Disclaimer: I don't own Lupin. I don't own the lyrics at the beginning of the chap either.

A/N: As always, I apologize for taking so long. Lots of personal stuff going on and I haven't had much time to type. The chap is named after the song quoted below. Anyone who can tell me what FOX show it was in wins a cyber cookie! Oh, and the "MacGyver in the USAF" uniform is a tribute to my friend Jeff. Those of you who watch the sci-fi channel will get it.

Also, this chapter is dedicated to a friend of mine who snapped me out of my writers block by burning me 2 wonderful Lupin CD's and checking over some parts I was iffy about. Thanks, Katie!

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Some devil is stuck inside of me.
Why can't I set it free? –Some Devil, Dave Matthews

Chapter 8 Some Devil

The next couple of days went off without a hitch. Lealah was still having trouble with her lessons, so each day Goemon would wrap her wrists, which gave her a rare chance to talk with him. Lupin had returned from the date disappointed, though Lealah couldn't figure out why ("It's just a date, right? Guys?") and had been spending a bit more time with his young sister. Jigen had the window repaired, and his lessons were going well. He, of course, had no idea of her little secret, and neither she nor Goemon were about to spill, so he continued his blissful ignorance while Lealah attempted not to seem too glad when lesson time rolled around.

Slight traces that a teenager now resided were beginning to show in the hideout. A laptop which she had brought rested on the bedside table, and it had printed pictures of cartoon characters on it. Once Lupin tried asking about one of them.

"Hey, what's with the guy with white hair and cat ears on your computer? And that is one big coat."

"They're not cat ears, they're dog ears. He's from an anime." Lupin looked at some of the others.

"Hey, she's hot! What's her name?"

"Chi. She's a robot, so don't get your hopes up," she told him with a grin.

"Damn, Kid, are there any anime you watch about normal people?"

"Um…well, Trigun…no, Vash is part plant…um…"

"Did you say plant?"

"Yeah…well…Cowboy Bebop…sci-fi, does that count?" He shook his head, laughing a little.

"Sure, whatever." CD's were scattered around her side of the room. Books were always on her bed, varying from comic books to thick novels. There were pictures pinned up on her wall, most of American TV shows and other anime characters. A very odd one, Lupin thought, was a recent printout of the man who played MacGyver in a USAF uniform. If one lifted her pillow to look under it, they would find that green blanket her brother gave her so many years ago. Considerately, she always wore her earphones when she listened to music. Everything was well and good. That was until Lupin sent the note.

Inspector Zenigata couldn't remember a time when he was happier. For the past few days there had been no sign of Lupin, but he had CJ to take his mind off of his work. Whenever his mind floated back to Lupin, all he had to do was look at CJ and he forgot all else. Of course, there were slight relapses, but it wasn't as bad as when he had gone on Lupin rampages with his wife, because CJ's job was catching him too. Everything was perfect…and if he had been in his right mind, he would have realized it was too perfect.

Zenigata was enjoying a cup of coffee just before the mail came. CJ had gone to the grocery store, and despite the good times they were having, he liked the rare moment of peace and quiet that the afternoon held. It was interrupted, however, as CJ came in with the mail. She handed the stack to him.

"Let's see, bill, bill, bill, Interpol, ooh, Mother, Lupin, bill…LUPIN!"

Dear Pops,

Congradu-freaking-lations on bagging a broad. With all your little excursions after me, I was starting to think you were a little light in the loafers. How do I know about it, you ask? Well, I sent Jigen and his kid after you 'cause we hadn't seen you in a while. I hope you didn't scar Mitsukai with all you did. Jigen covered her eyes before she could see anything too bad, but hey, you never know. Heh, he should have left her alone, she's gotta learn, but I can see where he's coming from. I wouldn't want my kid to learn from you either, Yuck! Anyway, Congrats, and I hope to see you soon.

Best Regards,

Lupin

Zenigata's face turned from red to purple to white in the span of just a few seconds.

"Koichi?" CJ asked. "What's wrong?"

LU-PIN!" He screamed at the top of his lungs.

Five miles away at their hideout, Lupin's head snapped up. "Hey, Lea, you hear anything?"

"Nuh-uh. Why?"

"Could have sworn I heard Pops. Oh well. So, wrists hurt?"

"Yes," she said testily. "Goemon has been wrapping them for me though, so they don't hurt as much."

"Thank God for good friends. How are things with Jigen going?" She brightened up.

"Really good! He says at this rate, I'll be better than you!" She exclaimed.

"Ha! Fat chance. He hasn't said anything mean to you has he?" She cocked her head to one side.

"Like what?" Lupin grew serious.

"Jigen doesn't like women a whole lot, and he doesn't like kids either really. Especially those of the female gender. Had his heart broken too many times, I think. He was actually completely against this." Because he doesn't want to see you die if you fail, he added silently.

"Really?" Her face fell. "He doesn't seem to dislike me at all. I mean, he hasn't done anything, and he's been really nice. Why aren't you worried about Goemon, anyway? Why just Jigen?"

