Chapter 12

Sly felt tired…but in a good way. He and Murray had only just returned from their mission to procure Carmelita a pair of much-needed crutches. Upon closing the door, the dexterous raccoon tossed his trademark blue cap on to a nearby hook, and then clasped his hands together and stretched, relaxing his taut, tired muscles. He tucked the reconditioned set of crutches under his arm, and headed up the stairs with an anticipatory smile, intending to present them to his lovely, yet somewhat reluctant, lady love. He politely knocked upon her door, and waited for an answer. He didn't have to wait long.

"What? Who's there?" Carmelita answered. She was in the process of slipping her jacket on when the knock had come.

Sly smiled, hearing her voice, and opened her door enough so he could duck his head in, smiling his most charming smile. He reserved his charming smiles for the ladies, of course. But, his most charming of smiles he only used on his beautiful Carmelita. "Wonderful to see you again, my lovely girl! Hey, mind if I come in? I've got a present for you, my sweet..."

Carmelita, from her spot upon the foot of her bed, slowly shook her head, but the faintest hint of a smile ghosted on her lips. "Cooper," she stated evenly, a reaction that was markedly different from how she felt inside…where she felt her heart beat faster upon seeing him again. She inwardly frowned at how she reacted, but couldn't deny that she was relieved (as to why, she couldn't even fathom!) to seem him safely home. "All right," she told him. "Come in, then…"

Sly entered her room, the presented her the crutches from behind his back, where he had been hiding them from her view. He held up the crutches to her, waggling them like a father showing his favorite daughter her new doll. "Surprise!" he proclaimed softly, smiling in anticipation of her being pleased.

Carmelita however groaned instead, and dropped her head, so that her long hair briefly shielded her face. She then raised her head, brushing back her raven dark hair, eyeing the crutches warily, undoubtedly realizing just how they had been most likely acquired. "Cooper, I can't believe you did this…for me. I didn't ask you to steal me a set crutches, you know," she told him, her brown eyes uncertain, she looked up briefly into his face before she continued. "Undoubtedly, some poor crippled boy or girl who could use these far more than I will now do without…"

Sly closed his eyes a moment, sighing heavily, shaking his head. "Some people you just can't make happy," he murmured to himself, disappointed in her reaction. Now, sure, he hadn't been expecting a hug and a kiss from her…but, it would have been nice for her to acknowledge his and Murray's effort on her behalf. He thought a moment, trying to phrase his response just so. "Okay, sweetheart, before you start welling up on me with tears of righteous indignation…" he told her, choosing then to pause, giving her the benefit of a clever grin, which only succeeded in making her frown, and grind her teeth in irritation. "…I'll have you know that I fetched these crutches of yours from the hospital's trash." He looked into her mesmerizing brown eyes, trying to gauge her reaction. He was absurdly pleased (what can he say? He's a sucker for a happy Carmelita!) when he saw her consider this, then nod her head, a small smile appearing on her pretty face. He decided to continue then, adding, "They were going to be thrown out...so, I figured that I'd just spiff them up a bit and...voila! Here you are, crutches that are fashionable enough for even a lady of your most discriminating tastes."

Carmelita had to admit that even though she was irritated with his clever explanation, she was rather touched that he did not rob some poor invalid to obtain these crutches for herself. "Uh-huh. Oh yes, what a fashion statement I'll make with these, Cooper," she replied, unable to keep from grinning at him. But, then her mercurial mood shifted, and she flashed him a scowl. "Oh, and for your information, I wasn't 'welling up'...as you put it, Ringtail. I was just…um, er…concerned is all..." she informed him, though she did turn away briefly to wipe her eyes, when he wasn't looking. She looked up then, and beckoned him to her, pretending to be reluctant all the while. "Okay, Cooper…give them here."

Sly, with an expression any doting parent might use, handed over his handiwork to the woman of his dreams. "Here you are, dear heart," he announced, handing the aluminum and plastic crutches over to her like a waiter handing over a twenty-year-old bottle of fine French wine.

