Sometimes, Sitting By (Ocean Of Stars)

Title: Sometimes, Sitting By
Description: IC: Avram : OPEN

GeekyGreek - November 27, 2011 05:45 AM (GMT)

Date: Summer 6. Year 10
Time: 3: 45 PM
Wearing: Dark blue-jeans, work boots, and a plain white shirt.

There was a part of him that couldn't escape the "busy". Peace and quiet was good and all but there came a time where the quiet was tiring and the peace... unnerving. At times like these, when he still lived in Chicago, all he had to do was step outside and he'll be enveloped in noise. People, cars, animals, construction, the works. Here, on this, admittedly lovely, island there weren't many busy places. Sure there was the village but that wasn't quite the same as the big city. While quiet is a good quality for an island to have and, actually, the reason why he came here, the problem was with himself.

As one who works diligently, it was rather odd to find himself in a work lull. Back home, his co-workers often joked that he was married to his job. At work he worked and at home he worked more. Not that he's complaining, because he loves his job, and he loves the work he dose for people. To give people the comfort to sleep in their own homes, knowing that they'll be safe, or to walk through the streets without fear of someone pulling a knife on them, that's why he's a cop. Well, until events pushed him to quit his old job. As much as he tells himself that that was then, and this is now, it still hurt all the same. But he just can't see himself doing anything else, or even retiring. He still had plenty of life in him.

At his new job, thankful that he is for it, the work was different from what he was used to. There isn't much crime on such a small island, and as much as he tries to fill his time with patrols or investigating, there wasn't enough work. No endless paperwork that could keep him busy until the midnight hour or criminals to track, cases to study. Adjusting to this change of pace was going to take some time.

Avram turned his attention back to the dock workers, who were preparing for the arrival of the next incoming ferry all while getting another ready to set off. Seagulls kaw'ed and haw'ed, and Avram watched them as they hovered on the winds. It looked like one of those old magic tricks where the magician used fishing line to make objects look like they're floating. Birds were always a mystery to him. Stupid things they were, and the bigger the bird the stupider it was. Pigeons will always be the dumbest birds, though. Dumb birds who fall for the simplest, and obvious ploys. They'll eat right out of a woman's hand, eating her words right up and they won't even notice when she has them trapped.

A heavy sigh escaped him. He reached up to rub his forehead.

Marie - December 31, 2011 05:10 PM (GMT)

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<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v423/akie_images/av-jusinius.jpg"> 
 Iustinivs Servivs 
Mood: In "Patrol Duty" Mode



 

Afternoon patrols could be so boring.

No, that wasn't true. All patrols could be this boring, no matter the hour.

Sure, there were some strange and interesting people here in Obsidian, but in Justinius's experience, it was mostly the animals who were troublemakers. Not people. Yes, he knew he should be grateful for that, but...it was so boring!

On the other hand, he could also view the peace as a test of sorts. A test to see if he could keep his skills honed. He hoped he would pass that test!

As he walked through the docks, he kept his eye on people. Studying them. Evaluating them—though not a single one looked suspicious. This was one of the busiest places on the island, second only to Pyrite Circle. There were lots of children playing, families just arriving on or getting back from vacations, new people who came here for a better life... Justinius stopped momentarily to caution a child who was playing too close to the water's edge. Contrary to common belief, water was not soft. Falling into it from a distance of more than a couple of feet could hurt. Justinius knew this from experience and sincerely didn't want a child to find that out!

The little boy gave Justinius a wide-eyed stare, then nodded and ran away, disappearing into the crowd.

Strange, I did not mean to frighten him that much, Justinius thought as he watched the boy run. Well, carry on!

It was then that Justinius noticed a familiar face in the crowd, that of his brand-new co-worker, Avram. Justinius hardly knew the man, but his first impression had been that of a strong man, not one of the "weak sissies" he had met so often on his patrols. (And that was probably one reason there wasn't too much going on here; Justinius figured that the majority of men he'd met here would be more likely to be victims of crime, not the perpetrators. )

But Avram looked...lost. Or deep in thought. Justinius knew he was new to the island, and, frankly, it certainly could be difficult to adjust. Justinius himself knew that quite well. (Though, to be honest, Justinius had no memory of where he was from, so, perhaps he'd had it a little easier than others... Still, he found the way of life here to be rather strange.)

