A week after Black Hat's late-night organ concert, Flug was in his lab doing maintenance on all the Hatbots.

"Pliers," he said, holding out a hand without looking up from the open machinery before him.

Lita picked up a pair of pliers from his worktable and handed it to him. She was no mechanical genius like Flug, but she knew her tools. Back at home, whenever an electrical fuse had blown, or the plumbing had backed up, rather than spending money on professionals, Lita and her father had done their own maintenance work. But Lita understood why Flug wanted to handle the repairs himself, as these were his inventions. Besides, robots were a lot more complex than a fuse box.

"This one's almost finished," Flug said as he stuck the pliers into the back of the Hatbot. "I need to make sure all these bots are working efficiently, so they don't break down while I'm away at camp. Hand me a 3x75 millimeter screwdriver."

"Remind me again why you and Dementia get go away for six weeks?" Lita asked, handing him the tiny screwdriver.

"Black Hat needs counselors at his camp to keep the little monsters, err, kids in check." He groaned. "Unfortunately, because we need at least one male and one female, Dementia has to come along."

"Let me rephrase that. How come you get to go away for six weeks, while I have to stay in this madhouse all alone with the boss?"

"You won't be alone. 5.0.5. will be here too," Flug said reassuringly. "And while you're a very capable thief and fighter, I don't think you'd be up to the task of wrangling fifty kids—wrench, please, thirteen millimeters—at least seventy-three percent of them with supernatural powers, and all of them with homicidal tendencies. Trust me. Even our Nerf combat simulations have led to severe injuries."

"Fair point." She set down the screwdriver he'd handed back to her. "I've never really spent much time around normal kids, anyway."

"Really? Not even for babysitting?"

She scoffed. "You think my neighbors would've trusted a delinquent with their kids?" She paused a moment. "I'd see them come into work, though. They'd always ask the most adorable questions, like, 'Why does this cost so much?' Or they'd say sweet things, like, 'You're pretty!' I once asked a customer if he had a loyalty card with us, and his five-year-old son said, 'We have money!'"

Flug giggled. "The ones I have to deal with aren't as…cute."

"I guess villains' kids would be quite the handful, huh?" Lita said, leaning against the edge of the worktable.

"Eh," he said with a shrug. "They're not so bad, once you show them who's boss. Get the masks."

Lita picked up two welding masks and handed one to Flug. As his welding torch buzzed, Lita wondered how Flug was at handling kids. How was Dementia at handling kids? Hard to tell how villains would act around children. Especially children who were also villains.

From how he treated 5.0.5., Flug was sure to be great with kids. Lita at least imagined he'd be more sympathetic, and reasonably disciplined, than Dementia. The lizard-girl was more likely to encourage horseplay than to fill the role of a responsible caregiver. Provided she didn't eat her charges. Then again, Flug probably wouldn't be the ideal role model either, as he wasn't opposed to violence. Lita tried not to think too much into it.

She also kind of wondered what would've happened if her father had sent her to that Camp for Young Villains. She probably would've turned out more ambitious towards villainy, but perhaps her childhood would've been less…isolated? Maybe she would've met Flug and Dementia earlier, if they had gone to that camp. Of course, she had no idea what their childhoods had been like, or when they had started getting into villainy.

What had Black Hat been like as a child? Had he ever been a child? If he had, it had been a really, really long time ago. Somehow, she couldn't picture him as a sweet, innocent little tyke. He probably would've given the term "ankle-biter" a whole new definition. She snickered, thinking of how he must've made his parents' life a living hell. If he'd had any parents at all.

"And that's one more done," Flug said, lifting his welding mask. "Just five more to go."

The Hatbot blinked, as if just coming out of daze, its one red eye lighting up. After Flug gave it a pat on the back, it rolled away to do…whatever those Hatbots did all day. The scientist picked up the next deactivated Hatbot, one of the smaller ones, and placed him onto the worktable. Knowing the drill by now, Lita handed him the 3x75 millimeter screwdriver. As he opened up the bot's back, a new thought occurred to Lita.

"Hey," she said. "If Black Hat doesn't want his members involving love, how are they able to have kids?"

