Chapter Text
Chapter 1
Raelle woke up screaming, covered in sweat and breathing heavy. She pulled back her blanket and stood up hurriedly. She glanced at her Alarm clock at the Nightstand and sighted in frustration. It was three in the Morning and she was awake because of another stupid Nightmare haunting her. She had slept less than two hours and she could still feel the exhaustion, but she knew that she wasn’t able to sleep again even if she tried. She took her phone, collected a few clothes and headed to her bathroom. She needed to take a shower and get rid of all the sweat caused by her nightmare. She played some Music on her phone, took off her clothes and turned on the shower. She welcomed the burning feeling from the hot water that run down her Body and started to relax a little bit.
Raelle took her time to calm down and sort her thoughts before she turned off the shower and stepped out. She grabbed a towel and wrapped it around her body.
For the first time since she woke up and went to the Bathroom, she allowed herself to look in the Mirror. What she saw was a blonde woman with blue eyes, dark circles under them, and a large scare on her left side of the face looking extremely exhausted and tired back at her. She stood there a few more seconds looking at herself before she turned her gaze away and started to get ready. If she was awake at such an unholy time, then she could at least clean her apartment a little bit. That is something she really needed to do.
As soon as she’s fully clothed, she starts to clean the bathroom which turns out to be the fastest room to clean.
After two hours she lets herself fall on her couch in the living room. She really should have done that sooner the blonde woman thought to herself.
It was now almost six in the morning and the sun started to rise slowly. Raelle loved that time of day. She loved watching the sun rise. Before she could stop herself, she began to think what it would look like to see that in color. She read a lot about it. How people who found their Soulmate described the moment when the sun started to rise, and the heaven started to turn into all these beautiful colors. She always was a little bit jealous of the people who found their Soulmate and were able to see that in color. Raelle couldn’t get enough of this sight even when its only in black and white. Before the young woman could get lost even more in her thoughts, she shook her head and stood up. Turning her back to the window and away from the rising sun. She needed to stop thinking about that. She would never see that in color. Hell, she didn’t believe in that whole Soulmate thing anyway. She would never see colors or feel her heart beating in her chest. It was ridiculous to think about that. So, she just stopped thinking about it. Raelle pulled her walls back up, as high as she possibly could, and collected everything she needed for work. It wasn’t much to be honest. She just grabbed her Badge, her gun, her phone and her keys. Before she left the apartment, she put on her shoes and grabbed a Jacket. She looked over her shoulder, checking the Apartment one last time, making sure she hadn’t forgotten anything, before she stepped out and closed the door behind her.
Raelle was surprised that she only had to give her death stare to three other drivers. Usually she threw that look to at least ten other people while she was driving to work but today seemed to start peaceful. She had to admit that it was a little bit weird to start a day without her usual amount of death stares, but she would take it. She knew that her day definitely wouldn’t stay that peaceful.
As soon as she arrived at the Office she walked straight to her desk and sat down. She needed to finish the paperwork from her last case, which is something she hated. She decided to become an Agent to hunt down criminal assholes and not for that stupid paperwork she had to do every time after she took one criminal down and closed a case.
After an hour she signed the last paper and put the file, who was now officially done, to the side. Raelle was about to get up and get herself a coffee when her boss, Anacostia Quartermaine, stepped out of her office and started heading her way. The young woman stood up quickly and looked expectantly at her boss.
“Collar, today you will get a new team. They will be here in a few minutes” Quartermaine said coldly.
Raelle could feel anger boiling up inside of her. The other woman knew exactly that Raelle didn’t want to have a team. That she wanted to work alone. She clenched her hands to fists, so strong that her knuckles turned white. With a clenched jaw the blonde women began to speak “With all due respect Ma´am but I work alone. I don’t need and I certainly don’t WANT a team and you know that exactly.”
“Agent Collar it wasn’t a request. It was an order and you WILL follow it, or I will make life very difficult for you am I clear agent?!” Quartermaine said.
It took Raelle every ounce of self-control to not punch that women in her face. Before she answered her, she took a deep breath and then said with ice cold voice,
“Yes Ma´am”
Quartermaine smiled triumphantly and clapped her hands together. Before one of them could say another word the doors from the elevator opened and two women, around the same age as Raelle, walked out of it. They looked through the room, searching, but as soon as they saw Raelles boss they headed their way.
Quartermaine greeted them and talked for a second with the both women before she turned back around to Raelle and said
“Agent Collar these are Tally Craven and Abigail Bellweather. Your new team.” Anacostia fixed Raelle with a hard look before her attention got taken away by her ringing phone. Her boss quickly answered it, stepping away from the three young women and leaving them alone.
Raelle let her gaze linger a little bit longer on her boss until she heard someone speak. She looked back at the two women who stood before her and looked at them cold.
One of them was smiling kindly at her and held out her hand for Raelle.
“Hey I´m Tally. It´s nice to meet you!”
Raelle couldn’t help but look skeptically at her. After a few seconds she took the Hand from the other woman and shook it quickly.
“Raelle Collar” was all she said.
“You are Raelle Collar? Imagined you were taller...” the other one said.
“And you are...?” Raelle asked the other women.
“Bellweather. Abigail Bellweather. I heard a lot about you Collar. You were the best one in you class.” Abigail answered.
“Listen, this whole team thing wasn’t my idea. I work alone and I really didn’t want a team. I don’t need People who are holding me back and get in my way. Just never try to tell me what I should or shouldn’t do and leave me alone, then we will get along pretty good. Got it?” Raelle said to the both of them.
Before one of them could say another thing Quartermaine got back to them.
“I guess that was enough time to get to know each other. There is a new case and I’m putting you on it!” Anacostia said to the three of them.
“Yes Ma´am.” Raelle said before storming off without looking back for her new team.
A few weeks after being forced to work in a team Raelle started to accept it. She even started to be a little bit nicer to Tally and Abigail.
It was easier for Raelle to connect with Tally than Abigail but after some more time and a few visits at the bar together as a team after work, which was Tally’s idea of course, even Abigail and Raelle started to become some kind of friends. That led to Quartermaine noticing the change in their group dynamic. She was pleased to see that the three young women put aside their differences because without a doubt they were the best team that she ever had.