~ Faking It ~

Written by: Jennifer Crusie

Re-written by: Pandora Rose

Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Mars characters do not belong to me and nethier does this plot ethier, but any characters not familiar do belong to me.



A/N: Reading and reviewing, I hope?

Now it's Rei's turn. ^.^

Enjoy.

***

It had taken Rei Kashino a week to track down his ex-financial adviser from New York City in America to Tokyo, Japan and now he leaned against the fence of a outside cafe in the city watching the thin, pale man pick at his food, survey his coffee mug and take the napkin to clean it with dismay. His prey. A freak, but yet Rei had found him.

Tenchi Macana was the perfect target for teasing: pale as a ghost, more then one chin, and so smug and stubborn about his superiority to the people around him and in money, art, life in pure general that he was positive that he could con anyone.

Which made it even more damn annoying that he had taken just about all of Rei's money.

Rei hopped over the fence liesurely and ignored the stares as he sauntered through the tables and slid into the empty chair across from Tenchi. The round man had stopped in mid-sip and almost choked on his black coffee as he saw the boyish charming face of the Kashino boy , in one horrified gasp.

"Hi there, Macana. Where the hell is my five million dollars?" Rei laced his voice with the friendliness of a old brother-like friend he tried to fake, and clasped his hands in his grasp and laid them in his lap eyeing Tenchi and enjoying the struggled gargle. Tenchi just continued to choke on horror, guilt, fright, and the scalding hot coffee.

"Oh I'd figure you'd learn a life of crime... just isn't for anybody" Rei insisted good naturedly as he snatched a greasy french fry from Tenchi's plate and winced at how disgusting the flavor of it was. That taste was never going to leave his mouth now. "It's just too risky for you, old boy. You have to enjoy the risk. Your not enjoying the risk, Macana, are you?"

Tenchi gulped for air, striving for the oxygen he lacked from the surprise visit of a old, not-so-friendly buddy. "It's your fault, Rei. Don't put anything on me" Rei gave a devilish grin on his handsome face and ignored the waitress's friendly stare as she swung her hips and modest shaped behind by. He tried to house a friendly face but the glare he was sending to Tenchi had said plenty otherwise. "For not trusting you, Macana? Yes, I have to admit that was of my own fault." he leaned back, pushing his long blonde locks out of his face.

"Good point. I don't plan on doing that again Macana. But I want it all back. Every single piece of money. Even the change" Rei peered down at the plate of fries again and snagged another one. Once you got use to the taste, the fried potatoes were not all that bad. You just had to get use to them. The cook clearly had a odd way of cooking these.

"What are you talking about?! It wasn't even your money, Rei. You conned and stole it" Tenchi gave a heistate and apprehensive glance around the patio of the outdoor cafe and grumbled unhappily. "Where's Sei? You didn't come with him too, did you?" he looked even more unhappy at the fact that Rei's peace minded twin brother wasn't here to stop any unexpected fights that may or may not be let loose.

"Sei's in Miami. Sorry to say, but it'll just be me nagging you and beating you up on my own. And it was my money, dumb ass. I was making it and breaking it all the same way you were doing, through my father's stocks, the same excat stocks you used--"

"But!" Tenchi broke through Rei's agitated speech hurriedly taking his plate away from the french fry stealer. "The million you started with was definately not of your own" The old man justified to the younger one and suddenley Rei was struck of a fleeting memory of beautiful, enraged brunette. "Ahhh.." the young motorcyclist concluded as he fixed his winderbreaker, sticking his greasy hands from his french fries in his pocket. "It's Nadya." he shook his blonde locks in conclusion. "Had a blast with her, I bet"

"You don't even deny it!" Tenchi barked, angrily and defensively as he crossed his arm. "You took that poor woman's inheritance money from her poor deceased father and looked what you did with it and ---!" Rei rolled his eyes and crossed his long legs, getting comfortable. If Macana was wrapped in the heat of Nadya, it was going to take some time to unravel him from it. "That 'woman' is far from poor, she's a plain bitch. She inherited a chunk of cash from her first husband and the last thing I heard she was tanning in the Bahamas with some old rich guy"

"You took her money, theif" Tenchi grumbled, sticking to his high stature of the revelant beauty known as Nadya. "She's innocent." Rei sighed, expecting this and snatched the plate from him, taking the bottled ketchup as he took his hands from the warmth of his pockets. "Look, Macana, I know for a fact she's good in bed. So sue us. But come on. Not even you should believe that" Tenchi gave him quite a hot glare and wrinkled his nose at the young man. "Your talking about the woman I love here, Kashino. I know her"

"Nadya is not the kind of woman you are suppose to fall in love with" Rei said grimly, sounding slightly down at even the tiny thought of it. "She's the kind of woman you think you have this odd emotion called love for you, but then it just turns out you just needed her temproraily until some one else comes along with the option to buy" he stated almost logically as he flipped open the ketchup bottle with ease and drowning the rest of his remaining fries with the blood-like substance.

