Unexpected {Javert • Casual}

[JANE EYRE]

When Jane's friend, Maria, had told her about the idea of a blind date, Jane had been reluctant. After much pleading, Jane had finally agreed to her friend's request. Now, she regretted it a little. She stood in the lobby of a restaurant, wearing what was considered nice clothing for her but rather plain clothing to anyone else, waiting. Maria hadn't told Jane anything about who she was to be set up with. Not his name, how he looked, anything. She was 'flying blind' so to speak. A glance at the clock on the wall told Jane that she was about ten minutes early so she took a seat on one of the chairs that lined the wall.

The hostess gave Jane a disapproving look and Jane responded with a hesitant smile. She must look out of place. Second hand clothes, clean face, nothing spectacular, just waiting. The waiting is what looked dubious, Jane knew. Even after informing the hostess that she was waiting for someone, Jane felt like she was in the wrong. The minutes ticked by until it was time for the man to show up. Jane kept glancing between the door and the floor by her feet. There was a good chance that the man might not be interested, that he may not even show up. It wouldn't be a hardship for Jane if he didn't show up. In fact, it would be a sort of a blessing. Dating wasn't Jane's forte.

[NINA TENARDÍZ]

Javert had tried explaining to Athos that this was hardly an after-school special, and if he wanted a girlfriend, he would have one. But the guy would not have it, and that was how he ended up here. The only logical explanation for his partner suddenly deciding to set him up was that Athos thought he was unhappy, which was probably as far from the truth as he could get. Javert was quite content with where he was at the moment, disregarding the bad luck involving the Ripper case. He had to remember to ask where in the world he'd gotten that idea.

Athos was friends with a friend of whatever girl he was set up with. He'd told Javert that she was a bit mousy, so there was no chance of her being a lawbreaker, and even less of a chance that she wanted something serious. That was a bit better. He didn't mind women, but didn't really care to talk to them unless he was questioning. Javert was his work.

That was probably why Athos had sent him out here. To have some fun. But this wasn't exactly his idea of fun... just awkward. May as well, go, though. He knew it would be rude to blow the girl off, and though he hardly cared about being rude, he would go to spare Athos the terror of facing her angry friend later.

He was casually dressed in gray pants and a light sweater, as his partner had suggested. The place was nice, but not ritzy- a little Italian place that wasn't romantic, just clean and well-lit. The first thing he did upon stepping in was look around, examining the place quickly and then looking at the girl sitting to the side without skipping a beat.

She was pretty, which he acknowledged reluctantly, and her reserved, clean appearance led him to believe that this was the woman he'd been "assigned" to. Taking a quiet puff of air, he headed over to her, praying that she wouldn't be like most women- talkative, demanding, selfish, or nosy.

[JANE EYRE]

Jane was a bundle of nerves when a clean cut man finally walked in. She straightened her back a little when he entered the restaurant and continued her fidgeting. Jane hoped he was the one she was waiting, it was getting tiring just standing there. Her poor nerves couldn't take much more. And then, a blessing, the man turned to her and walked to her. Jane immediately dropped her hands and summoned up an uneasy smile.

"Hello," She greeted him meekly. How does she know that this man was the right one? How did she know that he wasn't just looking for the time? Dismayed Jane realized that she didn't know and that she would have to plunge into the situation. "I'm, uh, waiting for a blind date my friend Maria set up for me. Are...are you him?" What an painfully awkward question.

[NINA TENARDÍZ]

Javert slipped his hands into his pockets, looking down at her with a slightly amused smile. She was mousy, as promised, and he couldn't see anything thus far that would lend her to be an unpleasant person. This was good. At least he wouldn't mind speaking with her, disregarding the fact that he didn't really date.

"Philippe Javert, you?" He hadn't really answered her question, but why else would a complete and total stranger introduce himself, unless he was her blind date? He extended one hand to both get Jane up from her seat and to shake, glancing over at the hostess. She skirted around her little podium.

"Seating two?"

"Un, deux; that's us," he said, raising a brow. His tone of voice was blunt, as if he was a little impatient with the hostess, though it wasn't apparent why.

"Uh, alright, right this way, then..."

