Italics: Flashbacks

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Chapter One: Mr. Freeze

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"In which I run into an ice block...and he cripples my perp."

[Tuesday]

[Time: 9:30 a.m]

Today was a typical Tuesday morning.

I mean, the sky was clear, the birds were singing, children were crossing the street in an orderly fashion for school...and I was screaming at the top of my lungs.

"Stop, L.A.P.D!"

Here I was, running as fast as my legs could carry me, barreling into people, knocking over outside tables and chairs along the way, as I chased down an obvious purse thief. He was giving me a good workout, and I was crankier than an old lady on bingo night.

No morning coffee, no bagel, not even a damn piece of bacon.

Throw in the fact that my brother nearly burned down the kitchen back at the house trying to make breakfast, old man Parker complaining about our puppy Roscoe howling in the middle of the night, and finding a huge spider in my kitchen sink, I was having probably the best morning of my entire life. Let's keep in mind that I am not a fan of spiders and even seeing a baby in it's natural habitat will make me jump out of my skin faster than getting stung by a cactus.

Just lovely.

This guy wasn't letting up and was giving me a freaking workout.

I was just seconds away from strangling this guy once I wrapped my fingers around his scrawny neck.

Downtown Los Angeles was notorious for the surfer weather. While the typical beach bums enjoyed surfing and hanging out, the weather for normal people like me was hell on earth. It didn't help that sweat stains were developing underneath my navy blue button down shirt with strands of hair that was plastered to my face.

By the way, I'm a brunette by nature.

I was dressed as professional as can be when it came to being a top officer in the L.A.P.D. Black jacket, black pants, Mary Jane's, and a buttoned down shirt, tucked in my pants. My holster was also black and strapped around my torso, while my badge was clipped to my pants in plain view. There was a joke circulating around the office that I dressed like a federal agent, but I didn't care.

Criminals feared a woman in black...or that's what I heard on a television show weeks ago.

But right now, this wasn't the time to reminisce on television shows.

"Sorry!" I yelled behind my back, after barreling into yet another person. This guy was either trying to be the next Jackie Chan with his stunts or I was really unlucky. I was in shape and could definitely hold my own, but at this point, the Clairenator (the nickname my brother decided to give me one day) was running low on energy.

Yup…I needed my coffee.

It also didn't help that we were nearing yet another café with a batch of people eating breakfast before they headed off to work or whatever they usually did.

As if this day couldn't get any worse.

Sometimes, I wondered why I couldn't get my brother's job. Sure, it was an office job and you were surrounded by guys talking about sports and chicks all day but at least you didn't have to chase down wanna be stunt doubles or idiots who thought they were above the law. I mean, yes I know I said I loved my job but when you're running low on caffeine and you're chasing down a crook downtown on one of the busiest days of the week, you start to wonder if you made the right call in your career.

"Damnit!"

A string of expletives flew out of my mouth, as I dodged two handymen carrying boxes to their truck. I could have ran right into them if I hadn't spun around like a ballerina to avoid the looming disaster. At least I still had the perp within my sight and he didn't try crossing the street in the middle of traffic. I had to hand it to him- at least he wasn't a suicidal perp.

Lo and behold, we reached a random café. Cue the screams, commotion, tables flipping over, chairs flipping over, and waiters nearly falling on their faces to get out of the way.

All except for one man that was sitting rather calm at a table, his legs crossed and reading a newspaper. Either he was too preoccupied to know what was going on (you know, he could have been listening to music on headphones or something), or he knew what was going on but chose to ignore it. Either way, he was going to get hurt if I didn't yell at him to move out of the way.

And, to make matters worse, the perp was heading in his direction.

"Sir, please get of the way!" I shouted, jumping over a toppled chair. But my warning came too late, as the collision was seconds away from happening.

Except, that it didn't happen, which would have a great relief to me but what happened next was not what I expected at all. The man dropped the newspaper on the table, rose from his chair, and held his arm out. The next thing I knew, my elusive thief freaked out, but he didn't have time to even stop himself before he did a backflip in the air, and landed on the ground face first. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, the man I was so concerned with just close-lined a street punk who gave me trouble for about thirty minutes, pro wresting style.

…Ouch?

A groan could be heard, as the purple leather bag also flipped in the air and landed on the ground next to him. Mascara, pocket change, and eyeliners spilled out onto the sidewalk.

I skidded to a halt.

My jaw dropped as low as a random cartoon character.

Did that really just happen or did I imagine it?

