Ladron leaned on the sill of his window now locked and barred, courtesy of the PPD and their favors to his mother, Carmelita Fox. He had been sent up to his room as result of picking the pockets of his godfathers, Bentley and Murray. He had also managed to steal Bentley's glasses right off his nose a few times which normally would have warranted praise from his father, though his mother and godfathers begged to differ and he got stuck in his room and tried to toggle the window open...
He sat after a minute, thinking about both of his parents and how his mom had always tried to stop him from acting like his father; Sly Cooper, the great thief. His father had told him countless stories of his adventures with his godfathers; all the priceless pieces of art he had stolen, all of his adventures; and stories about the cop that had always been on his tail; Carmelita; his mother. His mom had always told him that his father exaggerated many of the stories told, but Bentley had always affirmed that every word was true, especially the parts about himself.
Thief blood ran through his veins, and he had always admired his father. He stood back up and went back to the window, taking a key out of his pocket that he had stolen from his mother several weeks ago (he was pretty sure that his father knew he had it, though.) and fiddled with the key and padlock until he heard a faint click and the lock popped open. "Yes!" he whispered to himself, opening up the bars on the window to let in the warm cold draft and droplets of rain from an oncoming storm.
He slid out of the window, moving along the roof and jumping down the two floors and landing lithely and silently... He moved around the house and ducked under the window where his parents and his father's friends sat laughing with each other. He continued moving until he came to his parents' room; he smirked to himself as he saw the window was unlocked and slipped in, looking around with a cautious position, should he give his position away... "Now... If I were a book, where would my dad hide me...?"
Pacing around the room, he thought of all the places where a thief would hide something from a thief... in a safe? Nah, any thief could open a safe. Even him. In a secret underground lair? Nah, everyone'd expect that... where could it be?
He snapped his fingers as an idea came to his head. Under the bed! A place so obvious, no one would think to look there! He dove to the ground, pushing away the sheets until he came across... something. Whatever it was, it was big, green, and covered in fuzzy, thick mold... Whatever this... thing... was, it had obviously been there for a while, and neither of his parents had bothered to clean it up. An air freshener sitting next to it was enough proof of the fact that they dared not touch it.
He grimaced as he pushed the thing aside, vowing to wash his fur off ASAP... He found what he was looking for quickly right behind the moldy salami... The theivus raccoonus, archive for the Cooper family. He had a memory of hearing his parents argue about destroying it. It was a precious family heirloom but one that stood against what Carmelita stood for as a cop. He slid out the window as he heard footsteps approaching and winced painfully as he heard his mother scream his name... That woman certainly had a temper...
Deciding that making a run for it would be the best decision at this point, that's what he did. Jumping the high iron fence that surrounded their house, traveling along tree branches and rooftops. The storm was really starting to pick up, so seeking shelter was his first priority. He found a balcony, high above the streets where he would be able to se his parents coming from any direction, and sat down beneath the shelter of the patio roof. He had managed to keep the book dry, though, which was the most important thing if he was going to train himself to be a thief. It's aged cover and leather bindings looked old enough that they could fall apart at any time, but the book was as strong as the day it was started as a family thievery archive. He opened the book, leafing through the pages.
He sensed movement on the roof behind him and flattened himself against the wall, intent on avoiding being seen before he saw whoever it was who was nearby... He moved quickly to the narrow ledge as a cloaked figure jumped down from the roof and spun around. Obviously whoever this was had seen him and was looking for where he had gone... "Who the heck..." Ladron whispered to himself as he held the book tightly to himself, in between himself and the wall so his body protected it from the rain despite its heavy durability. He prayed silently that the figure wouldn't notice him...
The figure pulled off his hood; another raccoon. Dark fur filled his face, lighter strands around his mouth and almost black fur around his yellow eyes. Whoever this guy was, he was serious. That, and seriously creepy. He took a quick look around again, and then jumped up to the roof of the patio. Ladron gave a sigh of relief as the figure left his sight range, but his relief was short-lived as the other raccoon jumped from the roof to the ledge that Ladron was standing on, a knowing smirk on his face. The younger decided to make a run for it, jumping back to the balcony as the other followed close behind him.
As he turned along a chimney, the darker raccoon blocked him off, a ringed tail swaying with the same emotion as the condescending smirk the raccoon sent Ladron. Meanwhile, Ladron did his best to hide the book behind his narrow body and in the darkness's tight embrace. "Who are you?" He took a step back and the other one countered by stepping forward...
"My name isn't important, but I know yours, Ladron Cooper, and your lengthy family line. Hand over the book, and I just might let you go without a fight..."
Ladron pressed himself closer to the wall, the edges of the book digging into his back. Who was this guy, and why did he want the Thevius Raccoonus? Ok, the second question was stupid… what thief didn't want the book? Ladron shook his head in response. "Do you really think I'm stupid enough to give this to you?" he asked, getting a cocky grin on his face. Maybe he could weasel his way out of this situation just like he did with his parents.
The foreign raccoon mirrored Ladron's grin and came uncomfortably close, forcing Ladron to step back again. "From that blank look on your face and the fact I found you so quickly, the thought had crossed my mind." Ladron couldn't help be somewhat intimidated by the growl-like actions of the elder raccoon and decided to make a break for it, rushing in a flip above the other one and jumping nimbly on a light-wire... "Facing mum is better than this guy..."
