Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN SLY COOPER! I OWN NOTHING. I JUST OWN THIS SILLY IDEA! NO OWN!
Well, here we are again. As I was typing out Fallen Amaryllis, I typed this out along with the few chapters that had followed its creation. This is a story of an adult Henriette this time.
I don't know why, but I really love just thinking and writing out story ideas about her. Hopefully I'll come up with more and also keep on trucking through with my other fanfic of Runs in the Family.
Anywho enjoy this little oneshot!
Note: I apologize for any spelling or grammatical errors that occur within the story. Also three Japanese words used, I apologize if I did not use them in the correct way, sorry! Read on!
The little Japanese village's usual bustling activity was slowly halting to a stop as the sun slowly began to sink into the horizon. Around were the sounds of mothers calling in their children inside their homes and of men instructing their workers to be careful taking in their shop's merchandise into their stores.
Some women in elaborate kimonos made their way to a rather flashy decorated building, giggling to the few men who crossed their paths along the way. These women would surely be seeing these men later on that night and though they refused to glance at them, the truth would be hard to avoid as they would follow them into that building.
Among the residents' activity to turn in for the night walked an unfamiliar figure through the village.
A black hooded cloak was draped over their head and shoulders, concealing their face and any identification if the stranger was male or female. They did not wear a kimono or any other Japanese garment the villagers' were familiar with. Instead they could make out a pair of dark brown trousers and the bottom of what looked like a white shirt with frills, but this was not enough to figure out the stranger's sex and also brought up the question to where this stranger was from.
The heels of their leather boots hit the cobblestone to an odd rhythm that only their owner knew as they walked. The only thing that wasn't concealed was the stranger's ringed tail that swayed after them to and fro to the rhythm of their pace. The dark rings upon it indicated that the stranger had to be a raccoon to which some villagers stopped to stare at.
There was only one raccoon in their village, but he had never mentioned family and the much older folk of the village knew of only one member though that one had been long gone from the village for a long time. The old raccoon kept to himself and despite his sushi shop being the best in Japan, if not the world, there had been times where he just couldn't talk to anyone in the village and was left alone.
The stranger seemed to know just where to go, making no pause in their steps until stopping a few feet in front of a large building. Despite all the years that had passed the sushi restaurant of the small village, it had remained in fine form even against the many powerful storms that had passed over them throughout the years. Staring up at the still lit sign against the top section of the building for a few minutes, the stranger's tail flicked in a twitch before walking forward and pushing the large doors open to enter inside.
A single figure stood behind the small bar in the center of the main dining area, stacking dirtied dishes into a small basket to take in the back for washing. His once bright red fur had slowly begun to dull in color with age and his old blue mask had long been discarded away after having retired from his thieving ways. It was now his daughter who had taken the Cooper role as master thief and he had not seen her after she left the village for many years.
Thinking about her, Rioichi Cooper's ears drooped as he threw in another dish into the basket. She had meant the world to him ever since she was born. After she had grown old enough to travel on her own and make a name for herself in the world, Rioichi couldn't stop the growing emptiness in his heart at the memory of his daughter.
But he could not have kept her at home.
It was just the way of the family.
He had prepared himself for the day she decided it was time for her to go. After training and making her own Cooper weapon, she had packed up after her eighteenth birthday and went off into the world. Rioichi had steeled himself and gave her one last hug as he watched her board a ship at the village's port. The way she waved to him as she smiled, he had tried his hardest not to jump onto the ship with her.
He knew it would be a hard choice to let her go, but just like he had left home it was something he could not stop.
Though it did not stop the feelings of missing as well as his worries until the letters started to come. While they were received through odd patterns, some coming one after the other and others coming in after months from the previous ones, Rioichi had smiled as he read over them. It was no secret in the village too about the whispers of a notorious pirate thief, a female raccoon with one eye, who stole treasure from dishonorable pirates and corrupt naval officers on the world's seas.
Rioichi smiled to himself at those memories and knew that his daughter was doing just fine.
But he was becoming older and he feared that the shadow that had been following him after he had declared retirement was slowly drawing closer to him. By the time it would loom over him Rioichi feared that he would never see his daughter again...If only he could see her one last time.
The old raccoon shook his head to push away the thoughts that would consume him and give him another sleepless night. Though retired, he was still a ninja and ninja could never let themselves drown in their emotions. He had closed the shop early in order to get some meditation and sleep for the night in peace.
His daughter's latest letter had come today and it detailed her pursuit of a corrupt naval officer who had tormented a small island village to giving up their prized possessions after stealing the chief's daughter. It seemed she had finally found a way to overthrow this tyrant, but the letter had ended there and Rioichi wondered when the next would come...
