DISCLAIMER: No, I do not own Lupin the Third, but if anyone is interested into turning this into its own series, I can be paid in the form of three boxes—One full of diet Pepsi, one full of Snickers bars, and one full of kittens, because kittens are not only adorable, but delicious, too.

I so friggin' wish that I had just 'misplaced' the rights to Lupin,

Maybe I should check my sock drawer? Eh, well. I'm so glad with the positive response I've been getting from this story, and I'm sorry that I seemed to kill people's dreams of Yukiko and Toshiro getting together in the last chapter. Well, who knows where the road will lead, right? Read on, and find out. P.S.: Special thanks to everyone who's cheered me on with this project. You guys know who you are, and you all freakin' rock.

Chapter Twenty

The Next Day: Young Girl

'But it's so hard loving you,

is it right that you and I should fight

every night?'

—The Beatles, 'It's Only Love'

A Hotel in New York:

"Um… Who is this?" inquired Yukiko as she walked into the hotel room and saw Lisa in one of her suits, modeling in front of a mirror.

"This is Lisa—Lisa, this is Yukiko," said Fuji with a twitching smile, "The lady who owns the suits you like so much…"

"I'm gonna change," sighed Yukiko, "I feel like I'm in the movie Single White Female looking at this kid…"

"You took my dress?" Ryo said with confusion, "Why?"

"I had to take care of some business," replied Yukiko, walking into the bathroom.

"Well, did you take care of it? Was he cute? Does he have a brother?" asked Fuji hopefully.

"Yes, the second question I refuse to answer, and yes, but you wouldn't like him," answered Yukiko from the bathroom.

"Well, come on, give us some details already!" said Fuji with a smile.

"What are you, eight?" Yukiko snapped, sticking her head out of the bathroom doorway, "Nothing that your sick little mind would find appealing happened, okay!? It was just dinner with a friend! That's it!"

The door to the hotel room opened, and a surprised Yukiko slammed the bathroom door. Lisa stared in surprise at Toshiro, who stood in the hall of the hotel, "Is Yuki around?"

"She's currently occupied," replied Odori with a smirk, "Why are you in a suit?"

"She and I had dinner tonight," answered Toshiro.

"I need to get a candy bar from downstairs," said Lisa quickly with a smile.

"Okay, I'll go with you," said Ryo, laying down the remote to the television on the table and rising from the recliner, where she had been watching a black and white cowboy western on cable.

"No, I want him to," said Lisa, sprinting out and closing the door behind the three stunned women.

"Uh-oh," said Fuji, glancing over to Odori and Ryo.

"I smell trouble on the horizon," added Odori.

Toshiro looked puzzled down at Lisa, who was smiling as they walked to the elevator together, "So, you're with them, too?" she asked with a smile.

"Uh, yeah… You must be Lisa, I take it," replied Toshiro, uneasy with the relative closeness of Lisa.

"I can't believe it! They're all such dorks! But at least a couple of them know how to dress," said Lisa with a sigh, "I guess you're here so I don't escape!" she added with a laugh which made Toshiro uncomfortable.

"Uh… So, how old are you, Lisa?" asked Toshiro.

"Turned twenty a little while ago…. Nearly six months… My mom was convinced it was my eighteenth, though. She's so breezy!" answered Lisa, "How about yourself, huh?"

"I turned twenty-nine a little while ago," admitted Toshiro.

"Wow, you're nearly, like, thirty! And you're not married!?" Lisa gasped.

"Almost was," replied Toshiro darkly. The elevator doors opened, and Toshiro stormily stepped out, and walked to the vending machines with Lisa. Lisa continued her non-stop speaking while surfing through the vending machine selections.

"Well, what happened, huh? Was it her, or you?"

"She died," Toshiro snapped, "Listen, I'm not having a very good night, all right? Could you please just make your choice so we can get back? This is seriously cutting into my sulking time."

