Whew! I thought between finals week and the flu, I wasn't gonna get this posted on time! Anyway, enjoy, I gotta go work on my other stories since they're suppose to be updating today too. Curse you, Muse!

I'm a Barbie girl, in the Barbie world
Life in plastic, it's fantastic!
You can brush my hair, undress me everywhere
Imagination, life is your creation
Come on Barbie, let's go party!

-Aqua 'Barbie Girl'

"Okay, we have a problem." Billie stated as she paced back and forth in front of her desk. Deaq and Van were standing by the couches, Roxie was still in Van's line of sight, she was looking over the jewelry that they had gathered from their busts after she had promised several times (rolling her eyes) not to take any of them, no matter how tempted she may be, and then they turned her loose in the room. Van had the feeling after seeing the look in her eye that it was like turning loose a fox in the hen house.

"The King knew about Van, what's more, he knows what Van is doing in Roxie's apartment." She frowned as she noticed Van was sniggering behind his hand as he was clearly distracted from what Billie was saying. Good ol' Deaq, he was focused on what she was saying up to that point, but was now distracted by what had caught Van's attention. She glared at them, and then looked over her shoulder to see Roxie wearing a bunch of the jewelry and apparently singing and dancing off in her own little world. They watched for a moment, and then Billie looked to Van.

"What is she singing?" She asked with a frown. "For some weird reason, it looks familiar." Van watched for a moment, and then grinned when he recognized a move.

"Did ya see that pull-off-her-shirt dance move?" he asked pointing. Billie nodded and then a downing light appeared in her eyes as she suddenly realized what it was.

"That means she's singing 'Barbie Girl'. She was singing that this morning when she woke me up." Van finished and slyly grinned. "I scared the shit outta her when I started dancing along."

"Cute." Billie said with a grin and turned back to the others. She noticed Deaq had a funny look on his face as he was watch Roxie have fun with the loot.

"What's up?" She asked him, wondering why he wasn't laughing too.

"I was just remembering what she looked like when she first came here." Deaq replied as the others reflected back on their first meeting with Roxie.

"Her hands aren't cold anymore, they're just cool now." Van said thoughtfully.

"And she's smiling and laughing, she seems almost radiant now compared to the way she was before." Billie added. "She was gray."

"She was teasing me earlier." Deaq said with a grin. "That girl's got quick wit I didn't see before in her."

"Tell me about it!" Van groaned. "I'm always working hard to keep on my toes around her and she does it effortlessly!" Billie and Deaq laughed at his woeful look. Billie smiled gently as she watched Roxie when she suddenly shook herself and turned to the others with the 'lets-get-to-business' look.

"Ok, back to what we were talking about before." Billie said, her voice ringing with authority as she herded her boys to the couch so that she was now the only one watching Roxie playing around. She knew that the guys will just be distracted and she wanted their full attention.

"The King is learning information about us we don't want him to learn." Billie said, looking from Deaq to Van. "I think he knows about the cams too and he's bypassed them somehow. That's why we never see him enter Roxie's apartment."

"I can check them over for tampering and rearrange the cams." Deaq oftered and Billie nodded in agreement.

Roxie sighed happily, still humming 'Barbie Girl' as she regretfully took the jewelry off and looked up where she could see Billie have a meeting with Deaq and Van. She had wanted to join them, but they just pushed her towards the loot instead. Roxie sighed again, feeling very much like the misbehaving child as she trailed her fingers over the loot until she came to a box that was set down under the table. Curious, she picked it up and opened it.

She felt her good mood disappear into depression as she looked over the letters and pictures she had received from the King of Hearts. A frown crinkled her brow as she realized that she had never seen some of the pictures, Van must've been removing the King's work without her realizing that he was leaving it for her.

She picked up a case and opened it, finding a locket that looked strangely familiar. She carefully pried it open to see the picture of herself and Lena and she stifled a soft sob, she didn't want the others to see her crying ever again. But she finally remembered where she saw the locket before, it was Lena's. Roxie knew they wouldn't like it, especially Van, but she put the locket on and slipped it under her shirt so that they couldn't see it.

Even though it scared and saddened her, she forced herself to look at each picture closely, trying to find something that would tell her about the King when she realized something that she had never noticed before.

