From Paris with Loathe

Fortunately, for the Loud family, the flight out to France was uneventful. Beyond the usual screaming toddlers, a few obnoxious customers, and occasional turbulence, the trip was actually quite peaceful. Lori was kind of on edge, as she couldn't really use her phone much on airplane mode, but with her mother right next to her, she was able to get through it while she was awake. Meanwhile, Allie, Bruno, and the newspaper man were also trying to enjoy the flight, while making sure to keep watch over Leni. The two goons and mystery man seemed unaware of each others' presence, focused purely on observation of the young lady. The flight took nearly thirteen hours, the plane landing in Paris late into the night. "...so this is what jet lag feels like," Lori groaned as she, her sister and her mother disembarked into the airport. In spite of the fact they all took a fairly long nap mid trip, they still felt exhausted at the end of the trip.

"I'm definitely looking forward to just getting into our hotel and getting some sleep," The Loud mother said as they gathered their luggage.

"Leni, you have our hotel reservations, right?"

"I have them, Lori. I held onto them for safe keeping." Mrs Loud reached into her handbag and pulled out the paper confirming their room reservation. The oldest of the Loud kids nodded with a weak smile. While they were chatting, Leni's eyes were drinking in everything she could see. Yeah, the airport didn't look very different than the airport they just left, but it was still in Paris. And on the note of drinking, she was feeling quite thirsty.

"I think I'm going to get something to drink. Does anyone else want anything?" The second oldest of the sisters offered.

"A cup of tea would be nice, thanks dear," Rita told her.

"Just water for me, thanks," Lori responded. The kind, but dim blonde nodded as she made her way over to the airport cafe, pulling an english to french dictionary from her purse. Over at the cafe, a bubbly young woman with dark chocolate hair with orange highlights done in braids was just finishing with another customer. She had on a white button up shirt, a black skirt that hung down to her shins, and a green apron with the logo of the airline chain upon it. She had a slightly orange tan, a little beauty mark on her right cheek and a bright smile.

"Merci. Reviens, s'il te plait," She told the customer sweetly as he walked away. She turned to her next customer, Leni, and froze in place, her smile disappearing in a flash.

"Hello," The less than observant teen chirped before looking into her english to french book. "Uh...Deux O and un the, silver plate?" She attempted to ask in french. A few locals who heard her snickered a bit, amused at her broken french. The woman behind the counter, however, was far from amused. In fact, she had an expression of absolute hatred on her face; like she wanted to leap across the counter and throttle the girl in front of her. She tore off her apron and hurled it onto the counter before she stormed away, leaving Leni looking confused. "...I guess it was time for her break."

Eventually, the fashion centered teen was able to find another employee and get drinks for herself and her family before they headed to their hotel. After a good night's sleep, they were refreshed and ready to begin exploring the city. Once Leni had gotten showered and changed, she decided to give Chief Ester a call. "Hello? Chief?" She said quietly into the false watch on her wrist.

"I read you loud and clear, Agent Silk. What's your status?" Polly's voice sounded through the watch.

"I made it to Paris. We're all at the suite you arranged for us."

"Wonderful. I'm pleased to hear you made it safely," The chief responded, sounding relieved. "For the time being, standby. We'll arrange the meeting with the other agent and let you know the details as soon as we have them."

"Ok. We'll just take a nice little tour of Paris while I wait."

"Sounds like a plan, Silk. Keep in touch. Over and out."

"Who were you talking to?" Her older sister asked as she emerged from the bathroom, looking curiously at the spy stand-in.

"The people behind the fashion show. They said they would call me later to let me know when they need me in," Leni replied.

"You don't know when the show starts?"

"They never start on time...sadly, so they said they'd just let me know." Lori simply shrugged when she heard that.

"Well, that just gives us more time to tour Paris," She said as she got changed. "Hehehe. I can hardly believe we're here."

"I know, right!?" Leni chirped excitedly, pulling out Lisa's special mosquito spray. She thought back for a moment about what she had said about it:

"Simply spray it on your clothes and whatever you spray it on will effectively stop most handgun bullets and shotgun pellets from a fair distance," The voice of Lisa explained in her mind. "However, it is far less effective at point blank range, and will not stop rifles at all, so be very careful."