She had to work hard to hide the smile that threatened to bloom on her face, and to help in this effort, she took the crutches, got to her feet, and gave them a quick try. "Sorry, Cooper…but they're too short," she surmised, which she sort of expected...as she was rather tall for a young woman. "Just a bit higher, I think, Cooper." She then got a most mischievous gleam in her twinkling brown eyes. "Gee, what did you think I am...some sort of midget or something?" she teased, very pleased with herself.

Sly could not help but chuckle at her remarks. "Now now...I had to make a guess, you know. How was I supposed to know just how tall you are, lovely lady?" he replied, eyeing her rather mischieviously, which, as he hoped, caused Carmelita to softly blush again. He smiled, not a mocking smile, but a gently humorous one…though, he was really unaware he was doing so. "Aw, you're so lovely when you blush, my dear girl..."

Carmelita, her heart racing now, tried to will away her pretty blush, but couldn't seem to manage it somehow. She found the way he was able to make her do that, almost at will, more than a bit disconcerting, to say the least! She replied with her trademark Carmelita Fox reaction to the uncomfortable…with irritation. "Stop that, Cooper! You'd better can all those sugary, flirty comments of yours, or I'm gonna brain you with one of these crutches, mister!" she informed him, glowering at him…but she really can't deny the rapid beating of her heart, nor the pleased, warm feeling his flirtaceous words cause her.

Sly knew he had effected her...by the way she had become so flustered. However, rather than point it out to her, which he might of done in the past, he now chose to say nothing, instead he took the time to adjust her new crutches to their proper height. "Ah, here we are then! Okay, give them a try, Carmelita."

Carmelita found herself surprised…for she felt oddly disappointed that Cooper hadn't continued his normal flirting routine with her. Just when, she asked herself, did I start feeling disappointed when that blasted raccoon didn't flirt with me? She frowned ever so slightly, feeling a bit confused. Within her heart of hearts, a clear voice answered her question: when you finally realized you actually like it when this handsome young man, Sly Cooper, tells you that you what you already know, dearie…that he finds you a lovely, worthwhile young woman! That's when! She quickly pushed that voice back down into her mind, and hid her obvious inner turmoil by trying out her crutches again. She began to answer, but felt her voice catch, so she paused to clear it, then continued, "Hmm, I guess that's better...I think."

Sly nodded in satisfaction, then got to his feet, and moved away, allowing her room to maneuver. "Now, mi querera, do give 'em a test run...you know, see if you can get around with them. C'mon…go on..."

Carmelita chose to ignore, but enjoyed nonetheless, his remark about her being his 'love' again. She can't help wondering why she didn't tell the flirty raccoon off for his saucy, rather intimate remark. She knew why, but didn't want to admit the obvious…that she liked being noticed by him. That she enjoyed, yes actually enjoyed, his flirting with her. While the guys at work tried flirting with her, their attempts were shoddy and ill-said most of the time. Now, Sly Cooper, on the other hand…why, he seemed to know just what to say to her to make her feel a woman, a beautiful woman. Okay, she told herself, I know I growl at him, telling him to shut up and all that, but…and she gulped here…I really do treasure his compliments. How does he know just what to say to make me feel so good? Again, Carmelita quashed that inner voice of hers, uncomfortable with what she knew, but cannot bring herself to accept…just yet. So, instead, she made a few small adjustments to her crutches, then took a few trips around her room. "Hey, not too bad, Cooper. I think these will do the trick nicely, thanks," she told him, then upon seeing his much satisfied grin, added, "However, don't get any clever ideas that I'm beholden to you. You know that I will have to add another six months to your sentence for the theft of these crutches."

