Sorry about the lateness. I actually finished the chapter on time (last night), but I didn't get a chance to proofread it. So I waited until the next day to post it so I had time to read over it and make changes.

This one's the shortest chapter so far. I expected this to be a bit longer. Oh well.

Well, nothing else to say. Read on!

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Chapter 5: Return of a Family Heirloom

Sunday finally came, and Sly was visibly excited to see Murray. He was more upbeat than usual. However, as Carmelita waited for Sly to finish getting ready to go, she started having second thoughts about going. What would Sly's old friends say to her? What would they think? She knew she was going to feel uncomfortable being in a house filled with ex-thieves. Sure, she had been living with one for a long time, but this was different. She hoped that there wouldn't be any grudges. Murray would probably be okay, but what about Bentley? How would he feel? And what about Penelope? Carmelita had never even met her. She started to doubt that it was a good idea for her to go with Sly. Sly walked out into the kitchen where Carmelita was sitting. He noticed the worry on her face.

"Not nervous about this visit are you?" Sly said, smiling at the vixen. Carmelita sighed.

"Well, I just don't know how your friends will feel about me being there is all. You sure it's fine with them if I come?"

"You worry too much Carmelita." Sly grabbed the keys to Carmelita's car and started heading towards the door. "Let's go."

"And where do you think you're going with my keys?" Sly grinned at the fox.

"You have no idea where this place is. I do, so I figured I'd drive." Carmelita shook her head and smiled. She held her hand out to Sly.

"Hand them over ringtail. I don't feel like arguing with you." Sly hung his head.

"Aw, you're no fun. What's the point of having a driver's license if I can't drive?"

"Well, since you're an inspector now, you'll be able to make enough money to buy your own car."

"I guess so." Sly motioned towards the door. "Okay let's go."

-

"Sly! Good to see ya!"

Penelope was standing in the doorway to the safe house. She was smiling widely at Sly.

"Good to see you too Penelope. Is Murray here yet?"

"Not yet, but he should be here soon." She turned to Carmelita, still smiling. "I assume you're Carmelita. I've heard a lot about you. I'm Penelope." She held her hand out to Carmelita, who shook it immediately.

"Pleasure to meet you." Carmelita was still nervous about this. What does a cop say to a person who used to be a thief, especially when you're trying to be polite?

"I'm guessing Sly's little confession to you went well?" Carmelita chuckled.

"Better than you can ever imagine," she explained. Sly nodded.

"We'll tell you all about it when Murray gets here. Now, where's Bentley?"

"He's in the living room, probably on his computer. Come on in!"

Carmelita looked around the house as she walked with Sly and Penelope. She stopped at a cookie jar to stare at it in confusion. Sly looked at Carmelita and smiled.

"Our very first heist," he explained. "Ah, such good memories. It was when we were in the orphanage."

"And you stole cookies. Cute," Carmelita teased.

"Hey! It was harder than you would think" Sly said in his defense, grinning.

As predicted by Penelope, Bentley was tapping away on his laptop. He stopped immediately as Sly, Penelope, and Carmelita walked in.

"Look who's finally here," he said happily. "Glad you could make it, both of you."

"No problem buddy," Sly replied. "I'd never pass up a chance to annoy you."

"Har har." He looked at Carmelita. "Hello Inspector. I'm glad you came. I'm sure this must be awkward for you."

"Well, yeah. But I imagine that you feel the same way."

Carmelita sat down on one of the armchairs in the living room while Sly sat on the couch, close to her. Penelope walked over to Bentley and looked at the computer screen. She whispered something in Bentley's ear. Bentley responded with a nod.

"Okay you two," Sly said, with a suspicious glare towards them. "What are you up to?"

"Well, we kind of have something for you," Bentley explained. "Something we forgot to give you last time we saw you. Hang on, I'll go get it." He wheeled himself over to a closed door and opened it to reveal a closet. He pressed a button on the chair and it rose up in the air, with the wheels still on the ground. He grabbed something from the shelf in the closet and pressed the button on his wheelchair again. When he got back onto the ground, Sly noticed he was holding his old thieving clothes, as well as his red leg holster and an old book. In his right hand, was a cane with a golden C shaped tip. Sly smiled.

"I thought that you would've held on to that stuff."

"Well, we figured it was only right to give it back to you. I mean, it is yours after all." Bentley wheeled over to Sly and handed him his stuff. Sly inspected his cane while sitting down. It seemed to have been polished recently. Bentley sure kept good care of it while he had it. He twirled the cane in his hand and set it on the ground, leaning against the couch. Carmelita smiled at the excited raccoon.

"Never thought I'd see that thing again," she said.

"Hope you don't mind Carmelita," Bentley said. "I just figured that he would want it back. You know, as a keepsake or something. I mean, it is a family heirloom."

"Oh, I don't mind at all, as long as I don't see it being put to use," Carmelita said. "Still, I think it might be better if we left this stuff here for now."

"Why?" asked Sly, confused.

"Because it hasn't even been a week since the Chief found out about your lie. If there's any hint that you might go back to being a thief, he might kick you off the force." Sly scratched his head.

"Didn't think about that. Yeah I guess you're right. We'll keep it here until things cool down."