Justinius decided to join him. "Good afternoon," he said, trying not to startle Avram in case he was interrupting deep thoughts. "Nothing amiss, I hope?"



 
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Greek - January 2, 2012 08:34 PM (GMT)

Date: Summer 6. Year 10
Time: 3:45 PM
Wearing: Dark blue-jeans, work boots, and a plain white shirt.

Startled some, Avram set his hand down in his lap and looked up to see his co-worker. He felt a little embarrassed when asked if anything was wrong. Avram was careful when it came to displaying his strong demeanor; that he would look the part of a confident cop and not like some old man mulling over his ailing body. Which is probably how he looked to Justinius, a moment ago. Okay, that was a bad way to put it, but at the moment it was close enough. It got his point across. "Ah, hello, Justinius." Avram smiled. "Everything 's fine. I finished my work for the day and my evening patrol doesn't start until a few hours."

Justinius was a strange fellow, he did wear Roman armor, but Avram quickly came to like him. Justinius was a good person under it all and Avram couldn't dislike him for that. They even had similar desires to protect the good people, that had a considerable affect on Avram's opinion. Though, how did his co-worker think of him? Avram was a little curious, but he would never admit it. Feelings weren't a strong suit of his.

"Are you on patrol?" Avram asked causally, straightening a little where he sat. He doubted a little small talk would hurt anything. Really the patrols didn't do much more than give some comfort to the people or the island, that and to give the officers some exercise. Either way it was win he supposed. Besides, Avram thought as he glanced around the busy dock, everyone's doing there own thing, it's just another peaceful day.

Marie - January 10, 2012 06:18 AM (GMT)

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<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v423/akie_images/av-jusinius.jpg"> 
 Iustinivs Servivs 
Mood: Thoughtful



 

"Yes, I have the afternoon patrol today," Justinius said, nodding as he spoke. Avram was noticeably taller than he, and, well, it was a little awkward to have to look up at someone while you were on patrol. So Justinius generally avoided eye contact, which may have seemed rude, but, truthfully, he was supposed to have his eye on the public, anyway! So he kept his gaze on the people passing by. "Not much goes on in this town, so during the summer I often spend much time patrolling around the waterfront. 'Tis much cooler here, and it seems to be where most people gather."

Where people gathered, problems were more likely to occur. Occasionally Justinius had checked out reports of pickpockets and shady travelling salesmen operating here at the docks, preying on people who were about to leave the island and therefore wouldn't find out they'd been robbed or ripped off until they were at sea. Still, that didn't happen very often. In fact, Justinius had investigated only one report of a pickpocket and two of shady salesmen since the start of the year!

"Evening patrol, huh?" he said, more of a statement than a question, as he watched a flock of seagulls gather near a family who was picnicking on the nearby beach. The gulls clearly wanted their food! "It's hard to stay up all night, but that is the best shift. Things are most likely to happen at night. Although..." He sighed. "Have you had to respond to calls about fierce dogs or rabid squirrels? Those seem to be the most common around here, especially at night." He scratched his chin. "We are law enforcement, not animal control, but those animals are dangerous, so I understand why they call us. Still, it is a little...unusual."



 
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Greek - January 14, 2012 02:23 AM (GMT)

Date: Summer 6. Year 10
Time: 3:45 PM
Wearing: Dark blue-jeans, work boots, and a plain white shirt.

"Can you blame them?" Avram said jovially and smiled. He could see people fishing up and down the docks. Dropping lines at the edge of the water and between the boats or casting lines out to the open sea. Others, it seemed, were just taking a walk and enjoying the company of family or friends. A dull pang of regret echoed through him, bringing forth memories of her. Avram shifted is weight to his other foot and quietly cleared his throat; pushed her from his thoughts.

He turned to look at Justinius as the man began to talk again. The night shift used to feel intimidating to Avram, back when he was a greenhorn cop. Every officer had a hundred stories about the night shift and what has happened. Shootings, drug busts, assaults, robberies; it wasn't a pretty list. Then, as he cleaned and inspected his gun before heading out he would remember why he was a cop. If no one did the night patrol then how many innocents would suffer? With that thought at the forefront of his mind Avram faced night patrol after night patrol.

