DISCLAIMER: J. Lucy-Daisuke: 50 Irish, 15 sadist and 100 not the owner of Lupin the Third.
Happy hell week, dear readers!
Okay, folks, got a dilemma here… I'm approaching upon fifty chapters in this series, and I'm wondering if I should divide this story into another part and continue… Because, well, I like these characters, and I don't want to let them go just yet. So what do you think, another part? You guys are the readers, it's just as much yours as mine, and I'd love to hear your opinion on it. Even if it's just short responses like, "cut" or "keep". Thanks a million, folks, you know I'm a feedback whore. Feed my ego, give me some direction. Oh, if you like this story, there's another chapter in the story Second Hand Crimes, which essentially works with the same characters. Happy readings!
Fun Fact of Boredom: Lots of ideas have gone through, and, well, not all have made the cut. Some have ended up as Scrapbook Stories (the redheaded stepchild of my writings) and others have just been scrapped. Amongst them—Jigen meeting Ming's brothers (ran out of time and I felt like I was introducing a new family member every other chapter at that point), something which involved a clone of Lupin (yeahhhh that was one of the more bizarre ones) and an arc paying even greater homage to The Producers, with Leo and Max hiring actors to disguise themselves as the Lupin gang so they could finally get a break (sounded a bit too devious for them).
Chapter forty: Piano Man
"This is where you live?" Fuji whistled as she stepped onto the marble floor and looked around at the Italian art pieces decorating the large main room of Mamoru's home. "This is better than my parents' place!"
"Yeah… I get told I have pretty decent taste, for a straight guy," Mamoru chuckled and shut the door behind them. "Let me pour you something to drink."
Fuji gave a nod and continued to wordlessly tour the home, walking up to a staircase and stopping short as she saw it led to nothing except for an area where a floor should have been. The walls on either side were lined with doors, but the floor was mysteriously absent.
"Come on," Mamoru chuckled and walked up the stairs and headed toward the hole at the foot of the stairs.
"What are you, crazy!" Fuji shouted, and watched, stunned, as he walked out onto the air. "Wha… What the?"
"Glass," he chuckled, and kicked lightly upon the floor. "Come on…"
Fuji pulled down her skirt and gingerly stepped out onto the glass. "Please tell me you don't have anyone working downstairs here."
"The maid only comes on Tuesdays and Thursdays," he answered and spun Fuji about on the glass.
"Jeeze, do you have any more tricks!" Fuji laughed with amazement.
"A lot," he answered in a lower voice, followed by a pause between the two. Mamoru then held up the wine bottle to Fuji. "Urm, drink?"
"Love it," Fuji answered, and walked back down the stairs with the musician by her side.
Seoul, Korea:
"Well, this was nice of her, I guess…"
"Thank you for going through this with me," said Odori with a sigh just before opening the door to the penthouse and immediately falling into the embrace of her twin.
"Mi Noh!" Young-Lee squealed. "And her cute boyfriend! Still a boyfriend, right?"
Jordan looked offward and gave a nod after a moment, "Yeah, still a boyfriend… How're you, Young-Lee?"
"Well…" Young-Lee paused a moment, and slowly shut the door behind the two, and burst into tears. "I can't do this anymore! I need a break! Mi Noh, you're GOT to help me, I'm begging you, please!"
"What? Young-Lee, what's the matter?" asked Odori sternly, pulling away from her sister but keeping a light hold of her arms. "Is someone after you? What's wrong?"
"All of this!" Young-Lee answered, throwing her arms up in the air and looking about at the spacious penthouse.
"…The stress must be really killing you," Jordan muttered, glancing over at a fine modern art piece and immediately falling into thief mode as he appraised the painting in his mind, while Odori attempted to calm her sister.
"I… I don't understand," Odori blinked with confusion, and allowed Young-Lee to step out of her grasp.
"Come on," Young-Lee waved, and ushered them into a large living room, and seated herself in the middle of a large, brightly-colored couch that matched the art-deco décor of the highrise, which overlooked the city below. "I've been on tour for months now… This is my first break since we met last… I was hoping to get away for a few weeks."
"Well, why don't you just go?" asked Odori with a shrug, seating herself beside Jordan.
"Contracts," answered Young-Lee, falling back against the cushy couch and nearly disappearing. "I need a stand-in, even if it's for a week… An award show, one concert, and a couple of parties… Just enough time for me to visit the family."