"VAN!"

All three of them whirled around alarmed to look to where Roxie was, Deaq so fast that he cricked his neck and was groaning as they watch her come running up to them. She was waving a picture that caused Van to frown as he tried to see it, a sinking feeling starting in the pit of his stomach.

"Look!" she trusted the picture at them, pointing at the dead Queen. Van quickly snatched it from her and crumpled it, both of them trading dark glares.

"What do you think you're doing?" He asked her angrily. She smacked him in the chest and grabbed for the picture but he held it up where she was too short to reach it.

"I know that girl!" She exclaimed as she stomped on his foot and finally grabbed the picture back from him as he bent in pain. He froze at her words, looking up at her from his awkward pose.

"What are you talking about?" Billie asked as she looked down at the picture Roxie was smoothing out.

"I went to college with her. Her name was Rita Hoffman." Roxie explained, jabbing her finger at the picture as her gaze darted from person to person. "We lived in the same dorm for the first two years."

"That's weird." Deaq commented as he looked more closely at the crumpled picture. "Are you sure you know her?" He asked, looking up at Roxie. She gave a dramatic sighing groan of frustration and shook the picture in his face.

"Yes! I know that tattoo on her hip, I designed it for her!" She fairly shouted at him, agitated. "Just because I act insane doesn't mean I don't know the truth when I see it!"

"Hey," Van grabbed Roxie and pulled her back in a hug. "It's Ok, we believe you." He reassured her and she calmed slightly, but still breathing heavily.

"It's just we've been looking for a link for a long time and you surprised us." Billie added as she tucked a strand of Roxie's hair away from her face. Roxie looked at them hopefully as her hand unconsciously re-tucked the same strand of hair.

"So you can use that? It's a good clue?" Roxie asked and when they nodded at her, she gave a squeal of delight that left Deaq shaking a finger in his ear to regain his hearing as she hugged Van enthusiastically.

"You see what I have to put up with?" Van asked with mock weariness to the others as he staggered back a few steps from the force of Roxie's hug. "She changes moods more often than I change the channel!"

"Eh!" Roxie protested with a grin as she detangled herself and slapped him in the chest again. He grinned at her as he pulled on her hair gently.

"Do you think you can look over the rest of the pictures? See if you can find any more people from your dorm?" Billie asked seriously and quickly held up a hand as Van opened his mouth to say something in protest. Roxie looked at Van frowning, but then at Billie's neutral face as she thought for a moment and nodded.

"What was the name of your dorm anyway?" Deaq asked as he examined the forgotten picture.

"Hart Hall." Roxie replied matter-factly, not realizing what she said. She looked up when she realized that they all had weird looks. "Huh?"

"Heart Hall?" Deaq asked to clarify it. "As in the King of Hearts?"

"No... Hart as in deer." Roxie said slowly as she realized the implications.

"Roxie, you're a genius!" Van said with a grin as he gave her a kiss on her cheek.

Van and Roxie were now back in her apartment, Van was pretty much sulking as he made dinner. He kept looking to where Roxie was seated cross-legged on the floor with the case box and all the pictures and letters scattered around her as she examined them carefully. He got into a very heated argument about letting Roxie look at the pictures of the dead Queens with Billie... and lost.

Roxie sighed as she leaned back against the couch and rubbed her forehead wearily. She had been carefully separating the pictures into groups of women she didn't know, she thought looked familiar and who she does knows. So far, the pile of pictures that had the most was the one with all the women she thought looked familiar, with only about three she was able to identify as being from Hart Hall.

"I'm gonna go outside for some air." She said suddenly as she stood up and went out the door so quickly Van couldn't protest in time.

"Hey!" He yelled after her as he quickly dashed after her, fuming as he paused to lock the door and seeing her disappear around a corner, rushed after her. By the time he caught up with her, she was already on the roof, panting slightly from running to keep ahead of him.

"What did you think you're doing?" He asked annoyed as he leaned against the ledge to regain his breath and nerves. She looked at him with big innocent brown eyes.

"Just getting some air." She said innocently and batted her lashes at him.

"You're trying to pick a fight, aren't you?" Van asked suspiciously, narrowing his eyes at her. She smiled at him sweetly and he knew the answer was 'yes'.