"I have gotten a call about a dog. It was just a stray rummaging through a woman's trash, though, she thought it was a burger coming into the house with all the racket it was making. Doesn't the island have it's own animal control?" Avram hadn't been around long enough to check out every business and such on the island. Part of him was still used to living in the city where the animal control nearly matched the police force. Thinking on it further, it was a small island, so, in a way, it made sense that there wouldn't be one. Though, if the police were constantly forced to chase after animals it could distract them from their real duty.

Marie - January 25, 2012 09:08 PM (GMT)

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<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v423/akie_images/av-jusinius.jpg"> 
 Iustinivs Servivs 
Mood: Still In "Patrol Duty" Mode



 

Animal control? Justinius had to think a moment on that one. He'd heard the term somewhere before—though he didn't quite understand it—when someone was complaining about a stray dog (the harmless type, not the rabid type), which had confused him a bit. Stray animals weren't necessarily a pest; they feasted on the rodents and other small critters that were pests! There had been many stray animals on the streets of his Italian hometown...as far as he remembered. Actually, he wasn't entirely clear on that. His memories tended to be kind of fuzzy, but he still trusted them.

 "Animal control," he repeated, "I do not know. Since I have never been given instruction on where to take a stray animal, I suppose we do not. Diseaseless stray animals themselves are not bad. I think my hometown had many on the streets. ...Oh, I suppose they could be a problem if they get into the rubbish bins," he agreed. "People think it's up to us law enforcement agents to clean that up, don't they? Last I checked, we were not employed in garbage removal, but... Well, I suppose we must do whatever it takes to keep the population happy. I'm more of a military man myself,"he scratched his chin thoughtfully as he spoke, "But, I suppose we must do whatever it takes to keep people happy."

"You know, now that I think about it," he continued, "There has been a bit more than the usual animal-wrangling going on lately. It seems that summertime is when the pickpockets and other small-time thieves come out. Have you caught any this week? I caught one pickpocket the other day, but he was released and back out on the street a few hours later." Justinius shook his head. "I don't understand why we don't punish them, but that's the law here."



 
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Greek - January 29, 2012 07:05 PM (GMT)

Date: Summer 6 Year 10
Time: 3:45 PM
Wearing: Dark blue-jeans, work boots, and a plain white shirt.

Avram nodded as Justinius talked about animal control and such. Stray dogs were hardly a problem, though, when too many of them are loose and running around then they begin to become a nuisance. Then things like aggressive packs start to form. After he received that call about the stray dog, all Avram could do was scare the mutt away but no doubt it would go back sooner or later or go into some other trashcan. He was probably lucky then, when after he scared the dog off that the woman thanked him and he went back to the station, free from garbage cleaning.

"But, I suppose we must do whatever it takes to keep people happy."

"That seems reasonable." Avram said, but deep down he thought, it was their job to protect not to appease. While Avram at the core of the issue had no problem with happy citizens, just that it was the job of the police officer to protect. If the police department because focused on making people happy then what happens when something serious happens? If people think that it was apart of their duties to make them comfortable and content then it could be distracting from the real issue. Back home he's been sent out on numerous false alerts. Once A woman called the police on her husband, saying he were a trespasser when she was mad at him for forgetting something and wanted to punish him.

When Justinius went on Avram pulled away from his mental rant to listen. The increased "animal-wrangling" proved Avram's earlier worry. Eventually they'll become too much and someone will have to intervene, and that someone will be the police. They were not outfitted for such a task and the most they could do would be to take the animals to the pet stores or adoption centers, but then who wants a street-born mutt? After that the only option is to shot the poor animals, unless the veterinary clinic were willing to put all those animals down.

"Pickpockets? No, I haven't seen any of those yet but I have been receiving calls about numerous, small robberies. Like a few mugs, a few coins, and clothes are stolen. Things like that. No suspects or witnesses, though." Avram said, with a hint of irritability. By the signs it was a small time thief but eventually they'll work their way up towards bigger and bigger things. "A day is hardly enough. Put them in for a season and then they'll have plenty of time to think things over and regret their choice."

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