"I believe in Nadya. She would never do that to me" Tenchi promised, trying not to look as if he had any interest in what Rei was actually saying to him. Rei snorted lightly as he took a ketchup-drenched fry. "Yeah, and you also thought Det-Mind was going to last a lifetime" he shook his head and crossed his arms. "Like my daddy said... if it looks too good to be true---"

"Kashino we are off the topic of money. " Tenchi declared eyeing his stolen plate of fries, and just sipped his warm coffee. "She loves me" Rei just gave another snort and almost felt sorry for the creep. He had no idea what he was wondering into. "If we are talking about Nadya, then hell yeah we're talking about money. It's all she loves and cares for" Tenchi wrinkled his nose at him once more, this time in a more snotty haughty way. "She cares for her art" he stated lightly proud he seemed to know something Kashino didn't know about.

"Art? Your not talking about the two porn flicks and cult movie she did are you? I don't think any one would actually call those art..." Rei smilied lightly recalling the so called memories of such things and shook his head highly amused. Nadya was a screwed one, yes she was. "No" Tenchi insisted slightly confused at the mentioned movies. "Her -actual- art. That's where I met Nadya, I remember excatly. It was at her family's art museum and gallery when I was helping her value her late husband's collection"

"-Late- husband?" Rei gave another laugh, his amusement raising as each word was spoken. This was just such a funny conversation. Not what he had expected at all. "Imagine my surprise." he said dryily shaking his head. "Tenchi, her family doesn't have a art museum and she turned to you when she found out you had access to my accounts. What the last guy die of...?" Rei took a moment looking at Tenchi's mouth, ready to respond before he took over again. "Wait... lemme guess.. Heart attack, right?"

Tenchi's lips dropped suddenley as Rei suspicious suspection was correct. "It was very sudden" he insisted hurriedly, coughing as he gulped down a large spot of coffee to hide any leaked shock. "You know, if I didn't hate your guts, I'd have sympthathy for you. Who is he?" Rei questioned casually taking another french fry without question, no pity at all etched in his attractive face. "Edward Colins." Tenchi replied without thinking and winced as he figured that the young man in front of him -may- be right. "He was her late husband's financial manager. Nadya saw his folk art at a party at his house in Philadelphia"

"And of course shortly after that she got a good look at the rest of him" Rei concluded, sitting back comfortably in the cafe's seats, his low opinion of humanity rising lower as the minutes passed. "What a gal. She's trying to teach herself art to dazzle him into marriage and a early funeral. She was always the honors student"

"Edward is only in his fifties, he isn't that old"

"The one I noticed she killed was in his forties. I gather Edward is her latest victim for her goal in life for grand money?" Rei questioned casually yawning emotion-less. "She didn't kill her husband" Tenchi insisted, letting his finger trail around the top of his coffee cup. "Her late husband died at the age of eighty nine of natural causes. Nadya also didn't concure porn -and-, Nadya, she loves m---"

"Bubbly Suds." was the only word Rei needed. "Set at a waterfall sign in South America. Lots of Bubbles, less clothes. Nadya was back then known as... what was it?... Oh yes Candy Cane. If you don't happen to believe in my recommendations I would be more then happy to drive you down to a Blockbuster"

"Really, Kashino---!!"

"But before we take our random drive to the movie rental palace, you are going to help me get my money back"

Tenchi made a pathethic masquerade of pulling up his chest and straightening heriocly. Yet, nothing was very good at battling down Rei's rebellious stubborn-ness and conning ways. It was worth a try. "I most certainly am not helping you, Rei." The blonde youth sighed heavily, pulling himself up from the iron wrought chair and leaned forward placing a handsome hand on his knotted grasps. He pitied the poor man. He truly did. Tenchi was a sad excuse of man kind.