The ditzy teen wasn't really sure what she meant by some of what she said, but didn't let that stop her. She started to spray her usual outfit, as well as her arms and legs. "What are you doing, Leni?"

"Just using a little bug repellant," She answered with a smile. "I heard the mosquitos have been kind of pesky around here."

"Really? Good thinking, Leni. Mind if I borrow some?"

"Not at all." Lori held her arms out as Leni gave her clothes and limbs a quick spray. The eldest sister coughed a bit after she got a whiff of it.

"Ugh...no wonder it repels mosquitos...it stinks," She groaned, looking disgusted. Fortunately, the smell faded pretty quickly. "So, where should we go first?"

"I'm not sure. Maybe we can go see that famous tower they have here. You know, the one that kind of leans to one side," Leni suggested, tilting a little to emphasize her point.

"...wrong tower, Leni," She informed her with a shake of her head and a slight giggle. Once the two of them were ready, they met up with their mother down at the hotel buffet for breakfast. The three of them discussed their plans for the day: visiting the Arc du Triomph, the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, etc. Little did they know that three sets of ears were eavesdropping on them. The first was the mustachioed man, still hidden behind a newspaper while sipping on a mug of coffee. The second and third were Allie and Bruno, huddled over a plate of sausages and cheese.

"So...Agent Silk is planning on playing like she is sightseeing," Bruno whispered with a smirk.

"Makes me wonder what she's really up to…," Allie muttered, her eyes narrowed.

"I think that hardly matters, because in the end, she'll up on the clouds, plucking a harp," Her brawny associate commented, the two of them chuckling at the thought.

"Ah. Young love," An elderly man said with a happy sigh as he passed by their table with his wife, smiling a bit at them.

"Mind your own business, you old relics…" Allie grumbled under her breath. "Young love...honestly…"

"Well…" Bruno started to say, his cheeks changing hues lightly. "...it's not like we hadn't considered it before…"

"Well, yes…" The shorter woman admitted, blushing a tad herself. "...but you know The Swan doesn't approve of romance between her minions."

"She says as she's engaged in an intimate affair with Alfonse," He said with a sour expression.

"Bruno, sssshhh. The Swan could be listening...and if she heard you say that…"

"All I'm saying is she shouldn't be throwing stones from that glass palace of hers."

"Sigh...yes, I agree...but right now, let's focus on dealing with our little Silk problem. We'll worry about the hypocrisies later." The big brute of a man nodded with a soft grunt, the two henchpeople finishing their breakfast quickly so they could get out and prepare to deal with Leni.

With breakfast over, the three Loud women decided to start their tour with a stroll along the Seine River. Leni was looking down into the wide river below, smiling at the water sparkling in the sunlight as her mother and sister took pictures (with Lori sending some to Bobby). Walking down the boulevard on the opposite side of the river, the man with the black, paintbrush like mustache looked to be casually sightseeing, but he was really watching the family across the water. A fair distance ahead of them, sitting at a sidewalk cafe, were the brutish man and the shorter woman, both dressed as stereotypical french folk: striped shirts with berets, with a red ascot on Bruno. They had a cup of coffee in front of each of them, Bruno feigning interest in a magazine, and Allie acting like she was fixing her makeup, spying on the Louds as they approached in her compact mirror. She nodded at her partner, who nodded back. He pulled a silenced pistol from his shirt and took careful aim, with the weapon hidden in the paperback book. His finger tightened on the trigger, but before he could fire, he heard something zip past his own ear. At that exact microsecond…

"Oh!" Leni chirped as she leaned forward. The very second she did, something flew right past where her head used to be. Rita didn't notice, but Lori heard a soft sort of buzz when it happened, which made her flinch slightly. The kindly blonde smiled as she straightened up, holding a coin in her hand.

"What was that?" The oldest of the siblings asked, looking back in the direction she thought she heard the buzz.

"A penny I found," The agent stand-in responded, holding up the coin to show Lori.

