Apologies chapter 2

Klavier hummed a catchy tune as he backed out of the convenience store parking lot. Ema started snacking as soon as she got into the car, munching happily while Klavier talked.

"Fraulein, where would you like to eat?" asked Klavier with a chipper tone to his voice. "I heard that there is a great new restaurant that has been renovated recently. Would you like to go there for lunch?" He smiled. "Or is there someplace else you have in mind?"

Swallowing her oversized bite of snackoos, she mumbled, "That's fine." Klavier seemed to be satisfied with her answer, and he proceeded to turn the radio on. The first song that came on was the Gavinnner's most recent song, Love Love Guilty. Ema sighed and glared at Klavier until he chuckled and turned the radio off.

"Fraulein, what is it about me and my band that you dislike so much?" asked Klavier, still smiling a little.

Ema stared blankly out the window for a moment, then sighed and said, "I just don't like rock music very much, I guess."

Klavier didn't look too disheartened about this, however. After a moment's pause, he said, "And what is it about me that you dislike so much?" He kept his eyes on the road and didn't look at Ema as he waited for her response. Ema merely looked out the window and munched as she pretended to not hear this question. Klavier sighed as he prepared himself for the silence that he predicted would last for the entire drive.

"It's not that I really dislike you or anything like that," said Ema hesitantly, as Klavier looked over at her in surprise. "It's just that…" she paused, hesitant to continue.

"Yes? Please go on, Fraulein, I'm very interested in what you have to say," Klavier said calmly, continuing to smile.

"Well," Ema began, turning a test tube over and over in her hands nervously, "Scientifically speaking, you irritate me on a daily basis. I really would rather not be working in the homicide department of the police, as Gumshoe's replacement, no less. Your bothersome comments don't help either. " She paused before continuing, "After all, I wanted to be a forensic scientist, not a detective. But after I failed my proficiency test, well, I didn't really have a choice but to come back home." She was surprised at her own honesty. She hadn't meant to say this much. It all just kind of flowed out on its own. She felt a mixture of relief and embarrassment after getting this information off her mind.

"I see," said Klavier thoughtfully, taking in all of this information. He didn't have any time to respond after that, because they had arrived at their destination. He pulled into a parking lot facing a small, but welcoming bar that read Tres Bien. It had gotten a lot of work done since Ema had last seen it. Klavier stepped out of the car with Ema and put on sunglasses and a hat to hide his identity. Ema thought it was a pretty poor disguise, but it would have to do. They walked toward Tres Bien, taking in the new look.

For one thing, it was no longer an ugly pink shade on the outside. The exterior was a clean, simple, blue color. And when she stepped inside, it was completely different. [For a visual, check the author's profile. There is a link to a rough estimate of what it would look like]

Instead of the garish pink wallpaper and curtains, there were many different shades of green paint covering the walls. The ugly tablecloth-covered coffee-stained, poisoned tables had been replaced with a waiting bench for incoming customers. On the opposite side, there was a high-end wraparound bar that extended to the kitchen. The high barstools looked shiny and new, and the room looked a lot more spacious than when there were only 4 tables.

The windows were also gone, replaced by abstract paintings that matched the different shades of green in the room. The lights were many in number, but were dimly lit, giving the bar a very romantic setting.

"Welcome!" greeted Maggey from behind the bar counter when they entered. "Have a seat, there are plenty since it's not a busy hour." She smiled wider as she recognized Ema. "Detective Ema! I haven't seen you since Gumshoe started working in a new department! How have you been?" Ema was surprised that Maggey didn't recognize Klavier. The disguise must have worked better than she had originally thought. But then again, Maggey had never been the brightest crayon…

Ema and Klavier took a seat at the end of the bar, close to the kitchen. Ema sat down first, frowning and scooting her stool further away when Klavier sat down next to her. "It has been a while, I suppose," said Ema, thinking back to the last time they met. "I believe the last time I saw you was the celebration party of Gumshoe being promoted and moved to a new department. By the way, nice place you have here. Did you do the design?" Klavier looked a little surprised that science-freak Ema was taking an interest in the design.

"Ah, well, no, actually," said Maggey, laughing. "It was done by a friend of mine, Adrian Andrews. She basically served as my organizer for the entire remodel of Tres Bien. She's the accountant and manager now. I'm just the Co-owner and bartender." She placed the glass she was polishing down on the counter, and said, "So, what would you like to have?"

Klavier turned to Ema and said, "Ah, Fraulein, since it's my treat, what would you like?" Ema jumped, since this was the first time Klavier had spoken since they entered the bar. For some reason, he had been quiet the whole time, not interjecting every 5 seconds with an annoying, flashy, glimmerous remark.

