look what the cat dragged in :: DALLAS (CASUAL)

[ÉPONINE THÉNARDIER]

Well, her mischief had finally come round and bitten her. Éponine's life of crime had led her to make some very bad choices, and one of them was being around Montparnasse at the wrong time. He had been on a job ... one of his more "high-profile" jobs. Some heiress had discovered that her boyfriend was not only philandering, but stealing her money. She was set to inherit her father's handbag industry, and she didn't want to risk being found involved in the murder of her cheating lover. So she'd talked to the right people and had eventually been recommended to Montparnasse, who was more than happy to be employed by an extremely wealthy woman. His asking price was not cheap, but she could afford it. Montparnasse had enlisted Éponine's help in exchange for a share of the cost. The offer had been too tempting for the homeless girl. After all, he had simply asked that she meet the heiress and then deliver the money to Montparnasse on a roof downtown.

Éponine had not known that Montparnasse was concerned with his reputation being sullied by taking such a fickle case. When she had arrived on the roof and handed him his share, he promptly knocked her unconscious and fled the scene. It wasn't until she woke up surrounded by police with a pounding headache, a wad of cash, and the smoking gun that she realized that Montparnasse had framed her. He hadn't stopped there, either. He had even written a letter supposedly from the victim to Éponine, talking about how their affair had to end. Not only did this give her a motive, but there was very little that Éponine could say or do to explain that she'd been framed. She had been promptly delivered to the police station and questioned severely.

Several weeks passed as the investigation proceeded, and thankfully the evidence showed that Éponine had nothing to do. They concluded that she had been framed. Unfortunately, they'd also uncovered that she was in the United States illegally. Her past crime records had also betrayed her. In a whirlwind of events, Eppie had found herself on a plane back to France. She hadn't even been given a chance to tell Azelma or anyone else what had happened to her. She was sure that Javert would probably end up gloating and spreading the word, but by no other means could Éponine's friends and little remaining family know what had happened to her. She'd arrived in France in mid-April, and she quickly became determined to go back to America. She couldn't just leave Azelma there by herself, and France had nothing for her. She hadn't lived there since she was a child, and she had no family there.

This time, she was determined to immigrate legally. The idea of legal immigration was unfamiliar to her and the concept of doing anything the proper way was not how she usually operated. However, this whole ordeal had been devastating for her, and she needed to figure out a way to keep it from happening again. She spent a lot of time doing research, and though it was distasteful to her, there was only one way she could see herself being eligible for a permanent resident status. She would have to be a snitch. She had been as helpful as she'd dared in the original investigation into the crime that Montparnasse had committed, and the nature of her involvement made her a victim of criminal activity.

This and some other complicated paperwork allowed her to successfully travel back to America. She'd spoken with immigration and they'd agreed to allow her to return to care for her sister on one condition: she had to report all crimes to which she was a witness and be as helpful to law enforcement in New York City as she could manage while her paperwork was being sorted through. The idea was not appealing to her, but it was the only way that she would be able to live in America again. This was why she was in the police station at this moment. She was not there because of something she'd done this time. She was here to report a burglary. Thankfully, in this case she did not know the criminals involved and her conscience was fairly clean. Still, being in the police station put her on edge and made her tense.

She was on her way out from going through the process of reporting when she passed the holding cell where criminals waited to find out where they would be going next. She nearly passed it by when she realized that she recognized the fellow inside. "Zut alors!" Éponine exclaimed. "Look what ze cat dragged in!" Eppie stepped up to the bars and grinned mischievously at the inmate, Dallas Winston. He looked a mess! She, on the other hand, looked passable. Her clothes were clean and didn't have too many holes in them, and she had a new hat. She had also had a shower recently, which was more than could usually be said for her. "What'cha got yourself in for, eh, Dally?" Despite the unusual circumstances, Eppie was actually really glad to see Dally. She hadn't seen any of her friends since she'd gotten back. She knew that the government was watching her and she didn't want to give them any reason to turn down her application. Nevertheless, she missed the guys and couldn't wait until she could catch up with them all again.

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[yolanda7h]

Fuckin' Socs.

Unfortunately being in the NYPD's holding cell (it was like a second home at this point) always made Dal extremely bored. All he could do was focus on getting the son of a bitch who put him there...which usually put him right back in jail. This seemed to be the case this time. Bob fuckin Sheldon, that fucker better wish Dal doesn't get out of there because Bob was a dead man when he does. The only reason he was in here was because Bob's dad was a lawyer and could make whatever he wanted happen. Didn't matter if his son was a piece of shit. Dal had to take the rap.

Fuck. He wasn't worried about going to jail as long as he wasn't in there forever - staying in there for too long will fuck a person up and Dal had enough of it when he was in there last time. He knew that if he ever went back to prison - he probably never come out. And if Dal was scared of anything - anything at all (though he'd never show it) - it was that. He hated it. Before he went to prison for a year, he thought the streets were pretty rough. No, the streets were nothing compared to the sick fuckers he had to deal with on a daily basis in jail. At least outside on the streets, he had his guys - the Greasers - and especially Johnny. It wasn't much but it was something, even if Dal was convinced he couldn't even trust them. But in jail, something was better than nothing and he had nothing. There was no fuckin way he'd go back there. They'd have to take him out if they tried to send him back to prison.

Unfortunately, Dal had a lot of anger to sort through as he waited in the holding cell, lying full length on the bench that was in there - staring at the ceiling.

"Zut alors!"

Of course he knew who that was. Who else would speak to him in a fuckin language he'd never understand? He sat up. "Look what ze cat dragged in!"

