Disclaimer: The characters belong to Guy Ritchie and the setting is an imitation of the one in "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels". This time I actually borrowed lines from the film, trying to compensate my lack of knowledge in East End language.

The plot was supposed to be something like that:

Big Chris "hires" the guys to find some people, who owed him money. These guys borrowed the money to steal some valuable paintings and sell them on the black market, but they run into some problems with the art dealer and now they try to stay away from Chris.

The guys lost a lot of money betting on illegal boxing fights and they need the money. Tom's shop got thrashed as a warning, so they find them and steal back the paintings (a bit of Snatch.)

Addie was supposed to buy some materials for bombs to prove her allegiance to an extremist organisation, but Max, the weapons dealer gets arrested and rats on her, so she has to get the explosives somewhere else. Bacon uses his connections and helps her out.

In my view, the plot is secondary to the romance, that's why is so lame. (Well, that and the fact that my imagination failed me) This totally ruins the fidelity to the movie, but it's just a fanfic, not a sequel (like that wasn't clear enough!). I do wish Guy Ritchie would do a sequel!

Part Six - Action!

[Addie] "Do you at least have a plan?"

[Ed] "Yes. Unlike you"

[Tom] "Stop flirting, you two! Let's see what to do next"

[Ed] "I've been by the bank. They have three security guards and two cameras looking straight into the street. Bacon said that in an emergency situation, the estimated time of arrival for the police and the rest of their security personnel is seven minutes. Bags of time to play with"

[Addie] "What's the bank got to do with anything?"

[Ed] "You have to listen to the whole thing before you start asking stupid questions May I go on? Thank you. So, if something happens in front of the bank, all the police units will flock together, leaving the coast clear for us. Our guys live just around the corner, so no one will take any notice of us going in and out of there. I went by their building yesterday and saw where the paintings were. They don't have a worry in the world, they've actually hung them on the walls"

[Tom] "Probably because they don't imagine anyone coming for them"

[Ed] "Yeah, if we create a diversion, the police 's gonna be in front of the bank, nowhere near their place"

[Tom] "We should go tomorrow. It's the servants' day off and the place will be most likely deserted"

[Soap] "What diversion?"

Silence. Bacon took the lead.

[Bacon] "A bomb"

[Soap] "A bomb? Are you crazy? We can't put a bomb in the middle of London. People will notice it, you know! Things don't work like they do in the East End!"

[Ed] "We're actually counting on people noticing it"

[Soap] "No fucking about, Ed. We'll get in a lot of trouble. And how would we make a bomb. Do any of you know anything about it?"

[Addie] "I do"

Everyone looked at her, surprised. They'd almost forgotten she was there.

[Soap] "You? How do you know something like that?"

[Addie] "It's an useful skill to have in my neighbourhood. I assume you don't actually want to hurt people, right?"

[Bacon] "Yes. Just a lot of noise and smoke"

[Addie] "That can be done"

[Soap] "How can you be so fucking calm about it?"

[Bacon] "What's the use to get worked up about it anyways?"

[Addie] "I take after Bacon, apparently"

[Tom] "What do you need to make it?"

[Addie] "I'll go shopping soon. Don't worry, it can be done out of everyday household items"

[Bacon] "I'm coming along. We'll meet at JD's around six, ok?"

~~~~~

Bacon watched the way her hands were skilfully preparing the materials. Assembling them seemed child's play.

[Bacon] "Still can't get used to this side of you. It just goes to show how surprising people are"

[Addie] "It's not something I'm proud of. I was born on one side of the war, so I just embraced it. You've no idea just how liberating coming to London was. Four glorious years I didn't have to think about it, never had to make a choice. When I got back… it just felt like a piece of me had been disconnected all along and it just came back to life. Now, here, that world seems more unreal, although I know just how real it is"

[Bacon] "What is your choice?"

[Addie] "Didn't give it a hell lot of thought. The fact remains that I owe Kevin this much loyalty"

[Bacon] "You don't owe anyone anything! You have to do what you feel it's right"

[Addie] "It's right to take his place. It's right to look for revenge"

[Bacon] "You should think better about it. This isn't a club you can just stop being a member once you're in"

[Addie] "I know. But my membership was a birth right"

Bacon could see her conflict, but he didn't see a way to help her. Fights, ideals, choices… he didn't have experience with any of those things.

[Addie] "Thanks for the help. I don't know what I would've done without you"

[Bacon] "I'm people who know people" he tried to joke away her gratitude.

[Addie] "Not just about today. I do appreciate you making the deal for the explosives for me, but I'm grateful you came along and stood by me all these years"

[Bacon] "That's not just my merit"

[Addie] "It's yours, as well. Thanks!"

She kissed him on the cheek and hugged him briefly. Living around them all this time, she became awkward in displaying her affection.

[Addie] "We got to get to JD's"

~~~~~~ at JD's ~~~~~~

The gang was there when they arrived.

