They pulled up to the small dock in Haggard after a long day of trailing from crime scene to suspect, and suspect to file cabinet. The moon was just rising, leaving the car's two occupants in dull darkness.
On most nights, the tall girl in the passenger seat would climb out of the pristine, black car, exchange goodbyes with the taller man in the driver's seat, and head up the gently sloping road towards home. This night, however, the muscular girl remained in her seat, making no move to leave. As the almost impossibly-thin man noticed this, the girl with dark eyes that held dark secrets leaned over to him.
"You know, I think I've really only touched your skull to help you reattach it," the tall girl observed. As she spoke, she gently grasped the man's jaw in her right hand. With her left, she brushed her fingers across the small, precise symbols carved into his collarbones. At her touch, the skin previously covering the taller man's face recoiled into his shirt collar, leaving his skull as bare as it had been on the ride over.
After pulling her hand out of the man's shirt, the tall girl placed her hand softly on his exposed skull, cupping the hollow cranium affectionately. The thin man was silent as the girl ran her thumb along his smooth and sturdy jawbone. As she did so, the tall girl briefly wondered: what this would have been like centuries ago? When the taller man had skin, muscles, and blood, along with the warmth that came with them?
It was far, far from the first time she had entertained these thoughts, but as always the girl came to the conclusion that she didn't have to know. To her, no flesh and blood face could ever represent the coworker, partner, and friend beside her. No facade or mask would ever make her see the man as anything but the barren yet familiar skull she was currently holding. After a moment, the tall girl spoke up.
"I know I've mentioned this before, but I still like your skull more than any crummy facade," she told the man as she took her hands away from his head.
"Well, it's nice to know the years haven't dampened my good looks," the man replied after a pause, showcasing the everlasting arrogance the girl had come to adore.
Smiling broadly, she retorted, "I know complimenting Sanctuary detectives is more your game than mine, but I'm pretty glad I get to see your undampened good looks as much as I do."
The thin man straightened up as he turned to the rear view mirror to his right.
"We're quite the pair, aren't we? The Sanctuary is so fortunate to have such drop-dead gorgeous investigators at work."
"What a shame, we must be leaving dozens of admirers at every crime scene."
"We can't be blamed for our pulchritude, Valkyrie. I never asked for these high cheekbones, just as you never asked for a smile that lovely."
Grinning at the tall man and his frequent but never tiring compliments, the girl climbed out of the spotless, dark car. The two detectives exchanged their usual goodbyes, and the girl started her short trek home.
As the tall girl and the taller man, thought of as coworkers, partners, and friends, parted ways that night, they both considered whether they should be something more.