Running along the string of lights, the other close behind, Ladron used every trick he knew to get away. Turning tight corners, jumping from rooftops to alleyways to back again, up a pipe, down another string of lights, but the other just kept up the pursuit; and if anything, gaining on him. He stumbled over his own feet as he flew into an alleyway, tripping into a pile of wet, thrown-out newspapers as his pursuer laughed at him, stopping in front of him to look down with a mocking smirk. "Yeah, I know I fell..." Ladron said to the one before him. "You don't have to laugh at me for it..." he said, placing a glare on his own face, as menacing as he could get it to be (even though his best was pathetic). He hugged the book closer to his chest.
The other leaned in and laid a hand on the book, though his palm was nearly flat on his chest and his condescending expression didn't fail as he gripped it tightly, ripping it out of Ladron's hands as if he had been a child.. Ladron jumped up as he tried to keep hold of the book. "Who the hell are you!" Ladron rushed forward to attack him and the other just swept to the side with a grin, the book now under his arm... "I'll give you something to bring back home cub... My name is Simon. Thanks for the literature." he made a short hand gesture and jumped up to the roof, Ladron scowling in his wake...
Ladron took off after him, determined not to loose something so important. 'Oh, god…. I am so gonna be grounded for this….' He thought as he chased Simon over the rooftops of the city. The storm's winds were stronger, nearly blowing Ladron off of the roofs and wires many times, but he kept chasing him. Jumping up to a level above Simon, he continued to chase him on the many wires above the city streets, never loosing sight of the darker raccoon. Eventually, he caught up with him enough to jump, landing in front of Simon as the other stopped in front of him, yelling "Give back that book!"
Simon's grin hardly faded as Ladron landed in front of him though it did stop him in his tracks. "You still here, cub? I would've thought I left you in the dust ages ago." Ladron pulled his best cocky smirk as he stood there, contemplating how he could get the book away from Simon. The other raccoon was obviously older, bigger, and may even have a concealed weapon beneath that cloak while all of Ladron's gadgets and his fathers crook were confiscated for bad behavior. Simon took advantage of his thoughtful pause, pinning him against the wall of a nearby corner spire.
Ladron's face flushed as he yelled at Simon, "Get away from me, you freak!", and then realized that away was defiantly NOT where he wanted him if he wanted the Thevius Raccoonus back. Simon pushed him against the wall, pressing himself closer to the boy as well, their faces close together.
"Or what?" he asked, knowing what was going through Ladron's mind. "Or you'll keep yelling at me? Threaten me? I think not…" He moved his hand to Ladron's shoulder, tracing the boy's collarbone with a black gloved finger. "You obviously can't let me just leave… if you want the book, that is… have you made up your mind yet?"
"What the hell do you mean by that! And what am I supposed to make my mind up about!" Ladron's face flushed even further as he grew uncomfortable with Simon's close proximity... His eyes darted searching for a way to escape the other raccoon. He settled on slipping between Simon's left arm and leg, luckily picking the right side and grabbing the book as he rushed away, dazed for a moment before rushing back. The first place he could think to get help, and probably the only place… Back home… He shuddered at the thought.
Running back towards the direction of his house, he heard Simon behind him; not too close, but not too far away. He headed straight for his home, jumping the fence and almost having to plug his ears to block out his mother's screams from the front porch.
"Just WHAT do you think you're doing, young man? Stealing the Thevius Raccoonus from our room; running away; you'll be lucky if you're not grounded for the rest of your life!" Her face was going red as she yelled, Ladron running up to his father, hurriedly placing the book in his hands, then turning to face the direction he had came from.
As Ladron whipped around there was no sign of Simon... The harsh reality of his actions hit him in the face like a wet towel. He slowly turned around to face his livid parents... "I can explain..." Carmelita grabbed an ear and pulled him forward harshly. "Like hell you can! I don't know why you bothered to come back!"
When his mother finally let go of his aching ear he was back in his room, the window now fitted with a code lock combined with a card-key and retina scanner... "Bentley you've outdone yourself... "Gotta wonder if even Dad could get past this lock..." he slumped on the bed and into a few giant pillows (like in FAKE XD) as he stared out the window and through the bars... "There's got to be something illegal in this I swear..."
After he his mind finally registered his current defeat, he turned over, staring at the ceiling. Who was that guy and why did he want the book? Sure, every thief wanted the Thevius Raccoonus, but this guy had obviously done his homework… He even knew Ladron's name; where he was and when he would be there… Like a stalker. And like a trademark stalker, he was kinda creepy… did he really have to get that close, even after he had the book at the time? A slight blush crept into his face as he remembered being against the wall, subconsciously bringing his hand up to his collarbone.
Ladron blushed harder and slid down into the bed, angry at himself for letting himself be caught unawares so easily. "There's no way I can let that weirdo stop me from becoming a world-class thief like my dad was." He turned over again, a habit he's always had of being unable to sleep without facing the window and tried to force the memory of Simon's close encounter from his mind as he tried to fall asleep, but he had a suspicious feeling that the shadows of the buildings of Paris weren't the only shadows sitting outside of his window…