Right. I need to do this now 'cause who knows when my next chance will be? For those of you who are scratching your head right now, I'm heading back to school. I'd say joy but sarcasm isn't very well transmitted over text. For those of you with still a few dregs of summer left, have fun. For those who have headed back, there isn't really a positive thing I can say. Sorry. As always, enjoy the story and please take a few minutes at the end to tell me what you think. It really does help me. Final note, the divider isn't working so I shall use X's.
Disclaimer: Balkoth does not own the Teen Titans. Of Gumshoes and Moonlighters is mine and I'm thrilled that so many people seem to enjoy it.
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Research Bore
It was sad really: the computers Richard and Garfield had been using for the past hour were just slow enough for a person to nod off between loading periods but not so slow as to allow REM sleep. Garfield put one hand over his mouth and stifled a yawn. The blue loading bar was either not moving or going backwards. It wouldn't have surprised him if it was going in reverse.
Richard was having more luck. The computer wasn't high quality, far from it. Still, this was the first time Richard had gotten to see the security footage of The Raven and he was drinking it up. The first heist was unfolding in front of Richard while Garfield waited impatiently for the second heist to play.
Around them, people were navigating the aisles of the public library. The heavy wood shelves were cluttered with everything a person who cared to read would want. Dust was settling over the areas that received less traffic. Garfield wasn't usually that observant but he noticed all of this.
Richard didn't notice his partner's lack of interest toward their assignment. Richard was in his own little world. He wasn't learning anything special from the footage but he was trying. The Raven had known what to expect once she was inside the building. She'd been careful and meticulous. Richard was on his third run-through of the tape. Still, he'd gotten nothing. There just wasn't anything to get; the theft had been executed perfectly.
Richard glanced over at Garfield to see him peeling some clear tape off of the tabletop. Garfield had always hated research. The guy was just more of a people person. He'd never learned how to look at a book or a computer screen without losing interest.
Richard sighed inwardly and took off his sunglasses before returning to the computer screen. Then, he folded them into his breast pocket – as if by removing the reflective lenses he could glean more information from the video. Steely cobalt eyes narrowed into slits as Richard tried to pick the footage apart.
"Dick," Garfield asked while stifling another yawn, "isn't there a way I could be more useful doing something else? You know, maybe talking to a few people to learn what's going on?"
"Just bear with me a little longer, Gar," Richard responded disjointedly, as if his attention were elsewhere. That was because it was. "I know you don't like research but this needs to be done. If you don't want to watch the videos, you could hit the books and see if the two things that were stolen had any connection."
"Hit the books to see if there is a connection? And where, pray tell, would you suggest looking?" Garfield queried while rubbing his left bicep.
"Oh, I don't know, Gar," Richard snapped back at his partner. "We are in a library, why not try there?"
"Dick," Garfield whispered, not so much for privacy or respect of the fact that they were in a library but because he was struggling to speak through another yawn, "the things stolen were random trinkets. We could spend years flipping through these books looking for a clue and still find nothing."
Richard's shoulders drooped. He hadn't really heard the words, just the tone they were spoken in. Richard wasn't sure exactly what had happened but Garfield was out of it. More so than usual.
"Gar," Richard started slowly, fishing for the words, "we'll have a lot of your type of work later but right now I need your help with these videos. I know this isn't your favorite thing but it needs to be done if we're going to get anywhere."
"Yeah," Garfield sighed, "I know."
After a few minutes, Garfield spoke. "Dick, do you want to switch. You're better at this kind of thing, so I figured it would be good if you took a swing at the knew stuff, just in case I missed something." Richard and Garfield switched computers so that they wouldn't have to load the security tape again.
Richard took his sunglasses from his breast pocket and placed them back over his eyes. The footage was different for this heist. Very different. The Raven seemed rushed, scared, distracted. Richard noted that for his own use and waited.
The Raven didn't know where the security cameras were this time. She had a general idea but not the exact location. That was probably why she was keeping her head down. Richard guessed that she'd been familiar with the last place but not this one. They needed to check the scene of the first heist to see about regulars and new employees.
Richard watched as The Raven came to the best security in the place. Trip lasers. Clumsily placed and visible to the naked eye – or at least the camera could pick them up. The Raven knew how to move, that was for sure. They were looking for a woman who had taken either gymnastics or dance as a child.
As The Raven ran, ducked, slid, sprung, and flipped around the room her cloak flew open, something she had not allowed to happen during the first heist. The hood stayed up, which was unfortunate, but her clothes were revealed. Black jeans and a short sleeved blue shirt. Nothing too extraordinary, but Richard's sixth sense was drilling a hole in the back of his head. She looked very familiar.
"Gar," Richard asked, annoyance coloring his tone, "did you actually watch this?" There was no way anybody, even Garfield, could not get a mountain of information from this video. There was no response. Richard turned to the other computer to see the chair empty. Garfield had played off of Richard's habits and slipped out while he was watching the footage.
Richard patted down his pockets for his car keys. They were still in his left pocket. So, Garfield hadn't taken the car, which was good. Still, he had ditched Richard to do who knows what. Richard shrugged it off. It wasn't the first time Garfield had bailed on research. It was a bit of a tradition and it would have been a shame to break it.
Richard went back to his research for a while. There was nothing he could do about Garfield and he still had a few questions that he wanted answered. Forty-five minutes later, Richard saved the two videos to a floppy disk so that he could see them later. Then he spent a little time looking for books that could possibly be relevant to the case. Richard doubted he'd find anything, but it never hurt to check.
Richard checked out the books and walked out of the library. If Garfield wanted to play a game, Richard would play along. The difference was, Richard had the car and no remorse when it came to giving Garfield a hard time.
A few clouds drifted across the sky, obscuring the sun and granting a brief temperature drop. The drop was accompanied by a gust of wind that sent dried leaves scurrying across the library parking lot, caught up in miniature tornadoes. Richard's nose stung from the brief exposure to the chill air and he rubbed the cartilage for a moment once he reached the haven of the car.
Richard started the ignition and headed down the street. The roads weren't too congested because it was around eleven thirty in the morning. Everybody had already reached work and lunch break wasn't for another one or two hours. As Richard drove along, he passed a small little shop that looked like a literary club. A small poetry club to be exact. He remembered seeing Rachel Roth there yesterday.
Richard debated with himself for a minute before turning back around and looking for parking. "Gar's channeling through my body," Richard mumbled to himself. That didn't stop him from parking and heading into the small brick building.
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Next Update: Wednesday, August 23, 2006
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