"So what does this have to do with us?" Jigen demanded, eyeing the lithe young woman with no small amount of suspicion.
"Ugh. Men." Fujiko snorted, making no effort to disguise her disgust.
"If you had been listening better..." Goemon politely reminded his companion.
Jigen looked disgruntled. "Since when have we started listening to Fujiko?"
She glared at the gunman. "So you weren't listening at all." came her accusation.
A quiet chuckle was heard from Lupin, causing the others to turn and stare at him as if her were mad. "So what you're saying, Fuji-cakes, is that the rules have changed to discourage enterprising gentlemen such as ourselves...and all parties attending need a date?"
"Fujiko looked startled that he had been doing more than his usual - ogling her chest - but her look of surprise was soon replaced by a crafty grin. "Why Lupin, darling; I didn't know you cared-"
"Now wait just a minute!" Jigen interrupted. "First of all, what kind of stupid rule is that? Anybody and their cousin can buy a date-"
"Not Lupin." Fujiko cut in with a smile, oblivious to the dirty look she was shot.
"And second of all," Jigen nearly hissed as he collected the thoughts that had been lost in his interruption, "Who says we have to use you? We can just as well dress up Goemon here and he's a hell of a lot more trustworthy than yourself."
Goemon shot him an indignant look, which Jigen chose to ignore as Fujiko laughed gaily. "Why not? He is, after all, already in a dress. Or maybe you'd be more suited for the part," she paused, to eye him loftily, "You just reek of femininity."
A growl escaped Jigen's throat. "We get the point. Now what do you so badly want out of all this, to have actively sought us out?"
She looked amused. "To be honest with you, I don't even know what's on display. Now the question is, boys: what do you all want out of this?"
"Somehow I really doubt you're as clueless as you claim, "Jigen laughed. "The day Fujiko doesn't know what's going on and have her pointy little nose right in the middle of it will be the day I die."
It seemed she was beside him before the words finished leaving his mouth, gun cocked and held steady against the side of his head. "Bang-bang," she murmured softly. "You really should avoid such outbursts, dear. 'Cause there's always someone out there willing to hold you to your word; you know, the kind who'd cut off their own nose to spite their face?"
Lupin pushed back his chair and silently stood. "That's enough, Fuji-cakes," he commanded and, surprisingly, she listened. "I hope you have a suitable dress," he added with a cocky little smirk. "And preferably one with a lot of cleavage, 'cause you and I have a party to crash."
"You cad," she rolled her eyes at his last comment, though she looked quite pleased with herself. "I'm staying at the motel around the corner. I expect to be picked up at seven sharp. As I understand, they're closing the doors at ten and the drive's at least an hour long."
"Yes ma'am." Lupin couldn't help but grin lecherously. Both Goemon and Jigen felt like groaning - which they did inwardly - though neither could deny they felt happy at spotting traces of the old thief.
"Great," she grinned spontaneously, turning on her heels to exit when she was stopped short by a hand clapping down on her shoulder. Expecting to see either Goemon or Jigen with a polite goodbye or a rude warning respectively, she couldn't help but feel surprised for the second time that day. "Lupin." It was a simple statement.
Lupin said nothing until he had led her out into the hall, his hand still strategically placed on her shoulder to prevent a swift get-away before he could finish with what he had to say. "Jigen's probably right, Fujiko - we could have pulled this off by ourselves. You've been gone a month...Why show back up now?" His voice was low, as he knew the other two would most likely be listening as carefully as they could from their seats at the table.
She eyed him coolly. "A lady never has to explain her motives to anyone," she sniffed haughtily, thrusting her nose in the air as she delivered a swift kick to his most sensitive spot. "And it would be good of you to remember that tonight, Lupin."
He groaned his agreement from his slumped position on the floor. Perhaps it had been unwise of him to pine for her return. If this were a warning for abuse that was sure to come, it would have certainly been better to concentrate on her memory. But through all his mental grousing and extreme pain, an exquisitely fond smile graced his lips.
Jigen and Goemon, who had rushed to his assistance the moment they heard his body hit the floor, rolled him over and stared down into his face. "Whatever she did to you is your own fault." Jigen crossed his arms and informed the master thief curtly.
"I know," Lupin sighed. "All too well."
~*~
Fujiko glanced at the wall on the clock. It was 7:10. She tapped her foot impatiently, inwardly seething. While it was true she told him to come by seven, making him only ten minutes late, she knew that time was extremely important in their job tonight and that even mere minutes could make the difference between emerging from the party filthy rich or empty handed. She was not even aware that she was overreacting.
