25 Years Earlier
August 5th, 1982
Paris, France
Natural History Museum rooftop, 3:15 A.M
"Yo M, you read me?" A smooth and young voice asked.
The voice belonged to a grey furred raccoon who wore blackish/blue pants, a long sleeved blackish/blue shirt, dark blue boots, dark blue gloves with yellow cufflinks, a black mask over his already present and natural black furred traditional raccoon mask, and a yellow belt with a raccoon symbol on it with the eyes of the symbol the color of blue. He also currently held a brown cane ,with a silver bottom and a golden hook on top, in his right hand whilst the raccoon currently had a finger from his left hand placed on an earpiece which was in his ear.
There was a sigh as a tired and annoyed voice replied, "Conner, how many times must I tell you...please just call me Max, 'M' makes me sound like some sort of mad doctor..."
The raccoon snickered before saying, "Whatever you say, Dr. M...so, back to business Max. Is Jim in position? This could be our only chance at getting this 'magical artifact' that Reme was talking about, if it even exists...I mean, an artifact that can transport you to other dimensions? It just seems impossible..."
"Well I'm glad that you stopped calling me 'Dr. M' and started calling me by my actual name, finally...and yes, Jim is in position with the parabike and is ready to get us out of here when you get the knife or as Reme calls it 'The Mystical Dimension Hopper Knife'...and yes it does, but remember Conner...we've dealt with ghosts." The voice said with reason through the earpiece.
The raccoon ,now known as Conner, shrugged and said, "Yeah, guess your right...so you almost got the security cams off, Max?"
"Yup, should have them off in a few seconds and I've also taken the liberty of turning off the laser grid and have rerouted the guards far away from the knife." The voice ,now known as Max, said.
"No wonder you're the brains of our gang, Jim and I wouldn't be able to do any of that stuff even with a detailed book on how to do it." Conner said impressed as he stood up on the rooftop near a glass dome which had an open window with a rope nearby, ready to be dropped down so that he could slide down it and into the building.
"Right, so glad to be appreciated...and cameras are going off Conner, do you have the rope ready?" Max asked in what sounded like a forced calm tone.
Conner grabbed the rope and tied it to a nearby sturdy pipe before moving it slowly to the open skylight dome, ready to lower it inside the building so he could sneak inside as he said into the earpiece. "Yeah, tell me when the cams are off."
"Roger that Conner, cams will be completely shut off in three...two...one!" Max yelled through the earpiece as Conner lowered the rope and began to slide down.
'Dagger here I come...' Conner thought once he was inside the building and on the ground.
Along the wall behind a Donkpolian display were the big letters which were silhouetted by the light of the silvery moon, 'NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM OF PARIS'...
Present Day
September 23rd, 2007
New York City, United States
Museum of Natural History, 7:19 P.M
"YOU FIRED, COOPER!" A portly man who wore a penguin suit yelled from behind a desk as he slammed his right hand which was a fist onto the desk.
"Wha?! B-but, Mr. Porke-" I tried to say before the man before me slammed his fist onto the desk again which caused a doughnut to fly up into the air for a few seconds.
So, you're probably wondering who I am and how I got into this situation with Mr. Fatty here. Well, first the name's James Cooper and second I may or may not have accidentally fallen asleep on the job...ok, I fell asleep...but I can't help it! It was so boring, just walking around the place. You try walking around a museum at night and looking at all the exhibits without getting bored or tired, plus the chair was really comfy. So, if you haven't figured it out yet...I'm a night guard and Mr. Fatty Mc Fat infront of me is my boss...Mr. Porker, fits pretty well don't you think? His face also looked pretty red from all the yelling he had been doing...
"DON'T YOU DARE TRY TO COME UP WITH EXCUSES, BOY! YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO GUARD THAT EGYPTION CROWN! WHAT DO YOU EXPECT ME TO BELIEVE?! THAT IT WAS STOLEN BY A MAN IN A WHEELCHAIR AND A FAT GUY LIKE YOU TRIED TELLING ME LAST WEEK WHEN THE DAGGER ,OUR MOST PRIZED EXHIBIT, WAS STOLEN?!" Mr. Porker yelled at me angrily as I wished I could punch him right in that pork belly of his.
