Here's another brief Q&A for this chapter.
Awareness Bringer: Thank you for the mention of the comics. As for Carmelita's backstory, I'm going to have it be similar to one of the comics that mentioned her past, while putting a different spin on it, that I'm sure, is going to surprise you.
EquinoxWolf: Thank you for the praise. I hope to continue with that work.
Guest: Sorry. But if I do go around to making a fic for Jak and Daxter, then I'm more interested in Keira, also getting captured, and injected with dark Eco, alongside Jak, thus giving her a dark Eco form too.
Finally Disclaimer: The following is a non-profit fan based retelling. The Sly Cooper series is created, and owned by Sucker Punch, and Sony Entertainment. Please support the official releases.
*Flashback*
"Don't worry little raccoon, I have hopes, that you may find this Orphanage to be your happy place." Mrs. Puffin's assistant said as she escorted a young grey furred Raccoon through the halls as he held his cane, and his bag, which happened to be his book that lacked its pages due to them getting ripped off.
Sly Cooper. A raccoon, and Master Thief in the making that came from a long line of Master Thieves that preceded him was currently walking through the halls as he had a sad look on his face due to the death of his parents.
Sly was even set to inherit the book, known as the Thievius Raccoonus, now that he was eight years old, and in his father's eyes, mature enough to take the responsibility of becoming the Master Thief that he expects him to be, once he follows in his footsteps.
Unfortunately, that very same day had his house getting raided by five visitors that showed up unannounced to his family's door. And despite his parent's efforts, the gang known as the Fiendish Five, overpowered his parents, and proceeded to kill them, then ransack their home until they found the Thievius Raccoonus in the safe.
And much to Sly's horror, they tore the book into several pieces, and took each piece with them to their hideouts that they disappeared into to commit horrible Crimes together. Especially with the Owl that lead them all.
And now, with his parents dead, his book in tatters, and with his home now gone from his life, he was now walking through the Orphanage with Mrs. Puffin, along with her assistant, as they escorted him to his room in the Orphanage, having finished his tour of the Orphanage that he was in, known as the Happy Camper Orphanage.
It wasn't a bad place to be, so far. It had playgrounds, it had rooms that were clean, instead of messy ones that the more worse Orphanages have, (At least in the cartoons.) and the kids here wasn't mean to Sly. Even the teenagers, whom Sly was sure was the meaner kids of the Orphanage, merely gave him a nod when he was introduced to them.
But he was sure that Mrs. Puffin was not a nice lady, considering her sneers that she makes to the kids, as well as himself when he first met her. Which was why, Sly was weary of making her mad, let alone fraternizing with her. After all, she seemed like she was not fond of children.
But at least she let him keep his cane, along with his page-less book, and let him keep them in his new room in the Orphanage.
Speaking of which…
Pretty soon, he was now shown to his room, where he was lead in by Mrs. Puffin's assistant. He saw that there was a bunk bed, and a single bed in the room, with the bunks already taken, leaving him with only the single one that was close to the window of the Orphanage.
"Here we are. At your new room in the Orphanage. And, I hope you won't mind having to share with your two new roommates." Mrs. Puffin's assistant said.
And in his eyes, at least the other Orphanage teacher, who was an assistant to Mrs. Puffin, was friendly to Sly, as he merely smiled at her while shaking his head, nonverbally telling her that he doesn't mind sharing a room with his roommates. However small his smile was.
Before he then packed away his clothing into the dresser of his new room, while his dirty ones were taken by the assistant, who said that she'll clean them, and promised that she'll give them back once they're clean. Causing Sly to nod at her, still feeling a bit sad about the death of his parents as he sat on his single bed.
The assistant stroke his back to calm him down from his recent trauma. "I know that you've still got a way to go in getting used to this place, Sly Cooper, but it'll be alright. I'm confident that you'll find yourself some new friends here." She said.
Although Sly smiled at her, he still didn't say anything. Which had her feeling that he needed some space. So he let him have the space. "Lunch will be served in an hour. I'll be sure to tell you when it's time, Okay?"
Sly nodded at her, without looking at her. Now he was left to his own devices when the assistant left the room. Where he took his book out of the bag, before opening the book, where inside the cover, was a picture of Sly and his parents that was in the photo. When he looked at it, he looked at it for what felt like hours on end, as he let his tears leak out of his eyes, as he tried not to sob.
He still remembered the good times with his parents that he had, prior to the fateful day when they were killed by the Fiendish Five. He still mourned his parents, and he wished that they were still alive, just unconscious, and hopefully recovering in the hospital, before taking him back to his home, and helping find the pages of his book, with him.
But reality was continuing to spite him in this case, as he quietly cried for his parents, curling himself into a fetal position on the bed, not taking his eyes off the photo.
Suddenly, he heard noises that was being made to his right, sounding like a growling stomach. Initially, he tried to just ignore it and go take a nap, but the noises returned. Which had him feeling curious as he cleaned away the tears, put the photo back in the book, and put the book away back into his bag, before looking at where the noise came from.
Which was under the bottom bunk bed, where after peeking down there, he saw a pink Hippopotamus boy that was underneath the bunk bed.
"What are you doing down there?" Sly asked curiously, regardless of his lingering sadness.
"SHH! I'm trying to hide here. And you're not helping." The hippo boy sharply whispered loud enough to him.
Sly was feeling nervous about why he could be hiding, if it's what he thinks it is. "Could he be in trouble with her?" Sly thought. He felt that there was only one way to find out though. "What are you hiding-" He tried to whisper back.
Only for the door to open wide. Letting in another boy, who happened to be a green scaled turtle with glasses, a red bandanna, and an indigo shell. He was looking around, until he laid eyes on the bed after hearing another growl. "I found you! Come out, I know it's you Murray." The turtle said.