"….I wish you the best luck in your quest, Young-Lee," Odori said after a pause, rising and hurrying to the front door.
"Wait! Please don't!" Young-Lee yelped, beating Odori to the door. "It's just for a week, and I'll repay you anyway I can!"
"You have nothing I desire, Young-Lee."
"Mi Nohhhhhhh…." Young-Lee gripped onto Odori's arm tightly, and gave a pathetic, teary-eyed expression.
"Fine," grumbled Odori, breaking away from her sister. "You're as bad as Fuji, sometimes!"
"Thank you!" chirped Young-Lee, embracing her once again. "You won't regret this!"
"Oh, I have a feeling you're wrong," Odori murmured beneath her breath.
France:
"Hrm?" Leo yawned and stretched, and scratched his head; what time was it? Four in the morning? What was he doing up at four in the morning?
"Probably your damn snoring," Leo muttered as he looked over to Max, who was sleeping soundly beside him. Leo rose and stretched once again, throwing on his purple and gold kimono over his boxer shorts, and shuffled out into Avery's room first to check on the infant and then into Dako and finally Jared's room. He rolled his eyes as he found the young boy cuddling with a martial arts magazine. After wrestling it out of his grip, he flipped through it briefly before stepping of his son's room and into the kitchen.
"What a night," Leo said to himself as he heard the thunderstorm outside and poured himself a glass of juice. There was a flash of lighting, and Leo took the slow thud on the window to be nothing but the rain, or perhaps even some hail.
"Maybe I should bring the car into the garage…" he thought aloud, and set the glass down on the table. Just as he picked up the keys to the front door, however, the glass smashed, and Leo fell to the ground as a force knocked him to the ground. The two children as well as Max came rushing out, and Avery's screaming could be heard from his room. Max quickly pulled Dako and Jared back into Avery's room, locking the door behind them, and began to shoot at the black that had suddenly engulfed the room. After a few moments, the black swarmed out, and Avery's crying subsided.
Leo shakily rose and wiped the blood away from the open cuts on his face and neck, and Max quickly placed an arm about him, and both stared at the dead birds littering the floor.
"Let us out!" Jared shouted, kicking at the door.
"Move," grumbled Dako, who pushed him out of the way and went to picking at the lock. In the middle of this, however, Max swung open the door, and both parents did a quick check of their children.
"Pop, what happened to your face!" a horrified Jared yelped.
"Nothing," muttered Leo. "It's nothing… You two can sleep in our room tonight, all right? Jared, you and Dako set up the crib we have in our room for Avery, all right?"
"I'll clean up your face," Max added quickly, and switched on the light for Leo, and seated him on the shut toilet seat. "What in the hell was that?"
"I wish I knew," admitted Leo, beginning to wipe his eyes. "Ow, Max, hurry, it's getting in my eyes!"
"Yeah, honey, just sit tight," Max whispered and reached for the first aide kit, and began to clean the wounds, pulling down Leo's kimono to his waist in the process. "This'll sting…"
"I'm used to it," Leo muttered, removing his totaled reading glasses and tossing these in the garbage can.
"We'll get you a new pair this weekend," Max replied as he read Leo's annoyed expression. "Who do you think could've done this?"
"Listen, I wish I knew… Ow! Watch it, Max, that hurts! Damn…"
"I thought it didn't hurt…"
"Let's just hope it was a freak accident," said Leo with a sigh, closing his eyes and allowing Max to continue to clean his face from the wounds he had suffered from the attack.
The following morning, Paris:
"Woah, Mamoru, who's the babe!" a guitarist laughed.
"Yeah, and how'd you get her?" the drummer added, laying down his sticks and rising. "Nice to meet you, urm…"
"This is Fuji," Mamoru announced.
"Ohhh a Japanese girl!" the guitarist said with a wide smile. "About time he brought home a homegirl!"
"Or any girl, for that matter," the drummer added, and both broke off into a laugh.
"Why am I thinking brining her here was a mistake, now?" Mamoru rolled his eyes and looked to Fuji.
"Trust me, they're no worse than my gang."
"What, are you a musician, too?" Mamoru asked as Fuji took a seat in the sound room and looked about at the instruments as well as the insulated padding.
