The next morning, One was awakened by Two nudging his arm.
"One?" Two whispered.
"Hummm? You look great tonight, my dear." One mumbled in his sleep. "I'm going to enjoy going out with you tonight."
Two's eyebrows raised.
"So beautiful, so majestic, that color fits you well." One's voice slowly drifted off into mumbles. Two eyed his brother with curious eyes.
"One, wake up you're dreaming." Two nudged One again. One drowsily opened his eyes and turned his head toward Two.
"What do you want?" One yawned, phasing a few minutes to wake himself up and to get the cricks and aches out from where he'd slept sitting up in the driver's seat of the Escalade.
"That did it. Had such an awful rick in my neck there, but the phasing took care of it." One smiled, rubbing his hand down the back of his neck.
"One!" Two sternly said, trying to get his brother's attention.
"What?"
"It's 8 o' clock."
"So?"
"AM."
One nearly jumped out of his seat and hit his head on the roof of the car at Two's last words.
"What did you just say?!"
"It's eight in the morning!"
"Can't be!" One's eyes grew big behind his shades.
"Says so right here." Two showed One his silver pocket watch, before putting it back into the pocket of his waistcoat.
"I can't believe it. We slept clear into the next day." One stared blankly at the dashboard. "Do you know what this means?"
"It means I'm cold. Turn on the motor so we can get it warmed up in here. I can't believe we slept in here all night without any heat!"
"No! It means we're dead." One grabbed onto Two's hand before it touched the keys.
"It will mean that in a few minutes if you don't get some heat going in here because I'm gonna freeze to death. Now let go of my arm."
"Don't you get it? The Merovingian locked us in that room for the remainder of yesterday. Now it's the day after. He's probably already gone to the room to let us out, and he didn't find us there."
If it was possible, Two turned a little paler than usual.
"So what are we going to do?" Two whispered.
One turned and looked in the backseat where Dapper was still asleep.
"First we've got to find Dapper a home." One sighed. "Then we go back to the chateau and face the Merovingian." One reached for the keys and started the Escalade.
"Can't we go someplace safer like Europe?" Two grinned.
"No. We've got to go back to the chateau. You said you wanted to try and change the Mero's mind about Christmas. We can't let you pass that up."
Two thought a few minutes before he changed the subject.
"So how was she?" Two smiled.
"How was who?" One looked at Two, puzzled.
"You know, the woman in your dream." Two laughed a little. "Was she pretty?"
"What woman? There wasn't any woman in my dream. It was a shiny new Cadillac." One sighed and smiled. "Was it ever gorgeous."
Two looked at his brother in a funny way before his lips curled into a mischievous smile.
After about an hour, the Twins pulled the Escalade into a parking spot beside a sidewalk in the main part of town and stopped. Neither of them had a clue as to what they'd do next, so they sat there a few minutes and watched the people pass by them.
"So where do we begin finding Dapper a home?" Two finally said.
"Beats me, but we've got to do it." One sighed.
"Are you sure you want to go through with this? I mean, we can always dump the kid back out on the streets as if we never even found him."
One turned to his twin.
"That is the most heartless thing I've ever heard."
Two lowered his head.
"I'm sorry, One. It's just that," Two sighed and looked in the backseat at the sleeping boy.
"What?"
"He's a human. I just can't see ourselves actually helping a human."
"Is that what's bothering you?" One shook his head.
"Yes, that's what's bothering me. It should bother you too." Two's voice began sounding unnatural.
"We're exiled assassins, programmed to destroy and cause havoc and kill, and here we are running around the city trying to find one small human child a home!"
Two quickly shut his mouth when he felt One's hand sharply go across his face. Two sat and stared at One while rubbing his stinging cheek.
"What was that for?" Two whimpered, on the verge of crying.
"To knock some sense back into you." One glared. "If you can remember, you are the one to blame for all of this."
"Me?!"