"All right. What do you think of this one?" Lisa inquired, pointing to a candy bar.

"I hate chocolate. Just get it," replied Toshiro.

"Hey, there's an ice cream place still open! Could we go, please? My mom never, ever lets me go to those places! She's into that low-carb crap!" said Lisa with a smile, "Come on!" she grabbed Toshiro by the arm, and pulled him out of the hotel, to an ice cream parlor across the street.

"What are you getting?" asked Lisa as they stepped into the establishment.

"Strawberry," answered Toshiro, "You?"

"Chocolate," Lisa added with a smile whist Toshiro looked downward at his watch with painfully obvious boredom. He had not been in an ice cream parlor, more or less eaten ice cream, since Julia had passed away. It was the one staple they always had at home; there would be no bread, no rice and no eggs—But always ice cream.

The two ordered, and seated themselves at a table towards the back of the parlor. No one recognized the missing Lisa in Yukiko's white fedora and suit, so the duo went unnoticed.

"So, what sign are you, anyway?" inquired Lisa.

"Taurus," replied Toshiro after a pause.

"Oh, we'd get along great, then!" gasped Lisa excitedly.

"I don't believe in astrology, all right? There's no proof behind it at all, and it leads people into false hopes much too often," replied Toshiro.

"Are you always so crabby?" asked Lisa.

"No… I… I'm just thinking of a great many things right now…. My head's very clouded," replied Toshiro.

"You can tell me about it, if you want," said Lisa with a hopeful smile.

"No, thank you," answered Toshiro. He gasped in realization after a few moments, "I forgot my ring at my apartment!"

"Oh, can I go with you? I've been cooped up in hotels all week!" said Lisa hopefully.

"Well… All right… I hope you like bikes, though," replied Toshiro, rising from the table and walking out with Lisa.

The Next Morning:

"He still isn't picking up… I hope that bastard didn't go and return her! Friggin' bleeding heart!" said Fuji, pacing back and forth wildly while Ryo an Odori looked onward. Yukiko was still asleep on her bed, snoring lightly.

"That'd be totally out of character for Toshiro," answered Odori, "I know him. He's my brother, after all."

"Well, if you know so damn much, where is he!?" inquired Fuji, spinning on her high-heel towards Odori.

"Hey, guys, have you seen Toshiro?" Heiji asked as he stepped into the women's room with Ally leading behind.

"Maybe he got caught in a subway… And by caught in, I mean between the wheels," Ally chuckled, "Probably tried to save a stupid pigeon and fell off of a building… Hee hee…"

"I don't know, and Lisa's gone, too!" said Fuji worriedly.

Toshiro's Apartment:

"Why am I here?" Toshiro inquired as he opened his eyes and looked about his apartment walls. He rose, and looked over in a chair, where a white suit lay, "Yukiko?" he blinked in surprise, "Did, did my talk go that well?"

"Not quite," he heard, and nearly fell off of his bed as he laid eyes on Lisa. She laughed, and smiled widely, "Good morning, Sweetie! Sleep well? You're so cute when you're talking in your sleep!"

"What happened last night?" inquired Toshiro, his eyes wide in surprise.

Lisa continued laughing, but said nothing. Toshiro moaned, and held his head in his hands. "I couldn't have… Dammit, I'm so stupid!" he added, looking over at his ringing cell phone with Fuji's number on the screen. He went to reach for it, but Lisa stopped him.

"Hey, no rush, right?" she said with a smile.

The hotel room of Max and Leo:

"Yes—Yes, Sir," Max said sheepishly to the Chief, who for the past twenty minutes, had blasted nothing but insults to LeBlanc and Zenigata. He had even threatened to assign them to writing traffic tickets if they did not retrieve Lisa soon, "A—All right… Good-bye…"

"What's up?" inquired Leo from his place on the bed, where he sit amongst a castle of books.

"We find the girl, or we're writing traffic tickets in New Zealand," replied Max with a heavy sigh.