Sly grinned, arching an expressive eyebrow at her. He then crossed his arms. "Hmm, I see. Six months imprisonment for the theft of crutches that would have only been thrown away anyway. And, they say that justice is blind..." he told her in reply, shaking his head. "Hmm, I think I'm beginning to believe them." He then smiled his most charming smile for Carmelita. "Say, Carmelita? Any idea of what my total sentence is up to now? Just how many years do you have me down for anyway? That is of course, when, or perhaps 'if', you ever manage to catch me?"

Carmelita knew she probably should take offence to his remarks, but chose not to, as she was enjoying this exchange. "Pah! Just how am I supposed to know, Cooper? Heck, I stopped counting when you accumulated more than a hundred and fifty years, mi canalla," she answered, grinning as she felt she had won a point. "Now, if you'll excuse me, Ringtail..." She began moving toward the door.

Sly moved quickly over to open the door for her. After all, he was a gentleman, you know! "Ah, allow me, mi bonita senorita," he said, bowing like some doorman to her.

Carmelita, grinning inside, held her proud head high, snorted at his theatrics once more, then crutched her way through the door. "If you need me…" she began, only to see him open his mouth, his brown eyes alight with mischief. "Watch it, Cooper! I'm mobile now, buster! As I was saying…If you need me, I'll be down in the living room, trying to watch some TV."

Sly bowed grandly to her as she passed by. "I shall bear that in mind, noble lady," he teased, but only a little bit. As she moved through the doorway, he couldn't help but notice her shapely behind once again. For some reason, he just couldn't help himself, and he reached out a deft hand, and with snake-like speed, deftly, yet gently, pinched Carmelita's shapely derriere just once. As she reacted, he darted out of the way behind the door, grinning broadly. "Now now, Carmelita...that was just something to remember me by," he told her.

"Cooper!" Carmelita growled softly, huffing…but inwardly she shivered at the feelings his bold act had created within herself. "Trust me, Cooper...I have no trouble remembering you," she responded, then she turned her head, her brown eyes gleaming as she added, "Just like you'll have no trouble remembering me either if you pull that stunt again, buster!" she grumbled at him. She then pretended to consider her words, adding, "Well, that is, once you wake up, of course. Trust me, you'll know by that dent in your forehead from my crutch, which will be just my little way of doing something for you to remember me by!" She marched down the hall and then down the stairs...tall, proud, and very beautiful indeed.

Sly shook his head in genuine fondness for her, realizing again just how much he cared for her. "Of course, Carmelita," he replied, bowing to her once again. "Oh! We still on for CSI tonight?" he asked.

Carmelita refused to turn her head, but nodded brusquely nonetheless. "Agreed. Nine o'clock, Cooper. Oh, and don't be late," she told him.

Sly smiled happily at her acceptance. "I wouldn't miss it, Most Beautiful of All Ladies! Oh, tell you what…I'll bring the popcorn, okay?"

Carmelita can't help herself and chuckled softly as she thumped down the stairs on her crutches. "You do that, Cooper. Tell you what, buster, I'll bring something too…the handcuffs, and the shock pistol," she informed him cleverly.

Sly pretended to wince, but laughed. "Ouch!" he replied, thinking how easily he could of made all sorts of saucy remarks about her and her handcuffs…but chose not to. "See you at nine then, my lovely girl," he said instead.

Carmelita grinned proudly then, feeling that for once she had gotten the better of the smooth-talking raccoon. "Oh, Cooper? Our same bet then?" she called up the stairs.

Sly thought a moment, then called down to her. "You better believe it, muchacha!"

Carmelita laughed softly to herself, then crutched her way over to the sofa in the living room, finally collapsing into it with a sigh. "God, using crutches is an absolute nightmare," she grumbled, massaging her aching arms. "And, here I thought I was in pretty great shape. Hmm, I guess guys would have a better time with this...since most of their strength is in their upper body. It's a shame we women have most of ours in our legs." She continued to massage her arms, growling at her feeling of weakness. If there was anything she hated it was feeling weak...at anything! "Dios, but I do hate feeling like a weakling," she opined to no one in particular.

