#alfinite

“Fancy meeting you here, mon detective.”

“Oh, bugger off now.” Of course, the thief didn’t bugger off. He never did, unless there was a good chance that the constables were hot on his heels. He’d appear at random intervals, like at her football matches or at the art galleries when she was trying to take some downtime from her hectic schedule. Instead of a break, she saw more and more of his pesky mug.

In the end, she didn’t seem to mind too much in moments like these, when he would take the seat across from her at the little café. With the snow falling outside, Charlie liked to watch the white peacefully drop before blanketing all of Paris.

“Any particular reason you decided to follow me to the café today?”

“Maybe I felt like something warm to offset the cold winter. Like your smile—“

She groaned, trying to make it visible just how annoying his puns were, “That was terrible.”

However, the redhead didn’t seem swayed in his enthusiasm, his signature grin spreading that just seemed to make her anger rise, while simultaneously calming her. Maybe it was because, no matter how terrible his jokes and puns were, Raphael was good company when he wasn’t trying to steal all of Paris’s prized works of art.

That grin rose to a peak before cracking into words, “You know you like my puns, secretly deep inside.”

Nope, the calm is gone.

“Shut up and order, idiot.”

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Once both of their orders had been placed, and a long good bicker about the state of Fondue’s name – “What do you mean you named your dog after a terrible pun?!” – the two drinks arrived at their table. A peppermint hot chocolate for Raphael and a white hot chocolate with extra steamed milk for Charlie.

The steam from his drink rose, fogging up the glasses before he could take a sip. They weren’t real glasses, but… Honestly, it would be almost embarrassing to admit these were fake disguise glasses to the detective.

“Er…” Raphael started, hesitantly taking his glasses off to wipe them on a napkin.

Staring for a second, the laughter bubbled up as the scene progressed, “Y-You’re an idiot, you don’t use NAPKINS to clean glasses, are those even real?”

Oops. Blushing a bit, Raphael shook his head and shakily placed them on the table, “Do they really fool people?”

“Well, the only time I’ve seen you without is when you’re in your… Despicable suit.” Spitting the words, she pulled her drink up to hide her smile behind the cup. Really, the suit wasn’t bad. More often than not, the private eye enjoyed her time fighting with him.

Not that she’d ever admit to having fun with him… No, that’d just make him cocky.

Raphael, on the other hand, seemed practically offended by her statement, a hand clutching his chest in faux anguish. “Despicable? You wound me, dear Charlie! My suit is of the upmost quality, I’ll have you know…”

There’s another snicker and a sip coming from the blonde, no retort however. She was satisfied with his reaction.

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 “Your dog is awfully nice today.”

“It’s because you aren’t trying to decapitate me with a football.”

“That would explain a lot.”

“Speaking of, how do you… You know, light them on FIRE when you’re kicking them at my face?”

“Good question… I’m not entirely sure.”

“So you just… Kick flaming plastic, a definite safety hazard… at my face. Because you can.”

“Yep.”

“Astounding. The leader of personal safety for detectives, Charlie Vergier, everyone.”

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 As their drinks dwindled, so too did the jabs at each other’s egos. Maybe that was a side effect of the snow silencing the city, or maybe some sort of holiday cheer infecting the two of them. Or maybe, just maybe, it was because they enjoyed the time together.

Not that either of them would admit that much.

Standing up softly, Raphael gave Charlie a smile and a nod. She returned the gesture with a sigh, trying not to feel too down about it.

Shelling out a couple dollars for his drink, he cleared his throat— Only to be interrupted by her voice, tight and rushed, “When are you going to visit again, Phanto—I mean, Raphael. When are you going to come back?”

A shrug, he tried not to giggle. “Guess I never really know. I try to be mysterious.”

“And I hate it.” She pouted, crossing her arms as Fondue rubbed against her legs.

“I promise, this isn’t the last you’ll see of me. I’ll see you again soon.”

They both nodded softly, Raphael motioning Fondue towards the door before mumbling over his shoulder.