"Not really… My friends and I are really into art," answered Fuji, clearing her throat and then falling back in the chair with a yawn.
"Urm, you could go lay down on the couch outside, if you want," Mamoru stepped away from his keyboard and laid his jacket over Fuji's shoulders and smiled downward at her. "I know the drive must've tired you out some."
"Mm," nodded Fuji. "I'll be fine… I'll sleep on the cab ride home," answered Fuji, stretching and shuffling out into the recording studio. "Maybe resting my eyes wouldn't hurt, though…"
Mamoru waited until the door was closed, and narrowed his eyes at the guitarist and drummer. "Either of you touch her and you will most definitely end up like out bassist."
Both men looked to one another nervously, then back to Mamoru, and gave stern nods, "We'll make sure she's not harmed," the guitarist replied.
New York:
"Isn't this more of a Fuji thing?" Yukiko whispered. Toshiro only gave a shrug and adjusted his skirt as Yukiko made sure her hair was tucked in tightly beneath her fedora. "Well, let's get this done with…"
"I always love how enthusiastic you are toward life," Toshiro muttered and clutched onto his swords tightly.
"Hey, shouldn't you not undermine your husband?" Yukiko smirked and smacked Toshiro on the rear, causing him to jerk forward and then look to her with a red-faced glare. "Not so fun on the other side, is it?"
"Why couldn't you wear the dress?"
"Because you fight in a dress, already, anyway. A woman in a fedora's unusual, but a man? Well, it's New York, ain't it?"
"What in the hell?" their contact blinked as they stepped into the diner and seated themselves in front of him. It was difficult not to break out into a laugh, and he only managed not to by sipping his tea. "I knew this would happen someday, I just knew it!"
Toshiro gave a small growl and looked away, tugging at his skirt once more, and Yukiko reached over and took the teacup from Lupin, and silently finished this off.
"Just like your old man," Lupin murmured and shook his head. "You guys ready for this?"
"Yeah, I'm just curious as to why you don't have Fuji or Jordan doin' this for you," Yukiko admitted, leaning back in her chair while Toshiro shuddered from a whistle he had received from a passing sailor.
"Well, Jordan's in Korea, and Fuji I haven't seen in days," Lupin sighed. "I've got a rescue team going after her."
"Rescue team?"
"Heiji, Ryo and Ally," answered Lupin. "Apparently Leo and she had a bad fight on Easter, and he hasn't heard from her since… None of us honestly have a clue as to where she is. So we've got her tech expert, driver and hand-to-hand combat master looking around for her, while you two do this job for me… Yuki, you sure you're ready to—"
"I was ready the day Saiyuri was born," answered Yukiko with a determined smile. "But I thought you weren't into these things anymore, Lupin…. I thought you mainly did government work."
"Well, every once in a while a guy starts to itch for another great heist," Lupin placed his hands behind his head and returned the smile. "But…. I'm a little old for it now. I teach, mainly."
"Teach? Who?"
"A few private lessons to students," he replied. "Anyway, it's sheet music."
"Sheet music?" both yelped.
"C'mon, Lupin—Seriously?" Toshiro laughed. "Couldn't you go down to a store and like, pick up some?"
"Excuse me, Dear, the men are talking," Lupin said with a smirk. "Why don't you go do your makeup, eh? That color's unbecoming on you, anyway."
"Kiss my Brooklyn—"
"Guys, guys! Okay, Lupin, where is it?" Yukiko held up her hands to the two men and sighed as she slowly set them down again. "What's the story behind them, Lupin?"
"Well… They're—" Lupin heaved a sigh as he heard his cell phone go off and glanced at the number. "Great. Knowing her she's maxed out one of my credit cards… One second, guys… Hello, Fujica—Woah, woah! Slow down, Fujiko! What?... Wait, you were cleaning? You clean? Ow, ow, I'm sorry! All right, anyway... What? She's WHAT?" Lupin leaped out of his chair, knocking it to the ground and drawing the attention of the restaurant, and furthering the confusion of Yukiko and Toshiro. "Damn it! I'll… I'll be right over, well, as fast as I can be… No, I don't know how long! I think Ryo's still here, I'll get her to fly me there! Yeah, yeah, I'll bring them… Just calm down, Fujiko, all right? Baby, it'll be fine, I promise… Get Leo and Max to come over and—What? That… That's it; he screws with my grandkids, he's going over the line."