[Addie] "A Martini, please, Alan"

Her voice betrayed nothing of the turmoil stirred inside her by this wild new adventure. She was upset of the easiness with which she had slipped back into her old skin. She tried to avoid Soap's searching gaze. He was the one she feared the most when she had something to hide. And right about now, she wished to conceal her self-loathing. Their pity was the last thing she wanted. Soap's pity...

[Ed repeating the question, annoyed] "I asked you if it's any danger for the people who walk by"

He was permanently annoyed with her these days. They knew this was not a good sign. It meant he began to feel some attraction for her.

[Addie] "No. It's more of a smoke bomb. And I put a remote control. You'll detonate when you think the time is right"

[Ed] "We figured that Tom should stay by the bank, to mislead the cousins, if need arises, Soap stays in the van and I'll go with Bacon inside the house and get the paintings"

[Addie] "What about me?"

[Ed] "What about you?"

[Addie] "What do I do?"

[Ed] "You stay home and cook! Soap says you need all the practise you can get"

[Addie] "I'm coming with you, Doc Holliday" (she noticed he hated it when she called him that) "It's not like any of you is any good at camouflage, they'll smell you a mile away. If I come along, we'll have some cover"

[Ed] "This isn't a Bond movie. We don't need a female co-star. You'll stay nice and clear of all this"

[Addie] "My knight in shining armour! I can deal with this situation better than you ever will. You lost all your street sense, Mr. Big Time Card Player I Only Play For More Than Ten Thousand Pounds A Hand"

[Ed] "What's got into you lately? I'm trying to do you a favour!"

[Addie] "I don't need your pity!" *Damn, I said that aloud!*

[Bacon] "Calm down, kid. Ed's got a point. There's no reason to drag you along."

[Addie] "Who passed the law that you can help me, but I can't help you?"

[Tom] "If she wants to come…" - he ignored the three pairs of eyes shooting at him, as he was quite used to it - "it's not like we expect an army over there. If we thought that, we wouldn't just go there unarmed, right?"

They hated when he was right.

~~~~~ Things went smoothly ~~~~~

Bacon was taking the paintings to the car, when she thought of it. If she had compare Soap with him, she needed more material.

"Kiss me" she uttered clearly, amazed of her courage.

"C'mon, kid, stop fucking about! Let's get out of here" was Ed's first reaction.

"I'm not gonna move if you don't kiss me"

He saw her, standing still in the middle of the room, looking quite resolute. Ed got more details from that one fugitive glance than he did in the last year. He noticed everything about her, the way her body got alluring, womanly shapes, the way her eyes pierced right through him, her sadness and determination.

Addie was watching Ed, heart pounding crazy inside, knees week and hands trembling. She knew him well enough to understand that he was sizing her up. She was bluffing, but he'd never been very good at catching her reactions. She looked him up and down, rediscovering the handsome man who had been the star of her fantasies, trying to get something of the old attraction.

He looked more like a man and less like the boy she had first saw on the mean streets. His features remained just as attractive, but something adult had crawled inside and was lighting him.

She moved towards the door when Ed chose to take her threat seriously and came closer. She felt him hesitating for a fraction of a second. His lips touched hers, but he didn't dare to go any further. The spark of electricity caused by that touch was extending rapidly through his body. The danger had pumped adrenaline heavily into the blood stream and the sensations felt quite intense. The knowledge of the forbidden fruit made it even more so.

Ed got back to reality before her. He pulled her hand, whispering seriously:

"We have to go"

She looked through him, trying to grasp the imminent danger. She followed his lead, unable to focus.

Bacon was on the phone with Tom, Soap was driving and was keeping himself busy with the paintings, trying to avoid eye contact with her. This was rather difficult, since they were facing one another in the back of the van.

"Stop messing around with them" she grabbed his hand. "Even if you don't ruin them, you're leaving your fingerprints all over them"

"Thank you, Clarice" he said mockingly in a poor Anthony Hopkins impression.

"My pleasure, Doc"

"Tom says everything went sweet at the bank"

"Let's go to Big Chris and drop these off"

"Stop by my place first, please. I have some things to take care of"

Soap obeyed her command in silence. They seemed to have nothing to talk about any more. He couldn't help resenting Ed for his ignorance about her feelings.

"We'll be at Tom's shop later. Come and help clean up"

Soap, Ed and Addie wished that Bacon would stop being so nice to her. They just couldn't avoid each other properly if somebody kept them together.