"Why can't you cry on my shoulder like normal girls?" He complained, throwing his hands up. She laughed and hugged him.

"But then I would be like the normal girls and where would the fun be in that?" She asked him with a grin, looking up at him as she rested her head on his shoulder.

"Well, there is that." He said as he wrapped his arms around her. "Wanna talk about it?" He asked softly, knowing that there was more to why she was up there than to pick a fight in some fresh air.

"I'm going home soon, I need to see Mum and get my scrapbooks." Roxie said after a long silence of watching the birds and the sun's slow descent into the city line. "I haven't been home since before the whole King of Hearts deal started." She sighed, causing Van to look down at the top of her head with worry.

"What? You're not looking forward to it?" He asked and was surprised when she started to snicker. "What?" He asked, a bit miffed at the sudden change in mood.

"My mum's gonna eat you right up!" She said, laughing gleefully. "And she's gonna be all, 'Oh Honey, have you finally found the father of my grandchildren!"" she said dramatically and leaned against the ledge laughing helplessly. "You'll love her; she's crazier than I am!" She told him, wiping a tear of mirth from her eye.

"I'm gonna have to be along for this trip, huh?" Van said with a half grin. "Is she really that insane?"

"No, not always, just when we haven't seen each other in a long time." Roxie sobered as she looked out over the city skyline. "She's a wonderful person, even though she tends to come a little heavy on any guys I bring home, boyfriends or not. She won't believe me when I tell her we're just friends." Roxie looked at him and pointed a finger at him warningly. "And we're not telling her that you're my protector and I have a serial killer after me."

"Why? You are in danger and she does have a right to know." Van told her.

"In high school, I had a stalker. Well, I told Mum about him and..." she paused moment thinking back as a slow grin slipped onto her face. "She found him lurking in the tree outside of my window one night, knocked him out of there with the broom and chased him down four blocks with that broom screaming 'Peeping Tom! Stalker! Shame on you!' I saw him in school the next day and he nearly wet his pants at the sight of me!" She finished with an artistic flare that kept Van laughing from start to end.

"She didn't really do that." He said after he was able to regain his breath.

"You're right." She said with a rueful grin. "She called his dad and chewed him out. But I like my version better, less embarrassing, so that's the one I told everybody."

"I knew it." He replied with a grin. "Come on; let's get back to the apartment."

"Van!" Roxie came rushing into the living room where he was watching TV as he waited for her to finish packing, he hadn't bothered to pack yet, he had a feeling. "I just thought of something terrible. What if I bring the King home and he attacks my mum?"

"Uh... well, we can always have her mail your scrapbook to us instead." Van suggested and she swatted him.

"No! I wanna see my mummy!" She whined as she flopped down on the futon next to him and rested her head on his shoulder. "But I don't wanna get her hurt either."

"You're gonna have to pick one or the other." He replied, shifting so that both of them were more comfortable and started to change the channel.

"The lesser of the two evils." She muttered annoyed. "I was really looking forward to you meeting my mum. I know I would've had a good laugh out of it." She said to him with a twinkle in her eye.

"Now I'm thankful we're not going, you're too much for me already." He said and groaned as she jabbed him in the ribs. "Why do you keep hitting me?"

"'Cause you're cute when you wince like that." She replied quickly and sat up. "I'll do the next best thing. I'm gonna call Mum and have her mail my scrapbook." Suddenly a strange look passed over her face. "Uh..."

"What, what's wrong?" Van asked, sitting up, instantly worried and ready for anything. She looked at him and gave him a small meek smile.

"I can't tell her my address; she'll just come here instead!" Roxie groaned and flopped back into the futon, her hands covering her face. He laughed as he pulled her hands away and held them.

"Look, here's what we'll do. I'll talk to Billie and we'll figure out a way to sneak you to your mum's home." He said, holding her gaze with his own. She smiled at him relieved.

"Van, I love you." She said delightedly as she threw her arms around him. He grinned as he rubbed her back. "I know, you told me that yesterday."

"I told you I hated you yesterday."

"But you really love me."

"Keep telling yourself that, Hon."

"I am gonna kill who ever is on the phone!" Billie ranted as she rolled away from Daniel and reached for her phone on the nightstand. "What!"

