{Fic} The Need for Speed (and coffee); TAZ AU, Taakitz

[quicksilverfox3]

 

Silence fell around Kravitz, the radio turned down to a low hum, coffee long since gone cold in the paper disposable cup. He knew the rest of the department hated these shifts, the long stretches of time watching the same barren stretch of road, broken only by-passing wildlife or speeding drunks which promised a mess of time and paperwork that nobody wanted to deal with when the moon was high in the sky. And so, they fell to Kravitz, new in the department and already jaded beyond his years with tired eyes and a secretive past. He knew they whispered behind his back, curiosity driving them onwards, but they were good people and he didn't mind taking this shift in the dead of night with only the same four ads playing over and over again on the radio and the owls for company.

 

He glanced at the clock, rubbing one gloved hand along his jaw to feel the scratch of uneven stubble. A sigh escaped him at the tiny red digits dancing in front of his eyes. The hour of 3am should not exist, it was an abomination from the angry gods to punish those on night shifts. It had been quiet which was both a blessing and a curse in the life of a policeman. But the silence was beginning to set his teeth on edge, wariness coiling under his skin, his knees bouncing almost uncontrollably for want of some movement. And almost as if it had read his idle thoughts, the universe delivered.

 

The speedometer screamed its warning, green numbers flashing incessantly, as the hot pink BMW flew past him, several thoughts crowding into Kravitz's head. First and foremost, making itself heard above the rest, was a voice that sounded suspiciously like his grandmother demanding to know why he decided to tempt fate to that level. And it was so close to his quitting time. Another quick glance at the clock as the wheels churned in his head revealed that he had ten minutes left. He knew that car. He knew the most likely culprits to be driving it at this time of night as well having had many minor encounters with Bureau members since starting this job.

 

He could narrow down the list quickly by those who would be caught speeding, which didn’t narrow it down as much as it should have done. Some days it seemed like the entire group was winging it on a wish and prayer and no thought for their own safety. But the likely culprits were either going to be fine or this was going to take far longer than it should do. He could let them go, felt the urge rise like a demon sitting on his shoulder, whispering poison words into his ear- No.

 

Leather creaked as he flexed his hands on the steering wheel, moving to flick the lights on and emerge from his not at all concealed hiding place. Kravitz knew better than most, how easy the slow decline into complacency could be, barely a slide at all until you were at the bottom and had to claw your way out of the pit of your own making. Never again, not here, not now. While this job was going to be the death of him, it was going to come mostly on his own terms with a clear conscience and more coffee in his veins than blood. The pink BMW's brake lights were a beacon as he neared them, the car slowing to a smooth stop at what counted as the side of the road in this narrow stretch of dirt, even indicating beforehand. The engine cut out as Kravitz nudged his car behind it, the lights still flashing, faint clicking setting his teeth on edge as he slipped his police cap back onto his head, pushing a few stray braids back behind his ear.

 

His heart seemed to pound in his throat as he neared the car window, the lights from his own headlights creating huge swathes of shadow, concealing the occupants. The gravel crunched under his boots, stray rocks clicking against the wheels of the car as Kravitz brought up his flashlight, shining the small beam into the car.
"Taako. Lup," he greeted with a sigh, "Do you know how fast you were going there?"
"Do I get a prize if I guess right handsome?" Taako responded with a wink. Kravitz didn't even know they produced neon green eyeshadow and yet he couldn't find it in himself to be surprised. Kravitz flicked the light between the twins once again, frowning slightly. They'd caught him out like this once before, still similar enough to pass as each other under the desperate circumstances of not getting too many points on their licences.

 

"License please," Kravitz asked the driver who was most likely Taako judging from the chewed manicure yet immaculate cat eye eyeliner.
"Don't you trust me yet hot stuff?" Probably-Taako asked, accepting the tiny black clutch from Probably-Lup and rummaging through it, chewing on the thin silver hoop in his bottom lip as he did so.
"No," Kravitz answered, inspecting the tiny piece of rectangular plastic before letting out a sigh and flashing the torch light between the twins, the duo striking a different pose each the light landed on them in perfect synchrony. It was almost like they practiced this and Kravitz honestly wouldn't put it past them.
"I'm pleased to see you've learnt which license belongs to you Taako," Kravitz said with a grin, pleased that his initial thoughts of which twin was which was confirmed thanks to a few subtle differences.
"I try my best sweet cheeks," Taako replied, half leaning out of the window to draw Kravitz's gaze back to him in order to give him a large exaggerated wink.
"Do you think you could try your best not to speed?" Kravitz fired back with a raised eyebrow as he began to type the details into the computer from memory.
"Sorry officer," Lup chimed in, forcing Taako's head down as she half climbed onto his back to offer her own winning smile in Kravitz's direction, "We will try our best for you to not catch us speeding."
"That's not the same thing and you know it Lup," Kravitz said warningly, unable to bite back the smile lingering at the corner of his mouth completely.  She chuckled, lounging back into her seat and Taako's head popped back up to rest his head in the palms of his hands and bat his ridiculously long eye lashes in Kravitz's direction.