Commotion stirred, as onlookers and customers just stared. I mean, it wasn't often that you see a tall blond who looked like he was in his forties in the middle of downtown Los Angeles, dressed like a secret service agent, right?

A very expensive looking secret service agent, that is.

Well, normally I didn't have a fangirl effect over attractive men but the one before me took attraction to a whole new level. With slick, blond hair, the deepest pair of blue eyes I have ever seen in my life, well-built but not overly muscular (I mean he didn't look like a hulking bodybuilder), polished black leather shoes, along with a suit with a black silk tie, he was too attractive for reality.

I could have sworn a blush fluttered to my cheeks.

'Stop it Claire, stop it! This is not the time to be admiring a citizen who just did your job in the first place! He interfered! This was a police matter! You would have caught him eventually!' I scolded myself.

'But you have to admit, he's rather um…presentable.' A second voice chimes in.

Wait, where did that other voice come from?!

I did not just think that way.

Nope, that definitely wasn't me.

Shaking my head as hard as I could, I made my way over. Well, my elusive thief was unconscious now, making it rather easy to slap my handcuffs on him and drag him back to my car, which was back where I came from. But before I could do anything, 'Mr. Tall and Sexy'...err I mean 'Random Citizen Guy' bent down, grabbed the perp by the collar of his Hawaiian t-shirt and pulled him up from the ground.

A mental wince shot through me.

Double ouch.

My perp's face was busted. I don't mean just a few scratches here and there. I mean the whole nine freaking yards here.

Broken nose, blood on the sidewalk…hopefully he didn't have some teeth missing too because I would definitely have the chief on my tail for this. Well, not that he wouldn't be on my tail for the strings of injuries this guy sustained but hey this wasn't even my fault to begin with.

This day just keeps gets better and better.

I better take over before anything else goes wrong.

"Thank you…I'll take it from here sir…" I began, as soon as 'Random Citizen Guy' (I will not say tall and sexy again, I swear on my aunt's cheesecake) got back to his feet, but I was met with a rather cold stare.

"Claire Beatrice Redfield..." That voice alone would make even the bravest of men hide under their beds. Deep, authoritative, and militaristic-sounding…wait a freaking minute, how did this guy know me?

I didn't even get a chance to ask, let alone say anything before he continued on. "...I should have known it was you, based on the path of destruction that was probably left behind several blocks away."

Path of destruction? What the hell was this guy on? Did he even know who he was speaking to? One doesn't just insult an officer of the law and got away with it.

"Um...excuse me?"

"Do I need to repeat myself?"

Suddenly, 'Random Citizen Guy' didn't look very appealing at the moment. The way he sounded, you'd think he was scolding a child in front of her friends. In this case, people were watching, and I felt like a little girl.

I decided to just play it safe for the time being.

"Sir...do I know you?" I asked. "Because I don't think I've ever seen you before..."

'Random Citizen Guy' gave me the coldest smirk I have ever seen in my entire life. I mean, this wasn't just a smirk. This was a smirk that screamed nightmare material.

"I assure you that we will get very acquainted soon from now."

Wait, what was that supposed to mean?

I decided to just ignore his response and focus on the whole situation with my unconscious perp. "...Okay? Look, I don't know who you are but I don't think you're in any position to tell me how to do my job. I didn't ask you to intervene. I mean, yeah it was helpful, but at the same time I have a busted criminal to take to the local medical office, thanks to you."

"Thanks to me?" 'Random Citizen Guy' tossed the perp into a chair. "If I didn't intervene, your path of destruction would have spread down to Cortland Street. And for the record, I know you well enough to understand that you're undisciplined and reckless. If you were discliplined, you would have taken down your perp much quicker without causing a scene."

Just who in the world did this guy think he was?

And that was when the infamous Redfield temper reared its ugly head. Yes, that rage that made grown men howl, dogs cry, and had my brother running for the nearest hills. Chris was too easygoing for his own good, while I inherited my father's legendary temper.

This random citizen was going to get one good piece of my mind.

"Listen, and listen well…" I began, my voice firm and to the point. "...unless you want to get arrested along with the perp here, I suggest that you hold your tongue. I don't know who you are or how you know my name, but I am not in the goddamn mood right now. I haven't had my freaking coffee or breakfast yet. I don't need some random businessman telling me what I should have done when he doesn't even know the first thing about being an officer."

Just for the added effect, my eyes narrowed as I then added; "Keep your snotty opinions to yourself, or I guarantee things won't end pretty for you. Are we clear? Or do I have to take this short conversation to a level you can understand?"