"Oh," Flug said cheerfully. "Black Hat may be against love, but he's not completely against villains getting married and or having kids. As long as the partner is not a hero, of course, and the kids are raised to be evil. So, yes, he'll approve of villainous unions, for no other reason than to breed the next generation of evil."

"Gross," Lita said, sticking out her tongue.

He chuckled. "It does sound Darwinist, doesn't it? But it's probably the only reason Black Hat let your parents get married. I mean he still had your father's soul, so he could have very well pulled your father out of retirement at any time."

"So how come he wouldn't let you get married?"

She'd blurted it out without even thinking, and immediately regretted it. A spark erupted within the Hatbot as Flug's hand slipped. Thankfully, he wasn't shocked, but he was awfully still.

"S-Sorry, I…I shouldn't've—"

"No, no, it's fine," Flug said, shaking his head. "It, uh…happened a long time ago, so it's fine."

Lita felt bad about bringing it up. These past few months, Flug had become like a surrogate brother to her. However, every time she tried to find out more about him, especially about his past love life, he'd put up these walls. Though she supposed he just needed a bit more time before he was ready to talk about it, it bummed her that after all she'd done for this crew, nobody seemed willing to open up to her.

Black Hat had his walls too. He may have revealed the story behind his missing eye to her, but she hardly knew anything about him. She hardly knew anything about any of them.

But for Flug, she had a few clues. She knew he'd been in love once, and that Black Hat had forbidden it. But if Black Hat permitted marriage among villains, Lita could only conclude that Flug's past lover…had not been a villain.

"Say, Flug," she said after a long period of silence. "By any chance, was your partner a—?"

All of a sudden, Flug squealed as he seemed to drop through the floor. Lita looked down in time to see a trapdoor close up.

"Flug?"

Just then, a second trapdoor opened up. This one beneath her feet. She yelped as she fell, unsure of what was happening. A second later, she was falling through the ceiling of Black Hat's office and landed on top of Flug, who cried out in pain.

"Sorry," she murmured.

Before either of them could get up, a cheerful shout came from above. "BELLY FLOP!"

Lita looked up in time to see Dementia come through the ceiling with her arms and legs sprawled out. Lita let out an "oomph" as the mutant, true to her word, belly-flopped on top of her. As if the

situation couldn't get any more painful, the last of their crew dropped onto the pile.

5.0.5. was soft, but boy, was he ever heavy!

"O-Ouch," whimpered Flug, who had it the worst.

Black Hat laughed from his desk. "So nice of you lazy maggots to drop in."

Dementia joined in his laughter. "Good one, boss!"

"5.0.5.!" Flug exclaimed in agony.

The bear gave an apologetic "bruh" as he climbed off his teammates. Dementia leaped off excitedly and saluted to her beloved.

"Seriously," Lita said, glaring at Black Hat while helping the scientist up. "A simple text would've sufficed!"

Flug looked at her like she was crazy. But instead of yelling at her for her sass, Black Hat smirked in amusement.

"Oh, but it wouldn't have been as fun!"

Scowling, Lita grabbed Flug's shoulders. "It's gonna be hard for us to do anything with you," she said, causing the scientist to cry out as she snapped his shoulder back into place, "breaking our backs just for the heck of it!"

"Quit your whining," Black Hat said gruffly, standing from his seat. "We have much to discuss. I just received word from a villain in Paris, who might be interested in joining our organization. I am flying out there tomorrow, and will meet with him the next day."

"Why doesn't he just talk business with you over the phone, sir?" Lita couldn't help but ask. "I mean rather than fly all the way out there?"

"He prefers to meet with me in person." He grunted. "However, from what he's told me of his situation already, this client might prove to be a…difficult case. Which is why I will be needing a second pair of ears for this meeting."

"B-But sir!" Flug stammered. "D-Dementia and I are flying out to the camp tomorrow, remember? W-We need to get everything set up and—"

"Aw, screw the kids!" Dementia said, leaning forward onto the desk. "I'd love to go to Paris with you, love muffin!"

"I was referring," Black Hat said, pushing her face out of his, "to Miss Ladrona."

"Me?" Lita said in surprise.