"Whoa, Billie." Deaq's voice sounded surprised and mildly amused. "What got your panties in a knot?"

"Ha ha, really funny." Billie replied as she felt her lover's arms sneak around her waist and he nuzzled the back of her neck. She held the phone away, covering the mouthpiece. "Daniel, not while I'm on the phone!" She whispered to him, but with a smile so that he knew that she didn't mind.

"You're sexy when you're pissed." He whispered in her ear before nibbling her earlobe. She moaned softly, and then remembered the phone in her hand when she whacked Daniel in the side of his head with it.

"What do you want?" She groused into the phone as she sat up, holding the red silk sheet to her front as Daniel rolled onto his back on his side of the bed, rubbing the area where she hit him accidentally.

"You're late and we're here waiting for you." Deaq's voice was definitely amused now and it rankled her as she wondered what he heard. "But we can wait for a couple of hours or so, just until you're done... processing Daniel."

"You're so dead." Billie growled into the phone and slammed it back in the cradle. "Who was that?" Daniel asked as she sighed. "That was work." She replied as she rolled over onto his chest and trailed her fingers over the panes of his chest.

"You know, I still haven't learned anything more about what you do." He said as he slipped his hand behind his head and the other along the small of her back. "You're very secretive about your job and coworkers. You know everything about me."

"Oh, Daniel. What do you really need to know about my job? Aren't I enough?" She asked coyly from lowered lashes. He smiled as he moved his hand up her back along her spine and into her hair at the nape of her neck.

"I just want to know everything about you. What you like, dislike and where you work and who you work with." He said, playing with her hair, combing it with his fingers.

"That's sweet, but there's a time for that." She said, smiling almost evilly as she provocatively slid across his chest in a more comfortable position.

"Mmm, that's nice." He breathed as he closed his eyes for a moment, but then opened them again to look in hers. "But can't I know more about you?"

"Daniel!"

"What? Is it really too much to ask for?" He protested. "Fine, just give me a couple of your coworker's names; you know most of the names of mine." He bartered and she sighed, propping an elbow on his chest as she rested her chin in her hand.

"Fine, Van and Deaq. You're really spoiling the romantic mood, Daniel." She warned him, but he smiled at her as he pulled her closer for a kiss.

"Aren't you gonna be late?" He asked as she started trailing kisses along his jaw.

"Already am." She murmured as she found a sensitive spot just behind his ear that made him moan softly.

"You're the boss, huh?" He lifted her chin and kissed her on the lips, gentle at first, then more urgent. "Um-mm..." She replied and squealed as he rolled with her so that she was now on her back with him on top. "That's sexy."

"Shut up and kiss me. That's an order."

Deaq was laughing as he hanged up his cell phone and wiped a tear of mirth from his eye. He was sitting up in the theater balcony in the Candy Store with Roxie on his left and Van on his right.

"Oh my, gosh, she's so gonna kill you!" Roxie said delightedly as she clapped her hands. Van nodded with agreement and slapped Deaq on the shoulder.

"You just signed your death warrant, partner. Was it worth it?" Van asked as he reached across Deaq to high-five Roxie.

"Ask me when she's finished, but as of the moment, yeah." Deaq replied with a grin. "You do realize that she might not look onto favors very nicely after that."

"Trust me, she'll grant us our wish." Roxie said with a sly grin. "After all, Daniel's there to make her feel all better. If she's still pissed, than her boy toy can't be that good."

"Roxie!" Both guys protested. "We're trying to forget about that little fact. The idea of Billie spawning more kids like her is almost beyond imagination." Van said with a mock shiver that made Roxie laugh and shake a figure at him warningly.

"You haven't been watching them, Van." Deaq said to him darkly. "I've had to look away more than once. I had a dream about Billie as a dominatrix and Daniel in a pink feathered boa." He glared at both of them as they laughed at him.

"Don't worry, it'll get better." Roxie reassured Deaq as she patted him on the cheek. "After all, it could've been you in the pink feathered boa instead."

"Roxie!" Deaq protested and dropped his head into his hands as Van started laughing helplessly. "Now I'll never be able to get that image outta my mind!"

"Guys?" Roxie asked after they were quiet for a moment, Van still laughing every once in awhile at the idea of Deaq in the boa and ignoring his dirty glares.