[JANE EYRE]

"Jane Eyre," Jane answered, shyly taking his hand. He was a rather large man and was a tad intimidating. Of course, he seemed curteous enough. Philipe must be her blind date, other wise he wouldn't have introduced himself to her, and Jane was relieved. He could have been far more arrogant and unpleasant. Then again, the tone he addressed the hostess with wasn't exactly polite. Jane was surprised that he actually addressed the woman in French.

"Parlez vous Francais?" Jane asked brightly. Of course she didn't speak it fluently but she knew enough to muddle through a conversation. "I took French when I was in school and I tutored a young girl who was French. I'm afraid I've lost most of it because I haven't had need to speak it for about a year now," Jane stopped herself before she could start into rambling like she so often did when she got nervous. The hostess showed the pair to a table and Jane sat down stiffly. This was still rather awkward. Jane pulled her napkin off the table and unfolded it, laying it on her lap. It gave her something to do with her hands.

[NINA TENARDÍZ]

Javert raised his eye brows when the girl began to speak French- and by the way, when did it become appropriate to set up a middle-aged man and a girl on a blind date? -pleasantly surprised. He was used to stumping people by speaking French, and he always did enjoy stumping people. She may be able to pick up what he would say, which would be so much more interesting.

As they were seated, he cleared his throat and explained: "I'm from New Orleans, so it's kind of like my native language." Ah, so that's what that accent of his was. It was faded, as if it hadn't been used for a long time, but still apparent in some of his tones; a rich mix of French and Southern.

"You tutored une jeune fille? Then you're a teacher." He smiled a little. Another pleasant surprise. This was turning out better than he's expected, even though she was a little awkward. Nice girl.

The waitress walked up and went through the whole rigmarole, asking them if they wanted drinks and giving them their menus and then leaving them in peace to finished the conversation. Javert again noted that Jane was very awkward when directly spoken to.

((Trans.: "a little girl" or just "a girl", but with a young connotation.))

[JANE EYRE]

Jane knew she could detect an accent similar to French but not quite in the man's voice. His being from New Orleans explained that quite readily. Jane knew well about accents having one herself. Even a year later her English accent was still quite strong. Unlike Philippe, French was not her native language but rather a secondary that she could call upon whenever she had need. Remembering Adele and how the young girl would ramble on so readily in her native tongue, Jane's knowledge of French was the only thing that kept her afloat with the young girl.

"Oui, I'm a teacher. I was a private tutor before I moved here, now I teach art at a high school," On the subject of profession, Jane was far more comfortable. She took pride in what she did and it showed on her face, a shining smile. Jane looked at the menu but glanced at Philippe regularly. "What do you do for a living? Maria did not tell me much about you or her friend that she conspired with to make this happen,"

[NINA TENARDÍZ]

Seeing her so proud of herself made him smile a little. See, this is was America was all about; if laws were enforced readily and consistently, people like Miss Eyre could always take pride in what they did with their life. And she was so young, too. It was good to see people- especially women- like her.

"'Til you came here? I'm assuming from England." The 'E' on 'England' was stretched into a subtle 'ah' sound, another little quirk of his rather charming accent. Though, accent aside, Javert was hardly a charming man; only a blunt, realistic one. Maybe she'd like that, maybe she wouldn't- no skin off his nose.

He looked down at his menu, resting his chin on one finger and shrugging. "Well, I'm a police detective. So's the guy who knows this Maria." Now was a little test for her; would she jump on him for details of some specific case? Ah, that was another little red flag for him. Javert had observed red flags for most negative traits, and that one attributed to two of his least favorites: nosiness and gossip. He acknowledged that he was being slightly hypocritical in saying that he disliked nosiness, but all of his nosiness had a very good reason.

[JANE EYRE]

Jane nodded. "Yes, from England. I moved here about a year ago," Jane kept herself from looking at the more expensive menu items. Teaching didn't pay very well and Jane didn't know if Philippe was one to pick up the tab. All she could afford really was a small salad and that was with ordering water and not anything else. Jane folded her meny and sat it aside primly. Salad it was. Jane knew that she should be eating differently to gain some weight but she didn't have the money for that.