"No. I mean that sound. I thought I heard a buzzing…"

"Oh. Must be one of those mosquitos," Leni replied with a shrug. Allie and Bruno blinked in shock, the former hiding his gun. The bulky man knew what he had heard: a bullet flying past his head, and headed for Agent Silk...but he hadn't shot it.

'Someone else took a shot at her...but who?'

Meanwhile, a far distance away, tucked away in an apartment complex, the barrel of a hunting rifle was just barely sticking out of the window, with a large silencer attached. Looking through the scope of the rifle was the chocolate haired young woman from the cafe, looking positively furious. "Zut...zat swine Silk is damned lucky…" She grumbled, pulling her weapon back from the window and hastily putting it away. She had a feeling someone may have seen her attempted assassination, so she needed to make tracks. "...but no matter...her luck will run out...and I will make her pay for what she did," She added under her breath, hastily pulling open a drawer and hiding a few knives, a folding baton, and a handgun on her person. Just then, a forceful knock came to her door. She swore under her breath and vaulted out the window. Before the police could break down the door, she was already scaling down the building, using each floors' balconies until she reached the ground.

"Huh...well, that mosquito spray must be doing wonders. It never came near us," Lori commented, accepting Leni's answer since she didn't have one of her own. Allie and Bruno were forced to act natural as the family started to pass, but as they walked by, Leni paused and looked back at the muscular man. He started to sweat a bit, worried he was about to be recognized as she walked closer to him.

"...I was never very fond of stripes, but you pull it off marvelously, sir," She finally said, her eyes on his shirt.

"Oh...uh, merci," He replied, nearly coughing when she addressed him. Her mother sighed and walked over to them, taking Leni by the hand and leading her away from their table. As soon as they were out of earshot… "Whew...she didn't recognize me…"

"...or she didn't want to cause a scene with those civilians nearby," Allie whispered with a frown. "We better move and find a new disguise…" The two hastily departed from their seats, just as the waiter came out with their check. He noticed the half filled cups and empty seats and glared in the direction they ran.

"Hey!"

After the three Louds had walked for several minutes along the walkway beside the Seine, Lori had spotted a taxi sitting idle by the road, waiting for a passenger. She and her mother decided they could more easily visit the famed landmarks of Paris this way, so they made their way over to the cab along with Leni. The scruffy looking driver glanced over at them and sighed, looking less than enthused about taking them as passengers. However, money was money, so he let them in. The moment he drove off (very slowly since the Louds wanted to see the sights), The Swans two minions followed along on a bicycle for two. They knew where they were going (having overheard them earlier), and they knew where they could try and get them. They quickly turned down an alley and took a shortcut to get ahead of the taxi enroute to the Eiffel Tower. They parked themselves at the end of another path between buildings further ahead, with Allie keeping watch behind them and Bruno watching the cab approaching. He pulls a handful of caltrops out of a pouch at his waist and tossed them onto the road. The cab rolled right over them, but instead of popping the tires, they got sent scattering. A few even flew right back into the alley and stuck right into Allie's rear, causing her to stifle her yelp of pain with her hand before glaring back at her brutish associate. He just shrugged with a nervous smile, trying his best not to laugh at her.

A few minutes later, the taxi was turning onto a bridge to cross over the river running through the city. The two henchpeople were already on the other side with their bike, waiting for their chance. As soon as the driver was more than three quarters of the way across, they started to casual bike across the path, expecting the vehicle to swerve to avoid them and go right into the river. However, the driver was barely paying attention, and his passengers were all focused on the approaching tower. Seeing that he wasn't swerving or stopping, Allie and Bruno fearfully picked up the pace. The car hit their back tire and caused them to lose control, sending them careening into the Seine instead. A few seconds after they had landed in the drink, Bruno surfaced, spitting out some water before pulling the furious Allie above water, both of them glaring upward as the car turned out of sight.

Once the family arrived at the Eiffel Tower, they all thanked the cab driver (who still didn't look like he cared), with Leni staying behind to pay him. "Let's see...tweeeeenty euros? Is that right?"

"Oui," He answered in a bored tone. The ditzy teen looked at the numerous notes in her hand, shrugged and handed him a fifty.