"Who was the one who wanted to find out what Christmas is? Who was the one who got us punished? Who was the one who had the bright idea of breaking out of the chateau and coming to the city?"
Two leaned back in his seat in silence as One continued on.
"And who was the one who had to stop because he saw something down a dark alley?"
"I get your point." Two mumbled. "I'm sorry."
The Twins sighed to themselves simultaneously then sat in silence until their attention was drawn to the back of the car where Dapper finally woke up.
"I'm hungry." The small boy said, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. The Twins looked at each other.
"Oh great. Humans have to eat don't they?" Two whispered. One nodded. Since the Twins, being programs, didn't have to eat unless they wanted or had to, they hadn't thought about food.
"Over there looks like a place to buy food." One pointed to a small café a few stores down from where they were parked.
"Let's go." Two opened up the Escalade's door and climbed out. Before he could shut it, Dapper appeared in front of him, stretching his small arms out to be helped down. Two hesitated a moment, deciding on whether or not to help the human or not. When he was about to decide against it, One's glare at him changed his mind. Two sighed, reached out and helped the small boy down to the sidewalk before slamming the door. When Dapper wasn't looking, Two wiped his hands down the side of his coat to get off anything Dapper might have. He was about to phase to clean himself good, but One's elbow nudge in his side told him not to.
"You stay out here." One told Dapper as he and Two walked into the café. The smells of the small eatery hit the Twins the moment they walked into the place, making them rather sick to their stomachs. What food they had ever eaten in their lifetime had always been French and gourmet food at the Merovingian's restaurant. Smelling the strong odors of the snack and 'junk' food in this place was nothing they had ever smelt before. Two wrinkled his nose and turned to look at One. One shrugged his shoulders and proceeded to walk toward the counter.
"Give us the best and cheapest thing you have." One told the waitress behind the counter.
"Sure thing." The girl grinned before walking off.
As the Twins waited, they couldn't help but overhear a young couple's conversation just a few seats behind them in the small café. By the way the couple talked, the Twins could guess that they had a rough year of work and had just enough money to get by on. The wife appeared to only want one thing for Christmas.
"But I'd like to have a child for Christmas, John. Couldn't we take out a loan and adopt a child then pay it back?" said a woman's voice.
"No! We've got enough debts to pay off now as it is." A man's voice answered. "Believe me, I'd love to have a child running around our house for Christmas too, but we just can't afford to adopt right now, honey."
The Twins slowly exchanged glances with each other then continued to listen.
"My business hasn't been good this year, and what money we do have goes for food and clothing and other necessities we need." The man sighed. "Besides, a child would mean another mouth to feed."
"If we did decide to adopt one somehow, could we afford to care for it?" the woman asked with interest.
"I suppose so." The man shrugged. "It may turn out to be tight, but I suppose we could somehow manage it."
The Twins looked at each other and smiled before turning to look out the front window where Dapper was standing, waiting for them outside.
"Couldn't we give Dapper to them?" Two whispered to One. "They wouldn't have to pay for him."
"Dapper's been looking for a family, and this family is looking for a child." One mumbled under his breath. "Two, I'm going to go get Dapper. You stay here and keep an eye on that couple. If they start to leave before I get back, stall them."
Before Two could say anything, One was already out the front door. Two turned to watch that the young couple across from him were going to stay there. Within a few minutes, One came back in with Dapper at his side.
"Have they moved?" One asked, approaching Two. Two shook his head. "I've explained everything to Dapper and he's willing to give it a go."
The Twins slowly turned and walked toward the couple and stopped in front of the booth they were seated at. The man and woman looked up at the unusual creatures standing before them.
"May I help you?" the man stuttered a little as he spoke.
"We couldn't help but overhear your conversation just a few minutes ago." Said One.
The man and woman exchanged glances.
"We don't know how to put this into words, but we'd appreciate it if you'd adopt this little chap." Two pulled Dapper up beside the table. "We heard you were wanting a child for Christmas."