"Oh, um, I'd like just water, please," said Ema, not wanting to get drunk on something and do something stupid.

Klavier chuckled at Ema, and said, "You're not getting alcohol?" Ema flashed him a quick glare as she received her water from Maggey. "Ah, I see, you don't want to inconvenience me by adding more to the bill, is that it? The Fraulein actually shows some consideration for the 'glimmerous fop' that she hates so much?" None too gently, Ema punched him in the arm without even batting an eyelash. Klavier winced and rubbed his arm tenderly.

"Hmph," said Ema indignantly, "I don't have any such emotions for a glimmerous fop-" her words were drowned out by the crowd of incoming customers for the lunch hour.

One of the groups seemed to be hardcore Gavinners fans. They were deep in conversation when they entered the bar, and looked to be all females. Ema looked away, disgusted. She gulped down her water and began to gather her things to escape before things got messy. Oblivious to the walking death traps that just entered the bar, Klavier attempted to stop Ema.

"Why, Fraulein, I believe I said that it was my treat. Please sit down," said Klavier, a bit confused, as he caught her arm before she could escape. "Is something wrong?" Ema stiffened as she saw the fangirls, who just sat down, look in her and Klavier's direction. Their eyes widened in recognition as they looked first from Ema to Klavier. Klavier, still clueless, let go of Ema, thinking that she would sit back down. He was wrong, however. Ema took this chance to flee the scene before the fangirls came to any dangerous conclusions.

"Wait, Fraulein!" said Klavier, getting up to chase after Ema as she dashed quickly out of the small bar. Ema watched Klavier get mobbed from outside the glass door. She chuckled, but felt a little guilty about leaving him there. She also felt a little angry that she didn't get to eat the lunch. Although, somehow she didn't think that she was disappointed about the lunch. Perhaps it was the fact that she didn't get to spend time with the biggest glimmerous fop of the century? It couldn't be.

She walked even more quickly away, rushing to get away from the disaster, and also those thoughts. She tripped twice, scraping her knee. Ema sat down on a nearby bench and thought out her decision for a moment.

Should I really have escaped alone? Or should I have saved him from the walking dynamite too? She considered this for a moment, but then had another thought. But he hasn't been showing very much energy lately due to his accumulated amount of cases over the past month. He probably can't fight all of them off alone. AUGH, that stupid fop always makes others worry. Ema got up from the bench (bloody knee and all) and ran for Tres Bien as fast as she could. It had really only been a few minutes since she had left, so she got there quickly.

Ema flung open the door, panting and out of breath from running. It made a large dent in the wall, with fragments of paint flying from where it impacted. Everyone turned to look at her when the door flew off its hinges, barely missing Maggey's head. Ema swallowed and stood up straight, prepared to fight. The fangirls froze, wondering what she was going to do next. Klavier still somehow managed to look cool while under attack. The fangirls had taken his shirt off, so his pecs were showing. Ema almost backed off, but remembered what she went there for in the first place.

Ema glared at the fangirls and stalked over to where they were stripping Klavier. His face was helpless and desperate. Ema shoved aside the frozen fangirls (some backed away without any problems; they saw what she did to the door) and grabbed Klavier's arm. She barely gave him time to stand up before she started dragging him out the door. One brave fangirl ran in front of her and spread her arms out, blocking the way.

"Move," said Ema coldly, making the girl jump. Maggey could be heard hitting her head on the bottom of the bar counter, hiding. "Klavier will pay the damages, Maggey, so we'll be back later." Ema punched the girl in the stomach and half-dragged Klavier out of the bar, getting into his car.

"Thanks, Fraulein. You saved my life back there. My fans seem to have the strength of men, ja?" Klavier half-chuckled and ran his hair through his hair, sighing in relief. He started up the car, waiting for Ema's response, and when he didn't hear one, he looked over at her. Her hands were shaking, and her head was down. "Fraulein, are you all right?" He placed a hand on her shoulder.

Ema slapped his hand away and yelled, "You are such a loser. You got overtaken by those stupid girls and made me run all the way back to help you out!" Ema looked up and glared at Klavier. Her anger and relief mixed together made her say things she couldn't control. "I can't believe that you wouldn't just tell those girls to just screw off! Stop being such a gentleman, it's not working! What if word got out that those girls tried to molest you, huh? Then what would happen, Mr. Perfect-rockstar-prosecutor-who-is-too-good-to-tell-his-fans-to-screw-off-while-he's-on-a-date?" Ema covered her mouth with her hands and gasped. She had actually admitted that they were on a date. She slapped Klavier in the face and exited the car swiftly before either of them could react.