"A-Are you sure, sir?" Flug asked. "I m-mean no d-disrespect, but L-Lita doesn't have much experience with clients. P-Perhaps someone with a bit more—"

"I believe Miss Ladrona is competent enough for this affair," Black Hat said, focusing his gaze on Lita. "Besides, this particular client requested absolute discretion, as he doesn't want his civilian identity to be exposed to the public. And Miss Ladrona is the least likely to draw any unwanted attention."

Glancing at Flug's paper bag and Dementia's…well, everything; Lita could see his reasoning.

"I've, uh…never been to France before, sir," she said, still hardly believing that she was invited. "I…I don't even speak French."

The demon held up a hand. "Leave that part to me."

"Wait," Dementia said, all the color draining from her face. "So…you're taking her…to Paris?" She gritted her teeth together. "The City of Love?!"

Black Hat rolled his eye. "This is strictly a business trip. And frankly, to call Paris the City of Love would be highly inaccurate. I've been to Paris several times over the centuries, and its atmosphere has been more destructive than romantic." He chuckled thoughtfully. "Ah, the Reign of Terror was especially glorious."

Lita was trying so hard to contain her excitement. She'd never set foot from Hat Island before, and now she was given the opportunity to go to Paris?! One of the biggest tourist destinations of the world?! It sounded too good to be true!

"So, pack an overnight bag, Miss Ladrona," Black Hat said, snapping out of his reminiscing. "We leave at five in the morning."

That mellowed her excitement. "I'm sorry. Did you say five in the morning?!"

"It's an eleven-hour flight from here to Paris." He smirked at her sudden distress. "We need to get a head start."

Lita then realized the downside of this potential adventure. She'd be in Paris. With her boss. Alone. While their interactions had been recently civil, with Black Hat's unpredictability, a lot could happen within forty-eight hours. A lot could happen on the eleven-hour flight alone!

At least Lita knew whatever Dementia had in mind wouldn't happen. Still, Black Hat might get angry and, being in a strange city, there'd be no escape for Lita. Then again, all she had to do was stay in his good graces, and she'd be perfectly unharmed.

"O-Of course, sir," Lita said with a small salute. "I'll start packing right away, sir."

"And Flug," Black Hat said, picking up a sticky note. "Before we make our departure, I'd like you to dig up whatever information you can on this new client of ours. See if there's anything we can use to our advantage. Here's his name, alias and address. I want a comprehensive file on my desk by four a.m. Not a second later!"

He tossed the note at Flug, who fumbled to catch it in the air. "R-Right away, sir!"

"As for you," the demon said, pointing at 5.0.5., "having no better option, I'm regrettably trusting you to keep the mansion in one piece until I get back! I've already cancelled my appointments the next two days, so don't go dealing with any unexpected visitors!" He chuckled. "Leave that to the security system."

The bear grunted happily as he saluted, as if proud to be given such a big task. Lita felt kind of bad leaving him alone. With Flug and Dementia gone, she was supposed to help 5.0.5. with the extra chores. Then again, with everybody else out, there was sure to be less to clean up, and it was only for a couple days.

"Then if everyone is clear on their duties," Black Hat said, sitting back down, "you are all dismissed."

To say Lita was tired the next morning would be an understatement. Never had she been forced to wake at four a.m.! Fortunately, as he had been up all night finishing his report anyway, Flug knocked on Lita's door to ensure that she was up. Her hair was an absolute rat's nest when she opened the door, and there were bags under her drooping eyes.

"Bonjour, mademoiselle!" Flug said chipperly, obviously still running on caffeine. "You ready for Paris?"

"Not so loud, Flug," Lita groaned, covering one ear. "It's too early."

"Oh, sorry." He lowered his voice a bit. "Anyway, I brought you some things you might need on your trip. I just, um, hope I got the right size."

From behind his back, he produced a pair of black lace-up combat boots. They were very tall, looking like they'd reach about half a meter up her legs.

"Flug, it's the middle of June!" Lita said groggily. "I'm not wearing boots!"

"No, no!" Flug held up a hand. "I modified the insulators, which will now be able to detect the outside temperature and adjust the internal temperature for your feet accordingly. But I mainly got these so you could have a place to stash these."