"Let's just say Jigen is my best friend, but violence is as violence does, and Goemon can control his temper. Not to mention his libido." Lealah's face turned a very bright shade of red. "Hehehe, just kidding. He wouldn't make a pass at you. He acts more like a father to you than I do! Man, I wish he'd stop that."

"Hey, that would mean he'd be your father too, ya'know." Lupin shuttered slightly.

"God, that's a creepy image. Anyway, stay on his good side. If their's one thing he can do better than anyone else, it's hold a grudge."

"You got it, Bro. So, when am I gonna learn something other than, you know, breaking my wrists?" she asked, only half joking.

"When you master breaking your wrists. Actually, when we move on it'll get a little more intense. I'm taking you to the place Gramps first trained me. After the training in the woods. Of course, you're getting the crash course since it would take years to properly train you like I was trained. You're lucky you have such a nice brother, I was dropped into it by dad before Gramps picked me up."

"Into training?" she asked.

"No, into the woods! I had to fend for myself for 5 months with no idea where I was. Gramps finally found me and adopted me." Lealah blinked in surprise.

"Dad sure was a jerk." Lupin nodded.

"That's why I took care of you. Mom wanted to make sure he had no part in your life." Her expression became sad.

"Did she really say that?"

"Yeah," he replied. "That and, 'Take good care of her' and 'I love you' were the last things she ever said to me." His expression became sad too and he was silently lost in memories.

"I'm sorry," Lealah said quietly. Her brother's head snapped up.

"Hey, it wasn't your faul-" He stopped in mid sentence. "It couldn't be helped." Lealah's shoulders slumped and she dropped her head to the side. He put his hand on her shoulder. "Sorry, I didn't mean to…"

"No," she interrupted, shrugging his had off. "I mean, it was my fault, we both agree on that. I'm going to my room, ok?" Lupin watched her storm off to her room. Then he sighed and shook his head and followed after her. "Hey, come on, you've got your lesson with Jigen. First, you gotta go wake him up though." She stared up at him, eyes wide.

"Um, I don't think that I should be doing-" Lupin held up a hand to stop her.

"That's exactly why you're going to do it. Gotta face your fears, Kid." She nodded.

"Ok," she answered as she waked off. Jeez, what am I gonna do? Why does he sleep so much anyway? He's like a freaking cat! An intense, handsome black cat who's always alert for danger and…Not the time, idiot! Focus! Worry about getting scratched now, swoon like a schoolgirl later. Hehehe, Black and orange stray cat sittin' on a fence, oooo, ain't got enough dough to pay the… No! Focus! Damned ADD! She found him reclining on the couch and finally pulled her mind back to earth. She contemplated hiding behind a couch and just throwing a pillow at him, but as she played it in her mind, she saw the stupidity of that scenario and opted instead to do it the way she did last time. She built up her courage and began to shake his shoulder. "Jigen…come on, wake up…Jigen…don't kill me…" As foreseen, he jerked awake by pulling his gun at lightening speed. Lealah's Lupin instincts kicked in and she responded just as quickly, ducking to the right side and pushing his gun arm to the left side, just past her head. It was a good thing too, because he fired.

"Dammit, Jigen!" Lupin screamed from the other room. His glass of bourbon had, unfortunately, been in the path of the bullet and shattered in his hand.

When he finally blinked awake and saw the situation, he lowered his head so his hat covered his eyes and said, "Your reflexes have gotten better. The lessons must be helping." She nodded, unable to say anything, chest heaving from the adrenaline. "Didn't we agree for you to throw something at me?" He could feel her hand trembling against his still-raised arm.

"Yeah, well, throwing a pillow at you and hiding behind a couch just seemed stupid." Jigen would have laughed if it he didn't think it would seem insensitive and inappropriate.

"You're probably right." They broke away simultaneously, him swiftly reholstering his gun and her standing straight, shoving her shaking hands in her pocket.

"Lupin says it's time for my lesson with you. He also wants you to quit acting like my father." She hoped he didn't notice how scared she had been.

"Tell him I'll stop when he starts acting like a responsible guardian."

"Like Sir Auron?" she asked.

"Huh?"

"Never mind, it's from a video game. So, what are we doing today?" she asked as they got to the clearing.

"Well, you're going to practice shooting without the hat so you don't become dependant on it to aim. Put it on the ground over there and pick up the gun." She did and began to practice. She was a quick learner and was soon shooting almost like she did with the hat. He had to admire her commitment. Over the past couple of weeks, she had come to be a pretty good marksman…er, markswoman. Whatever. Anyway, she was better than most of the kids he had taught. Then again she was a Lupin; give any Lupin a day and they could learn most of anything. Jigen had witnessed Lupin actually figure out how to play a complicated tune on a violin after only a few minutes of playing.

"Wow," he said. "I think you're ready for your final test."

"What's that?" she asked. Jigen grinned.

"I think you're going to like this."

"Okay, so, go for the head and the heart, and army and loincloth rules both apply. You know what the loincloth rule is, right, Kid?" Lupin, Jigen, and Lealah stood on the roof of the building. It had been set up like a paintball field, rightly so. Both Lealah and Lupin had on paintball armor and sported paintball guns loaded with, not surprisingly, paintballs.