"You can stop lieing through your teeth now, Macana. I have you wrapped around my finger. The cops will be on you like bees on honey the minute I let anything spill from my lips. I have connections, Tenchi, please don't forget that. I also understand the case with Nadya. I wasted two and a half years on her myself, but don't let her drag you down to the bottom. Your going to help me get -my- money back or your going to spend long weeks in America on vacation... Just think about it. Is she really worth it? Don't forget to consider the fact that she hasn't called you since you've given her my own personal money...."

Tenchi was as silent as the grave throughout Rei's reasonable speech, his fingers twitching nervously around his mug of thick, digusting coffee. Rei watched his face, seeing the guard drop ever so slowly on his face and wheels turning in that big oversized head of his. To bad there was nothing inside the huge skull.

Finally Tenchi managed to sputter a simple statement.

"Bubbly Suds?"

Rei knodded wisely.

"You and she...?"

Another brief knod was delievered to the pale, pudgy man.

"And you think she and Edward...?"

Rei felt his head bob, his sympathy for the moronic, lovesick creep growing heavier.

"Look, Kashino, I don't know how to get your money back" Tenchi broke down after a moment digesting the information and living with his world being turned upside down. "Well, this is your lucky day Macana. I do" Rei gave the man a handsome carved smirk and leaned forward comfortably. "Tell me about Nadya and her so called 'art', please"

With that, Tenchi took a heavy breath and began a grand lecture about Edward Colins and his collection of exotic painting ; how Nadya had followed in Colins lead and was staying with him for pointers for her own collection ; how the beauty promised to call, would ring soon, just as soon as she got some free time on her hands to do it.

'How its possible to be this gullible and lead a life of crime is overly beyond me....' the handsome con man's thoughts ran along these lines, but inside he knew it wasn't right to think that. Nadya was the sort of woman who flattened a man's senses in a heartbeat and a flutter of her elegant lashes. Heaven knew, his had been as flat as a pancake in her presence at one point or another.

Rei allowed Tenchi to rattle on about Nadya, the thought of every man's desire, and just began to ponder. Truthfully, he could just take the easy way out of the situation. Rei could squeeze and wringe Nadya's address and account number from Tenchi, 'borrow' her labtop, go through her hardrive and put in her password -- Nadya being Nadya probably used the same password for almost everything-- and just transfer the money to his account. His conning skills were definately going to come in handy.

Though it was risky and it had more appeal and attraction to him then it probably should. Rei wasn't suppose to be breaking and ripping apart anymore laws. He was straight now, a perfect line. No more immaturity for Rei Kashino. Risks and crime were no longer one bit exciting for him. Boring, unappealing...

"What's the matter?" Tenchi frowned peering at the visibly excitied fidgety con artist.

Rei felt his head shot up unconsciously eyeing the man, reluctantly feeling his heartbeat increase. "What are you talking about, Macana?"

"Your breathing sounds funny. A bit heavy"

Rei shook his head. Yeah, not exciting at all. He didn't even have any authority over his body, let alone his senses!!!

"Asthma," The lie slipped through his lips easily. Experiance did that to you. "hand over her address and her account numbers" Tenchi froze at the words and his finger twitching problem picked up speed. His brow furrowed nervously. "I don't think that's legal there, Rei..."

"Macana" Rei said roughly, all sympathy and sweetness sucked from his voice. "You, yourself, are illegal. That's how you got into this mess anyway, doing stuff like that. Give me those damn numbers" Tenchi watched him and wrinkled his nose as his fidgety hand reached for a pen in his pocket and a napkin from the cafe despinser. Slowly, as if mechanicly, numbers were written in scarthy letters on the flimsy paper.

"Please and Thank you" Rei said poiletely, letting loose his charming grin he held back for persausion purposes and took the napkin in his grasp. Standing up, he shoved the chair back lightly and added, "Don't bother leaving town. Please, don't steal anything else. And for heavensakes, stay away from Nadya"

Tenchi gave a slightly miffed and rattled look. "I'll do whatever I please. I am older then you" Rei just shook his head. Ameatuer. "No" the young man insisted eyeing the trembling miniscule stubborness in Macana. "You won't do anything" Tenchi got one good look at Rei's cold-hearted stare, shuddered, and looked away in defeat. "Good" Rei patted the pudgy shoulder as if rewarding him like a pet. "Just keep your distance from Nadya and everything will just be peachy keen. Smoother roads ahead"

"The only good thing I hope I can squish out of you is that you did steal that money, you thief" Tenchi grumbled his voice laced with failure and lack of victory.