"Here you go. Keep the change," She chirped cheerfully. He glanced toward the bill and his eyes widened in surprise.

"Keep ze...are you sure, mademoiselle?" He asked her, uncertain he heard her correctly.

"Mmm Hmm," She answered with a nod.

"Merci, madam!" He said excitedly as he took the fifty euro note, his pupils practically becoming dollar signs.

"You're welcome. Oh. Can you stick around for a while to take us to that Arc thing next? Could be more where that came from."

"Mais oui, madam. It would be mon pleasure," He told her. She smiled at him as she walked off to rejoin her mother and sister. "Who says American tourists are all cheapskates?"

"Everything alright with the driver, sweetie?" Rita asked as the three headed right for the steel structure before them.

"Yep. He said it'd be his pleasure to wait to take us to the Arc next."

"Really? He seemed kind of surly before," Lori commented with a raised eyebrow.

"Maybe I said something to brighten his day." Leni said with a carefree shrug and a happy go lucky smile.

'Yeah. Keep the change, I bet,' Her older sister thought, holding back a snicker at the idea. However, it wasn't spoiling their trip, so why hold it against her? Besides, being on the cab driver's good side is rarely ever a bad thing. The trio paused at the base of the famed structure to get a few pictures from the bottom before they entered one of the many elevators that would take them to the top. At that moment, a spy glass poked out of some shrubbery several feet from the Eiffel Tower, pointed directly at the elevators. Inside the well trimmed bush was Allie, grinning as she held a hand radio closer to her mouth.

"They just got into elevator 3, Bruno? Are you ready?" She asked quietly.

"Yes," He responded in a soft whisper. The burlier of the two was at the observation deck at the very top of the tower, disguised as a member of the maintenance staff. He looked like he was doing a quick inspection of the elevators; opening them up with something resembling the jaws of life, closely looking over the cables and winches, and closing them again. None of the tourists and visitors there paid him any mind, since he looked to know what he was doing. He then opened the shaft to elevator three and pulled a pair of bolt cutters from his work suit.

"Good. Cut the cable and send Silk's world crashing down." Bruno nodded slightly, then blinked.

"Which cable?" He inquired under his breath. "There's a lot of them."

"The one moving, meathead…"

"That narrows it down," He replied sarcastically. "All but one are moving."

"Then pick one!" Allie nearly shouted, but barely managed to control herself in time. Her male counterpart just huffed and did as he was told, cutting into the wire at the center of it all. When the cutter sliced through, electricity shot through the bolt cutter and into Bruno, causing him to yell in pain and shake violently. He let go of the snips and fell onto his back, concerned patrons running over to make sure he was alright. Meanwhile, in the elevator car, all the lights inside had gone out and the elevator music had died suddenly.

"Hey! Who put the lights out?" Lori asked in annoyance, her irritated face illuminated by the light of her phone.

"Must have blown a fuse or something," Rita surmised as she looked up at the deactivated lights. "The elevator is still moving though."

With Bruno temporarily put out of commission and Allie forced to go after the ambulance taking her associate to the nearest hospital, the rest of the Louds' visit to the Eiffel Tower was uneventful. After a couple pictures from the top deck and a few minutes to drag Leni away from the gift shop, the family returned to the taxi to head to their next destination: The Arc Du Triomph. However, even though the felonious pair were momentarily out of their hair, Leni wasn't out of danger yet. She still had another one of Silk's detractor's on her tail. The woman from the cafe who had tried to snipe her back by the Seine had taken to stalking the family, disguised as a tourist. She couldn't act, however, as she couldn't catch Leni by herself. So she had to simply continue to follow her, Lori and Rita from the steel tower to the Arc. Her chance finally came (in her eyes) as the family arrived at the Place Charles Du Gaulle. The space around the structure was overcrowded, as usual, and as the Louds' attempts to get closer to the Arc, they ended up getting separated. The chocolate haired girl made her move, shoving her way through the crowd as Leni stood on her tip toes trying to see over the sea of people. When she got right up behind her, she pulled a butterfly knife from her sleeve, flipped it open with a flick of the wrist, and raised it up right behind her back.