Lupin then hung up the phone and looked upward at Toshiro and Yukiko, "Change of plans, we're going to France."
"Not without a pair of pants, I'm not," Toshiro answered, his deep voice with its thick New York accent once again drawing the attention of the crowd. "What! You guys have never seen a guy out with his husband for the night! Mind your own business!"
"Hehe… C'mon," Lupin grabbed Toshiro by the arm as he exited the restaurant and toward Yukiko, who stood in the doorway with her hands in her pockets. She had distanced herself from the embarrassing rants long before Toshiro had caused a scene.
"Urm, just for the record, I'm not the husband; it's the guy in white who he's married to," Lupin reassured the restaurant before closing the door and running to his car. "Hop in!"
Yukiko did so first, climbing into the passenger seat, while Toshiro opted for the back seat of the Astin Martin, "We've got to stop by the house, first."
"Yeah, and I think I can explain what's going on along the way to guys," Lupin added as he started up the car and backed out of his space. "It's had to have been… Well, over forty years ago, now… So I was pretty young, still."
"You had to be like, thirty, right?" Toshiro chimed in, and watched as Lupin's face reddened.
"I was in…. My twenties…" Lupin answered slowly, in order to keep his composure. "Anyway, there was this guy from the underworld…. Not underworld as in hell, but pretty close, I'm sure of it… He was brilliant…"
Paris:
"So you think the arrangement'll work?" Mamoru stopped the track, and Fuji smiled and nodded lightly as she laid curled up on a couch in the living room of his home. "Glad to see you so enthusiastic," he added with a laugh as he seated himself on the edge of the couch.
"Mm, sorry," Fuji sat up and stretched. "Just enjoying this while I can."
"Hm? Who says you can't enjoy it all of the time?"
"Well, my work… A lot of people rely on me," Fuji answered with a sigh. "I've kind of got to do it for my dad…. If I don't, no one else will."
"I know the feeling," Mamoru closed his eyes and gave a bittersweet smile as he leaned back against the couch. "Kind of like you're being torn, huh?"
"Exactly," Fuji gave a reaffirming nod and leaned against him, not noticing or perhaps not caring that this made Mamoru tense and look to her with great confusion. "I think I've been doing this so long, I'm not exactly sure what I want anymore, except to be the best… 'Cause I hate losing, damn it…. But that's my brother's fault; he always let me win at everything."
"You've got a brother?"
"Sure, you'd love him… Scrawny gay guy… Hopefully you wouldn't love him in that sense, though," Fuji said with a wink.
Mamoru shook his head at this, "What do I have to do to prove to you that I'm not gay or anything like that?"
"Ugh, it's because you're too nice!" Fuji murmured, embracing him and resting her head on his shoulder. "Relationships never work out for me…"
"Yeah? Now that, I have a hard time believing…."
"It's true… My first husband… Well, my ex… Is dead… And the guy I was seeing is probably overseeing a Dell helpline in New Delhi somewhere, by now."
"Okay, that makes two…"
"Well, those were the only serious relationships… If you want me to go into guys I've dated or done other things to, casually, you'll have to put on a pot of coffee, because it'll be a while."
"Third time's a charm…"
"Don't even mention the word 'third' to me," Fuji murmured. "That number just seems to suck away at all of my good karma."
"Ouch… Maybe I should go put that coffee on," Mamoru began to stand from the couch, and Fuji quickly grabbed onto his wrist, and looked upward to him.
"I can think of something better to do…" Fuji answered, standing and taking a step toward him, closing in the gap between them.
Korea:
"Great… They're in there playing dress up and I have Korean television to bide my time with," Jordan muttered as he rested his head with one of hands and flipped through the channels.
"Hey, what do you think!" Young-Lee chirped and pulled Odori out from the bedroom. "Identical twins, eh?"
"I… Urm… Yeah…" Jordan blinked as he looked Odori up and down, and Ishikawa folded her arms over her chest and looked downward at the ground. 'Where… Where in the hell was she hiding those!' Jordan wondered to himself as he noted exactly what Odori was attempting to cover, and immediately proved himself to indeed be part of the Lupin clan with this thought.