"Wait," Bentley interrupted. "Did you say that your Chief knows that Sly lied?"

"Yeah," Sly answered. "We'll explain everything when Murray gets here." Suddenly, they heard a knock on the door. "Perfect timing! I'll get it!"

Sly jumped up from the couch and ran over to the door. He opened it to reveal a large pink hippo.

"Murray! Long time no..." He was interrupted by a bone-crushing hug from Murray.

"Sly! Oh man is it good to see you! It's been too long buddy!"

"Murray... can't... breathe..." Sly managed to choke out. He was released immediately.

"Oh, sorry!" Sly laughed. Same old Murray. "So what have you been up to since the Cooper Vault job? I heard from Bentley that you're a cop now! Is that true?"

"Yeah, it's true," Sly said while nodding.

"He also said that you finally managed to get with Inspector Fox! Is that true too?"

"Yeah. She's inside the house actually."

"She's not going to arrest me is she?" Murray asked seriously. Sly chuckled at Murray.

"No. She's not. Come on in!"

They walked back to the living room. Carmelita and Penelope seemed to really be hitting it off. Bentley was sitting by them, listening to their conversation. When he saw Murray walk in, he wheeled himself over to him.

"Good to see ya chum," he said, grinning.

"You too buddy!" Murray looked over at Penelope. He gave her a hug, though he made sure not to crush her. "Penelope! It's been a while! Good to see you!"

"You too Murray. How's racing the van going for you?"

"Oh, it's awesome! I've been getting better each race. I actually have a short winning streak right now!" He looked over at Carmelita. "Inspector Fox! I heard you're with Sly! Congrats! I'm really happy for you two!" He shook her hand and smiled at her. She smiled back.

"Thanks big guy. Now that you're here, we can give you guys the big news."

"News?" Bentley questioned. "What news?"

"Well, when I told Carmelita that I lied about my amnesia, she took it much better than I thought she would. In fact, things went so well that we're getting married."

Everyone yelled the same thing at once.

"WHAT?!"

Carmelita held up her hand that held her wedding ring and smiled.

"He proposed right after he told me the truth."

Everyone looked at Sly.

"Yep," he said. "Turns out we both lied for the same reason. I lied about my amnesia, and she lied about who I was. And we both did it because we wanted a chance at being together."

Murray was ecstatic. "Oh man! Congrats you two! Seriously! That's awesome!"

Penelope grinned. "That's so sweet."

Bentley patted Sly's back. "Congratulations you two!"

For the rest of their stay, Sly and Carmelita filled everyone in on what they've been doing since Kaine Island. They told them about the various cases they worked on. They told them about how they finally got together. They told them about how Sly finally confessed. After a bit of talking, they decided to order some pizza and watch some TV. They continued to talk as they ate. Bentley and Penelope didn't have too many exciting stories. They merely told Sly and Carmelita about how they secured the Cooper Vault in a new location close to their safe house for easy access. Murray told them about his many races, as well has his many car crashes. Sly's jaw dropped as Murray explained every detail of some of his most disastrous crashes.

"How do you manage to climb out of all of those crashes, with nothing but a few scratches?" he asked.

"I dunno really. I guess I've just been lucky."

"You'd better hope that luck doesn't run out," Carmelita said with a grin. "It sounds like you've got a good career though. Good to see that you're finally doing something that you love. And it's even legal!" Sly laughed at that. He looked over at the clock. Damn, it was almost ten already?

"We should probably go soon," Sly told Carmelita. "We have work tomorrow."

"Aw, do you have to go?" Murray asked.

"Yeah. We gotta get up fairly early tomorrow. I almost miss being a thief. At least then I got to sleep in until whenever I wanted." Sly and Carmelita got up and started heading towards the door as everyone followed. Before he opened the door, he turned towards his friends. "It was really good seeing you all, especially you Murray."

"Yeah, same goes for me," Carmelita said. She gave everyone there a handshake, while Sly gave Murray and Bentley a slap on the back. He then went over to Penelope and hugged her.

"Make sure you visit often!" Penelope said.

"Isn't that what you said last time?" Sly smiled. "See you guys later."

"Bye," everyone said simultaneously.

As Sly and Carmelita walked out to their car, they failed to notice a dark figure standing on the rooftop across the street from Bentley's house, watching. He pulled a cell phone from his pocket and dialed a number.

"Marakov here."

"It's Carson. The targets are headed for their apartment." He watched as the car sped off.

"Excellent," the other end replied. "Get to the warehouse and watch over the shipment. I'm headed out. I'm bringing a few guards too. I may need the extra manpower depending on whether or not things go well."

"Understood. They know of the plan, yes?"

"I filled them in while you were out. Listen, do not, under any circumstances, call me until I get back to the warehouse tonight. Understand?"

"Yes sir. I just have one question. What about Inspector Fox?"

"We're not taking her, but she must not be killed. She could be useful later on. For now though, we only need Cooper."

"Got it. I'll see you later then, hopefully with Cooper."

"Goodbye Carson." The line then went dead.

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Uh oh. Things aren't looking good for Sly, and he doesn't even know it yet! What's going to happen? You'll just have to wait and find out!

Until next chapter folks!

-eaglefan101