The couple stood and stared at Dapper for some time, with Dapper doing the same to them.
"B-but we can't afford to adopt a child." The man protested.
"Hey, don't worry about it. We aren't asking anything for him." One smiled.
"You can have him for nothing." Two smiled.
Dapper smiled sweetly at the two people seated around the booth. The woman smiled back and grabbed onto Dapper and hugged him.
"W-we don't know what to say." The woman said through her tears.
"You don't have to say anything." One said, softly.
"Thank you." the woman whispered. "You've made our Christmas special."
"These are my friends. This here's One and that's Two." Dapper suddenly said, introducing the Twins to his new parents. One walked up to the father's side of the table and looked into his face.
"You take good care of that kid. Ok?" he softly said. The man nodded and smiled.
One turned to Two.
"I think it's time we were leaving."
Two bent down and grabbed Dapper in his arms.
"Good by, Dapper."
"G' bye, Two. I'm gonna miss ya." Dapper wrapped his small arms around Two's neck and hugged the twin tightly. After Two got up, One bent down.
"You take care of yourself, kid." One ruffled Dapper's hair. The child giggled and threw his arms around One's neck.
"Merry Christmas, One." Dapper whispered in One's ear.
"Merry Christmas to you too."
One pulled back and smiled at the boy.
"Merry Christmas to you, Two!" Dapper smiled at Two.
The Twins turned and started walking toward the front door, the couple and Dapper shouting 'Merry Christmas' as they went. One pushed the café's door and stepped out onto the sidewalk, Two close behind him.
"You know, we're gonna miss that kid." Two whispered.
"Yeah, we are." One whispered back.
"Cute kid, actually." Two laughed.
"C'mon, let's get back to where we belong." One said, turning.
The Twins slowly walked back to their car and got in.
"Wait! Let's stop by the Oracle's place one more time." Two blurted out.
"What for?"
"Just do it. I have an idea how we can change the Merovingian's mind about Christmas."
One shook his head and drove off toward the Oracle's apartment.
"One?" Two whispered.
"Hummm? You look great tonight, my dear." One mumbled in his sleep. "I'm going to enjoy going out with you tonight."
Two's eyebrows raised.
"So beautiful, so majestic, that color fits you well." One's voice slowly drifted off into mumbles. Two eyed his brother with curious eyes.
"One, wake up you're dreaming." Two nudged One again. One drowsily opened his eyes and turned his head toward Two.
"What do you want?" One yawned, phasing a few minutes to wake himself up and to get the cricks and aches out from where he'd slept sitting up in the driver's seat of the Escalade.
"That did it. Had such an awful rick in my neck there, but the phasing took care of it." One smiled, rubbing his hand down the back of his neck.
"One!" Two sternly said, trying to get his brother's attention.
"What?"
"It's 8 o' clock."
"So?"
"AM."
One nearly jumped out of his seat and hit his head on the roof of the car at Two's last words.
"What did you just say?!"
"It's eight in the morning!"
"Can't be!" One's eyes grew big behind his shades.
"Says so right here." Two showed One his silver pocket watch, before putting it back into the pocket of his waistcoat.
"I can't believe it. We slept clear into the next day." One stared blankly at the dashboard. "Do you know what this means?"
"It means I'm cold. Turn on the motor so we can get it warmed up in here. I can't believe we slept in here all night without any heat!"
"No! It means we're dead." One grabbed onto Two's hand before it touched the keys.
"It will mean that in a few minutes if you don't get some heat going in here because I'm gonna freeze to death. Now let go of my arm."
"Don't you get it? The Merovingian locked us in that room for the remainder of yesterday. Now it's the day after. He's probably already gone to the room to let us out, and he didn't find us there."
If it was possible, Two turned a little paler than usual.
"So what are we going to do?" Two whispered.
One turned and looked in the backseat where Dapper was still asleep.
"First we've got to find Dapper a home." One sighed. "Then we go back to the chateau and face the Merovingian." One reached for the keys and started the Escalade.