"Oh, it's only a couple of million people—We'll be sure to find her," said Leo, "Is it just me, or are you somewhat glad she's gone?"

"Yeah, I know," sighed Max, "But we have to put our feelings aside."

"I hate girls like her. Phony rich girls, who think they can get away with anything," said Leo darkly with an expression Max had never seen him wear before. It frightened Zenigata to some extent.

"Time for your medication!" Max said suddenly, rising and walking into the bathroom, "Now you know what the doctor said—Three of these twice a day, one of these four times a day—And one of these with each of your meals."

"I don't trust you with numbers," Leo replied bluntly, taking his bag of medication from Max and going through his medicine, "I know better than to."

"Hey, I might not be good with math, but I'm the ultimate Jewish Mother," Max answered.

"I know… Eck, I hate this medicine! Can't wait 'til I'm off it! Tastes like cod-liver oil…"

Max smirked, and took the medicine bag from Leo, "Come on, we have to start looking for clues!"

"Oh, but they're playing Sister Christian on the radio," sighed Leo with discontent as he rose and hobbled out with Max at his side. "Where should we start looking?" asked Leo as he seated himself next to Max, who drove the vehicle in the busy New York City traffic.

"The ritzy hotels. That's more to Lupin's liking," replied Zenigata.

"Oh, that narrows it down," snorted Leo as he looked around at the two hotels within walking distance, and the many others beyond those.

The two drove off from their starting point in search of Lisa, never knowing that in the apartment complex two blocks down from their hotel, Lisa was exiting Toshiro's apartment, with a highly nervous Ishikawa tailing behind.

"This is the best kidnapping ever!" Lisa said cheerily as she climbed onto Toshiro's Vespa with the samurai.

"It never happened," Toshiro said sternly.

"But—"

"It… Never… Happened…" Toshiro repeated, "I was in a very bad mood last night… If it had been a regular day, I would've never even considered…"

The two drove back to the hotel, Toshiro passing by an unknowing Max and Leo along the way, and the samurai slowly dismounted his bike, whereas Lisa hopped off. It had been a long ride for Toshiro, and the elevator ride was even longer. But the day would be the longest of his life, he had the feeling.

"Where in God's Green Great Earth were you!?" Fuji demanded as Toshiro walked in, Lisa practically skipping behind him. Yukiko, who had since awoken and gotten dressed, cocked her head in confusion as she looked at Toshiro's worn expression.

"It doesn't matter," replied Toshiro, turning and exiting into his hotel room. Yukiko jumped off of her bed, and followed him into the hall. She was extremely curious about he expression he wore.

"What's up? You okay?" asked Yukiko.

"I… I did something I'm really beginning to regret," replied Toshiro.

"You want to talk about it? Come on, you can tell your best friend!" said Yukiko with a smile, draping an arm over Toshiro's shoulders. She gave a hurt expression as Toshiro shrugged her off and turned away from her, "Hey, what's that for? What's up, Buddy?"

"Lisa and I…" Toshiro took in a sharp breath. How would he explain this to her? "I forgot something at my apartment last night, so I took her back with me…. And things got out of control… And before I knew it… I…" he spun around, and looked at Yukiko pleadingly, "Yuki, it was a mistake, honestly! I didn't mean to!"

"You…?" Yukiko gulped, "Wow… Hey, ha ha, good job! It was just what the doctor ordered, eh? Hey, I've gotta go down and fetch some ice. Why don't you just chill—You look spooked!" she smiled, but as she turned, the smile quickly turned to a scowl.

Chicago, Illinois:

"This damn kitchen's so hot!" Ming muttered as she opened the oven in the family kitchen and pulled out a batch of muffins. She slammed the door, and turned around to face Jigen, who was leaning against a wooden cabinet.

"Maybe you should unbutton your shirt a little then, huh?" Jigen said with a hopeful smirk as Ming lied the muffins down upon the island counter.