Then I waited, expecting 'Random Citizen Guy' to run, scream, or quake in fear to the point he handed over my perp. But no, this man just stood there and gave me a raised blond eyebrow.

"Was that supposed to intimidate me?"

I blinked.

Wait, did he just say that?!

Before I could say anything, he cuts me off. "As an officer of the law, I believe I know firsthand how to do the actual job you clearly haven't done for the past twenty minutes." Never have I seen anyone not flinch in the presence of my rage…wait a minute, this guy was an officer?!

No…way.

No, absolutely not. I heard him wrong.

Cue my jaw hitting the ground, again.

Well, I guess that would explain why he was so critical of me taking down this lousy crook but that still didn't give him the right to talk down on me like a child.

"It's also surprising to note that you didn't realize I was an officer as well, considering that I gave you a rather daunting assessment of what I thought about your skills. I have a photographic memory, and I recalled seeing the picture I saw matching your description."

"Now wait a freaking minute—" I began, but he just interrupts me again.

"I'm also not impressed or amused by your pitiful attempts to argue with me. I don't know how you survived the academy, but I can tell that your attitude will be a test of my patience."

"What—"

"I also don't care whether you've had your morning coffee or forgot to feed your cat. That doesn't concern me."

Did he just insult me again?!

There was no doubt in my mind that this man intended to make me feel small. Aside from the usual 'how in the world did he know me?' thought running through my head, I was shaking harder than a Tickle-Me-Elmo doll.

"So you're an officer who's so far up his ass that he doesn't even know his head from his torso." I snapped. "Tell me, just who the hell are you? I would like a name please, that way I can find out where your headquarters is located so I can file a report for insulting a fellow officer."

'Mr. Random Citizen who turned to be an officer' still didn't flinch. "I only said what needed to be said, with all due respect. I didn't insult you. I believe you were the one who lashed out first."

"That's because you did insult me!" Okay, that's it. That monotone voice was getting to me. How this guy even survived the academy without ticking someone off is beyond my guess. "And where did you get your training from huh? Who are you to question my years in the academy when you have no respect and protocol just flew right over your head when you pummeled a random perp?! Who does that?! You could have killed him!"

Hey, if he can question my status at the academy years ago, then so can I!

"I did follow protocol by stopping a perp that you were incapable of stopping yourself. And he's alive, isn't he?"

"Oh, that protocol involved busting his nose? The least you could have done was tackle him to the ground and handcuff him! And yes, he's alive, but what if he flipped the wrong way?"

"And why couldn't you have done that yourself instead of allowing him to escape? If you would have done your job, I wouldn't have intervened, in fact, he would have been in handcuffs already."

"You know what? I'm not even having this conversation!"

"Well, this isn't surprising either. You have the mannerisms of a spoiled brat, just as expected. Please continue, I'm sure you'll make a fine example in front of these people watching our little banter." He might have been enjoying this; I wouldn't even know because his expression was unreadable.

That last sentence was enough to send me in a tail spin.

At this point, it didn't matter because I was practically fuming. No coffee, no breakfast, bloody perp, and a freaking jerk of an officer.

I gritted my teeth and was about to snap at him again, but my inner yen was pleading with me not to cause an even bigger scene. I mean, it was bad enough with people staring, waiting for some kind of showdown to take place between me and Mr. Freeze. Yes, I called him Mr. Freeze because someone with the mannerisms of Antarctica deserves that title.

Be one with the yen Claire, be one with the yen. Deep breaths…deep breaths…no reason to go toe to toe against this guy…

Officer Freezer pulls out a pair of tinted sunglasses from his suit jacket and puts them on in the middle of our conversation. "And my name is Officer Albert Wesker, just in case you decide to write up that report. But I doubt you'll get very far with that."

Be one with the yen Claire, one with the yen…

Somehow, I doubt this yen stuff was working at all.

Stupid yoga classes.

I knew I shouldn't have allowed my brother's ex-wife to drag me with her to discover my inner yen.

Rule #1: Dealing with jerks, especially the one I'm dealing with now is always a test of the inner yen.

Author Notes

So I re-posted this story, but the chapters will be a lot different. Please keep in mind that this is AU (Alternate Universe), and I intended to write Claire this way. Contrary to the original reviews, this story draws inspiration from a couple of movies. There may be some slight OOCness from the characters but it's intended to fit the story.

Perp: Known as a 'suspect' in police terms.