Before she could plunge the knife into her, however, she heard something to her immediate left; a kind of cooing. She glanced over to see a little baby girl looking right at her, being held by what she assumed was her mother. The infant smiled at her and waved, babbling baby talk. The vengeful woman stood stock still for a second, waved a little in return with a nervous smile, and quickly put the blade away, slinking back into the crowd. She may have wanted 'Agent Silk' dead, but not enough to traumatize a baby. She would just have to try again later.

With their photos taken at the famed Arc and the family reunited with the flighty fashionista (who almost ended up wandering the down the Champs Elysees trying to find her mother and sister), they returned to their taxi to head to the Louvre. Around this time, Allie had gotten Bruno out of the hospital (who was still pretty twitchy, but not badly hurt) and they were back on the job. The little lady and brawny man managed to get ahead of them once more as the cab went down a backroad as a shortcut, the duo setting up a mine on the road before ducking for cover. A little further ahead, the woman from the cafe was hidden inside a dumpster tucked between a restaurant and office building, watching and waiting with her pistol in hand. Seconds later, the vehicle's tired rolled right over the explosive trap. However, instead of detonating, the metal disk ended up flipped like a coin, spinning through the air. Allie and Bruno watched with nothing short of utter incredulity. "Of course it would be a dud…" Bruno growled.

Just then, the young lady with the chip on her should burst from the dumpster, pointing her weapon at the taxi. Before she could fire, however, she noticed the mine spiralling toward her. She screamed and ducked back into her hiding place. The device exploded upon contact with the ground near the trash bin, sending it skidding down the alley and leaving a crater in the ground. The Swan's goons cringed to one another at the sight and quickly made tracks, knowing the police would be on their way. Meanwhile, the dumpster slammed into a brick wall at the end of the alley, forcing it to stop. The ex cafe worker slowly pulled herself to the rim of the oversized rubbish bin, completely covered in trash. "Zere are forces conspiring against me…" She moaned before collapsing right back into the garbage.

As the Louvre was the last stop for the day, the Loud bid farewell to the cabbie who had shown them the sights (after getting one last generous tip from Leni) before they entered the art museum. Allie and Bruno watched them from across the street in their convertible, the former sighing in frustration. They had kept the top raised to make their observation less noticeable. "No way we can get them in there," She commented sourly. "We've pushed our luck too much as it stands."

"Don't worry, Allie...we'll get her," Her brawny associate tried to console her, patting her shoulder with one of his large hands. "Besides, it could be worse."

"I hate to ask, but how?"

"The Swan could call us." The moment he said that, his phone started to ring. They looked down at his pocket before Allie slowly glared up at him.

"You had to say it…" She growled, her partner picking up his phone and, after a worried gulp, answering it.

"Hello…?"

"Ah. Bruno. There you are," A sultry, dangerous woman's voice said through the phone. "How are you? And your partner, Allie?"

"Er...we're, uh, doing well enough, Boss...we're in Paris right now…" He answered, a fearful quaver in his voice.

"Paris. How lovely," The voice like poisoned honey responded.

"How...How are you doing, Boss?"

"Oh, I am just divine, thank you for asking. But I'm not here to talk about me. I'm here to talk about you two; namely, your progress in handling the Silk issue," She continued, which made the two of them flinch. "And that progress is…"

"We...thought we had dealt with her at Mt Huron, Swan," Allie started to answer, sweating as much as her bulky partner. "But it appears she had not only escaped, but unharmed as well." There was a moment of silence of the line, which only made the two henchpeople more nervous. With their boss not speaking, the small woman continued. "We had made a few attempts to end her here in Paris, but she got lucky and survived each time…"

"Did she now?" The Gilded Swan inquired, in a tone that was impossible to judge. She didn't sound angry...but why wouldn't she be furious about this? "...perhaps that is just as well."

"Just as well?" Bruno questioned, utterly lost. "I'm afraid I don't understand, Swan."