"Get real," Ming snapped in response, turning about to face Jigen, "I'm expecting, remember? My feet are bothering me, and I'm starting to show my pregnancy, too! I look like a friggin' whale!"

"But a beautiful whale," Jigen replied with good meaning, realizing too late his choice of words, "Wait, I… I meant it as a joke!"

"Twenty years…. We've been married, nearly twenty years… And you still don't know how to talk to me!"

"You know I meant well!" Jigen said with a nervous smile, "Come on!"

"At least I haven't gained as much weight as you have…" muttered Ming as she went to removing the muffins from the tray.

"What!?" Jigen yelped, "What's that supposed to mean!?"

"Come on—There's no way in hell you could fit into the same pants you wore twenty years ago!" Ming snorted, "You like baked goods way too much for your own good… I know it's not the dog eating all of those mini muffins!"

Jigen balked, and went to answer, but the phone rang, and he lunged for it, "Hello!?"

"Daddy?" he heard on the other end of the line. Jigen let out a heavy sigh, looked towards Ming a moment, and walked out of the kitchen, into the study.

"Hey, Yukiko, what's up?" Jigen inquired, seating himself in a cushy chair and looking outward at their front lawn.

"Toshiro's a jerk and I should shoot him and he and every other man on the face of the planet can just kiss my Mafia princess ass and I can't believe he did that and he's such a little slut it's not even funny and I'll bet he'd even go with Max if he were drunk enough and I should just go back upstairs right now and strangle him because he's such a friggin' little man-whore and I hope he crashes his little Vespa into a ditch and breaks his neck and I friggin' HATE HIM!" yelled Yukiko into the receiver, causing Jigen to retract in horror.

"Um…. A—Are you out of Midol again?" inquired Jigen.

"It's nothing like that!" screamed Yukiko loud enough for Ming, who was only entering the room, to hear, "Dad… I…"

"All right, Yukiko… Just calm down, and explain what happened," sighed Jigen tiredly, motioning for Ming to reach into the minibar and hand him his bottle of scotch. She ran over, tossed it to Jigen, and Jigen quickly unscrewed the bottle, and took a long swig.

"You know that girl… That Fuji kidnapped?"

"Oh, yeah. Her Old Man ain't too happy about that," Jigen chuckled as he took another swig.

"Toshiro took her back to his apartment and… Well, you get the picture," sighed Yukiko, "He's such a creep! She doesn't even know his damn name, Dad! Little whore…"

"Wow? Toshiro did that?" Jigen said with surprise, "Well, Yukiko, why should it bother you, huh? I mean, it's not like you like him, do you? B—Because if you do, I can arrange something with Goemon…"

"Dad, NO! For the last time, I do not want an arranged marriage!" snapped Yukiko, "I always just thought he was better than that! Apparently, he's just another idiot man who thinks with something else before his brain!"

"Hey, hey! That's a little personal, now!" said Jigen, leaning forward in his chair, "I can assure you, not all men think with their pants before they think with their brains!"

"Oh, yeah—That's why someone ran off with a Spanish dancer in a sportscar," said Yukiko lightly, "Or shall I remind you of the dozen other times you've screwed up by falling for a pretty face, including my mother and stepmother…"

Jigen paused, and cleared his throat, "I, um… Hey, it's not like you've never, right?"

"Not as often as some of us have," replied Yukiko in a mumble.

"Yukiko… Why don't you just talk it out? If you two are such great friends, he'll understand!" explained Jigen, "Tell you what—You go talk it out, and I'll wait here. Call me when you're done."

"Well… Okay," Yukiko sniffed, "Talk to you later, Dad."

"Yeah—Talk to you later, Yuki," said Jigen. He hung up on Yukiko, and dialed another number a few moments later, "Hello, Goemon?"

"Jigen! To what do I owe the pleasure?" inquired Goemon.