He turned the boots and pointed. Strapped to the outer side of each boot was a small leather sheathe. Lita had to squint to see them, as they were practically blended into the boots. Out of one sheathe, Flug pulled out a small, but sharp, black dagger. This really woke Lita up.

"While this is just supposed to be a business trip," he said, sliding the dagger back into concealment, "you never know what sort of trouble you might run into. And, of course, you can't go lugging a jambiya around Paris. This way, you can get to your knives easily and not get in any trouble with the law."

Squealing like a child on Christmas, Lita grabbed the boots and bent down to try them on. Fortunately, Flug had gotten the right size.

"They fit perfectly!" She raised her arms to hug him. "Thanks so much!"

"Ah!" Flug held up a hand. "I'm not done yet!"

Reaching into his lab coat, he pulled out two pocket-sized books. As he handed them to her, she saw that one was an English-French dictionary, and the other was a Spanish-French dictionary.

"Wasn't sure which one you'd be most comfortable with," Flug explained. "While Lord Black Hat is fluent in French, I thought you should have these, just in case. Oh! I nearly forgot the most important thing!" He reached into his coat again. "Sunscreen! It doesn't usually get very hot in Paris this time of year, but it's still pretty sunny."

He couldn't stop the hug this time. Unaccustomed to such a friendly gesture, he let out a squeak.

"You're the best, Flug!" Lita exclaimed as she stepped away. "I'm certainly gonna miss ya while you're at camp."

Flug's neck reddened. "Oh. W-Well, I'll uh…kinda…miss you too, I guess?" He cleared his throat. "I mean you're a lot less annoying than Dementia, anyway."

Lita laughed at how uncaring he was trying to seem, but failing.

"But you'd better get ready. Black Hat expects you to be in the garage in an hour."

It was nearly five, and Flug and 5.0.5. were accompanying Lita to the garage. Flug carried her black suitcase, which was light, as the trip was only for two days. Lita had her personal items, including her wallet and a water bottle, in her brown knapsack. Flug had told her it was expected to be around the mid-20's Celsius in Paris, with slight chance of rain. A lot cooler than the current scorching weather here on Hat Island. So, she wore a pair of jeans, green t-shirt and her usual black hoodie in case it got colder. A black raincoat was also tucked away in her backpack.

"Now remember," Flug said. "Do exactly as Black Hat tells you and you won't have any trouble."

"I'm not stupid, Flug," Lita said. "I'm not gonna argue with him. Unless he's totally wrong, of course."

"Oh, boy." Flug sighed. "And don't forget that when you get back, you and 5.0.5. will have to cover meal preparation for me and Dementia. And I've already checked my machines for stability, so don't touch them! But if a problem does arise, for whatever reason, don't hesitate to call me!"

"Yes, Mom."

The coffee and muffins 5.0.5. had made had not yet dispelled her morning crankiness. Flug was a bit sleep deprived himself, so he didn't hold it against her.

When Flug opened the door to the garage, they found Black Hat leaning against the hearse. He glanced down at his pocket watch.

"You made it," he said gruffly. "With twenty-three seconds to spare."

He sounded disappointed, as if he'd wanted an excuse to yell at her. Lita wondered if perhaps he was sleep deprived too. Well, he never really slept. Maybe that's why he was always cranky.

"D-Did you get my report, sir?" Flug asked, Lita's suitcase shaking in his hands.

"It's in the car," Black Hat said, obviously not up to praising the scientist's work. "Now quit standing there like an idiot and put Miss Ladrona's luggage in the trunk! And you," he snapped to Lita, "get in! We've got a schedule to keep!"

As Flug hastened to obey his master, 5.0.5. grabbed Lita's arm and held up a paper bag. Looking inside, she saw it was some leftover muffins.

"Aw, you're so sweet, Pachoncito!" she said, wrapping her arms around him.

Returning her hug, the bear grunted, as if to say, "Have a safe trip! Don't forget to eat!"

Black Hat gagged at the disgusting display of affection. "Ahem!"