Bentley, who also was in the living room just then, smiled as he listened to Carmelita grumble to herself. He was playing chess by himself, and as Carmelita doesn't seem to know he's there, he decided to chime in with his own thoughts on the subject. "I know what you mean, Inspector. Trust me," he told her. He made a move on the board, then turned it around in order to play the opposing side.

"Sly's the clever one," he then said, "the leader, you know? And then, there's Murray, he's the get-away driver, as well as the muscle of the team. So...what does that leave for me, you might ask? Oh, you know me...I'm the brains of the outfit...the nerd, the computer geek. Doesn't that sound oh so glamorous?" He sighed, making the black side's move this time. "Ha! That's why I'm here, by myself, playing chess...against myself."

Carmelita frowned at first as the turtle voiced his complaint. She was startled to find she actually sympathesized with the nerdy fellow. She had a similar problem where she worked. Her dedication, not to mention her sometimes mercurial mood, doesn't exactly make her the most popular Inspector at Interpol. She thought it over, and decided that her own pity party was over. Now, she decided to do something about Bentley's own bout of self-pity. She smiled to herself, then grunted, getting to her feet and crutched her way over to the table where the turtle stared at the board. She pulled up a chair and sat down to contemplate the board as well. "So...who's turn is it, Bentley…black or white?" she asked as she took a seat.

Bentley tried to hide his more than abundant surprise as the pretty and slightly intimidating Carmelita sat down opposite him, studying the board with apparent intelligence and intensity. "Um, er, well, it's white's turn actually. Why do you ask?" Bentley somehow managed to say.

Carmelita gave Bentley a clever smile, which made the shy turtle blush. "Good," she told him, then reached out a confident hand to slide her Queen's rook one square to the right. "Queen's Rook to Queen's Rook Three," she stated confidently, a smile on her face. "Oh, and if I'm not mistaken, that would also be checkmate, fella."

Bentley blinked rapidly for a moment, stunned at the turn of events. He frowned at first, but then studied the board, gasping as he deduced she was 100 percent accurate in her assessment. His jaw hung down slightly as he also realized that Carmelita used the formal chess terminology smoothly and without hesitation. And, here he thought that all the pretty girls didn't know how to play a game like chess! "Y-Y-You play chess, Inspector?" he asked, his eyes goggling slighly. "B-But I only thought...er, well, people like me played chess." He eyed her warily, still surprised.

Carmelita arched an slender eyebrow at him. "Oh? And what's that supposed to mean, buster?" she retorted.

Bentley blushed furiously, now caught in a trap of his own making. "Er, um, well..." he tried to come up with a reply, but failed miserably.

Carmelita crossed her arms before herself, giving him a challenging look. "Well? Are you trying to say that I'm too dumb to play, buster? Because I'm a girl?" She threw out, challenging him.

Bentley sighed, hanging his head a moment in shame. He then shyly looked up at her, shaking his head emphatically. "No! No, no, no! That's not it at all, Ms. Fox!" he protested weakly, waving his hands, upset with himself. "It's just...well, er, it's been my experience, that...um, how do I put this exactly?" he began again, only to falter, blushing again. "Well, okay, Inspector…let me try this: I've always thought that very pretty girls, like you, you know...er, that is, don't play unpopular and dare I say, geeky games like this is all I'm saying," he finally managed to get out.

Carmelita smiled at Bentley calling her 'very pretty, appreciating the praise, but also understanding what he was trying to tell her at last. "Hmm, I guess you might just have a point there, Bentley," she informed him. "I remember back in school...all those pretty, perky, little air-heads that used to look down their pretty little noses at me for liking to play chess," she added, remember…and none too fondly, by the way. "Now, I'm going to tell you the same thing I told them, okay? Chess is not an unpopular game! Why, in fact, it is the game of Kings! It can be a challenging, complex and and a very fulfilling game, filled with strategy and cunning!" she stated, drawing herself elegantly erect as she did so. "That's sort of why I love the game, really," she then mentioned to him, though much more softly. Carmelita waved a hand dismissively. "Not that I thought any of those ditzy girls would understand even a single word of what I was saying to tell them...flirty little so-and-so's," she grumbled, recalling her past.