"Ha ha. I'm sorry I don't call often, okay?" sighed Jigen, "I need to ask you a favor."

"Certainly."

"You're pretty traditional, right? Well, do you believe in arranged marriages?"

"What? Jigen, I'm married!"

"Not for you!" Jigen grumbled, "Your son! Toshiro!"

"Toshiro? Why do you ask me this now…? Once again?" inquired Goemon suspiciously.

"I just… I'm just wondering, is all… Now, if you and I arranged something, would I pay you, or would you pay me? And who'd pay for a wedding? Do—Do we even need a wedding? Couldn't we go over their heads and do something, and just tell them afterwards that we did it? I mean, there must be something we can do online!" said Jigen.

"How much have you drunk in the past hour?"

"Dammit, listen to me!" Jigen growled, "I got another phone call from Yukiko! Apparently someone's son went a little too far with a hostage…"

"You're kidding," Goemon gasped.

"Nope," Jigen sat back in his chair, and removed a yo-yo from his pocket, "So, you coming over for the holidays?"

"Still contemplating," replied Goemon, "Hey, I'm working on a new crossword, and I'm stuck on a word."

"Christ," Jigen grumbled, threw the yo-yo out once, and caught it once more.

Central Park:

"And I don't think it was right of you to… I mean, you hardly knew her, right? And, as your friend, I think I should tell you that you screwed up—Royally! And I know you're lonely… We all get lonely and sometimes we do stupid things… And I'm no better! But you really screwed up, Buddy. And you probably feel like crap right now, as you should! Because you really shouldn't have done that, man. I mean, look at her! She's a twig, and with a crap personality! You must've been pret-ty damn lonely, that or drunk! That, or you're stupid, which I'm really starting to think! God, you friggin' moron, Toshiro! You're a friggin' idiot!" shouted Yukiko. She smiled weakly, and turned to Heiji, "How was that?"

"Is this before or after you slit his throat with a rusty blade?" inquired Heiji as he tossed another handful of seed at the pigeons gathered around him.

"After!" snapped Yukiko. She sighed, and seated herself next to the hacker, "I freaking suck…"

"No… Well… Yes… You have no social skills whatsoever… But at least we're out of the hotel!" said Heiji. He sighed as he looked at Yukiko's expression, and leaned forward, "All right… Let's try something a little different… Seeing as how that didn't seem to be doing what we wanted…" he removed his glasses, and tousled his hair a little bit, and looked back up at Yukiko. She noticed what a great deal he looked like his brother, and watched in curiosity as he sat upright, "Now, pretend I'm him, and you're… You…"

"Okay," Yukiko nodded.

"All right, now," Heiji cleared his throat, and fell into a New York accent, "Now, you wanted to talk to me?"

"Yeah… About what you did with that brat…" replied Yukiko.

"I know…. I'm sorry… But, you know, I can honestly say I was thinking about you the whole time," said Heiji.

Yukiko frowned, and pushed him, "Creep!"

"What?" Heiji chuckled, "You know he likes you, Yuki!"

"I told him no, already… He's like my big brother, okay? It would be weird!"

"Oh, yeah… That'll stop all of the feelings he's had for you for nearly twenty years—Just tell him to stop," snorted Heiji, "You really are a girl underneath the suit…"

"Ha ha… No crap," Yukiko mumbled. She shot her head up, and gulped, "Uh-oh… Here comes trouble…" Heiji looked upward, and also saw Max and Leo in the park, looking about aimlessly.

"Let's run, then…" said Heiji, rising from the park bench.

"HEY!" Max shouted as he recognized the duo. He broke off into a run, Leo hobbling behind to the best of his ability, "Get back here! That's Yukiko and Heiji! They work with Lupin!"

"No crap, Detective Conan! Now you want to help me out!?" Leo snapped from his place on the ground where he had tripped. Max glanced back at the ever-vanishing Yukiko and Heiji, and then at Leo. He sighed, and ran to help LeBlanc up.