"Yeah, I mean, even if it wasn't self-explanatory, some friends and I used to fight with sticks."

"Oooooo-kay," Jigen said. "The point is to beat your brother. If you can do that, then there's nothing else I can teach you. I'm reffing. Let me get out of the way." He ran behind a glassed-in area in the middle. "Ok…GO!"

Both of them sprang off in different directions, getting their first shots off, but neither hitting anything. Lealah dove behind a large oil drum and used it as cover as she shot at her brother. 'Jeez! Jigen taught her a lot more than just how to aim!' Lupin thought. He had entertained the idea of going easy on her, and he still wasn't going to pull out the big guns, so they say, but he knew now that he was going to have to step it up. He dove behind a pile of tires and started shooting too.

Lealah knew this would get them nowhere. She took a deep breath and readied herself to make a dash to the right. She managed to dodge his paintballs and return fire, nicking the side of one of the tires, but not quite hitting Lupin.

'Well, well, well, she has dodging down. Let's see if she can use her surroundings,' Lupin thought. He aimed at a loose board at her elbow and scored, sending it swinging around and almost hitting her in the back of the head.

"Hey! That could have really hurt!" she yelled at him.

"Do you really think a guy trying to kill you will care?" Lupin yelled back.

"Well, if that's how you're playing," she muttered under her breath. Lealah took aim at an awning above him and one shot sent it crashing down. As he scuttled out of the way, he was met by shots whizzing past his head and splatting against the glass enclosure where Jigen looked on. Jigen nodded in approval; Lealah was doing quite well, all things considered.

Lupin managed to get away without taking a hit, and fired off a shot. It hit Lealah in the left arm. She looked at the red paint and yelled to her brother, "Army rules, right!"

He called back in confirmation and was met by a barrage of paintballs. The next thing he saw was Lealah streaking past with her left arm tucked behind her back. One hit his right shoulder. Damn. He couldn't shoot very well as a lefty. He dove under a stack of boards and began to reload. Jeez, she was much better than he had expected! She even managed to get a hit in on him. Maybe after this time it wouldn't take as many tries as he thought to finally--

His thoughts were interrupted by a bag of powdered cement spilling all over him. He fell backwards and suddenly Lealah was standing over him, the paintball gun against his head, grinning widely. Jigen was joined them in no time at all.

He pushed his hat all the way down over his eyes and, grinning, said, "And Lupin bowed his head because he knew that he'd been beat. And he laid that paintball gun on the ground at Lealah's feet."

"I'm warning you, Jigen. Continue and spend the next couple of nights on the roof with Goemon," Lupin growled. Jigen just grinned wider.

"And Lealah said…" He motioned for her to continue. Her smile threatened to split her face.

"Lupin, just come on back if you ever want to try again, 'cause I told you once you son of a gun, I'm the best there's ever been, HA!" With that she fired straight into his chest, leaving him to moan in pain. As she walked away, Jigen caught something else in her expression; not really pleasure, but a since of accomplishment or…vindication, almost.

Back at the house, the gang had a celebratory feast commemorating Lealah's first big triumph. Jigen had broken out the alcohol and everyone had a glass except Lealah, of course. Lupin tried to get her to accept one, but Goemon hit him in the back of the head with his sheathed sword and Lupin thought better of offering again.

Fujiko had not made it, and Lealah was glad to have her brother and her new friends all to herself. The conversation she had had with her brother about her mother had effectively made her day a bad one, and no amount of partying and accomplishment would be able to change that. She didn't like Fujiko, and wasn't sure that she could have stood it if Lupin was fawning over her all night. The food was good, so was the company, and all in all, everyone had a pretty good time. "Well," Lupin said, yawning, "I think I'm going to turn in. It's been a long one. You coming, Lealah?" She looked up from clearing the plates.

"Yup. Give me a few minutes, ok? I just want to get all the dishes done tonight so I don't have to do them tomorrow." He chuckled.

"If I'd known that you'd be such a good housemaid, I would have picked you up a long time ago."

"Just trying to help out," she muttered quietly. Jigen stretched and yawned too.

"I'll turn in too. Nice work today, Kid. Goodnight."

"Goodnight!" Lealah returned, her voice betraying much higher spirits. After she was done she followed Lupin into their room.

"Hey, you seemed to be in low spirits tonight. What's wrong?" Lealah paused before answering.

"I…I've just been thinking about my mother a lot lately. The conversation we had earlier just…got me down. I mean, don't you think I feel guilty enough without you saying anything?" Lupin sighed.

"I know, and I'm sorry. You really couldn't have done anything about it. It…it couldn't have been your fault, you were just a baby."

"Then why did you say 'It couldn't be helped earlier?'" she shot back.

"Bad choice of words, I guess. Look, you didn't kill her. Her death was a byproduct of your birth. Don't think anything else." Lealah nodded. "Good. Now, go to sleep." She climbed into bed and turned her back to him. No matter what he said, she'd still feel guilty.