"Although, I suppose I might as well address the elephant in the room and ask you this now, but...how would you like to join our gang?"

The question was so sudden; it practically came out of nowhere, Rai a bit taken back as she let out a small, nervous chuckle. "Would you care to explain why first before I decide to agree to anything?" She asked.

Sure, she took the offer of actually joining them into consideration, especially since they were all after the same thing – the Clockwerk Parts. Still though, Rai at least wanted to know why first before making any kind of definitive decision, especially since she barely even knew these guys, and had been working alone for most of her life; she just wanted to be cautious. She couldn't risk making that same horrible mistake again, because that was just something Rai couldn't afford to do, but now.

"You appear to have certain skills that Sly has yet to perfect yet." Bentley chimed in. "And from what I've seen on your file, you have an impressive IQ, so you could be of great help to me as well, but either way, the choice is still yours. We can't force you to do anything you aren't willing to."

"Oh, right." Sly then remembered something. "Forgot to mention this before, but this here is Bentley, the brains of our operation, and our driver right over there is Murray, or more commonly known as 'The Murray', as he prefers."

"Believe me, raccoon, I know who all of you are." Rai replied nonchalantly.

"Yeah, I figured as much. Anyhow, as I had mentioned before, seeing you in action really intrigued me." The raccoon chimed in. "It's also why knowing your name wasn't much of a surprise to me."

Rai tensed up. Don't tell me... Did he somehow witness my confrontation with Kisara? That would be the only explanation for why he knew my name...

"And since when have you ever bear witness to my work before?" The fox raised an eyebrow, seeming suspicious as she folded her arms.

"The other night, when you whipped right past me." Sly replied.

Rai paused for a moment before averting her gaze. Damn... It looks like I was sloppy on my last job, but I was too focused on my current task so my target wouldn't escape me. Well, I suppose it doesn't really matter now...

"I see... Well, in any case, all you witnessed was a simple assassination, something I was paid to do, you haven't seen me when I'm thieving." She explained.

"Oh, I don't need to see that to know how good you are." Sly said, leaning toward Rai in temptation, but the fox just leaned back a bit in response.

Rai merely sighed afterwards, folding her arms again as she leaned back against the van wall. "And what exactly would I be worth to you?" She then inquired.

"You're a master thief just like I am, so you could assist us. And from what I've heard, you've got some history with the Klaww Gang, so we have a common interest." Sly explained, almost nonchalantly.

Rai visibly tensed up, sending a small glare toward the raccoon for a moment. I figured they'd mention something about my past encounter with the Klaww Gang...

"And what of it? Yes, I've worked with Klaww Gang in the past, but it's not what you think." Rai began to get a bit defensive.

"Then by all means, please enlighten us." Sly gestured.

Rai then frowned. Persistent, I see... Why is this raccoon so interested in me anyway? Just what game is he playing at?

The fox let put an irritable sigh. "Look, I ran into them a little while back, and with my alter ego, along with my skill set, they asked for me to join their cause. Of course, I had no intention of trusting them, and I have my reasons for doing so, but despite my undying hatred for those fiends, I joined up with them. However, my time with them was only short lived, but that's all I'm going to say on the matter as I've said too much already."

Sly took in all of what Rai said, knowing how skeptical she was, but before he could try to pry any further, the van came to a screeching halt. "Alright, guys, this is where we stop!" Murray announced.

"We're going to camp out here tonight and head on to Monaco tomorrow." Bentley added.

Rai then paused. Monaco...? No, don't tell me that he's our next target... And so soon? Shit... This can't be good...

"Sly, can you go get some firewood?" Bentley then asked, interrupting Rai's thought process as she shook her head a bit, returning to reality.

"Uh, I can help out too." Rai hesitantly spoke up as she put her mask back on her face, a smirk curling onto Sly's lips.

"Is the mask really necessary?" He asked teasingly.

She turned toward the raccoon, frowning. "Yes, Sly, it is. I don't question your life choices, so don't question mine."

"You haven't known me that long to even do that."

"I've known you long enough." Rai then turned and dashed off, Sly following after her.

This girl... She's a difficult nut to crack, I'll say that much... Sly noted.