Breaking away, Lita waved at 5.0.5. as she got into the left side of the hearse. The interior was like that of a limo. There were two sets of red leather seats across from each other, with a lot of floor between them. Up ahead was a window separating the passengers from the driver, though she couldn't see the driver. Through the window on her left, she saw Black Hat bark some last-minute orders at the others before getting in and seating himself across from Lita.

Leaning his hands onto his cane, Black Hat shouted back to the driver, "To the airport!"

A computerized voice responded, "Destination: Hatsville Airport."

As the garage door opened and the car started, Lita came to a startling realization.

"Wait." She stretched her neck higher in an attempt to see through the divider. "Is…is there no driver?!"

"It's on auto-drive," Black Hat said with a smirk. "Don't worry. Flug handled the modifications, and there haven't been any crashes since the seventh trial."

Face growing pale, Lita quickly strapped herself in with the seatbelt. The car started driving slowly, though that didn't quell her nerves.

"Why are we even taking a plane, anyway?" Lita asked, after some thought. "Can't you teleport?"

"Now, where would be the fun in that?" Black Hat said. "Besides, it'll give us ample time to review Flug's report on our client."

That didn't really answer her question, but she was too tired to press him further.

"I've never been on a plane before," she admitted. "Wait. Don't we need to go through airport security or something? I don't even have a passport!"

With a flick of his wrist, a black booklet appeared in his hand. "Already taken care of."

He handed the booklet to her. She opened up the first page to find a picture of herself she didn't remember taking. It had all her information, from her birthdate to her full legal name. She supposed he'd left her villain alias out for obvious reasons. She was afraid to ask when and how he had managed to issue this.

It was what was on the next page that truly excited her. An exit visa. Those weren't easy to come by on Hat Island, as one usually needed to pay an exceptionally large fee to…

Well, it was no mystery how she'd been granted one now.

"And you won't have to worry about security," Black Hat said, eyeing the concealed knives in her boots. "I have my own private plane. Even better than flying First Class, if you ask me. No nosy stewards, no crying infants. It'll simply be the two of us for eleven hours."

The last part caused Lita to gulp.

"And the plane doesn't have my name on it, so any heroes that happen to be flying nearby won't pay any heed. We'll be entering Paris undetected." He gestured to the passport. "And legally, too. The last thing we need is attention from French Customs."

"Oh, I get it," she said. "If we run into trouble in Paris, we can show that we legally entered the country, so they won't try and deport us."

"Exactly. Of course, it'd be a lot more difficult if we were entering America, but it never hurts to be prepared. Which reminds me. If, for whatever reason, we are questioned by the authorities, we should get our stories straight."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, we can't very well tell them we're villains doing business with another villain, can we? Remember, our client doesn't wish to be discovered. So, I believe we should keep it simple." Another black booklet appeared in his hand. "We are Cyrus Chapeau and Adelita Gris. We are a British-Mexican American couple on our honeymoon."

Lita dropped her passport. "Say what now?"

"This is simply for pretense," he said, scowling, "so don't get any ideas."

"Okay, but…why do we have to be married?!"

"Why else would a man and woman be traveling together in Paris these days?"

She opened her mouth to protest further, but then realized he had a point. "I guess…it would be an easy story to buy. But…Cyrus?"

He gripped his cane. "It's a respectable name."

"Just…seems kind of old-fa—" She looked him over. "You know what? It suits you. But hey, if we're supposed to be married, how come our last names are different?"

He shrugged. "We only just got married. Even if one of us decided to change our names, the legal process would still take many months. Besides, given that many married couples these days decide to keep their original names, I hardly doubt anyone would question it."

She couldn't argue with that. "But…Chapeau? Really?"

She knew enough French to at least know the word for "hat."

"Fitting, don't you think?" he said with a smirk. "And the locals won't have any trouble saying it."

As she scrutinized him, another thought occurred to Lita. "Hey, wait a minute. How are you gonna—?"

"You've arrived at your destination," the computerized driver said as the hearse came to a stop.

Glancing outside, Lita saw that they were at the airport's drop-off. Unbuckling her seatbelt, she stepped outside. It was still early morning, so the sun hadn't quite risen yet.

The hearse's trunk popped open and Lita went around to get her suitcase. She wasn't sure how to feel about this charade her boss had in mind. Who would look at the two of them and think that they were married? Not only were they dressed from different centuries, but Black Hat was…well, he was a demon! How was he not going to draw attention to himself?