"Yeah, well try not to rub it in, asshole." Dal said evenly, tension and anger still in his voice - residue from his previous thoughts. He stood and went up to the bars. OF course he looked like shit. It was what happened he got in a fight - but Dal thought nothing of it. It was a normal thing for him.

"What'cha got yourself in for, eh, Dally?"

Next to Eponine, he rested his arms between the bars and leaned on it casually. "Beatin' the hell out of Bob Sheldon." No matter what the out come of the fight, Dal always thought he won. He'd never tell anyone else otherwise. "The fucker ran to his daddy and got me in here." He shrugged. "But he ain't the only guy who knows the cops well around here." He glanced at Eponine and gave a small smirk.

He'd get himself out of this mess. He always does.

"What the hell are you doin' here anyway? News travels that fast, huh?"

(OOC- the thread with Bob isn't finished yet, just so you know

[ÉPONINE THÉNARDIER]

Seeing Dally really reminded Éponine that she was home. Yes, he was part of her old crowd, and it killed her that she couldn't hang with them as much, but it was a relief to see him nonetheless. To her, Dally meant New York. Dally was the Greasers, and without the Greasers Éponine wasn't sure where she'd be. She probably would have been deported a long time ago. The Greasers were more her family than her real family was, for sure. She definitely missed their antics. Of course, sometimes Dallas got in over his head and got himself thrown in here, so it wasn't surprising that Éponine was seeing him there now. She'd even been in there with him a couple of times. Those were the good days ... figuratively speaking. It felt weird for Eppie, being on the other side of the bars. It made her wonder if that was what made Javert so persistent, that feeling of power seeing someone behind bars that you placed there. Of course, Eppie wasn't experiencing that now, because it hadn't been her fault that Dally was there, but she was sure for someone like Javert there was some sort of high to be gained from it.

"Ya wish ya were zat famous," Éponine said, looking Dally over. "I'm 'ere because I was deported, didn't'cha 'ear? Now I'm legal, sos I gots ta be a citizen of 'good moral standing.'" She pulled a sick face, tongue out and all, while putting the air quotes around the last few words of her sentence. This was killing her. It went entirely against her nature to report people and be a snitch. The reclusive criminal society of New York, no matter what level, had a strict code about that. Éponine wasn't sure what she'd do if she caught the Greasers or somebody else close to her doing something. If she didn't report it, someone would eventually find out she was there and her new reputation would fizzle. That's why she couldn't be near them. She could no sooner tell the Greasers to stop stealing cigarettes and alcohol than she could tell a fish to breathe without water. She didn't want to, anyway. Bob Sheldon deserved a good beating every once in a while. This was definitely not the situation that Éponine wanted to be in at all.

"Ow's everybody? Soda? Two-Bit? I miss zos morons like crazy," Éponine said. "And 'ave ya 'eard anyzing abou' Zel?" Her sister was just as elusive as Eppie herself had once been, and since she'd been back she had yet to nail down her sister's location. When Azelma didn't want to be found, she couldn't be, but Éponine needed to find her and explain everything. Hopefully all of this would pay off somehow, but she couldn't make it happen without Azelma's cooperation.

[yolanda7h]

I'm 'ere because I was deported, didn't'cha 'ear? Now I'm legal, sos I gots ta be a citizen of 'good moral standing.'"

"Who the heck made that dumbass decision?" He joked dryly. "Ya know, maybe you can be of good moral standin by bustin me out of here and getting that dumb fuck Sheldon locked up instead. Or what's left of him when I'm done." Between the bars where his arms rested, he flexed his hands into fists absent-mindedly. No joke. Bob's face would be unrecognizable once Dal got of that jail and he knew it too. Everyone in Windrixville knew it. The coward thought having Dal locked up for now would save him from getting his ass handed to him but that only made things worse. Because having Dal locked up meant he had time to think about just how he'd destroy Bob. Him and his Soc friends. Dal would singlehandedly start an entire rumble once he's free.

Dal was so one-tracked minded that he barely registered what Eponine was saying. Apparently, she was still talking. What a surprise.

"Ow's everybody? Soda? Two-Bit? I miss zos morons like crazy. And 'ave ya 'eard anyzing abou' Zel?"

Dally sighed irritably, looking down at his hands and he flexed them consciously now, as if he were already warming himself up for a fight. The ring he stole from some old geezer was back on his finger - Sylvia hated when he wore it because she thought it was tacky. Dal wearing it at all was usually a sign that they broke up...again. To hell with the bitch. Dally didn't even bother to pretend to care. She knew there were a lot more of her (the slutty, easy type) around. Way too easy to replace.

"They're still morons." he answered, a small hint of a smirk tugged his lips and he glanced at Eponine. "What'd you expect? You know Ponyboy had this birthday party and they tried to surprise him at some bar they rented out. Yeah, the party got busted 'cause some of Two-Bit's connections didn't come through. What a tool, that guy. We ended up catching some action out in the city though." He paused and it was his turn to look Eponine over. "You got a cigarette?" He could really go for one.

"Nothin' about that Zel chick, by the way." he added. "And if I did see her, what makes you think I'd remember her anyway? Shit, I can barely remember what happened a few nights ago. You know what though? I do remember you sayin' you were legal now." He grinned, moving his arm out from between the bars to reach through another set of bars to touch Eponine's hair. "But wait, you turned 18 last year, didn't ya? What's that all about huh?" He knew exactly what 'legal' she was talking about of course.

(sooooooooooooo sorry for the wait! muse + rl + revamp work = terrible posting yols )