Finally, a knock came at the door. Gathering her dignity, she strode over as pompously as she could and threw the thing open as ceremoniously as she possible. And there he stood, as she expected, looking sheepishly oblivious to her anger. "Lupin," she smiled charmingly, her eyes flashing dangerously. "How good of you to come."
He didn't seem to notice her foul mood. "Sorry, I'm running a bit behind schedule, Fuji-cakes - had to finish up some last minute business and ran into Pops, as luck would have it."
"I see," she commented dryly, fetching her handbag from the dresser. Her anger had subsided fairly quickly but her stubborn streak had yet to dissipate. She refused to dwell on the reason, though it lay more or less along the lines of she being overly worried he wouldn't show. "Then shall we go?"
"Why certainly, my lady!" Lupin bowed low, the picture of gentlemanly etiquette, before offering her his arm, which she reluctantly took. The two of them strolled out of the motel room in which she was staying and Lupin waited patiently for her to draw the room key from her purse and lock the place up.
After she had done so, both of them continued on their way to the car that Lupin had decided to take them in. Maintaining his polite image, he opened the door for Fujiko and helped seat her. Only then did he jog around to the other side of the car and get in himself.
As the two buckled up their seatbelts, neither spoke. This need for silence only grew as Lupin turned the key in the ignition and started them on their way towards the party. It was only when they were almost to their predetermined destination that one of them spoke and surprisingly, that person was Fujiko. "So...Lupin..."
He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, trying to keep his concentration mainly on the treacherous road ahead of them. "What was that, Fuji-cakes?"
"Have your eye on anything particular at this party?" she inquired, genuinely curious. "After all, I know you wouldn't drag yourself all the way out here for nothing."
"Is that so?" he murmured, his voice unusually low. "Well, to tell the truth, Fuji-cakes...There's nothing I want there-" her eyes widened slightly as he continued, "Sure, there is bound to be untold wealth just waiting to be grabbed, but...It's the first time I've seen you in a long time, Fujiko. There's always other days for thieving."
She couldn't contain the breath she held and it came out in a short puff of wind - a gasp. But she masked her surprise with a cold chuckle, one that wouldn't betray the sudden rush of emotion coursing through her. "The Lupin III, pass up a chance to loot and plunder? Please..."
He looked hurt but they had rolled up to a stop by the curb and an attendant hovered over them like an anxious mother hen. Deciding to evade the uncomfortable situation as best he could, he allowed his fingers to roam across the driver's side until they triggered the button that unlocked the vehicle.
The attendant - clearly a valet for the party - pawed the door handle and pulled it open for Lupin to step out. He did so and the valet dashed around to the other side to do the same for Fujiko. Lupin eyed the man and stifled a sigh. Extracting his wallet, he placed a crisp note in the man's nearly outstretched hand along with the keys.
Receiving a grin and a polite thank you before the valet darted off to rob other partygoers blind with his sheer enthusiasm, Lupin turned to Fujiko, who was busy trying to smooth down the front of her dress and look disinterested at the same time. Putting on a large, cheesy, and not-so-obviously-fake grin, Lupin linked arms with said young woman and led her straight into a throng of people.
A/N: Hmm. I was a tad late on this update, only because I had a party to attend. Fear not, the next and last chapter should be out before the end of the year. I would go ahead and say it would be, no sweat, but bad things tend to happen to me after I make promises like those, so...Oh yes, if you read this on 12/22, I went back and fixed all the typos and such on 12/23.
Katelynn Garret: I was expecting a review from you, but not that darn soon. Thanks a bunch, my dear.
Chaos of the Demonic: How nice of you to review my fic! I wasn't expecting it, really, I wasn't. But thanks so much! And no worries; I know you won't fail to reprimand me should I leave the last chapter unwritten for too long.
Saberpilot: I'm glad you like them. Thanks for the review. Both things make me happy.
Blue Vixen: I've read and reviewed every last chapter out so far - you deserved it. Thanks for the review/compliment.
J. Lucy-Daisuke: I wasn't as worried as all that. Did I come across that way? Sorry. It was just a standard warning, really. Better to be safe than sorry. Chapter's dedicated to you for your informative review; not that I don't adore the others, but sometimes we authors appreciate these sorts of critiques.
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