Rai dashed around through the forest trees, pouncing off of branches to keep herself going as she often grabbed some branches for firewood, gathering them up in one of her arms. The wind whipped both her hair and fur around as she went from all her pouncing around, almost like a hyperactive cat. Sly just silently watched, leaning against one of the trees with his cane at hand and his signature grin plastered on his face. He studied every little movement the fox made as she switched her cane into what appeared to be some sort of black and red katana. Although, even though Rai was jumping around through the trees like an overly excited dog, she somehow seemed relaxed in his eyes, not a care in her mind as she simply gathered up the wood needed. Soon enough, she finally leapt down from the trees right in front of the ringtail, firewood gathered up in her arms with her sword now switched back into a cane and attached to her back.

"There." She sighed tiredly. "I'm all done."

Sly smirked, hitting the back of his cane against the tree he was leaning on as a pile of wood just fell at his feet. "And so am I." He snarked.

Rai just rolled her eyes, glaring. "And you're a cheater." She replied in a bitter tone.

"Come on, I am a thief, so are you honestly surprised?" Sly asked.

"No, but I can still be salty about it." The fox frowned, walking off.

Stupid raccoon trying to show off... Why did I even agree to do this? Rai then paused. Wait... I don't actually recall ever agreeing to this!

The fox groaned to herself. "How did I end up in this situation?" She irritably muttered under her breath.

"Because you didn't exactly say that you didn't want to come along." Sly pointed out, peering over her shoulder.

The fox closed her eyes, taking a deep breath before exhaling through her nose. "And if you don't back away from me right now, I'm going to backhand you." She hissed.

"Oh, come on now, there's no need to be so cold." Sly purred, slipping his hands onto Rai's waist.

This caused the fox to clench her fist, only to then ram her elbow straight into Sly's stomach, causing him to grunt in pain as he immediately backed off, but really, it was to grip onto his throbbing gut. "Wh...what was that for?!" He cringed in pain.

Rai peered over her shoulder back at the raccoon, removing her mask to reveal her blatant glare. "I warned you, didn't I?"

Sly coughed a bit, standing up straight again as he placed a hand on his hip. "You said you were gonna backhand me, not elbow me in the stomach."

"Yeah, well, that one was just for pissing me off after I told you to back off, so you brought it upon yourself." She replied coldly. "Now I would very much appreciate it if you wouldn't touch me like that again without my permission, please and thank you." The fox then walked off so she could go set up the fire.

Sly merely sighed as Rai walked away, clearly a little angry with him. "Not my finest moment..." He said, mainly to himself.

"Ya think?" Came Bentley's mocking voice.

The raccoon rolled his eyes. "Okay, I don't need any commentary from the peanut gallery, thanks." He said in a sarcastic tone.

Bentley shrugged. "It's like she said, Sly, you brought it on yourself."

"Yeah, I know, we've already established that." Sly said, sounding offended.

"Then maybe stop trying to be a "ladies man" and at the very least, show some sensitivity. Rai is obviously on edge, especially since we're dealing with a sore spot from her past." The turtle reasoned.

"Yeah, I know..."

"If you know, then go do it and stop trying to be some kind of casanova..."

Sly just rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah..." He brushed Bentley off while walking away.

Meanwhile, once the fire was set up, Rai rolled a nearby log over towards the campfire, seating herself down on said log. After she sat down, the fox let out a sigh, staring into the softly crackling flames of the fire. Monaco, huh? There's only one member of the Klaww Gang that could be there, and that's exactly what I'm afraid of...

"Sooo..."

Rai perked up, glancing over only to see Sly approaching before turning her gaze back to the fire.

Sly cleared his throat. "Mind if I sit down?"

She glanced up at him once again before sighing. "Fine, but if you try anything, I'm gonna elbow you again."

The raccoon chuckled. "You have my word."

She merely gestured to her side. "Go ahead then..."

Sly nodded and took a seat next to the fox, who was holding her mask in her hand, almost gazing at it with a bored expression on her face. After a couple minutes of awkward silence, the only thing heard being that of the crackling flames from the campfire, Sly cleared his throat again. "So, uh, what's up with that mask of yours?"

Rai exhaled through her nose, setting her mask down in her lap. "I wear it to hide my face, why else?"

"I got that much, smart one. I meant why do you wear it?"

"Be specific next time." She retorted, a hint of sarcasm in her voice. "And it's because I don't want anyone to know my true identity."

"Okay, but why though?"

"I've got my reasons." She replied. "Now then, aside from your persistent prying, mind telling me who it is we're looking for in Monaco?" Rai quickly changed the subject.

"Oh, that. Well, we're looking for an Indian tiger by the name of Rajan."

Rai scoffed a bit. "I should've figured as much, so I can't say I'm surprised..."