"Can't we go someplace safer like Europe?" Two grinned.
"No. We've got to go back to the chateau. You said you wanted to try and change the Mero's mind about Christmas. We can't let you pass that up."
Two thought a few minutes before he changed the subject.
"So how was she?" Two smiled.
"How was who?" One looked at Two, puzzled.
"You know, the woman in your dream." Two laughed a little. "Was she pretty?"
"What woman? There wasn't any woman in my dream. It was a shiny new Cadillac." One sighed and smiled. "Was it ever gorgeous."
Two looked at his brother in a funny way before his lips curled into a mischievous smile.
After about an hour, the Twins pulled the Escalade into a parking spot beside a sidewalk in the main part of town and stopped. Neither of them had a clue as to what they'd do next, so they sat there a few minutes and watched the people pass by them.
"So where do we begin finding Dapper a home?" Two finally said.
"Beats me, but we've got to do it." One sighed.
"Are you sure you want to go through with this? I mean, we can always dump the kid back out on the streets as if we never even found him."
One turned to his twin.
"That is the most heartless thing I've ever heard."
Two lowered his head.
"I'm sorry, One. It's just that," Two sighed and looked in the backseat at the sleeping boy.
"What?"
"He's a human. I just can't see ourselves actually helping a human."
"Is that what's bothering you?" One shook his head.
"Yes, that's what's bothering me. It should bother you too." Two's voice began sounding unnatural.
"We're exiled assassins, programmed to destroy and cause havoc and kill, and here we are running around the city trying to find one small human child a home!"
Two quickly shut his mouth when he felt One's hand sharply go across his face. Two sat and stared at One while rubbing his stinging cheek.
"What was that for?" Two whimpered, on the verge of crying.
"To knock some sense back into you." One glared. "If you can remember, you are the one to blame for all of this."
"Me?!"
"Who was the one who wanted to find out what Christmas is? Who was the one who got us punished? Who was the one who had the bright idea of breaking out of the chateau and coming to the city?"
Two leaned back in his seat in silence as One continued on.
"And who was the one who had to stop because he saw something down a dark alley?"
"I get your point." Two mumbled. "I'm sorry."
The Twins sighed to themselves simultaneously then sat in silence until their attention was drawn to the back of the car where Dapper finally woke up.
"I'm hungry." The small boy said, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. The Twins looked at each other.
"Oh great. Humans have to eat don't they?" Two whispered. One nodded. Since the Twins, being programs, didn't have to eat unless they wanted or had to, they hadn't thought about food.
"Over there looks like a place to buy food." One pointed to a small café a few stores down from where they were parked.
"Let's go." Two opened up the Escalade's door and climbed out. Before he could shut it, Dapper appeared in front of him, stretching his small arms out to be helped down. Two hesitated a moment, deciding on whether or not to help the human or not. When he was about to decide against it, One's glare at him changed his mind. Two sighed, reached out and helped the small boy down to the sidewalk before slamming the door. When Dapper wasn't looking, Two wiped his hands down the side of his coat to get off anything Dapper might have. He was about to phase to clean himself good, but One's elbow nudge in his side told him not to.
"You stay out here." One told Dapper as he and Two walked into the café. The smells of the small eatery hit the Twins the moment they walked into the place, making them rather sick to their stomachs. What food they had ever eaten in their lifetime had always been French and gourmet food at the Merovingian's restaurant. Smelling the strong odors of the snack and 'junk' food in this place was nothing they had ever smelt before. Two wrinkled his nose and turned to look at One. One shrugged his shoulders and proceeded to walk toward the counter.
"Give us the best and cheapest thing you have." One told the waitress behind the counter.
"Sure thing." The girl grinned before walking off.
As the Twins waited, they couldn't help but overhear a young couple's conversation just a few seats behind them in the small café. By the way the couple talked, the Twins could guess that they had a rough year of work and had just enough money to get by on. The wife appeared to only want one thing for Christmas.