The hippo got out from under the bed, feeling annoyed. "Oh drat it. I was going to beat you this time, Bentley." The hippo known as Murray said. "I could've won this if I wasn't hungry, and if he wasn't here."
Sly was feeling his confusion, and nervousness, fading away when he started to realize that Murray, and the turtle known as Bentley was playing hide and seek in the Orphanage. Which had him smiling to himself in relief, at the knowledge that Murray wasn't being searched for by Mrs. Puffin for something that he might've done wrong.
All while the turtle studied Sly in confusion after Murray pointed at him. "Odd? I've seen some raccoons here in this Orphanage, but you look like you're new here." He said.
"That's cause I am new here." He said softly.
That statement surprised the turtle. "Really?! I apologize if I bothered you about that." He said, trying to be polite. "As you might've heard, my name is Bentley. This is Murray. What's yours?"
"Sylvester… Sylvester Cooper. Or just Sly Cooper, for short." Sly said, introducing himself.
"Well Sly, it is nice to meet you." Bentley said. "I suppose you're feeling nervous, but I can assure you that this place isn't like those horrible Orphanages that you see in cartoons, it's far from it actually. It's a nice place." He then said.
But then he got close to Sly to whisper in his ear after looking around. "One of the few problems with this place though, is Mrs. Puffin herself. I recommend that you stay away from her if you value your life. Not that she's going to literally take it."
That little sentence had Sly quickly nodding in obedience. He was sure that Ms. Puffin wasn't pleasant to be around. And he was feeling relief at the advice that he was given.
"She's that bad a teacher, huh?"
"Oh, she's definitely bad, just not the worst, otherwise she would've been fired by now. But that's not important. What is, is this. You wanna join in?" Bentley then asked.
Murray was hopeful that Sly could join in on the fun with Bentley, as he quickly took a liking to the Raccoon. Wanting to protect him like he did with Bentley before Sly's arrival.
All while Sly felt that he had nothing else better to do right now, and he'd rather not brood about his parent's deaths anymore than he already has even before his arrival to the Orphanage.
So he made his choice, that he feels, would begin his friendship with his new companions in the Orphanage. "Sure, I'll join." He said.
*A few days Later*
The Trio was now outside in the back of the Orphanage as they were now resting off their little game they played. Being Tag. While also looking up at the clouds over them.
They had fun together, and they were sure that this would be the start to their friendship that they were going to have in the Orphanage.
Especially as they learned about each other, with Murray telling Sly about his father, who was a racer, who sadly suffered in a car crash, and died of his injuries, before he could become a celebrity, while his mom passed on from a heart attack while raising him herself. Which was sad, since he loved his parents. And he vowed that someday, he shall be a racer just like his dad. Even though he admits, he also has an interest in boxing.
Bentley on the other hand, never knew his father. But he was close to his mother, whom taught him about being a genius, since she was a professor at a University. However, she didn't have a long life ahead of her, all thanks to suffering from Cancer.
Sly meanwhile, told them about himself, at least without telling them about his thieving background, feeling that they aren't types of kids that could be willing to befriend a thief like himself. But a part of him felt that they could make an exception for him if they trust him enough.
"That was a fun game." Bentley said, even though he wasn't as physical as Murray, or Sly, preferring his brain over muscle. Not that Sly blames him, after all, he can do him.
"Indeed it was, pal." He said, looking up at the sky, seeing the clouds making shapes up there, while imagining those shapes alongside his friends. Like for Bentley, she imagined seeing the calculator in the Sky.
While for Murray, he imagined a chicken nugget when he saw the cloud in the sky.
Even though to Sly, he also imagined the beach, with himself on it, alongside his parents. He was somber in seeing such an image in the sky, but he didn't let that keep him down anymore, since with Murray, and Bentley with him, he was starting to recover from his sadness.
As they watched the clouds though, they ended up hearing some commotion near them on the Playground.
Although they all felt that it's the business of who those kids are, Sly's curiosity got the best of him as he wondered what was happening in the focus of the commotion, as he looked there after borrowing Bentley's binoculars from his backpack. "Hey! What are you doing with those?" Bentley asked.
"I'm just checking to see what the commotion is over there." Sly responded, using his binoculars to see what's happening.
What he saw, was a taller boy, who looked like a bully, that was getting his butt kicked by a smaller female Vixen with cobalt blue hair, who was currently beating down on him, while humiliating him in front of his peers, being the other classmates of his, before getting off of him, and glaring at the other kids on the playground, causing them all to back away and give her space.
Which also put her in view of both Murray, and Bentley.
"Oh dear. It seems Carmelita got out of another scrap." Bentley said nervously.
"Carmelita?" Sly asked.
"The name of the fox with blue hair, is Carmelita. She's a Spaniard from either Europe, or Latin America. And I heard, that she was also a recent addition to this Orphanage, sorta like you. But don't let her blue hair fool you. She's got a fiery temper." Bentley responded.
"Not to mention the fact that she knows how to punch pretty well, as you can see." Murray said. "When she gets angry, you do not want to mess with her. A couple kids learned that the hard way, according to word among the orphans." Murray said, also nervously.
Despite what they said, Sly wasn't really nervous himself as he saw the Vixen walking victoriously, yet angrily out of the playground onto the grass, wanting to be alone. While she also showed that she was also wearing a sleeveless blue jean dress that trailed to her knees with a yellowish tan short sleeved shirt under it, while also having white socks and black shoes. He had to admit, she looked cute. Even if she was angry, to where he should have reason to stay away.
But still, he wasn't nervous of her. If anything, he did want to find friendship with the Fox girl herself.