"But it was sir, it was stolen by a guy in a wheelchair and a large fat guy! I swear!" I said, desperate for him to believe me.
Don't get me wrong, I hated the guy, but I needed this job. I had bills to pay.
"I DON'T WANT TO HEAR IT COOPER, YOU'RE DONE! NOW GO GET YOUR STUFF AND GET OUT BEFORE I KICK YOU OUT MYSELF, IT'S NO WONDER THAT YOUR FATHER LEFT YOU WHEN YOU WERE BORN! YOU CAN'T EVEN DO YOUR JOB RIGHT!" Mr. Porker yelled in absolute rage as he puffed out smoke from his cigar, all the while I walked out with an angered look.
"Yeah and it's no surprise why people hate your ugly muck..." I mumbled angrily as I went over to the security office to get my stuff.
I then took out my ,used to be, office key and opened the door. My office was small and half well kept with boxes filled with files and papers, one three file cabinet filled with files, and one desk with a computer, a photo, and a small package. The package was from my Dad, he gave it to my mom before he left and told her to give it to me when she thought the time was right. I had put it on my desk for later when I got done with work except since I was I fired and still ticked at what Porker had said about my Dad I didn't even bother opening it right now, as for my Dad...I didn't know him and haven't met him...but Mom did, she told me all sorts of wacky and crazy stories about him. She even said that she wasn't surprised how much I looked like him, particularly with my mischievous brown eyes which as she put "Shine with mischief, just like your father James...". I then went over to my swivel chair and slumped into it, as I picked up the photo and looked at it with sadness and curiosity. The photo was of a man and a woman, the man had tan skin, black hair, and mischievous brown eyes.
The man also wore a white buttoned up shirt, black pants, black shoes, and a blue cap whilst he also had a brown pipe in his mouth. The woman had tan skin, blue eyes, and brunette hair. She wore jeans, blue sneakers, and a white t-shirt with the band The Beatles on it. They both smiled happily as they stood infront of an ocean which had the sun setting in the background.
I sighed sadly as I said softly whilst looking at the photo, "Well, isn't this the greatest birthday for me...I wonder what you were like, Dad. Just what exactly were you like...?"
I stared at the picture for a few more seconds before a knocking on my office door startled me, the door then opened to reveal a woman with sparkling blue eyes, tan skin, and greying hair. She wore light blue pants, a buttoned up shirt, a light blue overshirt that covered that white buttoned up shirt, and brown high heels. This woman, boys and girls, was the greatest woman in the universe, my mother.
"James, I heard what happened...I'm sorry, I can try and convince him to take you back again if you want...?" My Mom said as she came in whilst I got up, grabbed an empty box, and began packing up my stuff.
"It's alright, Mom...you don't need to do that, I'll try to get a job somewhere else." I replied as I picked up the picture of her and Dad from my former desk.
"Jamie," She spoke, a frown gracing her lips, "are you sure?"
"I'm sure Mom." I said in reply, smiling softly to her as I set the picture into the box filled with my stuff.
At that she smiled before noticing the box sitting on top of my former desk, "You still haven't opened it, have you?"
"Yeah, I just..." I replied sadly, looking down.
Her hand went beneath my chin, picking it up, "James. It's ok, we can open it when we get home for the party. We don't want to spoil his surprise after all, do we?"
"Not for all the world. So...party, huh?" I asked as I picked up the box whilst Mom opened the door for me.
"I know it's always just the two of us James...I'm sorry it can't be bigger..." She apologized in sadness as I walked out the door and she walked up next to him, walking with me on the way out of the museum.
"It's ok Mom, it's not your fault. I haven't exactly been the most...social…" I replied, trying to soothe her sadness.
It ended up working and we then began to talk and soon joke. We continued talking and joking, until we got back to my apartment. My apartment was your everyday, typical apartment. It was just me and no one else, I hadn't exactly been the most social guy at the time. My apartment had my bedroom, a guest bedroom, two bathrooms, a kitchen which was attached to the living room and main hallway, and of course my favorite room...the gaming and entertainment room. Filled with lots of video games, consoles, and movies. Along with posters and merch of my favorite video game and video game character, Sly Cooper. I loved playing as him in the games, if you gave me a game entirely focused on Sly then I could beat it within a day or two. I even had my own costume that I made for a Halloween party that I went to a while back.