"Of course, I did" Rei said simply and left to rob and steal from the most sexiest woman he'd ever slept with.

Again.

***

Kira had thought that Olivia had bad ideas, but Sammi's plan about breaking into Edward Colin's mansion was definately catching up with her mischevious goddaughter's horridous schemes. Especially when she experianced this supposed dreadful idea by creeping through Edward's hallway in the dark of the night.

She had the right to voice her opinion with her hands on experiance. She really wasn't cut out for this kind of stuff. She was a ex-art forger, not a professional burgler. Plus, the huge place felt creepily empty despite the fact for a caterer and Sammi's dinner party from hell were stationed downstairs. It was too spooky.

'Drama Queen' Harumi would have scolded, but Kira had the personal right to be spooked. She'd searched an empty library, cleared out a billiard, an ugly conservatory, and now was stalking against a barren hallway. 'Miss Rosie in the hall with a brown sack' she thought grumpily. The Irony of the Clue game.

Those were the days. The days of their past and happy, mislead childhoods. When men were men and woman had a good, descent knight in shining armor to steal stuff for them.

'Quit pschying youself out!' Kira chided herself clutching to the brown pillowcase where she was to put the precious, troublesome painting. The lanky girl tiptoed a few steps and found exquisite french doors. Opening it she was lead into another empty room after another. Finally many minutes later she came to a bedroom full of silky drappy things Kira could afford after not eating for nine months.

Perfume clouded the room, hiding any spect of oxygen to breath. The kind of room that would belong to a complete opposite then herself. The perfume could choke someone to death rather then lure any attention otherwise. Sinking in, Kira frowned as her own attention was lured to a glowing object on her elegant magohony make-up table.

Adjusting her eyesight to the dark of the room, she realized it was the careless mistake of someone not shutting down their labtop. 'Oh, yeah, one smart one indeed' Kira thought, guilty for judging a person she'd never met. She scanned and wrinkled her small nose at the things Nadya Antione had and didn't take care of. She definately didn't deserve a Rosie.

A ringing phone breaking the artist's analysis, shot the young woman into a quick hurry, checking the powdered and laced room with the glow of the dim streetlights. The Rosie wasn't all that small. Where in the world did this wretched-perfume-choosing woman stash it? Sighing, Kira brushed a loose auburn lock from her baseball cap and turned to the huge closet on the right as a first choice.

Flipping the doors open, she shoved aside the lovely french designed clothes most likely and checked the endless back of the closet.

A tall, lanky man stood there watching her silently.

Kira felt her muscles clench and her eyes widen. Oh, freackin, dear

She turned to run as quickly as physically possible and he lashed at her, slapping a big hand over her mouth swiftly. Taking her seemingly small body against his extremely lanky one, she kicked back furiously and almost yelped in victory when she connected with his shin.

His curse broke into the heated air and he lost his balance ungracefully, toppling him and her to the carpet floor. Dear God, he weight a ton. "Alright!" the man's thick whisper tickled her ear, while she wriggled against his grasp. She had to get his hand from her mouth before she dead of lack of oxygen. "No need for panic"

'Yeah, no need to panic when I can't BREATHE!!!' Kira thought angrily and hurriedly tried to bring in oxygen through her nose, inhaling thick, dusty carpet. "Because theres really no criminal intention going on. Well, not against you, anyways" he explained calmly. His grip on her was like a anaconda on it's prey.

Her lungs scurnched like a raisin inside her as his hand pressed against her mouth. Her eyes faded dark and light and a familiar terror overwhlemed the breathless woman. "Look, I just need you to promise not to scream" the intruder explained gently.

Suffocation was impending. It was going to be something to do with lack of oxygen, she knew she'd die like this. Though Kira had always imagined it would be from choking on that damned butterfly charm. Not like this. Not in the middle of an illegal act while being jumped by some lowlife closet hermit. Her lungs turned rock-hard, his hand clamped to her mouth and her life faded before her eyes. Kira did the only thing she could physically do.

She forced her mouth opened and chomped down on his big, iron grasp of a hand.

***

Bah, Rei is definately in character. I am glad all of you agree -and- like how Kira's character is. It'll be interesting to know your opinion when it gets more into the story. Even now its harder to stay in control. ^_^

Don't forget that adorable little box below me and tell me how you think on it...

~Pandora Rose