"But I'd like to have a child for Christmas, John. Couldn't we take out a loan and adopt a child then pay it back?" said a woman's voice.
"No! We've got enough debts to pay off now as it is." A man's voice answered. "Believe me, I'd love to have a child running around our house for Christmas too, but we just can't afford to adopt right now, honey."
The Twins slowly exchanged glances with each other then continued to listen.
"My business hasn't been good this year, and what money we do have goes for food and clothing and other necessities we need." The man sighed. "Besides, a child would mean another mouth to feed."
"If we did decide to adopt one somehow, could we afford to care for it?" the woman asked with interest.
"I suppose so." The man shrugged. "It may turn out to be tight, but I suppose we could somehow manage it."
The Twins looked at each other and smiled before turning to look out the front window where Dapper was standing, waiting for them outside.
"Couldn't we give Dapper to them?" Two whispered to One. "They wouldn't have to pay for him."
"Dapper's been looking for a family, and this family is looking for a child." One mumbled under his breath. "Two, I'm going to go get Dapper. You stay here and keep an eye on that couple. If they start to leave before I get back, stall them."
Before Two could say anything, One was already out the front door. Two turned to watch that the young couple across from him were going to stay there. Within a few minutes, One came back in with Dapper at his side.
"Have they moved?" One asked, approaching Two. Two shook his head. "I've explained everything to Dapper and he's willing to give it a go."
The Twins slowly turned and walked toward the couple and stopped in front of the booth they were seated at. The man and woman looked up at the unusual creatures standing before them.
"May I help you?" the man stuttered a little as he spoke.
"We couldn't help but overhear your conversation just a few minutes ago." Said One.
The man and woman exchanged glances.
"We don't know how to put this into words, but we'd appreciate it if you'd adopt this little chap." Two pulled Dapper up beside the table. "We heard you were wanting a child for Christmas."
The couple stood and stared at Dapper for some time, with Dapper doing the same to them.
"B-but we can't afford to adopt a child." The man protested.
"Hey, don't worry about it. We aren't asking anything for him." One smiled.
"You can have him for nothing." Two smiled.
Dapper smiled sweetly at the two people seated around the booth. The woman smiled back and grabbed onto Dapper and hugged him.
"W-we don't know what to say." The woman said through her tears.
"You don't have to say anything." One said, softly.
"Thank you." the woman whispered. "You've made our Christmas special."
"These are my friends. This here's One and that's Two." Dapper suddenly said, introducing the Twins to his new parents. One walked up to the father's side of the table and looked into his face.
"You take good care of that kid. Ok?" he softly said. The man nodded and smiled.
One turned to Two.
"I think it's time we were leaving."
Two bent down and grabbed Dapper in his arms.
"Good by, Dapper."
"G' bye, Two. I'm gonna miss ya." Dapper wrapped his small arms around Two's neck and hugged the twin tightly. After Two got up, One bent down.
"You take care of yourself, kid." One ruffled Dapper's hair. The child giggled and threw his arms around One's neck.
"Merry Christmas, One." Dapper whispered in One's ear.
"Merry Christmas to you too."
One pulled back and smiled at the boy.
"Merry Christmas to you, Two!" Dapper smiled at Two.
The Twins turned and started walking toward the front door, the couple and Dapper shouting 'Merry Christmas' as they went. One pushed the café's door and stepped out onto the sidewalk, Two close behind him.
"You know, we're gonna miss that kid." Two whispered.
"Yeah, we are." One whispered back.
"Cute kid, actually." Two laughed.
"C'mon, let's get back to where we belong." One said, turning.
The Twins slowly walked back to their car and got in.
"Wait! Let's stop by the Oracle's place one more time." Two blurted out.
"What for?"
"Just do it. I have an idea how we can change the Merovingian's mind about Christmas."
One shook his head and drove off toward the Oracle's apartment.