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open. » awesome song lyrics go here. yeah!

Who: Kalinda Sharma and various. Could be you!
What: A week in the life of an investigator doing surveillance.
Where: All over the city.
When: Any time!
Notes: I've got thread starters for Arthur and Steph, but all are welcome! The settings are flexible, so feel free to come up with whatever. I will roll with it!
Warnings: None as of yet.

Kalinda hasn't been getting near as much extra work as she would like. Rather, she isn't making as much money from her extra work as she would like. Money isn't tight, exactly, but it isn't as abundant as she's used to it being. So much of what she does is built on her image, and that image requires maintenance, that maintenance requires cash. She has a feeling her current assignment, which has had her running from one end of the city to the other, isn't going to result in her being paid the previously agreed upon amount, being as how it's not producing the result her client hoped for.

Fortunately, she took half up front.

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"Reality show death." A theatrical shudder. "I can't think of a worse way to go." And she's seen photos of all manner of grisly murder.

"Well, yeah. You work as a librarian, right? They don't expect it to look like you've been at Brawl Circle." ~~First rule of Brawl Circle, don't talk about Brawl Circle.~~ Kalinda lifts her hand to get the bartender's attention. Apparently her order is standing, because two shots of not-tequila are placed in front of the women without question.

"I've watched snuff films before," And there's absolutely no amusement in her voice now, because she has and they're awful.

So that not-tequial shot is quite welcome, and Steph downs it quickly; her drink shows up at the same time, but she'll go slower on that.

"I've done that, too, actually. It's a good way to make some quick money, especially when you're allowed to bet on yourself." She avoids cage matches because they tend to allow Xenians, and she's not that stupd, but there are smaller, illegal fight clubs that she's occasionally frequented.

Kalinda similarly wastes no time swallowing down her shot. The burn in her throat, down into her belly, feels good in its own way. There's nothing funny about Steph's experiences, so there's no quip forthcoming.

"Do you know the precise moment you took the first step that led you down the path you're on now?" She turns her head to look at her companion from the corner of her eye, solemn. "Or do you wonder how you got here?"

"The first time my dad was arrested. I was so angry, at him, at the cops, at the whole fucking world. But mostly I just wanted my mom to stop crying," The fact she can answer that question so quickly might go to show she's thought about this before. Or maybe its just an easy question for her.

It helps that this is something she's talked about before, at least partly, but it doesn't mean she likes saying it much and her eyes stayed focused on the glass in front of her.

"What about you?"

Asking the question is easier than actually answering it in return. Kalinda shakes her head, as if to indicate that she has no idea where she went off the track. Or onto it.

"How are you doing, really?" She knows Kate's disappearance has been hard on Steph, and normally... she doesn't care about those things, like feelings, but she likes Steph. And besides, it makes a good deflection.

Steph pauses to take a drink, raising her eyebrows at Kalinda, silently saying I see what you did there, but she knows Kalinda well enough not to press.

She's also tempted to dismiss the question with a reassurance that she's fine, but the really combined with the fact it's Kalinda, of all people, asking, makes Steph actually want to be honest, "I keep thinking about like - some people grow old and die, here, while others stay for a few months. Kate hadn't been home in years, I just hope that's where she's gone and hasn't been taken to another place like this."

"Me too," for Kate's sake, as well as Steph's. "I'd say it doesn't do a lot of good to worry about it, but you already know that." And it wouldn't stop her anyway. It's never that simple.

"I don't think either of us has to worry about growing old here." It's a little self-deprecating, but presented as only realistic. "But if we do..." Kalinda lifts her beer in a sort of toast. Hah.

No matter how much she tries, she'll probably never stop worrying. Just like she'll never stop feeling guilty for wanting Kate to have stayed. Kalinda probably has the best method - not caring about feelings would make life a lot simpler.

Steph clinks her glass against Kalinda's beer, "We can play bingo together and work out how to cheat to win." A joke, because Steph is in agreement with the fact that neither of them are likely to get old here.

It does, and it doesn't. Kalinda would have to admit that the way she moves through life isn't perfect, but it feels necessary at times. If you don't care, you can't hurt. But that's not entirely true either.

"We'll have to scour the thrift shops for Treasure Trolls," her eyes widen, leaning in conspiratorially. They are notoriously lucky, you know. "We'll find you a purple dauber."

"You're a terrible influence," It's said as a compliment, because obviously being a terrible indluence is something everyone should strive for in their life.

Except cheating at bingo is a plan that's much too far away, and Steph is enjoying this line of thought - plotting sneaky things is a good distraction from feelings, "You should come with me next time I go to a fight, you can bet on me, or bet on the other guy and I'll throw the fight."

Steph you're the worst vigilante.

Kalinda looks upward as she considers this, even bringing one hand to her chin to really sell her being deep in thought. "I could use the pay day..." She looks over again and grins. "Throw a few matches and people will thing you're a pushover. Then you'll surprise everyone when you start winning. I'll make a killing on the sudden shift in odds."

That's a terrible plan, Kalinda.

"I like the sound of that. I know how to lose a fight convincingly," People tend to watch for that sort of scam and Steph has learned to be careful - it helped that her training already prepared her how to throw fights.

"We'll have to pick the right sorta place." They need to stay below the radar if they actually do this.