"Thanks," Leo said as he stood up and leaned on Max, "I'm really sorry, Max…"

"I can't believe they got away!" Max growled, "Leo, you—Hey, you're bleeding…" Max silenced in surprise as he looked down at Leo's knee, where a damp dark spot had appeared on the black fabric.

"I must've broken my stitches," Leo said with a moan of pain.

Max sighed, "You want me to carry you?"

"What, I—No way, I… Ow… Ouch…" mumbled Leo, "This looks so damn gay…"

"Dammit, don't I know! But I know broken stitches are never a good thing!" said Max as he led Leo back to their car. As he loaded LeBlanc in, however, he thought back to a scene from his childhood….

A friend had just fallen out of a tree, and he helped him to the house… A dark-haired boy… Who had it been, though!? Zenigata shrugged, and hopped into the driver's seat, hoping to remember the face as he drove onward.

A little later, a New York Hotel:

Lisa had fallen asleep watching mindless television. Odori had also fallen asleep, and was leaning against the chair Lisa slept in. Ryo was reading an old Western novel, and Fuji was going over information on Lisa's mother's book. Yukiko had been lying on a couch, but grew restless with her thoughts, and rose, and quickly stormed out of the room.

"You think she'll go talk to him?" Ryo inquired.

"Yep," Fuji replied quietly.

Yukiko closed the door of her hotel room, and opened the men's room. Heiji was fixing a computer with its pieces spread on the floor, and Ally was talking on the phone.

"Yeah… I miss you too," said Ally, "What? I'm not going to say that? Ha ha… Carmen, I'm not going to say that! Okay… Same here…"

"Where's Toshiro?" asked Yukiko.

"He's in the bathroom…" said Heiji slowly, "Why?"

"I'm going to go talk to him," said Yukiko sternly, speed walking towards the bathroom.

Meanwhile, in the bathroom, Toshiro reflected upon his day while he took a shower, "She'll never forgive me…. Thank God at least Dad doesn't know…" he said to himself. He swiveled his head in surprise as he heard the door open, and peeked out to see Yukiko in the bathroom.

"Wh—What the hell are you doing here!?" Toshiro yelped.

"You and I need to talk," replied Yukiko, perching on top of the countertop and folding her arms.

"You could've picked a better time, you know! I'm a little busy…" replied Toshiro, glancing off to a side and picking up a towel from the rung.

"Yeah, I've noticed, but I can't hold this in anymore," said Yukiko, "What you did was stupid, okay? You don't even know her, and she's trouble—I can tell."

"Don't talk to me like a girlfriend," snapped Toshiro from behind the shower curtain, where he had disappeared. Yukiko heard the water shut off, and Toshiro poked his head back out.

"I'm talking to you as a friend, all right?" said Yukiko, "You shouldn't go around, just, doing that…"

Toshiro walked out, the towel wrapped about his waist, and faced Yukiko. He stared at her a long while before speaking, "You have no idea how lonely it gets, especially when being someone for so long and having them, leave…"

"I do. You left me, remember?" Yukiko replied, her fedora shielding her eyes, which fell upon the floor.

"I… Let's just pretend this never happened, okay?" she sighed, "This is too damn complicated for my liking. I'm only hard on you because I care about you, dammit!"

Toshiro smirked, "Yuki… Thanks…"

"No problem. Big idiot," Yukiko hopped off of the counter, and embraced him, "You're soaked…" she laughed.

"I know," Toshiro nodded. He drew back, and looked downward at her, and smiled. He began to lean inward, but instead of the intended target, he ended up kissing Yukiko's fedora, which she held up in defense.

"I—I've gotta go," she smirked, and quickly exited, sighing in relief as she did so, "Damn, that was close!"

"Damn I was close…" Toshiro grumbled to himself as he stared in exhaustion at the door ahead of him.