It seemed she had grown into a talent on writing her letters with suspense hidden somewhere towards the end. She may have picked it up from him as well as her past ancestors in their family book. "She will be giving me an early death if she keeps this up," he told himself as he recalled her many previous letters. Despite that he could not stop the grin forming on his face and chuckled.
Placing the very last of the plates into the basket he slowly let his mouth open wide to let out a yawn, "Before I would not feel this tired," he muttered to himself as he leaned forward to retrieve the basket only to hiss as a rather loud crack came from his back. Rioichi could only lean forward on the counter and press a hand to the spot. "A long time ago too," he mused to himself as he pressed the spot to relieve the pain, "I was nimble and could jump and leap so high and far...Now, I am cracking everywhere in my body."
"Need any help?"
The raccoon blinked and turned his head to see a cloaked figure behind him, the hood of their cloak drawn up so high that he could not make out their face. However the cloaked figure's voice was that of a woman. He had no clue if she was truly a foreigner as she spoke in his native tongue with a rather odd accent, but it seemed that she knew enough and Rioichi could only shake his head in hopes the woman wouldn't come closer to him.
The few foreigners he served in his sushi shop sometimes were a bit...Overly helpful and sometimes pointed out a raccoon his age shouldn't be handling his business all alone. What did they know? He was still-
Rioichi could only flinch as his back pain only grew and held up a hand to stop the woman from trying to come around the bar towards him.
"No, no," he quietly protested and pushed lightly on his back with his right hand curled into a fist. He could feel more cracking along his spine, but the pain and discomfort had disappeared as he straightened up, "If you are here for sushi...I apologize, but we are closing for tonight." The stranger tilted her head at his words before putting a hand to her hip, "Really? If I remember we used to stay open until dawn if we had a single customer," she told him making him jerk up, "Though by then I was back in my room...Right?"
"...I beg your pardon?"
His tail stood up a bit at her words and he wondered how quickly he could snatch up his cane from beneath the bar. His sudden change in demeanor to her made her pause before she let out a quiet laugh, "Ah...You can't see me properly. Sorry."
Lifting her hands up and pulling back her hood, her face was suddenly revealed to him.
The mask on her face covered her full facial structure well enough to hide her true identity, but he immediately recognized her as she slowly discarded her cloak and set it down on one of the tables before coming closer to the bar. The mask was made of a dark blue fabric, but the right eye hole had been left uncut and covered her right eye as her left eye remained uncovered. Within those brown iris' was a spark of life that he hadn't seen for so long. Her hair that had been grown out as a child was suddenly cut to her shoulders and while she had a mask covering her right eye, her bangs were still long to cover it partially.
The smile on her face made Rioichi almost drop to his knees as her leather boots creaked upon the wooden floor boards as she walked towards him.
Henriette "One Eye" Cooper, his daughter, had changed so much from the little girl he had raised. She had grown in height as he had shrunk through his slowly growing age, it had only been years ago she was at his shoulder. Now she had grown an inch taller compared to him and her pirate attire gave her a presence that demanded attention which was the opposite of when she was much younger and hiding behind his legs.
Henriette stopped right in front of him before bowing her head slightly, "Tadaima Otosan," she greeted him and straightened up, "I'm sorry it was so long for me to come back..."
Henriette continued to smile at him as he struggled to keep his composure. While he had always been a man of little words and emotion, it was obvious that Henriette could read him like an open book. It wasn't only because she was his daughter, but the way the older raccoon had reacted to her appearance in their old home. The way his ears stood up high, the light quiver of his lip and his tail suddenly swaying in quick movements, he was holding himself back at the sudden sight of his adult daughter.
Her smile only grew as she heard him sniffle before speaking.
"O...Okaeri," Rioichi choked out as his daughter let out a soft chuckle before slowly opening her arms and wrapping them around him. The warmth of the hug finally broke the dam Rioichi had struggled to keep up and soon he began to silently cry as he held his daughter close.
A long time ago it had been his arms wrapping her up in his warmth and now her own arms felt strong as she held his aging body close to her. She could feel his bony body and gently patted him on the back as she let out a soft hum, "I missed you too Papa," she whispered.
I'mma just slowly set this bundle of feels right here and cry to myself. This has been a quick little oneshot and I hope it wasn't badly rushed or hurried.
Really hope you enjoyed this, and hope you continue to read on my stories. Until then~!
Translation notes
Tadaima-I'm home
Otosan-Father
Okaeri-Welcome home