But she was looking like she wanted to be alone. And Sly knew that it might not be a good idea to bother her while she keeps to herself for now. But Sly was wanting to interact with her to see if he could be her friend someday.
Especially since they could relate in the losing their parents category. Even if her own parents has died in different circumstances.
'What are you doing Sly?! Can't you see that she wants to be alone? She might clobber you!" Bentley said, noticing that Sly was headed her way.
"Don't worry about that. I feel that I can talk to her." Sly said.
"Be careful." Sly heard Bentley say as he was headed to her.
All while he hoped that even though she wanted to be alone, she could make an exception to him if he plays his cards right. So he was now behind her.
"Hello." He said.
She snapped her head to him, while glaring nastily at him. Even though he flinched a little, he wasn't scared as he stood his ground. Especially when she softened her gaze a bit, seeing that he is a different kid.
"Hola. (Hello.) So, what is it you want from me?" She said, speaking in a thick Spanish accent. All while she showed that she had a little gap in her teeth, like she lost a baby tooth.
"Just to speak with you. That's all I'm asking for as someone who recently got here, and stayed for a few days." Sly softly said, trying to show her that he isn't a bad boy that she'd hate, like the other ones she just beat. Especially since he was also recently added to this Orphanage.
"Are you sure that you're saying that, with no intent to have me let my guard down, and end up making fun of me for my blood, and my accent? You couldn't possibly be new here, could you?" She asked. Questioning him on how new he is around the Orphanage.
"Actually. I literally am. My parents died days ago." He said somberly.
At that, her aggressive stance vanished, and she ended up softening her gaze to where she now looked at him with surprise, before being apologetic. "Really?" She asked.
At his nodding, she took his word for it, and stood close to him, before hugging him for a second. "Lo Siento. (I'm sorry.) I didn't know you were really new here. I thought you were like them. Being so mean, so distrusting of me, and wanting me to leave this Orphanage."
"It's okay. You didn't know." He said. "I have to admit. You look like a nice girl."
The Vixen kit known as Carmelita blushed a little at that. "Gracias? (Thank you?)" Carmelita said, feeling that he could be one of the few boys she could make friends with. There was something about him that had her becoming willing to befriend him. But what? "And what is it about me that catches your fancy?"
"You being a Fox, and a Latina, maybe?" He asked. "Either way, I'm hoping that I can be your friend, if not now, then maybe in a few days. Does that sound good?"
Carmelita had to think about it for a moment, wondering if she can put her guard down for Sly, and his possible friends in both the Turtle, and Hippo that she noticed was nearby, or if she should, say no, and merely keep herself out of his sight.
After thinking about it, she ended up forming a response. "I'll think about it." Was all she said, before walking away. All while she was thinking about something.
"Por qué se ve tan lindo? (Why does he look so cute?)" She thought.
All while both Bentley, and Murray was in awe at how Sly walked away from what could've been a fight, without suffering a single mark, as he was walking back to them with a little smile.
"W-What did she say?" Bentley asked, stunned at his lack of injury.
"She said that she'll think about it. Which in my experience, gives me hope, that we are gonna be friends, someday." He responded.
"Yeah… I'm kinda in doubt." Murray said. "Not that I'm not holding my breath about that myself."
"I'm with Murray on that. She was standoffish ever since her parents died." Bentley also said.
"As much as I believe you guys on that, I think that she can calm down and be friends once she's ready." He responded, looking at the clouds with a smile, feeling confident at what he said as both Bentley, and Murray was looking at him, wondering if he was right to trust that he could find friendship with the Spanish Fox girl.
*Flashback ends*
"Are you doing alright, Sly?" Carmelita's voice said, putting Sly back to reality.
"I'm doing fine. Just a little flashback to our days at the Orphanage. Nothing special." He said with a smile. "Well, if you don't count the nostalgia, that is."
"True." Carmelita said with a smile, also thinking back to the days in the Orphanage for a moment. "Once you're done, we should be getting the last two keys. And I think there's one up there." She said, pointing to the marker that was on the roof above them.
Which was behind another squid guard, that was patrolling up there, just behind the chimneys, all of which, was tall enough for them to hide behind.
Which is what they proceeded to do when they got up there, in order to sneak behind the guard, clobber him, and proceed to enter the pipe that lead downwards via a ladder.
Which was where they were now in the room that had a bunch of sections of a ship, along with some other pieces of the ships that was also floating on the water, and seeing some turbines in the distance, the thieves saw that not even the airplanes were safe from the storms of the Welsh Triangle, that took those ships down to the depths of the ocean, before being salvaged, and pillaged back in Raleigh's hideout in the Isle of Wrath.
Seeing the wreckage of planes, and ships, both thieves couldn't help but feel sympathy, and pity, for the poor souls that were on those ships, and planes that fell victim to the storm of the Welsh Triangle, that the mad British Frog has caused on the Isle of Wrath. And that is if they were able to escape those ships, and Planes, when the storm proved too much for them.
If there were those that died too, then that made both thieves quite determined to bring their fight to the Frog himself, as they proceeded onwards, where they clobbered the guard with the throwing stars.
After that, they ended up hearing the screech of the intercom, that they knew, could be Raleigh's intercom.
"Ahoy, dock hands! Capital job unloading that cargo last night. You're the crown jewel of my operation. Now do me the service of proving your worth yet again by protecting the treasure key that I have stored down there." Raleigh's voice said, while both thieves felt that he was clearly trying to hold back his anger, at the fact that they stole his keys, and broke his engine, and power room for his storm machine, requiring them to be fixed again. (Not that they planned to have him use them again, as they hoped to beat him, before they're operational.)
