Chapter 4

(Sorry guys, it took me forever to get this chapter together, I had no idea what direction I wanted to take it in. I hope you enjoy it! A big thanks to all of you who have left reviews on my story thus far, I appreciate it so much. Anyway, let's get started.)

"I don't dislike you, Roman." Said Vector, "I never did, but you have to understand, I just don't have the funds to support every homeless person in Seaside."

Espio had gone back inside to help Charmy close up, leaving Vector and Roman alone. She was more than a little disheartened by his departure, not to mention frightened at the idea of being alone with Vector.

Roman nodded, her gaze transfixed on a flickering street light, "Yes, I understand."

"I don't get it, you've been acting like a homeless person, but," his eyes scanned over her, "you certainly don't look like one. Not tonight, anyway."

"I've been spending my days in a small shelter in the city. Nothing fancy, just a place to eat, shower, and store a few personal items. It's okay, but I prefer being out and about among the townspeople."

Vector shook his head, "Wait, if they have food, what do you keep coming here heart-in-hand for?

"Because," She replied, "their food is atrocious."

Vector laughed, "Well, that's not very nice. By the way, I've got to thank you for turning Espio into a hypocrite."

Roman's smile disappeared, "I beg your pardon?"

Vector's grin didn't waver, "He would get angry when I would agree to do jobs for free. He'd say "We're losing money. Why are we taking jobs with no reward?" And now, I can use you as my excuse."

"You do jobs for free? Where does your profit come from?"

"Profit?" Vector hooted, "That's a good one! We haven't made any sort of profit in a long time… that's why I set this café back up; our detective agency wasn't paying the bills."

The panther was dumbfounded. "Oh wow, it appears I've misjudged you, majorly. I was under the impression that you were some greedy bastard. I'm sorry."

"Let's call a truce." Vector proposed, offering his hand, "What do you say?"

She took it, his enormous hand engulfing her tiny one, "I accept."

Espio had fallen asleep at one of the tables before he could even get the place cleaned up. Charmy had abandoned him even earlier, going to his own bed.

The chameleon awoke to the smell of coffee. He shook his head and looked around. Everything had been put away, except for the table he was sitting at. The regular furniture, including Vector's desk and the couches, had been brought out.

Espio shot up out of his chair, and was about to put the table away, when he heard the tapping of tiny feet. He looked over and saw Roman, with her hair braided and a coffee mug in her palm. She was wearing glasses.

"Hello." She said, her soft voice alluring as ever. Her expression was one of smugness and shy amusement, "I wondered why you never came back outside, now I know why."

Espio didn't respond. He stood there silently for what must've been a full sixty seconds. It was starting to freak Roman out, when he asked, "What are you doing here?"

The panther smirked, "Vector and I had a lengthy chat, which ended in a compromise of sorts. He wants to see if I'd make a good detective. If I can help you guys crack a case, I can stay here permanently.

"Woah… hold up, you'll be staying here with us?" I'll have to speak with Vector. Where did all of this come from?

Roman seemed confused, "Yes, that's okay with you, isn't it?"

"Of course," the chameleon said in a rush, "I'm just a little confused. Just yesterday Vector was trying to chase you away."

"Yes," said Roman, "it was a major misunderstanding that has since been resolved. He and I are on good terms now. He was hoping that you and I could "team up", you know? When Vector takes a case, you and I could work together; you can show me how you guys operate."

Espio nodded, a bit overwhelmed by all the information. He wished it could've waited until his brain was fully functional.

Roman could see he was still half-asleep, and found his erratic behavior adorable. She held out her cup and giggled, "I haven't drunk out of it yet, and I think you need it more than I do."

The chameleon took it and slid past her, "Excuse me. I need to speak with my boss."

"Oh, chill out," Vector groaned, "the girl needed a place to stay, so I offered her one. And besides, now you have a friend who won't drive you batshit crazy."

Espio cocked his head; he wasn't amused, although Vector clearly was. "Look, I just don't understand where this change of heart came from."

Vector shrugged, "I felt bad, I couldn't just chase her off after she'd gone to the trouble of introducing herself to us. What was I supposed to do? Oh, well, that's nice of you to go to all that trouble, but I don't care about your problems. Goodbye. Come on, I'm not a monster."

Espio let out a pained sigh, "No, you're not hearing me… Never mind. Do we have a case today or something?"

The croc eyed him, "How did you know?"

"You're awfully cheery."

"Yeah, and you're fidgety. That's not really like you, what's the deal?"

Espio looked to the doorway to the living room, where Roman was reading a book that she had pulled off of their shelf, "Well, we have a new house guest that I knew nothing about until five minutes ago."

"It's not a sure thing yet. Besides, she needs friends, and I could use an extra set of hands. What's the problem?"

The chameleon rolled his eyes before heading for the back door. He needed air.

A new partner, huh? I'm not sure how I feel about this. She seems okay, though… how bad can it be?

(I really hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I think I'm going to end the first volume here, because there isn't really anything else I can do without spreading the story too thin. Yeah, I know the ending was a little rushed and contrived, but I did the best I could. :3 Anyway, I'll try to get new stories posted on a more regular basis from now on, and I'm hoping that they'll be longer than this one. Thanks for reading, Happy Holidays.)