 

"You are getting a ticket-" They both groaned in unison, heads thumping back against in the headrests, "-you knew this was coming, you cannot flirt your way out of a ticket with me."
"So you have picked up on the flirting!" Lup announced, looking delighted as Taako frantically batted at her blindly.
Kravitz chose to diplomatically ignore that last statement, instead carefully scrawling out the ticket and passing it and the license back to Taako, ignoring the deliberate brush of fingers against his leather gloves, the grin widening on Taako's face giving away the fact the Kravitz was not blushing as subtly as he had been hoping for.
"I knew you were sweet on me good lookin'," Taako crowed, eyes almost seeming to light up as he scanned the conditions laid on the ticket.
"I am doing my job," Kravitz said warningly, "You could probably do my job with the amount of loopholes you've found and exploited."
"I don't know what you are talking about sweetheart," Taako said blithely, carefully inspecting his fingernails as Lup tucked the ticket into the glove box.
"Can we go now officer? At the correct speed of course," Lup asked, leaning over and introducing her elbow to Taako's stomach.

Kravitz nodded, tucking the book and the machine back onto his belt and began to walk back towards the car.
"You should come see us this weekend at the race honey bun!" Taako yelled out the window. Kravitz gave a loose two fingered salute without pausing in his steady strides and almost collapsed onto the driver’s seat.

 

The BMW roared into life, headlights illuminating the road ahead as Kravitz's flicked off the flashing lights, tiredness dragging on his bones, a faint ringing in his ears. Taako let out one short beep of the horn as they cruised past him, both waving enthusiastically as they did so. Kravitz waved back although it was unlikely, they would be able to see him accurately. It was strange. He knew Taako flirted with everyone, it seemed to be the man's default setting and yet... It always seemed to be different with Kravitz, more straightforward even from their very first meeting outside an attempted robbery scene, the robber in question lying semi-conscious and groaning on the floor. But he was working, it wouldn't be right, too many risks of exploiting the power dynamic for Kravitz to indulge in the flirting like he wanted to. One idle glance at the clock spurred him into action, his bed beginning to call its siren song in his ears. His knuckles cracked as he took hold of the wheel, cold seeming to fuse onto his bones, trapping him in place for a few long seconds that felt like years. Fighting through it, Kravitz slowly swung the car around to head back to the distant lights of town. Driving allowed his mind to wander, a phone call from earlier bumping to the forefront of his mind, Taako's parting statement also rolling around creating an almost irresistible temptation. And Kravitz was only human after all. Nudging the car to the side, Kravitz scooped up his personal phone, calling one of the two numbers saved onto it.
 

"Hey, yeah it's me. Sorry for the late hour I'm just on my way back to the station. Listen, is that open spot still available?"
Streetlights passed in a steady flashing pattern of lurid orange and darkness as Kravitz slowly drove, phone tucked into his front pocket, the voice on the other end slightly tinny.
"Yeah, I've still got my gear and everything. Great, see you at ten."
And that was that. He now had plans for this weekend. Kravitz allowed himself a small smile as the excitement bubbled in his chest. This was going to be fun.

 

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"He likes me I can tell," Taako told Lup confidently as they drove home, keeping half an eye on the speedometer the entire way there.
"We can't keep getting caught by your boyfriend just so you can flirt with him," Lup grumbled, rummaging through the CD's before selecting one at random. She whooped as the opening bass notes of 'We Will Rock You' began to pound out of the car's heavy speakers.
"At least I flirt with mine instead of staring at him from across the room," Taako called, his voice hidden behind the guitar but Lup still took a half-hearted swipe at him, accurately guessing his words. Taako laughed, offering his fist to Lup, the pair knocking them together without looking, the car swerving ever so slightly as they began to enthusiastically sing along, their minds turning towards the upcoming race and the deal they had struck.