"You owe me for this," Odori reminded Young-Li as she looked in the mirror at the outfit, and at her hair. The sight of her hair was enough to make Odori wish to burst out in tears. Once solid black, it now had a few small chunks of blue and purple running through it, which matched the shorts and halter top Young-Li had picked out for her.
"I've got some other outfits for you, too," Young-Lee embraced her sister tightly. "You're the best sister, EVER! I'll find a way to pay you back for this, I promise!"
"You recall out agreement?"
"Oh yeah, don't worry about that!" Young-Lee smiled and held up her hand to Odori as she picked up her suitcase. "Don't worry, Mi Noh, you look beautiful! Now they ought to be picking you up for the photo shoot in about an hour! I left a list of everything on the counter! It's only a couple of days, remember!"
Odori waited until Young-Lee left before she looked in the mirror once again and bit her lower lip, "I've worn bathing suits that had more fabric…"
"You look terrific," Jordan answered, clearing his throat and standing beside her. "Now what was that agreement?"
"It's nothing of importance… I need to find a jacket," Odori cleared her throat and disappeared back into the bedroom. "She's ruined my hair…"
Paris, the following morning:
"Hn?" Fuji heard her cell phone buzz, and lifted it from the dresser, knocking off her purse and its contents. She laid back and flipped this open, and rolled her eyes. "Leo, I'm not babysitting for you tonight," she said to herself, and closed the phone, then rolled over once again and smiled. "Good… Morning?" She sat up as Mamoru was nowhere to be found, and sat in the middle of the large bed, looking around in puzzlement. "He really is a mystery… Guess I'll just have to find you, Mr. Musician…"
Meanwhile, across Paris, Max Zenigata shouted a series of words at the blackened part of the home that Leo had never heard him say; even some of the curses and their combinations were alien to Leo.
Lupin the Third stood beside his son, and lit a cigarette, and passed this wordlessly to Leo, who only nodded and took a drag before passing it back to his father.
"At least it's just the kitchen," Lupin said as he took another puff. "I'll get some of the kids to help you move… You guys can stay with us until it's repaired."
"We could've been killed," Leo murmured. "Maybe… Maybe we should move…"
"I hate to scare you, but it won't make any difference," answered Lupin. "If he's anything like his old man was, he'll chase you down to the ends of the earth."
"W-why! I didn't do anything to him!"
"I guess it comes with the genes," Lupin bent his head down and sighed and Leo's angered expression. "Yeah… You should be mad at me…. But being mad won't get us anywhere, right now. We've got to figure out how to get this creep, and how to get him away from Fuji."
"I tried to call her, but she's either ignoring me or she's in trouble, too," Leo answered with a sigh, and looked over his shoulder at his children, who were being spoken to in a low voice by a fireman. Leo gripped onto Max shoulder and directed his attention to the three, and Zenigata-Lupin nodded and followed him over to the three.
"So what's gonna happen to us, now?" asked Dako in a quiet voice as Max took a seat beside her on the bumper of the fire engine.
"Well, we're going to move in with Grandpa for a while," Max placed an arm about her while Leo seated himself beside Jared and did the same, only with Avery in his free arm.
"We'll get that guy, all right? I promise… We always do," said Leo to his son quietly.
"Except for Aunt Fuji and he friends," Jared added.
"….What's up?" Max looked at Leo's wide-eyed expression of realization at this statement. "Are you thinking of something?"
"Yup," Leo nodded and turned to Max with a smile. "What do you say, do you want to lend a hand?"
"Heh, what else have I got to do, bake cookies?" Max shrugged and shoved his hands in his pockets. "All right, I'm in…. .But what about the kids?"
"You act like we're three!" Dako sighed with disgust and slid off of the bumper. "We love spending time with Grandma and Grandpa, and you two don't need to feel bad about leaving us to work! Hell, Dad's parents stayed home with him and he still ended up screwed up!"
"Hey!" Max shouted angrily. "You know what I said about cursing, damn it!"
"…And you wonder…." Leo said with a sigh and shake of the head as he saw this irony lost upon his husband.
"Well, she does have a bit of a point, there…. Having Zenigata and Natasha around didn't make you try to bite cats less," said Lupin with a sigh.
"You tried to bite cats?" Jared asked through laughter.