"It appears that there is a prowler, or two, that is on the loose, since I have heard that I am missing four keys from my engine room, the room where the power source to my machine is, as well as my private treasure room, and my Library. So do ensure, that the remaining keys won't be stolen by those ruffians. Cause if any of you… let them get their hands on that key, I'll personally flog the lot of you, FOR AN ENTIRE FORTNITE!" He threatened, before hanging up.
It is too bad that the threat isn't going to stop the keys from being stolen, no matter how good the guards are going to be. Both thieves made sure of it, as they were now jumping on the junk that floated on the water. Like the barrels, and the plane wings, while also avoiding the spotlights along the way to the other section of a broken ship.
Where they had to fight a belly flopping guard that tried to flatten the thieves under his gut. But Sly was fast enough to dodge the belly, before knocking the guard out, before he could try to do the same thing to Carmelita, who proceeded to shoot her pistol at the siren to turn off the lights.
"Nice shot." Sly said.
"Gracias." She responded. Before they both used the ratlines, and shrouds, to climb to the crows nest of the ship.
If they were feeling more playful, they would've been doing some pirate talk, and looking around with their imaginary telescopes, like they used to do back in the Orphanage. But they knew that it's not a good time.
Instead, they used the rope to climb higher, up to where they were now walking on the damaged plane that was held up by chains, that they felt, could be a passenger plane from WW2, or the other decades. Either way, they were walking on it, avoiding the spotlights on it until they got to the back of it, to destroy the siren, and continue onwards.
Where they shimmied around the cylindrical glass pipe that connected to the other pipes in the room, not noticing that there was an eye, with tentacles, inside of it as it looked at them while swimming up. Whatever it was, neither of them would know if they saw it, before they were now on the walk ways that lead to another plane wings that they were prowling on.
Those wings though, had two things. The first was that the turbines were still spinning, albeit not at a fast rate. And the last thing, was that there was a pair of guards with the throwing starfishes. Both of whom, was now throwing them at the thieves when they caught them.
Even though those stars' edges grazed both thieves, they were able to dodge them, despite the thin wing bridges that they walked on, before taking the guards down.
Now they had only the squid guards to worry about when they were now hanging on the cable, preparing to drop down from the top to the floor below them. Thankfully, they were no match as Carmelita shot one of them, while Sly knocked the other one out with his cane after jumping onto the platform that he was on.
Which, was close to a nearby sub. Which shown them that even the subs were in danger in the Welsh Triangle. And that had them even more determined to stop Raleigh at that point. As well as stoked to collect the last two of the keys from Raleigh's HQ in the Isle of Wrath.
Now though, Carmelita zapped the squid guard, before they continued onwards, jumping on some more scrap that floated on the water, before they were now on another section of a ship, where they clobbered another guard with throwing stars after dodging the stars as they jumped on the scrap, before Carmelita zapped another belly flopping guard, before he could try to squash Sly.
Now they were climbing upwards on the rope, hoping that they could be getting closer to the key.
Much to their pleasant surprise, they were. As they saw the key, on another crows nest. Now they proceeded to break the glass, and get the key. Giving them the second to last key.
"Now we need the last key, but where?" Carmelita asked.
"Beats me." Sly said.
As both thieves exited the room, they ended up getting a call from Bentley on their Bino-cu-com.
"Sly! Carmelita! I have scanned around the HQ of Raleigh's, including underwater, and I have good news, and bad news. The good news, is that I have found the last key. And even better, there are a pair of small attack subs that are nearby, which you both can ride in to grab it. Just walk to them from across the metal walk way to your left." Bentley said.
Which had them both smiling to each other at the news they got. Which meant that they were now one step closer to getting to the cannon, and entering the main HQ of Raleigh's, to bring their battle to him. That thought, had them feeling stoked at the thought of their fight.
But they were savvy enough to know, that if someone were to tell them that there's good news, then there is bound to be bad news that follows afterwards. So they braced for it. "And the bad news?" Carmelita asked.
"It is being guarded by some large crabs. Which is why the attack subs that I mentioned, should come to good use against them. As long as you both keep your distance from the crabs' claws, then you both should be fine, and should be able to grab the key from their figurative clutches, without a single scratch on the subs." Bentley responded.
Both thieves were a little bummed about the fact that they couldn't get the key that easily, with the giant crabs around. But they were relieved that it won't be any enemy subs that would also fight them for the key. And at least the crabs don't have any ranged weapons of their own, which made them easy pickings for the sub. Now they were going to the sub.
Which was indeed nearby, just across the walk way, they just needed to clobber the star throwing guard. Which wasn't hard, as they got him, before getting into their subs together, before having them dive underwater downwards into the ocean.
As they descended, they were looking around at the scenery underwater, which had them in awe at how pretty it looked underwater. Even though there was some wrecked ships that loitered it, either from the storm from the Welsh Triangle, from the battles that took place since before any of them were born, or even from the storms in the past that wasn't caused by Raleigh's storm machine.
"This ocean underwater looks linda. (Pretty.) We should try some scuba here, someday." Carmelita said into the sub's com.
"Agreed. After we beat the Five, and after we learn to swim, we're coming back here." Sly responded, using his sub's com.
Either way, they knew that they had a better time to do such sightseeing later. They had to search for their last key, and they had to destroy those crabs, before they bury that key, or destroy it.
"There are blasters on the subs that you're both using. Be sure to use them to destroy those crabs, as either of you take the key from them." Bentley said on the com.
They looked around with the sub lights at the ground searching for the crabs when they saw one. Causing her to shoot it, hoping that it's the one with the key.
It wasn't. Much to her dismay.
"There it is!" Sly said, spotting another crab. Which had a key in its claws.