"How long have you been a detective? I've heard that it isn't easy to work up to that title," Jane had no idea that she had been set up with a detective or that Maria knew a detective. Granted, Jane didn't know that much about Maria but still. Maria was a nice woman, bold and well-liked, but Jane just couldn't picture her being friends with a police officer, even a detective. Now that she had met a detective, Jane's opinion on officers had yet to change. She viewed them as dedicated, compassionate people who were necessary in the every day life of a citizen. Jane had no reason to worry either, she was more than law abiding.

[NINA TENARDÍZ]

"Very good," he said, looking up as she set down her menu. "Are you a citizen yet?" The way he asked wasn't condescending or sarcastic, for once; he sounded truly curious, and he was. It wouldn't be such a big deal if she were here on a visa, and if it was expired, it'd be easy enough to kick her out. But he highly, highly doubted that a girl like her would do something like that. Javert was exceptional with reading people, especially when they didn't want to be read, and he was getting nothing fishy off of her.

He shrugged at her question. "It took a lot of hard work, yes, but I'm glad to have done it." Good. No red flags as of yet... nothing except her excessive awkwardness, and that wasn't much of a problem. It wasn't as if he'd be seeing her again, right? At least he was (so far) tolerating her company.

The waitress came by with their drinks and then, in that bouncy was that waitresses often do, asked them what they were going to order. Javert seemed indifferent to the girl's blonde good looks, and just ordered without saying much else. When they had both ordered, he looked back at Jane, expecting her to respond. Well, at least she was keeping his attention. That was a good sign.

[JANE EYRE]

"Not a citizen yet, no. I'm applying for a full time visa so that I'll be covered once my work visa expires," Jane said. She felt rather silly ordering her small salad next to Philippe's full meal. Sipping her water, Jane racked her brain for the next appropriate conversation topic. There was the weather which was uninteresting on that day. Sports were a typical topic as well but Jane didn't know anything about sports what so ever. There could be more talk about profession but Jane felt that it was time to move on from it.

At a loss, Jane decided to admit to her inexperience. "I should tell you that I've never really done this and I'm probably muddling the whole thing as we speak. Of course, you've probably figured that out already, you are a detective after all. I'm sorry I'm so terribly awkward, I don't mean to be I'm just flustered by all of this. I'm not used to it....and I'm rambling. Terribly sorry," Jane felt her face heat up. She was usually so much calmer, even around unusual situations, but the fact that this was labeled a date made it hard to relax. She had never been on a date before. Back in England she went from governess to fiance, the courting period skipped.

Jane dropped her head into her hands. This was a mess. Philippe seemed like a nice enough man, a potential friend. Jane was afraid that she had already ruined that with her nerves. "I assure you that I'm not always like this. The simple fact that this whole thing is labeled a date is what is making me so uneasy,"

[NINA TENARDÍZ]

Javert watched her with amusement for a moment, letting her ramble on. He knew that he was torturing her, not saying anything, making her feel as though she needed to explain herself. But it was fun to watch her get all flustered. He rather liked teasing her already, which was a good sign. The only people he felt he could tease openly were Athos, at times the Thenardier girls, and now apparently... Jane.

Finally, he found pity for her and interrupted her rant- "Really, it's fine. I don't date either, believe me. Just don't think of it as one," he suggested with a shrug, propping his elbows on the table without any regard for manners. "We came because our friends made us, but what really happens in this restaurant will never be known to them."

[JANE EYRE]

Jane nodded and looked down. She felt like a fool now, being so worked up over nothing really. Of course this wasn't a serious date, how could it be? She had just met Philippe and they weren't, by any means, socially acceptable as a couple. Philippe was far older than she and that was so frowned upon by Americans.

"We came because our friends made us, but what really happens in this restaurant will never be known to them."

Feeling more relaxed already, Jane was able to raise her eyebrow skeptically at the comment. She had been spending far too much time with Kitty to just that that at its face value. She read into it in such a way that Jane felt both ridiculous and amused at the same time. Shaking her head, Jane let out a soft giggle. "That sounds wholly inappropriate Detective," Jane warned teasingly. She was well aware that he felt at ease to tease her so she decided to return the favor.