"More than once… I spent years thinking he'd end up opening a Chinese restaurant, the way he tormented them," Lupin said with a twitch of the mouth. "Thank God the one was a Manx, already, anyway. Come on, I'll grab you kids something to eat, and then maybe I'll whip out a credit car or two and we'll hit some stores later."
"Awesome!" Jared said excitedly. "Could you get me some shirokin? Pleeeassseee!"
"You're nine, what are you going to do with throwing stars?" asked Lupin with a bland frown. "I've got to get the rest of the gang together, guys, but you take care."
"No, Dad. You babysit, we've got this," Leo placed a hand on his father's shoulder and patted it. "Go spoil the kids… We've got so work to do."
Lupin gave a frown at the thought of being dismissed as a babysitter, and then took Avery in his arms and nodded, "Yeah… Take care, you guys."
"I'm really worried about this," Dako said, and quietly took Jared's hand. Jared cleared his throat as his face reddened from this gesture, and embraced her.
"Don't worry, I'm a ninja, remember? I'll protect you, Ave and Grandpa," said Jared to her quietly. "I might not be the best, but I'm close to it."
"Show off," Dako laughed quietly.
Tokyo:
"Five more minutes," Odori grumbled and rolled over in the airplane seat, and then fluttered her eyes open. "Where are we, Jordan?"
"Urm, your sister's private plane," Jordan answered.
"….I was afraid of that," Odori sat up in her seat and looked to the one across her, and saw Namiko with her dolls spread out onto the empty seat beside her. She had coloring the hair of one doll with her markers, as well as taken numerous rubber bands and made a series of ponytails on the doll's head.
She held it up and smiled, "Momma!"
"Yes, Momma," Odori sighed and shut her eyes tightly. "….Momma's hair… Makes her look like a bad anime character."
"Hey, you look fine!" smiled Jordan, and patted her back. "Now it says on your schedule that…. This is your photo shoot."
"Ugh… And how are you going to get in with me, hrm?"
"I'm your publicist!"
"And Namiko is…?"
"My wife left me on Tuesday, didn't you hear? The bitch took everything, so I can't find a babysitter for my daughter until we're both home."
"Hmph. I suppose you know this means changing diapers, correct?"
"Heh, how hard can it be?"
"She kicks…. Hard," Odori answered gravely as the plane made its final descent into the airport and the three soon boarded off of the private plane and into a limo, and then to a Tokyo photographer's studio.
Odori was the first to walk in, and looked about at the large black and white photos surrounding the walls of the office. One in particular, after she tilted her head to a side and stood there a moment, brought a blush to her as she realized exactly what it was she was looking at.
"Right this way, please," the secretary ushered the three in, and Jordan remained toward the back of the studio with Namiko in his arms while Odori was led to a large white screen the fell and extended to the floor, and she nodded as the photographer began to voice his instructions.
"Now, you stand right… Here," the photographer took Odori by the shoulders and faced her toward the camera, and ran back to make sure she was in focus. "Excellent! Beautiful! Now… How about you turn, eh? Wonderful! Now let's try a few more shots."
He walked back over to Odori at this time led her to a rack of costumes.
"How do I even wear this?" Odori muttered with amazement as she pulled one glittering piece from the rack of outfits.
"Here, I'll show you," the photographer turned Odori about, and within moments had the zipper to her top pulled down. And within three seconds afterward, after a loud scream, the photographer lay on the floor, a part of his lighting laying atop his head, with a large dent running down the side of the pole. Odori zipped the top back up, and stormed out, taking Jordan by the arm along the way.
"You know… I heard divas were temperamental… But they never told me this one was Lucy Lui!"
"Urm… Are you…?"
"I'm fine," Odori snapped, and pulled open the door to the limo. "Come on, let's go. What's next on the list?"
"Urm, hopefully not you kicking someone else's ass," he answered as he cleared his throat and looked over the list. "It says… Well, you're making an appearance at an orphanage."
Odori's features solemned, and she gave a silent nod as she slid into the limo, and then Jordan shut the door behind them as they drove off to their next destination.
France:
"What's this?" Mamoru paused a moment as he stepped into his home and smelt the distinct smell of the oven at work, as well as the sound of something sizzling on the stovetop.
"Thank God for frozen food and Ally's cooking lessons," Fuji murmured as she pulled out a sheet of biscuits and removed the skillet worth of bacon from the stovetop.