However, it had some other crabs that was nearby as it was trying to run from them. It's too bad for the crabs, that the subs that they were using weren't slow machines. Instead, they were pretty fast as they were blasting the crabs with the underwater missiles that they were using against them.
And since none of them were armed with anything, they didn't stand a chance as the thieves continued to blast, and destroy those crabs without any hesitation.
Remember the phrase, 'its like shooting fish in a barrel.' that people say? This situation was like this for both of them.
The only danger was getting close enough for the crabs to try to use their claws on the subs. Which felt like it'd be a dangerous move to make. However, it was seeming like it's the only option for grabbing the key, as the crabs would continue to try to take the key when one of the other ones drops it when they blasted it.
"One of us must grab the key while the other continues to blast them with the sub's guns!" Carmelita said, bracing herself for the move if she's going to be the one to pull it.
Sly volunteered instead though. As he was now moving in, while Carmelita continued to shoot at the crabs, destroying them as they tried to gather to the key to retake it, and bury it. But it was no use for the crabs.
They each got obliterated with Carmelita defending Sly as he was able to get enough room to grab the key with the sub, before he was now retreating from the crabs that tried to get it back. "Okay, got it! Let's go back now!" Sly said into the com as he avoided the crabs that tried to get him.
But since none of them could swim up, they merely snapped their claws futilely at them, as they were now moving back to the surface.
"Good work Sly. We got the last key." Carmelita said with a smile.
Sly smiled back as they both were in the middle of coming back up to surface. "Great work. That should be the last key. Now your way to Raleigh's room is open. Just remember, be careful of what tricks he can do." Bentley said.
"We'll keep that in mind." Carmelita said before they started to resurface. Now they were back up on the ship on the same way they came in, before they got out of the subs.
After that, they were past the walkway, and was now at the cannon, where they proceeded to unlock the cannon with the seven keys, before they saw an opening in the cannon that could fit the two of them inside.
That had them both blushing at what they were going to do. Since they were going to squeeze into the cannon together. Putting them literally closer together. But they weren't minding that, due to their close love.
"Ready Carms?" He asked.
"Estoy linda Y preparada. (I'm ready and prepared.)" She responded with a nod.
Soon, they squeezed into the cannon, before they felt the cannon's opening close, before they felt it turning around. Which they guessed, was towards the blimp. So they prepared for the temporary flight as they braced in the cannon.
*BOOOM*
The cannon shot them both towards the blimp once it aimed up to it. And they were headed into the glass part of the blimp as they were bracing themselves for going through the glass.
*Flashback*
It took a few days, but the Fox, and the Raccoon boy became friends, and got along with each other pretty well. Not only that, but she also became a friend to both of Sly's friends as well. Which lasted for a few months.
Sure she was short tempered still, and sometimes took it out on them, but it was only yelling that she did to them, and not once, did she even strike any of them. And it was reasonable that she'd be like that. She told them that she was quite fond of her parents, and their deaths were not a pleasant experience for her.
Something that they could all relate with her on. Especially Sly himself.
Since one day, both of them were together outside at close to night, when Carmelita went out looking for him with her flashlight, wondering what he was doing outside, as it was bed time for them. And Mrs. Puffin sent her out, looking for him so that he won't be missing it.
So here she was, outside, looking high and low for the Raccoon boy that she's grown fond of as a friend, as she was wondering where he could be.
She was tempted to call out for him, since he'd be bound to respond to her calls, even while sneaking around, since they were friends.
Sure he was a sneaky type of boy, which she admits, is a bit troublesome, since he'd be bound to become a thief in the future, at this rate. And she'd rather hope that he doesn't.
After all, her parents were law enforcers. And she had a family line at least on her father's side, and it was said that they descend from the guards of the kings of Spain, and France. She also heard, that she's next in line, since she heard from him that she'll become a fourth-generation member of Law Enforcement. And she was intending, and dreaming of following in his footsteps as an officer.
So to grow up with the Raccoon boy, only to see that he is going to have a career in thievery, while she follows in her father's footsteps, would leave her feeling quite disappointed in him, as well as in herself, since even though they were friends in the Orphanage, they were going to grow up to be enemies due to their opposing career choices.
She just hopes that when the day is done, Sly may retire from thievery, and end up siding with her, as a constable, when she becomes inspector, by the time they intend to get married. (If only she knew that it'd be vice versa, later on.)
"Wait! Did I just think that?! Focus Carmelita. He's just an amigo. (Friend.) Nothing more." She thought with a blush as she continued to look for him.
Only to suddenly hear a sound of wind, like something was being swung around. Causing her to investigate the noise out of curiosity. She wondered if it was a stick being swung around, or a toy sword.
She won't know until she sees what it is.
So she started to jog in the grasslands, then the forest, while keeping her path illuminated to lower the risk of tripping on the ground. While she also made sure to also flash the light on whatever is in her sight too, while shining her light back on the floor path.
It was some minutes of walking when she saw what it was that made the noise, much to her surprise.
For it was Sly himself, who was illuminated by Bentley's flashlight that shone on him and the open spot that he was on in the woods, as he was swinging his cane around against the air, along with some twirling it around like a staff, and jumping around as well, like he was training himself for some martial arts.
Which was odd. Last time she saw his cane, was when he kept it by his side in his room that she visits him in. And he would always make sure that it is in his room when he is somewhere else, to keep it safe, like it was his treasure that he would protect. And considering the fact that he hurt someone who took it from him, it says a lot.
And now he was swinging it around, and twirling it like a staff. And he was jumping around like he was training. And she had to say, he looked pretty cool. The way he moved, the way he ran around, the way he swung, and twirled the cane like a staff, had her looking on in awe. And a bit of admiration too.
But why was he doing this? Why is he training? And for what?