Bentley grinned at what she's just explained, agreeing whole-heartedly with her. "Huh," he exclaimed softly with surprise. "You know, Inspector...I guess it sort of makes sense. You know, you liking chess, I mean. I bet most detectives would make pretty fair chess players now, wouldn't they?"

Carmelita nodded her head, agreeing. "You better believe it, Bentley! What we do...and conversely, what you lot do...is sort of like one big on-going chess game, really. If you stop to think about it it," Carmelita replied, her knuckle softly rubbing her chin as she finished.

Bentley was surprised again by how sharp Carmelita was, and grinned over at hopefully. "Er, Inspector?" he inquired.

Carmelita grinned at this, shaking her head. "Bentley...I do have a name, you know? And, I'm even pretty sure you know what it is."

Bentley blushed again, but managed to also grin awkwardly. "Okay. Er, Carmelita. Could I, er, perhaps interest you in a quick game, then?"

Carmelita grinned at his invitation, intrigued. She quickly checked the wall clock to determine what the time was, before responding. "Sure!" she answered, shrugging. "I've got a few hours until Cooper and I are supposed to watch the newest episode of CSI. Let's set up the board, and have at it, shall we?"

The two began to play, and Bentley was surprised that they are nearly evenly matched skill-wise. Bentley considered himself to be a rather good player, but Carmelita was no slouch either it seemed. They played a half-dozen games, each winning three. They then played the crowning match, and Bentley, who was enjoying himself immensely, seemed to be the better player this go-round. Bentley had Carmelita on the defensive for once, his pieces ranging deep on her side of the board. "King's Rook takes your Queen's Bishop," he informed her, putting action to words. "And, that would be 'check'...and dare I say it…'check mate'!" Bentley sat back, having enjoyed the challenging series of matches with the wily Inspector.

Carmelita sat back too, grinning, having enjoyed their series. She shrugged as she toppled her king, saying, "Eh, you win some, you loose some." She then looked up at the wall clock, noticing the time. "Well, I'd better not leave Cooper waiting, Bentley. CSI starts in a few minutes...and you know how he sulks when I'm late," she told him, grinning cleverly at the turtle, who grinned back at her in reply.

Bentley looked at the Inspector (sorry, but he just can't bring himself to call her by her name yet. Yeah, pretty pathetic, isn't it?). He grinned, adding without really thinking, "Yeah, I do…but, you really can't blame him...I mean the guy loves you now, doesn't he?" He then realized, much to his horror, just what he's just said so companionably, and clapped both hands over his mouth, mortified. "Oh, please, forget I said that. Oh, please, please forget I ever said that..." he moaned, angry at betraying Sly's confidence.

Carmelita already knew this fact, so she was not too stunned really. She grinned wolfishly at the turtle though, trying to appear suitably surprised herself. "Already forgotten, buster..." she assured him, as she eyed him quizzically. "Did you just say something?" she asked, appearing to have forgetten the whole thing already.

Bentley breathed a sigh of relief. "Er, no! Not me!" he replied, thankfully. "Say, perhaps we might play another game later, Inspector? It would be rude of me to not offer you a chance to even the score," he said.

Carmelita got to her feet, easing into her crutches with a soft grunt. "Eh, who knows? If I manage to get a free moment, you're on!" she assured him.

Bentley was pleased to hear this, as he couldn't think of the last time he'd had as much fun. "Of course, Inspector," he told her, watching her go, smiling in the realization that so pretty a girl would enjoy a game of chess with the likes of him! Him! "Enjoy your show..." he called out as she made her way toward the sofa.

AN: Clears her throat before taking a deep breath SLY 3 HONOR AMOUNG THIEVES IS COMMING. WOHO