"Urm… Hello…" Mamoru watched with puzzlement as he stood in the doorway of the kitchen.
"Hey!" Fuji spun about and waved. "Urm, thought I'd do a little cooking, hehehe…. This kitchen's so clean, it's like it's never been used!"
"It… It hasn't," he answered, blinking once more. "Thank you?"
"Er… This was okay to do, right? I, urm, know some people would freak out, but…"
"No, it's fine… It's wonderful," Mamoru answered as he seated himself at the counter. "I'd love you to do it more… I really enjoy this, Fuji. I know it's been a short period of time, but I would really like it if…."
"Huh? What's up?" Fuji seated herself beside him and tossed aside her apron and oven mitts. "Why so glum?"
"I was wondering if you'd consider staying with me…."
"I already am."
"No, I mean… For longer…"
"Oh! Oh, you mean like, move in with you?"
"Exactly," he answered with a nod. "Or… Or even go on the road with me! It gets rather lonely."
"Yeah, urm… I know," answered Fuji, looking away from him and to the surrounding kitchen. "My job takes me on the road a lot, too."
"I'll retire, then."
"What!" Fuji yelped and rose from her seat. "No, you can't! You've got tons of people depending on you! My little niece… She loves you! Oh, no, Dako!"
"Dako?"
"I'm an aunt," Fuji shrugged. "I…. Mamoru, I can't really have kids, so… I kinda just look after them for my brother."
"You sound sad about that…"
"Well, it's just that…" Fuji seated herself once against and rested her head on the palm of her left hand. "Everyone's having kids or getting married, now…. I feel like the homely sister from the Brady Bunch."
"Wasn't her name Kate or something?"
"Kate?" Fuji blinked. "There wasn't even a Kate! Maybe it's the Pattie Duke Show you're thinking of…"
"We're getting off the subject here, and I have the sinking feeling you're doing it on purpose, Fuji… Don't you think you deserve the same thing? I mean, you sound like you care about them…"
"Of course I do! They're like my family!"
"And family would want one another to be happy, wouldn't they?"
"Well, I…"
"If you want to be a mother, I'll find a way to make it possible."
"What! You're… You're a musician!"
"Who comes from a family which delved deeply into science," answered Mamoru, placing a hand on top of hers. "I'd be more worried about what kind of a parent I'd be…. I never really saw my father a lot, growing up. He was quite…. Distant."
"Well, maybe it's too soon to be thinking about that, but… I really like the idea of maybe spending some more time with you. No one's made me feel this wanted in months, maybe even years, heh. Hey, I've got an idea! Come with me to pick up my niece and nephews, you'd love them! Like I said, Dako's a huge fan, and Jared… He's hyper… But he's so sweet! And Avery's so cute, and he's going to start walking soon!"
"You're going to annoy me with facts about them if I don't, aren't you?"
Fuji brought her nose to his and smiled, "You bet!"
"Well, we'll have to go, then," Mamoru kissed her, and then stood from his seat. "We'll eat when we get back… I, um, will probably be eating this for the entire weekend… How much did you cook here!"
"Doesn't matter, I'll be here to help you eat it," Fuji answered with a smirk.
New Delhi:
"Hello, you've reached technical support, Randolph speaking," Heiji leaned back in his seat boredly and clicked a pen in one hand while the other held a wireless phone. "I'm sorry, you have to buy the software warranty for that sort of issue, let me to connect you."
He was suddenly knocked from his seat by a blunt force to the back of the head, and watched as Veronica looked downward at him irately, clutching onto a rolled up manual.
"What's that for?" Heiji choked, and rubbed his sore skull.
"What's this I hear about you not wanting to rescue your friend!" Veronica demanded, drawing the attention of the other people in the numerous cubicles surrounding him. He noticed then Veronica was still dressed in her doctor's scrubs, and drew his head back in shock at the fact that she had not even removed her latex gloves.
"Wha—What? How'd you find out?"
"I schedule Jigen's appointments, and Jigen tells me," answered Veronica. "How do you think I remember your birthday? Now what is going on, between you and Fuji? Let me know, or I'll beat you like a naughty puppy!"
"Could we at least take it outside?" Heiji sighed, and rose from the ground. Veronica gave a rough nod, and both walked out to the lunch area, a large cement patio with white plastic chairs and tables that overlooked a large blue pool of water.