That question, demanded an answer. And she was going to get it, one way or another.
So she eventually stepped out of her spot, and towards where Sly is, as he was swinging around, when he caught her in his sight before she could say that she's there. (Which was good, since there was a risk that he could've hit her by accident.)
"Carmelita?! W-What a surprise t-to see you here!" He said surprised as he stumbled a little bit.
"Likewise. I have to say, you look so superchévere, (Cool,) as you swing that el bastón. (Cane.)" She said.
Sly smiled at that, finding it pleasant to be praised by Carmelita. Even if he was feeling like blushing at the fact that he was found. "Thanks. But why are you here?"
"I was looking for you, to ensure that you aren't lost. But now I should be asking you the same thing." She responded. "Why are you here, and swinging it around? Could you likely be training for something?" She asked.
Sly was hesitant to answer that. After all, he could be sharing his little secret with her, that he swears, could be bringing some trouble on him, if she starts to know about his family line. He did hear about the fact that thieves were not looked on fondly, due to their profession. And that included his family line. Which is what made his line misunderstood in his eyes, since they merely steal from other criminals, and not from the common man.
But he felt, that whatever lie he could come up with, could get shot down by Carmelita, who would see through them without too much trouble. But he could tell her enough to sate her curiosity. "I am indeed training. But it's not for the reasons, you might be thinking about."
"What? You mean you're not training yourself for karate, or Kung Fu?" She asked tilting her head in confusion, and curiosity.
Sly shook his head. "No. Instead, it's to help train myself in using my cane, along with my… other skills that I could use for my quest. By the time we leave this Orphanage."
"What other skills? And what quest?" She asked.
"If you weren't told from the faculty of the Orphanage, about why I'm here, then I'll tell you. You see, my parents used to be around. And I was set up to… inherit my book, that was from my family line." He said, currently leaving out the details about his book being the Thievius Raccoonus.
"But what happened?" She asked, bracing herself for the news.
"They…" He said, before drawing in a breath, to stop himself from bursting into tears at what he was going to tell her. "They were murdered by a gang." He said.
Carmelita gasped, despite bracing herself for it. She expected the bad news, but she didn't expect this kind of bad news to come from him, as she started to feel more sympathy for him. "Your parents were murdered?! And by a gang, no less?!" She asked in shock.
He nodded. Still feeling some tears threatening to leak out. "Not only that, but they ripped the pages out of my book, until it was just an empty hard cover, before leaving. I witnessed the whole thing while I was hiding." He somberly said.
Carmelita was also surprised at what he said about the book, even though she wondered what kind of book he got. Considering that it was passed down to him, it must be a treasure of his, and his family's. And that had her feeling quite sorry for him. "Who would do such a thing?"
"I'm not sure. All I know though, was that the gang consisted of five members. And that an Owl lead them." He said, describing the gang to her. Making sure not to cry.
Which had her definitely surprised at what she heard from him. And for another reason. "An Owl killed your parents with his gang?! Before tearing out your book pages?! That happened to me too!"
Now Sly was the one that was surprised at what he heard from her. "Really?!"
"Indeed Sly! That loathsome Owl killed my mami y papi! (Mommy and daddy!) And do you know what else?! Well- actually, let me show you in my room. It's getting very dark." She said.
Before taking Sly by his hand, before walking back to the orphanage with him in tow, after he said okay, and took Bentley's flashlight with them. He wondered what she wanted to show him.
*Flashback end*
Both thieves were sailing to the blimp until they crashed through the glass.
*CRASH*
Both thieves sailed through the windows, before repositioning in the air to land on a platform, where they looked around and saw that they were on a floating platform that was one of the few places to stand.
Since the whole room was filled with water, and there was platforms that counted up to five, that were the only things they could stand on in the room. Which sucks, since they still couldn't swim. They also saw a pair of giant fans that was to the left, and right, of a throne in the room.
And on the throne, was the first member of the Fiendish Five, whom they were now glaring at. He was a green frog that wore a pair of gloves, shoes, and a metallic top hat that was quite tall, and looked like it was made from a bunch of metal sheets that was put together by welding, or rivets. And he looked quite annoyed.
"How delightful. We have guests. The only thing is however, IS THAT I HATE UNEXPECTED GUESTS!" He shouted the last part angrily as he slammed his fist on the chair.
Neither of them were frightened though, as they continued to glare angrily at him.
"Listen up Raleigh. Wipe out our family, and steal what's ours, you should be expecting company." Sly said.
"Especially, if what's ours, is quite important to us." Carmelita said.
Initially, Raleigh felt like merely rolling his eyes at what the Raccoon, and Fox thieves said. After all, he, and the rest of the Fiendish Five, did kill some people to become the eponymous gang that lived in infamy throughout the world. And he was sure that they had a family of their own, some of which could be out for him.
So he was tempted to tell the thieves to narrow it down for him.
But then he started to recognize the colors that the Raccoon had in his fur, reminding him of a familiar pair of Raccoons that the gang killed for the book that the leader wanted.
Which, even though he didn't show it, it left him surprised at what he heard when he recognized the Raccoon. It was the Cooper kid that they were going to kill, (If they found him that is.) but their leader refused to let them, since he got what he wants already. Being the book that they just ripped the pages out of before going into the separate parts of the world. It was like he was letting him live, regardless of him being a Cooper.
And then he got surprised again, when he ended up recognizing the Fox too. It was the little Spanish fox girl, that he, and his gang, also made an orphan, by killing her own parents before she was let live too. (Mainly since she hid away from them herself, and couldn't be found either.)