"Of course you don't. I don't pay you to understand. However, allow me to enlighten the two of you. I have reason to believe we have a traitor in the organization." The two goons gasped when they heard that. Who would dare double cross one as dangerous as the Gilded Swan. "I have my suspicions, of course, as to the identity of the rat...I could deal with them swiftly, but then I thought to myself: why not kill two birds with one bullet? Give the potential traitor a chance to prove where their loyalties lie. I plan to have them meet with Agent Silk and lure her into a trap. Best case scenario, Silk is dealt with easily. Worst case, two bodies, no waiting."

"Ah. I get it now. Brilliant, Boss," Allie commented, both she and Bruno snickering.

"Naturally. Lay off Silk for the time being, but keep observing her. I still want to be kept informed of her movements."

"Of course, Swan, but...er...what if something were to happen to her before she can meet the traitor?" The muscle of the two asked.

"Hmmm. Well, if something tragic were to occur, it wouldn't hurt my feelings any." The Swan said with a cruel, throaty chuckle. "Just make sure your hands are clean."

"Yes ma'am." The two replied in unison.

"Good. Good. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to prepare my ransom video. Don't keep me waiting for your next report~" She finished with a sort of sing song tone before hanging up.

Meanwhile, inside the museum…

As the family was attempting (and failing) to get a closer look at the Mona Lisa when the sweet, but dim teen felt a tug at her arm. Leni turned her head to see an employee of the museum standing there; a woman in a security officer's uniform, her long blonde hair tucked under her hat. "Pardon, mademoiselle, but may I have a word? I think we have something in lost and found that belongs to you."

"Huh?" The budding fashionista said as she turned to look at the guard. "Oh, sure thing. Just a moment, Mom, Lori. I'll be right back," She said, before she went off with the unknown guard. Once they turned the corner to head down an employee's only corridor, the guard pushed her up against the wall, peeking out to make sure they weren't noticed or followed.

"That was not smart…" The woman told her with a frown. "...following someone so blindly without seeing their identification first. You were trained better than that..."

"Uh...who are you?" Leni asked, feeling completely lost right now.

"...Little late for that. Lucky for you, I'm on your side, Agent Silk," The woman told her in a whisper, pulling her hat off to let her hair down. It was so thick and long, she probably could have used it as a blanket if she so chose. "Agent Satin, reporting."

"Pleased to meet you, Satin. I'm Leni."

"...you don't need to use your cover name, Silk. The area is secure." Satin told her.

"Cover name?"

"And stop with the act."

"What act?"

"The dumb act. You don't need to do that here."

"But I'm not acting..." Leni informed her, looking somewhat hurt. Agent Satin face palmed and sighed in frustration.

"Nevermind...I know why you are here, Agent Silk," She said in an attempt to get things back on track. "You're here for your meeting with The Swan's wandering gander."

"Swans, ganders, what's with all the birds…" The second oldest sister asked with a slight frown of her own.

"Would you be serious for once!?" Satin snapped as quietly as she could. "Geez, of all people to put on this case. A method actor and a joker…"

"Oh, no. I'm not a joker. That would be my sister, Luan."

"...Silk, you may be the most respected agent in the agency, but I'm about one step away from smacking you," The fellow agent hissed furiously to her. "Now, cut the shenanigans and let's get down to business proper!"

"Alright! Alright!" Leni said, holding her hands between herself and the angry woman before her. "Just tell me where to find them."

"That is going to be the tricky part, as the setting for the meet-"

"No. I mean the shenanigans you want me to cut." Hearing those words out of Leni's mouth made the agent before her freeze mid sentence; almost as if her brain had crashed hearing that. She was so utterly furious and bemused all at once.

"...you really aren't acting, are you?" Leni shook her head in answer. Satin quickly pulled a small pistol from her pocket and forced it against Leni's cheek, a furious scowl on her face. "Who are you and why were you pretending to be Agent Silk!?"

"Eep! M...My name is Leni Loud…" She told her, shaking in her sandals as the barrel of the little gun pressed painfully into her cheek. "I was asked to stand in for Agent Silk…"

"A likely story…"

"No. Really. Ask Chief Ester." She suddenly raised her wrist to show her the communication watch, which nearly made Satin pull the trigger. "Chief, I could really use some help here…"

"What's wrong, Agent Silk?" Polly's voice sounded from the watch, making Satin recoil in shock, lowering her weapon.

