~~~Where God Went to Die~~~

Sly woke up around two in the morning, a cold twist in his gut pushing him to the balcony. From there, the Eiffel Tower was beautifully lit for all the city to see. Eventually, they slowed down, and the magnificence blue spotlight spinning atop the spike came to a halt. The air surrounding the balcony whispered a quiet goodbye to the show, bringing a smile to sly's lips. The knot in his belly wouldn't go away though, as seeing the sights of the early morning city and feeling the chilly wing against his fur only reminded him of his final battle with the mechanical owl. It was years ago, and the damage had all been accounted for, the parts all destroyed and the dust all settled. Sly watched Clockwerk die. He had killed him. The fear that now, after all his hard work to keep his family's legacy voluptuous and alive, he might have seen the birth of the devil too, was almost too much. Sly was afraid. Penelope was still a threat. And thanks to her time machine, Clockwerk was too.

For the first time since the gang had locked themselves inside a giant battery, sly didn't know what to do. Everything felt grim. The fight wasn't over, and now, it just may be worse than it had ever been before. Sly sighed and looked back to see Carmelita still asleep in his bed. She was too good for him, and they both knew it. Sly was a liar, yet Carm still found it in her heart to forgive him. If the gang had to stop Clockwerk yet again, Sly knew it wouldn't be for him. It shouldn't be, anyway. He had saved his family's name too many times now. He just wanted to keep her safe. He just wanted a family with her. He smiled, reminding himself to stress about his future in the morning, and climbed back into bed with his fox. She hummed and moved her arm to welcome him, still asleep. The raccoon pulled his eyes away from the Paris skyline and back to his fox.

Chapter Three

Paris - 2017

In the morning, the four sat around a wooden table, some drinking coffee, some eating breakfast, all discussing what to do about Penelope. Bentley, in between explanations to the others about paradoxes and why they couldn't just stop her before she showed up, figured it would be wise to get some recon on her still in Egypt, to see if she even stayed there, and if she is working with the owl or not. Murray wanted to return to Egypt with a tricked out van, destroy her tech and capture her in the process. Carmelita seemed to agree with him, but sly was still on the fence.

"even if we decide to do that, we still would be better off knowing what kind of gig shes running down there. If its even worth it to return. She may have moved on." Sly sighed.

The turtle spoke up. "Thank you, Sly, but I doubt it. She wants us… well she wants us dead. And throwing away working with Clockwerk, the guy who literally fed off his hatred for you, would be pretty stupid on her part." the rest of the gang silently agreed.

"For all we know," Carmelita started, rubbing her eyes. "She could have an army. Set up a fort like that Doctor M freak, or have built that bird stronger than it was in our time. I think we need to see what were up against."

Bentley nodded. "So its settled?"

Murray shook his head defensively. "Oh come on! So what if she has a fort!" he stuck his arms out to the table, almost knocking over Sly's coffee. "We have the Guru! And im sure the Panda dude would still be willing to help us! Maybe we can build another dream team? That was fun, I don't mind making new friends!"

Bentley rubbed his eyes, wheeling his chair away from the table. "Then fine! Go make some friends! Sly, come help me out with the van, im sending you back to Egypt!"

"...Right now?"

"Yes right now! She could strike at any minute!" he called back to them, now an entire room away. He was obviously still stressed about Penelope working against him, as later told to sly by Carmelita, he would often rant and cry about her in random spurts. Losing her and almost losing sly really put him on edge.

Carmelita put her hand on Slys wrist when he stood up to follow his friend. "Hey, can we talk?" she seemed concerned when she looked into his eyes.

The two took a step outside, sly holding his cool while Carm sucked in a deep breath. "Sly… I know that we need to see if Clockwerk is coming back… but please, be careful…" she sighed, holding his hands.

Sly looked at her confidently. "Miss Fox, staying safe isn't exactly my specialty. That's why I've got you, right?" he chuckled, unlike his concerned partner. "…Right?"

"Sly…"

"Why don't you come with? You want me to be safe, id feel a lot better if you were there,"

"Sly I don't think-"

He squeezed her hands harder. "I don't wanna throw you away, please don't think I'm doing this for me, I'm not anymore!"

She started tearing up. "No I need-"

"I love you, okay?"

She took a gulp and looked him dead in the eyes. "Sly Cooper, I'm pregnant."

Sly let go of her hands and took a step back. The tears started taking bigger shape as she awkwardly set them on her hips, her fingers twitching. Sly felt his lips quiver, unable to express themselves. Finally, just as Carm was about to speak, sly gripped her in a huge hug, burying his face into her neck, himself starting to cry. All he had ever done to keep his family's name an important one all seemed so trivial now. The was precisely what he wanted. An overwhelming warmth filled his heart when he felt the fox hug him back, laughing in relief. "Oh god…" He whispered to himself, overcome with joy that finally, he had something better to fight for. Not for the Coopers, not for himself, but for his family. His daughter. His-

"Ayleen," Carmelita spoke. "I… for a girl I mean…"

Sly nodded, hugging her even tighter. "I love it…" he said, tears falling down his face.