It apparently came as a sudden shock to him, that not only was the Cooper kid now out for revenge, but so was the Fox girl. Both of whom were orphans thanks to his gang, and now they were out for revenge against him, and the Fiendish Five, to avenge the death of their parents, and to take back the pages of the book that he took.
If there was an example of the phrase, 'What a coincidence!', it would be this revelation that he heard.
But he hid his surprise behind his fury that ran ice cold through his motions as he continued to speak softly. "Ohhhhh, I'm ever so sorry." He sarcastically said. "How sloppy of me not to finish the job. Obviously we should've snuffed both of you out as well." He said.
"Well, you didn't. And that's odd. You, and the rest of the Fiendish five could've killed us if you searched for Sly, then me, when you robbed us. And yet you didn't. Why is that?" Carmelita asked.
"HOW SHOULD I KNOW?! Our gracious leader made us let you both live, and he didn't provide us a reason why. So why don't you save that nagging question for him when you meet him again. That is, if you're able to. But enough talk, because it's time to make you ruffians leave. THROUGH BODYBAGS THAT IS! So without further ado, let me make amends by what…"
"BLOATING TO GARGANTUAN SIZE, AND SQUASHING YOU BOTH, LIKE THE INSIGNIFICANT BUGS THAT YOU ARE!" He then shouted on the last part.
"Bring it on." Sly, and Carmelita said in unison as some bugs started to appear overhead. Each of which, looked like bees.
Before Raleigh proceeded to use his tongue to eat one of them, before indeed bloating like a balloon to where his throat, and belly, was massive enough to tower over both of them, before he then bounced off of the throne, and into the platforms that floated on the water, before he jumped onto the center pedestal, that was floating in the air for some reason.
Then he bounced off of it, intending to squash them both under his massive bouncing gut.
Neither thief was willing to let him, as they nimbly ran around, avoiding his bouncing gut, while Carmelita shot him with her shock bullets.
However, whether it's due to the bloated fat on him, or some sort of mucus that could be resistant to electric shocks, her bullets were ineffective as they were both making sure to run so they won't get squashed until they could find a way to defeat the frog.
And they found it. As after the fifth bounce, Raleigh ended up belching by mistake, causing him to deflate back to his original size. Which was a surprise, but Sly quickly took advantage, and hit him with his cane, alongside Carmelita, using her own ruby red cane, knocking him back.
It hurt him, but didn't take him down as he swam in the water for a bit, before he jumped back on the pedestal, before eating another bug to re-inflate himself.
Now the platforms were now gone, leaving only the single platform that they were standing on, as the only thing to stand on. Which was much to their dismay, and Raleigh's delight as he was now bouncing on the platform, still trying to crush them both under his big gut.
Unfortunately for Raleigh, the platform had enough space for them to run on to dodge the Frog's bone crushing bounce. Now they were running around on the Platform, until Raleigh deflates.
Which he did again, on his fifth bounce, before belching, and deflating. Before Sly again, whacked him with his cane, while Carmelita did the same, to knock him back in the water.
After his swimming was done, he angrily bounced back onto the podium, before eating another bug to inflate himself again as the platforms resurfaced out of the water. Before he then tried to crush them again.
To think that he'd start to realize this by now, that he can't crush them like that. They're just too fast for his bouncing gut.
Which is why he ended up bouncing onto their platform, causing it to suddenly have red lights turning on in the edges. Both thieves quickly guessed that it couldn't be good news as they were jumping off of it to the next platform, with Raleigh in pursuit.
Sure enough, the platform that they got off of, alongside Raleigh, ended up submerging. Which was a bad thing if they were on it, for obvious reasons, so they were glad they jumped off of it as they continued to get away from Raleigh when he bounced at him at a faster pace that he was capable of making, to where he was now bouncing up and down, while cutting his air time by half.
And they both had to admit, that, combined with the submerging platforms that sunk down after Raleigh started to bounce on them, was making their battle dangerous. But he isn't intending on giving him the edge, as they kept on jumping on the next platforms.
Carmelita suddenly fell down, accidentally taking Sly down with her as they both were on the platform that they jumped to next, as Raleigh was now bearing down on them as he jumped off of the previous platform before it sank, as he was about to crush them under his gut, much to their horror.
They were able to roll aside just in the nick of time, just before Raleigh once again accidentally belched on his last bounce.
"AAHHHH!"
But he did some damage nonetheless. As he was able to crush Carmelita's hand when she pushed Sly out of the way. Luckily, it wasn't her dominant hand that shoots out her shock pistol, but it was the one that holds her cane.
Which was much to Sly's chagrin, as he whacked Raleigh aside again out of anger, before he was now by her side after making sure to keep his rage in check.
"Are you okay?!"
"I'll be fine Sly. It's just twisted. It'll heal. It just felt like a giant one ton water-balloon landed on it without popping." She said.
It seems that it is how it'd feel if either of them got crushed by Raleigh's gut, as they glared at the now enraged Frog that jumped on the pedestal again, before once again, eating another bug to inflate himself again.
Now the other Platforms were submerged again, leaving them on the only platform that floated in the water as Raleigh bounced to their Platform.
This time however, he was doing something different. "You're fast. BUT HOW WELL CAN YOU DODGE THIS?!" He said.
Before he then stuck his tongue out, and then spun around fast while sticking it out straight as a pole, intending to hit the thieves with his tongue.
That move almost caught them both off guard, but they were able to jump over it, like they were playing jump-rope again, except the mad Frog was swinging it around like a tether ball rope on a swivel. But they were just barely clearing the tongue, since Raleigh was raising it a bit with every swiveling swing that he did.
They could even barely feel his tongue, brushing against their feet as he continued to try to use his tongue as a weapon against them.