"C...Chief?"

"Agent Satin? Is something the matter?"

"Y...Yes, chief. This...Leni Loud is claiming she's 'standing in' for Agent Silk."

"...you weren't told?" The agent with the big hair's pupils shrank to near nonexistence.

"N...no. I was just told I would be meeting Silk here," She answered shakily. There was a brief silence from the watch before Chief Ester spoke.

"Yes, Agent Satin. As...unorthodox as it is, Miss Loud is standing in for Agent Silk specifically to meet with the Swan's agent."

"...would have been nice if she told me that from the start," Satin grumbled as she put her pistol away. "Would have saved a lot of headache."

"My apologies for that, Satin. Miss Loud is a...most unusual individual, to be certain."

"...I'm standing right here, you know," Leni said with an irritated tone to her voice.

"Anyway, Satin, I believe you have news of the meeting?" Chief Ester said, wishing to steer this messy meet up back on course.

"Yes, Chief. And unfortunately, it's not good news." The fellow agent admitted sullenly. "The enemy agent has changed the time and location for the meeting. Said he didn't feel safe here anymore. He wishes to meet with Agent Silk in Venice, exactly one week from now."

"Venice? Aww...but we just got to Paris…" The kindly sister whined a bit, equal parts saddened and frustrated by the news.

"I know it's inconvenient, Agent Silk, but that just happens sometimes," Chief Ester said. "Don't worry, though. You won't have to leave immediately. Spend a few more days in France. I'll take care of the flight arrangements." Agent Satin's phone suddenly started to vibrate, something resembling a credit card emerging from the bottom. "Take this card, Miss Loud, to cover any expenses during your time here. Food, extended hotel accommodations, entertainment, whatever you need it for."

"Really? Gee, thanks." The slow witted teen replied, the fellow agent handing the card to her.

"I trust you have a cover story prepared for your family?"

"Yep. No need to worry about that. Talk to you later, Chief. And see you later, Satin," Leni chirped before she strolled back into the main part of the museum like nothing happened.

"...Chief, was that wise?"

"It was only fair, Agent Satin, to cover this unexpected turn of events. Besides, how much can she spend?"

"Well, I think we can call any attempt to get closer a bust…" Lori complained, her arms crossed as she looked at the dense pack of people before them. "I think the crowd actually got bigger…"

"We can still see it from here, though," Rita said, trying to help her see the silver lining.

"Yeah, but it would have been nice."

"True...oh, there you are, Leni," The Loud Mother said as her second oldest daughter rejoined them.

"Hi Mom, hi Lori. There wasn't anything in the lost and found that was mine, but on the way back, I got a call from the fashion show people." She responded, looking annoyed. "They said they changed the venue of the show. They didn't like the color of the curtains at the old venue."

"Seriously…? Talk about picky," Lori commented with a roll of the eyes, while Rita had a disapproving frown on her face.

"They're holding the show in Venice now, and expect me to be there in a couple days."

"Venice? In a couple days!? Oh dear...I don't think we can afford to stay here for that much longer." Rita fretted, looking very concerned.

"It's ok, Mom. They sent someone to give me one of these card thingies." Leni explained, pulling the expense card from her purse. "They said we could use it for anything we need it for."

"Wait...really?" Her older sister said in surprise.

"Really." Both her mother and sister look at the card in her hand, then to one another.

"You thinking what I'm thinking, Mom?"

"Now, Lori. You know the responsible thing to do would be to only use it for the essentials," The Loud matriarch replied in a mock scolding tone. Lori just stood there with a kind of smirk, knowing there was more to be said. "...on the other hand, I don't much appreciate the run around they're giving Leni...and they DID say anything, right?"

"Mmmhmm," Leni answered with a nod.

"In which case, let's really enjoy our few days here," Their mother said. "We'll finish exploring the Louvre, then we'll go for a nice lunch. We'll plan the rest of our time in Paris from there." She motioned her daughters to follow her to another section of the museum, going around the crowd huddled around Leonardo's famous painting.