When we got inside, I found decorations, a couple of gifts, and a cake atop the kitchen table.
"Mom...?" I asked shocked as I gazed at her surprised.
"They're all from your father too, Jamie. It took me a while to find them in the attic but here they are." She said, smiling sweetly at me."
With tears of joy, I hugged her. "Thanks Mom…"
"Anything for you, my darling raccoon." She spoke happily as she kissed my forehead.
After our short little talk on that surprise, we began talking. The both of us, I mostly asked Mom questions on what I was like as a very little kid and what Paris was like back before we moved back to America after Dad disappeared. I was blushing furiously when Mom told me about the time I tried actually being Sly and how I tried to steal a jar of cookies from a local bakery, I was very flustered especially when Mom told me that I had tried to climb up a pipe...but ended up falling into the arms of a cop who was trying to get to me before I could get hurt. Turns out that the entire station that the cop worked at was full of laughter for weeks saying things like, "Looks like we found, the infamous Cooper thief!", "Hey where's your cane Sly, where's your gang too?", and "Welp, we've cracked the case of the mighty cookie jar thief.". After about five more minutes of talking and exchanging stories of days present and past, we decided to eat the infamous blueberry cake to finish off the night. After I had blown out the candles of course. We decided for me to blow out the candles at the time when I was born, which was 9:45 P.M.
"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you...happy birthday dear James...happy birthday to you!" My Mom sang as she lit the candles which were in the shape of the numbers two and one.
"Make a wish, my little raccoon..." Mom said with a small smile, I closed my eyes, smiled, and then blew out the candles as the clock chimed signaling it was 9:45 P.M. We had timed it perfectly.
"What did you wish for, Jamie?" Mom asked curiously as the last candle blew out.
"To learn more about my Dad, just like last year..." I said to her with a sad, but happy smile as I gazed at the smoking candles.
"Oh, Jamie..." My Mom said sadly before hugging me.
"Why don't we open gifts, we can open your Dad's package last as a surprise for you." Mom suggested as she soon stopped hugging me.
"Shall we then?" I asked jokingly with a smile.
She nodded, smiling as she handed me the first gift, her own. I then began opening it. Once I opened it, I saw two tickets which were for a comic con in Paris.
"Woah! Tickets to Paris's comic con?! Thanks Mom, you rock!" I said excitedly as I took the tickets out and set them on the table.
Mom giggled before she said, "Well, I'm glad you like them. I know how much you like to dress up as Sly."
"You bet! Now if only I had his cane…"
"Then I think you'll find this in handy, James… It was your father's but I think it may do your costume justice." Mom spoke as she handed me a long rectangular box.
I began to open it then after taking the box and setting it on the table. When I opened it, I saw it was a brown cane with a silver bottom and a golden hook at the top. It looked almost...no...precisely and exactly like Sly Cooper's cane.
"Woah...!" I said as I took it out.
"Your welcome, James." Mom said as I twirled the cane in my right hand, gazing at it.
"And now for your father's final gift to you…" She said and with that, handed the last present which was the package that my Dad had left behind.
After setting it infront of me, I began opening it. Once it was open, I saw what was inside. Inside was a completely blank velvet book with nothing on it or inside of it and a blue cap.
"Huh...well, it looks like my costume of Sly just became ten times more realistic..." I said, shocked as I took out the two items and set them on the table.
"Your father always knew what to get people at the sight of them." Mom said with a smile as she picked up the cap and put it on my head.
"He did?" I asked, still shocked as I set down the cane and gazed at her.
"Yes he did… It is how he picked out my ring after all. Oh, you should have seen him ,Jamie, he looked so nervous and giddy when he proposed with it." Mom said with a smile, giggling at the memory.
Soon thereafter, that moment of sadness passed. Times of joking and laughing began for the two of us. After about an hour of laughing and joking, Mom left for home which left me alone. Once the door closed and I was alone, I dressed up in some casual clothes and began to clean up the kitchen/living area. However, I soon began to feel dizzy and before I knew it, everything had gone black…