After the seventh swing, he was able to trip them up and have them landing flat on their bellies, as he was prepared to hit them with his tongue. But before he could even attempt it, he belched again, causing him to deflate again. And little did he know, it became his undoing, as before he could hop back to his pedestal, Sly was quick enough to recover onto his feet, before whacking the Frog again.
And this time, Carmelita was able to pull out her shock pistol, before shooting him in midair. Shocking him with her shots, before he ended up falling into the water.
Raleigh was defeated.
"BLAST IT ALL! You've both beaten me!" He said in dismay, and anger as he laid on a resurfacing Platform that floated in the water.
"And it was a long time coming. That's what you get for killing our parents. And for those that lost their ships, and probably their lives, in your Welsh Triangle." Carmelita said as both she, and Sly jumped onto the Platform that he was on.
"Not to mention the survivors that might've ended up in your Isle of Wrath, that you might've killed too." Sly said, feeling satisfied that he won the battle alongside his girlfriend.
"Ohhhh, gloat all you want, Sly Cooper, and Carmelita Fox. But know this, neither of you are any match for Muggshot! My villainous cohort in Utah. And you'll see, how unstoppable he is, as Mesa City is so well guarded, that not even a snake can slither in without setting off alarms." Raleigh said, before briefly laughing as he passed out from the pain of his defeat.
Before both thieves ended up kissing each other in victory at their battle against the Frog, before they proceeded to the safe.
"Raleigh's section of the Thievius Raccoonus, gave me details on how to perform my ancestor, Rioichi Cooper's Ninja Spire Jump. A technique that he developed while sneaking through the thickly fortified castles of Feudal Japan. I do wonder if it was before, or after the Sengoku Jidai, but that isn't important."
"What is important though, is that I got the other pages back. Not just the page that Rioichi Cooper was on. And I was quite joyous at that."
"But there was another big score that we got. As there was more Pages to grab from Raleigh's safe, even though the rest weren't mine."
"Instead, much to my girlfriend's joy, they belonged to Carmelita's own book, that too had their pages taken from the hardcover, by the Fiendish Five."
"It's known as the Guardius Vulpinus."
"And like the Thievius Raccoonus, it was Carmelita's book that was passed down her family through the generations. Unlike my book though, it merely focused on keeping order, protecting the innocent, and catching the bad guys that are up to no good."
"And I remembered being shown the book by her, which would be before she learned about my book, and my family line. And I was surprised at how different, yet somewhat similar we are, in family lines, the books, and even the honor we follow, even though we had a common cause against the Fiendish Five."
"Which had me feeling, that the Guardius Vulpinus was the Yin, to the Thievius Raccoonus' Yang. The opposite in almost every way, and in the world without the Fiendish Five, we were going to become foes. It's a ridiculous twist, I admit."
"And yet, we are allies, and lovers instead. Guess opposites really do attract after all."
"Anyways, back to the chase."
"Finding a way out of Raleigh's boat, got a little hard, with the untimely arrival of the police. But luckily, Carmelita had them off of my tail as I made my getaway. While, 'failing' to find me, Carmelita got the credit, as she busted Raleigh, and his crew."
Sly narrated, as on the Newspaper (Known as the "Sucker Punch" daily.) that he read, he saw a picture of Raleigh, as he was being held up by his legs by a cop, while Carmelita stood by in the photo, while it said "Hot Chick with Gun busts amphibious yuckmouth!" while there was another sentence under it that said "Isle of Wrath to be renamed to Isle of Nice." along with some other photos, including one of his silhouette. With another caption over it that said, "Mysterious figure once again eludes authorities."
Sly had to say, they were correct on the first part of the first sentence, in reference to Carmelita.
"With the Storm Machine now out of commission, boats found their way back onto the now safe ocean floor near England. And the mystery of the Welsh Triangle, faded from memory."
"My gang, (Including my Girlfriend.) and I, loafed around England for a while, enjoying the pleasant weather, among other things to do in our celebration of Raleigh's defeat."
He narrated, as he snuck away while holding a bag that said "Her majesty's big bag of Crown Jewels." while Murray, and Carmelita, posed for a photo, that Bentley was taking.
"And then we headed back home, excited for our next Heist."
And done.
Here's a little trivia for you guys, that involves the beginning, and middle flashbacks of this chapter. You see, I was originally going to make it as a one-shot that detailed the backstory of Sly, and Carmelita's life in the Orphanage, along with the rest of Sly's gang, as well as after they leave the Orphanage. But I decided to make them into a series of flashbacks throughout this story instead to bring some detail to their lives in the Orphanage in the story. I have hopes that it's a good move to do such.
As for the sub minigame, I made a major change to it. Where it's only the crabs that are getting shot by the subs that Sly, and Carmelita are riding in. Having them blast the chests as well, in order to grab the key, would make no narrative sense in this story, so I figured that I should have them blast only the crabs in order to get the key. There are some missions that I might end up cutting out of this story, if they don't make sense in the narrative standpoint if I get to them, so I might remove their keys too.
And also, yes, this is my twist with Carmelita. She too suffered her loss by the hands of the Fiendish Five. And she is just as determined to beat them, as Sly is since she too lost her own book's pages. I just thought that it'd be an interesting twist.
Even though that does bring me some questions of what I can do with it. Like what sort of skills from the Guardius Vulpinus, could I have Carmelita use in this story? That is why, if any of you readers have a list of what she could use, don't hesitate to tell me in the Reviews to this story. For now though, one down, four to go.
Finally one more thing.
I hope that you enjoyed the chapter,
please give constructive criticism, just don't be rude,
do not forget to read and review,
and once again, I do not own the Sly Cooper series. It is owned by Sucker Punch, and Sony Entertainment. Please Support the Official releases.
Theodore the poet signing off.