"Now, explain, because I am listening," Veronica sat back in one of the chairs, the paper still in her hand.
"….I tried to call her… She never answered. So, apparently that means that I'm not forgiven, and I should just lay off of her!"
"No one can get a hold of her, even I tried."
"What?"
"No one has heard from Fuji… Last she was seen, she was with someone who's also suspected of nearly killing Leo and Max and their children."
"Oh… Oh my God…"
"Heiji, we need to go try to find her, we can. This guy, they say, uses science to pull off all sorts of weird tricks. I don't know a better science nerd."
"…Veronica, I…."
"I know," she leaned forward and kissed him atop the head. "No matter what you choose, I'll love you…. But if you think that you still have some feelings for her, you follow those, and don't worry about me. Worse comes to worse, my folks could always stick me with a rich guy!"
"Are… Are you sure?"
"Positive," Veronica leaned inward and embraced him. "Your flight leaves in an hour… Here, take this…"
"My Heiji be good stick?" Heiji asked with a raised eyebrow as he took it from Veronica and unfolded it, allowing a ticket to Paris to fall out. "Woah…"
"It gets better… You've got a taxi with your luggage waiting out front."
"You're really amazing, Puja."
"Call me by my real name again and I won't lay off of your beating."
"But… This is a one-way ticket."
"I know," Veronica nodded. "I know that like I know you, Heiji."
"I'll see you soon!" Heiji called as he stood and walked about the building to the entrance.
"Don't say things you don't mean!" Veronica called.
Japan:
"I've never seen her cry," said the head of the orphanage to Jordan as she watched Odori amongst the children.
"Eh, this is only my second time…"
"And I thought this was some kind of heartless publicity stunt… Are you her boyfriend?"
"Publicist," Jordan answered quietly, and placed a hand on Odori's shoulder. "We've got to go."
"Mm," Odori rose and allowed a small child that had placed its arms about her neck to climb back onto the floor, and wiped her eyes as she walked out of the orphanage, Jordan by her side with Namiko in her arms.
"I think that's the first time I've seen you cry and it hasn't been my fault," Jordan admitted with a small laugh. "Hey, what's wrong?"
"I could've ended up there, or worse," Odori answered, wiping her eyes. "I'm sorry, you should not have to see this."
"Listen, I've seen worse, trust me… Those kids'll be fine, Dori… Come on, why don't we get going to our next little adventure?"
"Which would be…?"
"A concert with this guy named Mamoru Pikal… Don't worry, Young-Lee said all you have to do is lip sync… This shouldn't be too difficult."
Paris:
"And Odori's missing, too?" Heiji gaped at this information, and Yukiko gave a nod. "I can't believe I let this happen!"
"Heiji, it wasn't anyone's fault…" Ryo began with a sigh. "I just… I didn't want to play Fuji's babysitter anymore, so I thought it'd be okay to, you know, let her spread her wings a bit."
"You, too?" Ally sighed and sat back in his chair and sighed.
"Yeah, yeah, we all get an 'F' in friendship… Now we've gotta figure out how the hell to go about this," Toshiro sighed, and watched as Leo walked in, begrudgingly followed by Max.
"What in the hell are you doing here?" Ryo demanded, rising to meet Leo's eyes.
"We know you're missing Fuji…" Leo sighed. "And we think she's with the same guy who's been trying to kill me."
"Mamoru Pycal… Changed his name to Pikal years back," Max added, removing a photo from his pocket and passing it to Ryo. "Leo saw them together a few nights ago."
"Fuji, what in the hell have you done now?" a terrified Ryo asked in a whisper, seating herself once again in the large armchair she had been lying in while attempting to call Fuji.
"We know where Mamoru's going to be playing, and where he is, more than likely Fuji will be," Max announced, choosing not to seat himself with the Lupin gang. "But the show's sold out, so there's no way of getting in."
"Unless you're with us," added Leo. "We're willing to make a briefly truce with you guys to find Fuji."
"And then you'll help us find Odori," Heiji added quickly.
"Don't push it—" Max began, only to have Leo place a hand upon his shoulder.
"Fine," Leo nodded tiredly. "But Odori can handle herself, for the most part… Fuji's in real danger."
"You want a truce?" Ally looked from above his bangs to his former best friend, "Well… You got it. Just let us know what you need done."