Before she could grab her suitcase, a gloved hand swiped it out from beneath her.

"Let me get that for you, dear."

Lita stiffened. The voice sounded much like her boss, but it wasn't as growly. It sounded like a typical British male voice with a deep tone, nothing demonic about it all. When she turned to look at him, she gasped in surprise.

Instead of his usual black face, she was met with a pale one. This new face was accompanied with brown eyes—his monocle was gone—and light brown hair—hair—that fell from beneath his top hat and down to his shoulders in wisps, tucked neatly behind his ears. Yes, he had ears! And a nose!If that wasn't enough, there was a small mustache beneath that new nose.

His clothes were still there, but the man wearing them didn't look anything like her boss.

"Like it?" Black Hat said with a smile, showing perfectly white teeth. "I don't normally take a human form, as it takes quite a bit of energy, but obviously, I can't go walking around like I normally do."

Lita blinked in bewilderment. She had nearly forgotten about his shapeshifting abilities.

"How do you even…?" She pointed. "Your…your eyes! And…and your ears! And…how did you even smell anything before without a nose?!"

He let out a laugh that sounded much more pleasant than usual. "Best not to think too much into it." He took his suitcase in his other hand. "Shall we then, darling?"

The "darling" threw her off for a moment, but then she remembered that they were supposed to be newlyweds.

"Oh!" She shook her head. "Yeah! Let's, uh, go, uh…honey?"

Black Hat nodded approvingly as he led the way. Lita couldn't stop staring at his disguise the entire way to the plane. She couldn't help it. She wasn't used to seeing her boss look so…normal. Well, not quite so, as he was still wearing his Victorian attire. It was also a bit disturbing how he was able to change his skin color so effortlessly.

Black Hat smirked when he caught her staring. "Finding the new me handsome, dear?"

"Um," Lita said, her face turning red. "Actually, um…you look…kind of fake."

That caused him to frown. "That's rather harsh, don't you think?"

Lita had seen the interior of airplanes in movies. They'd always depicted a bunch of passengers squished together in two or three aisles of seats. So, naturally, she hadn't expected to see an entire living room when she stepped onto Black Hat's private jet.

The plane must've been enchanted or something, because the interior looked much more massive than it did on the outside. Not to mention the exterior had been entirely inconspicuous, being white like every other plane on the lot. At the windows, two red cushioned recliner seats sat facing each other, a small mahogany table between them. Normally, this would be enough for two passengers, yet there was a chaise couch in the middle of the room, surrounding a chess table. The burgundy carpet pattern was much like the one back at the mansion. On top of that, there was a bar, a mini-fridge, and a lit fireplace. There was no way that was a safe thing to have on a plane!

"Shut up!" Her jaw dropped. "We're flying this to Paris?!"

"It's an eleven-hour journey," said Black Hat, who was back to normal now that they were alone. "Do you really expect me not to travel in style?" As he levitated their bags into a closet of some sort, he pointed to a set of velvet curtains across the room. "Bedroom is back there. You'll find the bathroom if you keep going."

"There's a freaking bedroom here?!" Lita shouted, rushing to see for herself.

Pulling back the curtains, she gasped upon finding a room with a queen-sized bed on the right side. Even more excited now, she opened the door to the bathroom at the very end. She was happy to find that not only was the toilet not made of plastic, but there was a solid gold shower and tub to match it!

"Holy shit!" Lita squealed. "No wonder Flug's so crazy about planes!"

The sound of Black Hat clearing his throat caused her to turn. "Yes, yes, it's all very impressive. Now come sit down, we'll be taking off soon."

"Permission for take-off has been granted," said a computerized voice. "Lord Black Hat and guests, please take your seats."

Like the hearse, this plane ran on autopilot. As Lita buckled into one of the recliners at the window, this thought unsettled her. As Black Hat sat across from her, he noticed her gripping the seat's arms as she stared out the window. The faint scent coming from her further confirmed his suspicions.

"A little nervous, are we?" he said.

She nodded. "This is my first flight, you know."