"Yah, sugar?" Deaq asked as he leaned back in the chair and 'accidentally' jabbed Van in the shoulder with his elbow. He ignored Van's protests as he devoted all his attention to Roxie's amused face.

"I got a message from the King." She said and fished a letter out of her purse that was placed in the seat next to her. She was going hand it to Deaq, but Van reached around him and snatched it before he could take it.

"Hey, man, she was giving it to me!" Deaq protested as Van ignored him as he opened it and quickly read it.

"You checked over the cams, right? And all the security stuff?" Roxie asked her face serious and her eyes hinting at worry. Van looked up as Deaq thought over his reply and what he had discovered.

"Yes, I did." His brow crinkled in worry. "I found a bug in one of the cams, but that was it. I looked over the wirings and everything I could think of, but it was all clean."

"Then how does he know that Roxie's gonna see her Mum?" Van asked as he handed the letter to Deaq to read.

"We did talk about it on the roof. Maybe that's how he knew." Roxie commented and Van groaned as he remembered and leaned back in the chair.

"Remind me never to talk to you about important stuff where he can hear us." He said ruefully. "I'm sorry, Roxie. But I think we can't see your mum now. He knows you want to go see her and he has been too good at tracking you lately."

"I know." Roxie pouted. "I'll just work on catching him faster so I can see her later. I can figure out the pictures without my scrapbook, it just would've made my job quicker and easier if I had it."

"Hey, don't look so down." Deaq chucked her under her chin and she gave him a little smile. "We'll figure something out. It just won't happen as quickly as you hoped."

"Thanks, Deaq."

"The King found out about your little talk with Roxie about her mom." Billie stated as she leaned back in her chair. "And you were talking about that on the roof where it was unsecured."

"Billie, I know, don't rub it in any deeper." Van said, raising his hands as if to ward off any more of what his boss might say.

"You don't get it, Van, how many times have you talked about stuff in places that haven't been secured since you started guarding Roxie?" Billie asked sharply and watched as he opened his mouth, then closed it as he reflected, there was the time in the coffee shop, and the... He realized with a sinking feeling, it was more than a few times and knew it showed on his face.

"See? You might be the link that the King was using to get all that information because you didn't have the smarts to shut up." She finished angrily. Van rubbed the bridge of his nose as he thought about his actions since it began.

"I'm sorry, Billie." He said finally and she seemed a bit mollified by how sincerely sorry he seemed. "I'll be careful this time."

"You better, because there isn't gonna be a next time, Van." She warned him. "If I find out that the King got some information because you were off shooting your mouth, I'm going to put you on probation and you're off the case."

"Billie!" Van protested and stood up and leaned across her desk; she stood up too and planted her hands firmly on her desk as she leaned forward aggressively into his face, but he refused to back down.

"No, Van. I'm serious. You almost cost us this case and maybe even Roxie's life. She could've died, Van." At her words, he seemed to almost wilt as he stepped back away from the desk. He sighed as he turned away from her and crossed his arms.

"I want you to go back to Roxie's apartment and for now on, exercise a little discretion." Billie said more softly and less heatedly. He nodded and left. She sighed frustrated as she sank back into her chair.

"You were kinda hard on him." Deaq said softly from where he was leaning against the doorframe. She looked up at him slightly surprised; she hadn't realized that he was there at all.

"You know what could've happened, Deaq." Billie said and he shrugged.

"But it didn't. Roxie's fine and we have a lead on the King." He counter-argued.

"But he needed to learn to his lesson."

"You could've been less cruel to him. Is Daniel bothering you?"

"Deaq!" Billie yelled at him and stood up, her eyes flashing. He held up his hand and stepped back from her. "I'll go now. But maybe it's time to start things in motion." He advised and walked down towards the basketball court. She watched him go and exhaled heavily as she sat down and opened the case folder to distract her self from problems that she didn't want to worry about right then.

Make me walk, make me talk, do whatever you please
I can act like a star, I can beg on my knees
Come jump in, bimbo friend, let us do it again,
hit the town, fool around, let's go party
You can touch, you can play, if you say: "I'm always yours"
You can touch, you can play, if you say: "I'm always yours"

Come on Barbie, let's go party...