"You seem kind of...unhappy about knowing that." Sly cautiously pointed out.

The fox scoffed again. "Unhappy doesn't even come close to how I'm feeling about that bastard..." She replied harshly.

"O...kay. Mind if I ask why?"

Rai opened her mouth to respond, but before she could even get a word out, Bentley suddenly spoke up. "So, you two are sleeping out here." He bluntly stated.

"Excuse me?" The two asked in unison, sharing a quick glance before turning back to Bentley.

"Well, considering that we only have two tents and I wasn't exactly planning on Rai joining us, and the fact that Murray and I don't share tents, you two are stuck out here."

Rai merely shrugged, not really caring while Sly rolled his eyes with a smirk, of which Bentley caught as he glared through his large glasses. "Goodnight, you two. We'll leave tomorrow morning for Monaco." He turned to leave, but paused, glancing back at the two one more time. "Oh, and Sly, behave." He emphasized, which caused the raccoon to chuckle a bit in response.

"Goodnight, my friends!" Murray then roared in his loud voice.

"Oh, I didn't see you there, Murray." Rai said with a light chuckle. "I must say, it's a real honor getting to work with 'The Murray.'" She smirked at her own comment.

"I'm glad Sly wanted to keep you with us, Rai! We're gonna have a blast together!" He announced joyfully. "Now, I shall sleep so that 'The Murray' can fight tomorrow! Goodnight guys!"

"Goodnight, Murray." Rai replied with a grin.

"'Night, big guy." Sly said before Murray disappeared into the tent, leaving the two alone.

There was a long moment of silence once both Sly and Rai were left alone together, until the raccoon finally decided to speak up. "So, Rai, would you be willing to tell me about that past of yours?"

"I thought I already did." She stated matter-of-factly.

"Correction, you told me bits-and-pieces, not the whole story. I mean, it's okay if you don't want to, I just thought I'd get to know you a little more. Also, you never did finish telling me about Rajan, sooo...?"

Rai sighed a bit. "Well, it's not like I've got anything to lose by telling you..." She replied. "So, when I was eight-years-old, it was my parents and myself. One day, my house was broken into, so my mother shoved me into a nearby closet to try and protect me, not that it really helped, because the first one to die was my father. The details are a little here and there, but if memory serves, I believe it was Rajan that killed him before I was pulled out of that closet. I was then held by my neck as my mother fought to try and get to me, but in the end, she was stabbed in the stomach with a large dagger by, who I believe was someone named Jean Bison. I was supposed to be next in line to die, but when one of them managed to find my family book, I used the opportunity I could to bite the spider bitch holding me and ran away. They, of course, chased after me, but when I wasn't found out, those bastards took it out on my home, destroying it. By the time I managed to find my way back home to see what they had done, all I found was my family book torn apart and my mother's cane snapped in half. It's why I had to modify it and why it's made entirely out of metal now. As for my family book, I managed to somehow piece it all back together, but now I keep it in a safe place to ensure no one rips it to shreds ever again. In all honesty though, aside from my screwed up life, I was never supposed to become an assassin... It was because of them that I became a killer... I became who I was out of rage and hatred, and at the time, it was just how I vented all my frustrations. Nowadays though, it became more of a past time than anything... Thieving was more fun to me, and easier, as I soon discovered." She explained. "As I got older, I began to look further into who exactly killed my parents and discovered that it was none other than the Klaww Gang that day... They were the ones who ultimately took everything away from me and changed my entire life, but for better or for worse, I still don't know that answer yet..."

"Rai, I...I'm so sorry—" Sly started, but was abruptly cut short.

"Why are you apologizing?" Rai asked. "You have nothing to apologize for, because it's my burden to bear, Sly, not yours." She said. "I mean, it can't be all that bad, I suppose... At the very least, Clockwerk got what he deserved, right?"

"Yeah, but now his parts have been scattered." Sly said, sounding frustrated with himself.

Rai then sighed, placing her hand on his shoulder. "Look, we all make mistakes." She reasoned. "I mean, how could you have known the Klaww Gang would suddenly come up and steal Clockwerk's scattered parts to use for their own gain?"

"I know, but—"

"It's not your fault, Sly." Rai said firmly. "All we can do now is stop the Klaww Gang and get those parts back."

Sly's gaze flicked over to the fox for a moment before sighing. "Yeah, you're right..."

Rai grinned a bit. "Glad we're finally in agreement on something."