Black Hat rolled his eye. "You needn't worry about crashing. Honestly, we'd be more likely to crash if Flug was the pilot, rather than the computer."

She turned to him. "H-How did you handle your first flight?"

"I could already levitate, and had previously flown in hot air balloons, helicopters and spacecrafts. So, compared to those, my first airplane trip was rather," he said, holding up his hand, "meh."

"Right." She would ask about the spacecrafts later.

"And honestly, Miss Ladrona, you've crawled on ceilings and suspended yourself from heights of over fifty feet. I highly doubt you will have any acrophobic issues on this trip."

"You're right," she said, her grip on the seat loosening a bit. "I suppose…it's kind of silly to be nervous about flying, after…everything else I've been through."

The smell of fear hadn't completely eradicated.

"Of course," Black Hat said disgruntledly, "it also helps…to keep one's eyes closed."

As soon as he said this, the plane started moving. Lita kept her eyes shut, even while they were in taxi mode. After about five minutes, she felt the plane jolt forward. Gasping internally, she pressed her back against the seat, gripping the arms tighter. She tried not to appear too afraid in front of her demonic boss, but couldn't help it! She wasn't used to this kind of motion!

The plane went faster and faster, making a whirring sound until finally, it tilted upward, whooshing into the sky. Lita waited for something to go wrong. For the plane to spiral out of control, for the engine to explode, for some other plane to crash into them!

But nothing happened. Opening one cautious eye, she looked out the window. What she saw caused her to open the other eye and press her hands and face against the glass.

Down below was the most fantastic view of Hat Island! She could see the roofs of all the buildings she had come to know all her life! Her childhood home, her old workplaces, her high school, the fitness center. Black Hat Manor, of course, was the easiest to spot. It was strange how small the massive hat-shaped structure now looked. As they went higher, the island disappeared, and there was nothing but pure ocean blue for miles around. The sun was rising, gleaming off the water like something out of a dream.

"¡Es increíble!" she murmured against the window.

Black Hat watched her with interest. Sadly, his enthusiasm over seeing new things and places had dulled down over the millennia. But there had been a time when his eyes had held that same spark of childlike wonderment. In his years of early adulthood, he had set out to see the world, amazed to discover that it was much larger and more impressive than he'd imagined. He remembered the barge he'd hopped on, seeing the sea for the first time and embracing its soothing, salty air. He remembered how much his cheeks had hurt from all the smiling, just as Lita was doing now.

He'd always hated dwelling on his past, but this small memory brought a certain calm about him. He then glanced out his own window. He'd seen the ocean so many times now, but wondered what Lita was thinking, seeing its vastness for the first time.

She must feel so small right now, he thought, yet big at the same time.

Looking back, he found her still staring out the window. Her smile had only gotten bigger. It wasn't long before he found himself smiling as well.

"Hey," Lita said, glancing sideways at him. "What if some hero passes by? Won't they see you through the windows?"

Black Hat snapped out of his trance and put on his previous frown. "Yes, well, no need to fret about that." He tapped the glass beside him. "The windows are tinted, in that event."

Satisfied with this answer, Lita returned her attention down below as a beach came into view. Based on their flight path, she assumed this was the west coast of Mexico, her fatherland.

Oh, if only Papi could see this!

Realizing he was still staring at the woman across from him, Black Hat materialized Flug's report into his hand and began reading it.

Once the plane had risen above the clouds, Lita finally tore her gaze from the window. Now that her curiosity was satisfied for the moment, she decided to have a little fun with her boss.

"So, how far you wanna take this marriage thing?"

Black Hat looked up in alarm, ripping the folder in two. "Excuse me?"

"I mean what's our backstory?" she asked, crossing her arms and legs. "Devil's in the details, you know. Well, I guess you do know. Where did we meet? How long have we been dating? Did we have a big wedding or a small wedding?" She put a finger to her chin. "Always kind of pictured mine small."

He grunted as he magically melded the file back together. "We are not—"

"You think Flug would've been the best man? I doubt Dementia would've been up for maid of honor. Oh!" She snorted with laughter. "What if 5.0.5. was the ring bear?! Wouldn't that just be hila—"

"I think you're taking this a little too seriously," Black Hat said with an unamused scowl.

