After a bit, Roman lifted his head marginally as well. "I don't believe it!" he whispered. Neo tucked a paper card into his hand and he looked down at it.
I thought you said she wasn'tgoing to be lurking in alleyways Roman.
Neo smiled sweetly at him. He sighed and ripped the card into pieces. Then they both turned back to look at the scene which was unfolding. Ruby Rose stood nervously in the middle of the alley way, shuffling from foot to foot. "What is she…" Roman started to say, but Neo placed her finger on his lips to shush him and gestured to the two shadowy figures which were working their way towards them. Neo pushed his head down as they passed. "The White Fang?" he asked incredulously, for that was the nature of the two shadowy figures. Neo's eyes slowly lit up as the two faunas approached Ruby. "A monkey and a… what's that other one?" asked Roman. Neo squinted at the second figure. Another paper card was pressed into Roman's hand.
Can't tell. Maybe a lizard or something? I don't see any tails or ears or anything, though they could be covered by the hood.
"Now what would Little Red be doing with two members of the White Fang?" he puzzled, bending the card thoughtfully. Neo put her finger over his lips again and gestured to the three figures. Roman pushed her hand down. "Can you stop doing that…" he started to say, but he was interrupted by Ruby.
"So, um, hi…" she started flapping her hands by her side. The taller faunas nodded, acknowledging her. The shorter faunas folded her arms.
"Have you got the money?"
Ruby nodded and pulled a wad of notes from a hidden pocket in her skirt. The female faunas took it and counted through it. Then she nodded and handed it to her partner. They turned and started to depart.
"Wait," called out Ruby, taking a step forward. "You won't tell… you know… the others about this, will you?"
"Don't worry Ruby. This'll be our little secret."
Roman watched hardly daring to breathe as both parties went their separate ways. When the coast was clear he spread out suddenly, kicking the crate away. "Don't worry Ruby," he cackled. "This'll be our little secret."
When they got back to the base, Cinder was waiting for them. "Got everything, Roman?" she asked sweetly, with a sickly smile painted on her face. Roman watched as Neo slunk past Cinder and into their bedroom, presumably to deposit the day's earnings. He handed Cinder the bag and tried to move after Neo. Cinder caught him by the collar before he could make it to the door.
"You can get cozy with your little lady friend later, Torchwick. Are you sure you got everything? Because the dust doesn't seem to be here." She showed him the bag, which was full of various different supplies.
Roman grinned and reached into the inside of his jacket. He pulled out two red crystals. "What," he started, tossing them to Cinder. "This dust? I had completely forgotten about it." Cinder caught the dust and opened her mouth to say something but Roman had already pushed past her, tipping his hat as he went.
"B-but how did he…?" she stuttered as Emerald took the dust from her and examined it. Cinder frowned. "I don't get it," she muttered, heaving the bag into the kitchen.
"I even phoned in with several anonymous tips. How did he evade that?"
Roman sat on the edge of the bed, taking his shoes off. Neo lay next to him, eating a bowl of ice cream. After removing his shoes, he flung his hat like a discuss. It landed just short of the hat stand. He groaned and flopped down next to his partner. She responded by hitting him on the nose with her spoon. "Neo!" he groaned, wiping the ice cream out of his eye. "What have I told you about eating in the bed? The last thing a man wants after a hard day of dishonesty is ice cream on his pillow."
Neo rolled her eyes and shoved the spoon back into her mouth. Roman sighed and stared up at the ceiling. After a while he rolled over to face Neo, who had finished her ice cream and was amusing herself by flicking balls of paper at the ceiling. "Hey, Neo," he whispered, shaking her shoulder. She rolled over to face him. "What do you reckon we saw back there in the alleyway?" he asked. Neo responded by kissing him on the nose and then rolling over so her back was to him. There was the sound of coins clinking. Then she rolled back, clutching the bag of her 'earnings'. "May I?" he asked, reaching for the bag. Neo obliged and handed it over. Roman propped himself up and tipped the contents of the bag onto the bed. A pile of coins fell out, interspersed with a roll of paper notes. "Neo, you beauty!" he exclaimed, kissing her suddenly. "How… how did you get… where did you get…" he spluttered, after they had broken apart. Neo winked and reached for her whiteboard.
Some rich couple decided to take pity on a poor little orphan girl. They gave me a generous sum and then took me out for lunch. I got the rest from their pockets.
Roman laughed and then kissed her again, sweeping the money back into the bag with his free hand.
They were interrupted by Cinder.
"Torchwick!" she bellowed, bursting through the door. Roman broke apart from Neo and raised an eyebrow.
"Ever heard of knocking, Cinder?" he said sarcastically. Cinder flushed red and started to back out of the door, then she stopped and folded her arms. "A little bird told me…" she started, as Roman pushed the bag further under the covers, "That she happened to see Neo in the street pretending to be an orphaned child. And she made quite a pretty penny from what I heard." Roman sat up and folded his arms.
"Neo was with me the whole time. I have no idea what you are talking about. Anyway, what we do in our own time is our business."
Cinder shrugged and turned around. As she walked out of the door, she glanced over her shoulder one last time.
"You owe me for the ash that you've worked into my carpet Torchwick. And don't think I've forgotten about your little money-making scheme." With that she flounced out.