There was another long moment of silence, Sly clearing his throat again. "So, uh—"

Boom!

Suddenly, as if on cue, thunder roared before rain started to pour down on the two, putting the fire out as if it were nothing but a small candle. "Damn it..." The fox then muttered.

"Looks like we're sleeping in the van." Sly chuckled.

"Fine, but I'm changing first, and if you even think about peeking, you're not going to enjoy me shoving my sword right down your throat." She warned before climbing into the van, closing the doors behind herself.

Once she was alone, Rai removed her gloves, boots, belt, cane, pouch, jacket, jeans, and top, leaving the fox in her black undergarments. After grabbing the backpack she had made sure to grab before being dragged along, Rai pulled out a white tank top that fit snug around her torso and a pair of tight black shorts trimmed with white, a small triangular slit on both sides. After slipping into the clothing, Rai grabbed a brush from her backpack and ran it through her thick black and red hair before tying it up into a messy ponytail. Once she was dressed and her hair was out of the way, Rai opened up the van doors to see the pouring rain outside, but no Sly...

"Sly?" She called, raising an eyebrow.

Suddenly, Rai's ear twitched slightly as she felt a pair of hands on her waist and warm breath hitting the ear that twitched. "Boo."

She rolled her eyes. "Ha ha, very funny..." The raccoon chuckled as he drew back, Rai turning to face him. "Try that again and your stomach is gonna be best friends with my elbow."

Sly laughed a bit. "Yeah, yeah, I know." He brushed her off. "Here, I got you some pillows and blankets." Sly then said as he handed Rai the items while drying himself off with a towel.

While Sly dried himself off, Rai set up a make-shift bed for herself in the back of the van. Once finished, she snuggled up into the blankets given to her, until she glanced over to Sly. He was seated in the passenger seat, his cane over his chest and his hat covering his eyes, seeming like he was going to sleep up there. However, as Rai gazed at the raccoon scrunched up in the front seat, she sighed softly, now suddenly feeling bad as she propped herself up onto her arm. "Hey, Sly?" She called up to him.

"Hmm?" He hummed, pushing his hat up with his cane and opening one eye to gaze at the fox.

"Do you, maybe, wanna sleep down here with me? I kinda feel bad that you don't—" Before Rai could even finish her sentence, Sly had crawled back next to her.

"I thought you'd never ask." He smirked.

Rai just rolled over. "Just stay on your side of the van, Ringtail, and don't try anything funny."

As Rai laid there in the silence, she felt her back being pressed against Sly's in the small space of the van. That didn't really seem to bother her very much, but at the same time, she didn't know if Sly would suddenly try something, which made her a bit nervous. However, thinking about the fact that she would soon have to deal with Rajan seemed to make her even more anxious. She despised Rajan, she despised everyone associated with the Klaww Gang, not that she was wrong to since they were the cause of her parents' deaths. The last thing Rai wanted right now was to deal with the one thing she wanted desperately to forget about, and yet here she was, about to deal with the very thing that made her who she was today... It all just seemed so bittersweet...

"Hey, Rai?" She heard Sly call out to her.

"Hm?" The fox hummed in response. "What?"

"I never would've guessed your bra and panties were black." He teased.

Rai's face lit up with red as she immediately elbowed Sly in the ribs, causing him to grunt in pain, but still laughed. "You little shit... I knew you couldn't resist..."

Sly chuckled before rolling over, his chest now pressed against Rai's back as he placed a hand on her waist, his face in her hair and dangerously close to her neck as she blushed again. "Sly...?" She hesitated.

"Yes?"

"What are you doing?" She questioned irritably.

"Nothing at all." He smirked.

Rai's eyebrow twitched, quickly reaching underneath the blankets as she grabbed Sly's hand and removed it from her side. "Keep your hands to yourself, Ringtail, unless you want to taste my sword."

Sly chuckled. "Wow, I'm so scared." He sarcastically joked.

The fox just rolled her eyes, elbowing the annoying raccoon in the ribs once more. "Watch yourself... I'm not in the mood for stupid games..."

"Chill out, I'm only joking. No need to get so defensive, Rai."

"I'm not defensive, I'm annoyed, there's a difference. Now go to sleep before you give me another reason to want to stab you." She said in an annoyed tone before pulling the blankets further onto herself.

Sly just chuckled. "Yes, ma'am." Was the last thing he said before rolling over so that their backs were touching again.

Rai, however, was still fuming a bit. Stupid raccoon...