neutral expression. If she was to pay attention, though, she could notice that his face had the slightest hint of amusement.





"And it's such a great joy to make your acquaintance as well." He says in a rather refined tone, as if playing along with her formal speech. The agent's plan by now was to slowly shed his stoic behavior in order to keep his target around for longer, and still reinforce the facade he was pulling further.

 

[RealisticFantasy]

"I like to have fun." She responds to his raised eyebrow with a small shrug. "A lot people around here don't understand fun. They think this..." She pauses to motion around the bar with the hand the holds her drink. "...is fun. It's not. It's depressing." She spins around on the barstool to examine a couple dancing - well, it was hardly dancing - together and frowns a bit. "See? Depressing." She takes another sip from her drink with a nod as she finishes off the bottle. Turning back around to the bar, she motions for another drink.


When it arrives, she pays for it in cash. She developed a habit of never opening a tab in the event she had to scram quickly. It had happened before and made her look like a scumbag, which she wasn't. That was one principle she stood firm on. If she promised something to someone or had an outstanding debt, it would be taken care of, no ifs, ands, or buts. It was a principle a lot of people seemed to ignore. Everyone seemed to be trying to screw over everyone else.

 

[Steely]

Hans follows her by too spinning on the stool to examine the rest of the bar, finally taking in the sounds of laughter and clanking glasses reigning over the building. He could relate: All that was going on didn't seem like fun, at least for him and her. Not depressing, but not fun, either. It just looked like what one would expect from a bar filled to the brim with filthy rich people. Humming in agreement with her, he spins right back to face the counter, noticing that she had just ordered another drink, and had already paid in money. Due to the bar's location in New Angeles' richest district, the check in the end of this night would be quite the hole in his wallet once he decides to leave. The simple thought suddenly makes the whiskey he was drinking much bitter than it normally was, and Hans had to hide his cringing face in order to cope with his little businessman facade.


"I can relate, honestly." Hans replies shortly after, taking a good look at her. Things were going just perfectly right now: She didn't present any signs of suspicion, and the second drink she just ordered was bound to help him even further. "Sadly... it's the way most people think."

 

[RealisticFantasy]

Gen examines her new bottle of alcohol, narrowing her gaze at it. "I don't understand it. Why does paying twice as much for cheap alcohol make people feel better?" She scoffs with a shrug before lifting the bottle to her lips and taking a sip. "I suppose people that care so little about their expenses deserved to get conned, hm?" With that statement, she decides that she was done with the shitty bar scene for tonight. Getting to her feet, she downs the rest of the bottle with a satisfied sigh at the finish before turning her gaze back to the stranger. "Adios. I'm off to find genuine fun after I take care of some business matters." With a small nod and a smile, she's out the door. She had gotten to the bar at a pretty early hour in an attempt to avoid the crowd. She was hoping for a quick de-stress before she had to run off to a prior obligation but it seemed that that hadn't worked out all too well. Shrugging it off, she starts heading toward the nearest subway terminal seeing as otherwise she had to hoof it to the Diamond District.

 

[Steely]

Hans was on his way to reply to her chain of statements when she simply downed her drink and bid him a goodbye. Dropping the glass carefully on the counter, he spins on the stool in an attempt to try and keep her a bit longer. "Hey--" Before he can even say anything else, the agent realizes he was about to ask the chilly gust of wind coming into the bar as Genevieve's figure disappears into the streets of Myriad District. With a feeling of defeat washing over his mind, he drops his arm, spins back around, and gulps down the rest of his whisky. "Goddammit!" Hans mutters, subtly striking the counter with a weak kick of frustration. He reaches for his wallet and pulls out a couple of bills, holding his free hand up to keep the barman from giving him the change.


Obviously, due to his position as the NAPD's very "Golden Boy", command wouldn't be disappointed at his little failure. After all, Genevieve was a hard target to get a hold onto. What just bugged him deep inside was that fact that he failed miserably at refraining from having her leaving the bar. Eventually accepting his defeat, he stands up, tucks his hands into his pockets, and too walks out of the bar.

 

[RealisticFantasy]

Gen was still uncertain what consisted genuine fun but she certainly was on the search for it. Sliding down the railing of the stairs that lead to the subway, her feet hit the ground with a soft thud that echoes throughout the empty terminal. Hardly anyone from the Myriad District ever left it, let along to go to the Diamond District. Especially after the sun set. The District each had their pros and cons of varying degrees but there was one commonality between them all. No one was fond of outsiders. It was like a social war. If you looked out of place, you better be hightailing it out of there. Fast. But there were few, like Gen, who could blend in well enough that no one was certain where exactly they came from.


Gen's entire life hinged on that ability. To be able to be a talking shadow was her entire career. She didn't view it as criminal. She was simply leveling the playing field. There were entire families in the Diamond District that survived with barely anything to their names. What made the residents of Myriad so special that they should never have to worry about food or clothes or a stable, safe household? A noisy subway car shrieks to a halt in front of her, breaking her from her thoughts. She boards the car and takes a seat with a small sigh.

 

[Steely]

Hans spots 'his' car in the distance, parked into a small and somewhat dark alleyway, which was rare due to Myriad's more than common neon lights. Just as he nears the vehicle, the man starts to take off his business suit, untying the tie as quick as his hands allowed. No need to keep a facade up anymore. And even less to stay in this tight, almost suffocating outfit. He enters the car in a rush, closing the doors and raising the windows as he desperately starts to shed the rest of the clothes, including the shoes and the pants. Against HQ's orders, Hans had brought a set of civilian clothing which he hid safely under the driver's seat, just so that he could breathe without any effort should the mission fail.


A few seconds later and the expensive suit was all piled at the back seats, and Hans was just about done straightening the grey hoodie he liked so much. The baggier, the better for him. He breaths deeply as the car roars to life with a spin of the keys, his eyes watching with a hint of what was a strange mixture of fascination and disgust. The man hated having to parade around as a rich man, yet was enthusiastic regarding anything related to vehicles, cars in special. Turning on the radio and shifting the gears, he subtly moved the car out of the alley, flinching as it was bathed in a thousand colorful lights. "HQ... here we go."