"Hey." She gestured to him. "You're the one who suggested we pretend to be married. Which reminds me." She held up the back of her hand. "Shouldn't we have rings?"

Sighing, Black Hat snapped his fingers. "You make a fair point."

In an instant, two sparkling gold bands appeared on each of their left ring fingers.

"Ooh," Lita said, admiring the gold's value. "I can see why I married you."

"Alright then," he said, settling his hands onto his cane. "How did we meet?"

She pondered a moment. "You worked with my dad. He introduced us."

Black Hat smirked. "Not entirely a lie, which will make it all the more convincing." He looked her over. "Let's see. Since you're twenty-five, let's say we started our courtship…two years ago."

"No one says 'courtship' anymore, but yeah, that sounds reasonable." She smiled mischievously. "You know, most people ask married couples if they plan on having kids."

The demon crumpled the folder in his hands. "Don't make me wish I'd taken Flug instead of you."

"Why, so you can pretend to be married to him?"Lita gasped dramatically. "Wow, boss! I had no idea you swung that way!"

Growling, he stood from his seat, his claws bared and ready to kill.

"Oh, lighten up, will you? I'm kidding!" She uncrossed her legs. "Though you can't blame me for wanting to be thorough."

Relaxing his arms, Black Hat sat back down. Grunting in annoyance, he smoothed out the file until there was not a single crease visible.

"Here," he said, tossing it at her. "Read up on our client."

And while you're distracted, maybe I'll get a moment's peace, he thought as he produced a newspaper out of thin air.

Lita caught the file before it could hit her face and opened it up. When she saw the client's picture and name, her eyes widened.

"No way!" she exclaimed, pointing. "He's a supervillain?"

Black Hat sighed as he looked up from his paper. "You've heard of him, I presume?"

"Well, sure! He's only the most famous European fashion designer there is! I used to sell his designs all the time! You know, back when I was in sales. I knew he was a bit of a recluse, but I never imagined him as a villain. Huh." She shrugged. "The more you know. But yeesh! What kind of villain name is—?"

"How about we continue this discussion after you've finished reading?" her boss said.

Seeing how his claws were digging into his paper, Lita had a feeling he wanted some quiet time. So, without another word, she returned to her reading, as did he.

The article on the rebuilding of Notre Dame held Black Hat's attention for a measly two minutes. He found himself glancing back at the woman across from him. Her recliner was now spread back, her legs up. She held the file above her face, wearing a neutral expression, but he could tell she was interested by the way her eyes moved across the pages.

She had no idea what he had done last week, when she had fallen asleep outside his organ chamber. As he had planned, he had teleported her to her bedroom an hour before dawn. If she had wondered how she had gotten to her bed, she had most likely concluded that she'd been too tired to remember or something along those lines, for she hadn't questioned him about it.

It was because of that night that Black Hat had decided to take Lita along for this trip, as well as the way she'd handled Megamind. She had a way of reading people that was useful for negotiating. And sales, of course. And if he was going to be spending some time in Paris, it might as well be with someone with whom he could carry on an intelligent conversation. Even if she was sometimes a tease.

Not to mention that there was still this strange comfort he felt whenever she was around. The minute he'd teleported her sleeping body out of his office, his eternal boredom had returned with a vengeance. Since that night, he'd been anxious for her company. Of course, he hadn't wanted to appear obvious, so instead of sneaking her into his office late at night again, he had resorted to leaving the monitor to her bedroom on while he worked. All he had done was glance at her slumbering form from time to time. He wasn't that kind of spy.

He couldn't help that she was interesting to watch. Why, he wasn't exactly sure. All he knew was that he wanted to indulge in her presence as much as possible. What better way to do that than a two-day trip to Paris?

Besides, there was something he wanted to try with her. Not only would it further succeed his plans to make her dependent on him, but it just might answer some of his many questions concerning her.

Had to stop myself from writing the entire eleven-hour flight! I didn't want their conversation to end!

Those of you who watch/read "The Ancient Magus' Bride" will get the reference.

So, the Paris trip will be taking up the next few chapters, as a LOT of significant things will be happening there! I'm going to keep the new client a surprise, for now.