They're not really going there, are they? They are kind of. It's a bit like a game of chicken. "We could both get in a lot of trouble if we don't do this right." Kalinda leans to one side slightly as if to get a better look at Steph. "It's probably tough to fight if your kneecaps are broken." That is to say nothing about their brand of investigation in the city.

She takes another long drink, eyes roaming over the blonde's face like there's something there she expects to find; some answer.

"I've beat the shit out of someone while I had two broken wrists, a shattered collarbone, ruptured spleen, six broken ribs, a punctured lung, and a dislocated hip. Not to mention three missing teeth and assorted superficial wounds."

Because that feels a bit like a challenge and Steph - well, she's Steph, "I think I can handle broken kneecaps."

Which is her way of saying that of course they'll do it right.

"Is it a compulsion of yours to always one up a worst case scenario?" Not that Kalinda wasn't impressed before, but what Steph just described is incredibly impressive. And was also, Kalinda wagers, and only to herself, a life or death situation.

"I'm not going to question your dedication, but that isn't worth a few marks. You don't have anything to prove to me, you know." She isn't sure she needs to make that assurance, but it might be nice to give all the same.

"I didn't even mention the part where I got shot," And there's - something like amusement now, directed at herself in response to Kalinda's statement. Yes, she will come up with a worst case scenario.

She gives a shrug that's more like a roll of her shoulders (like a fighter loosening up and sometimes she feels like no matter what she does that violence will never leave her), "I know. I'm just--"

What? She finishes her drink in one swallow, rather than finishing that sentence.

"Wound up. Used to it. Without another outlet." All supplied helpfully before Kalinda tips back and finishes the contents of her bottle. She orders another shot, because she needs it. ("Needs.") She nods a little solemnly. "I get it. Just..."

Her lips press together and Kalinda folds her hands together on the bar. "Never mind." She's not good at saying things like people would miss you if you got killed. It's too obvious for note anyway, really.

"Be careful?" Now it's Steph's turn to supply what Kalinda hasn't said. They're words that she hears a lot, and usually it can get annoying, but well, she understands why it might need to be said now.

She gestures to the bartender for another drink and smiles at Kalinda, "We should stop finishing each others sentences before someone thinks we're married."

It's not actually that funny, but it's better than continuing on with the previous line of thought.

"People can think whatever they want," Kalinda murmurs disdainfully. "They usually do." The next shot is set in front of her and she brings it to her lips with her right hand while ordering another with her left. She's a multitasker. "Joke's on them.

"I'm already married."

Okay, not the reaction Steph was hoping for. Her eyebrows go up, watching Kalinda over the edge of her own glass.

"I've never seen you wearing a wedding ring," Her tone is very mild, unsure whether it's actually true, or if there's an amendment to that statement, like to my work.

Kalinda's never been good about giving people what they want when it's not what she wants. She chuckles quietly, amusement at her own expense as she agrees with Steph's observation. "Yeah... I guess I'm not a very good wife."

Go on. Ask her if she gives a fuck.

"It's just a tax complication." And a life complication, honestly. But Kalinda hadn't actually meant to go into this aspect of her life with Steph. Or anybody, for that matter. There's nothing special about the younger woman that excludes her in this case. Perhaps it's that she's special that she was included at all. That and this not-quite-tequila stuff packs a punch.

Steph's entire demeanour stays as mild as the tone of her voice, watching Kalinda carefully while she explains. This is not something she expected to hear, because she doesn't think Kalinda's ever told her anything really about herself before. What Kalinda tells her is even more surprising, but she keeps her expression neutral.

"It sounds very complicated," It feels like the safest thing to say in reply. And then because she's feeling a little bold, "You didn't want a divorce?"

The thought is waved off irritably. It isn't Steph she's annoyed with, but herself. ...Which maybe isn't as clear as it could be, can at least still be inferred. "It's been a long week already," Kalinda tells her friend. "Let's give our past lives a rest for the remainder of the night."

That latest shot sits in front of Kalinda, and she stares at it for the time being; gauging whether or not to make the move to drink it down like the others, or give it a rest for the night.

She starts laughing suddenly, leaning forward slightly as if she might like to rest her forehead against the bar. "I was just thinking," she explains after she takes a quick breath, "about whether or not someone I know is doing this very same thing at this very same moment." Sometimes Kalinda has to wonder if she's really as different from some people as she tries to be.

Steph doesn't take that irritation to heart - she knows it's not directed at her, and she gives a consenting nod at the suggestion they leave this subject alone. Steph has some experience with people who don't like to talk about themselves and she knows that letting them open up at their own pace is the best bet.

And then Kalinda starts laughing and while Steph rarely startles noticably, her eyes do widen slightly in surprise. Not to mention concern, until Kalinda explains the random laughter and then Steph just looks wryly amused.

"You never know. But I'd bet their company isn't as good," The smugness in her voice is faked.

There's no play at considering whether or not that assertion is true or not, Kalinda just shrugs. "Doesn't hold a candle," she promises, finally reaching for the last shot, then she takes out her wallet and starts counting bills. "I should probably think about heading home soon. I said I'd put in some hours at the office." She leaves her money on the bar and turns in her seat. "You planning to hang around a while? Or should we see if we can share a cab?"

open. » awesome song lyrics go here. yeah!

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