New chapter :D Nothing really to say, except thanks for the reviews!

Read on~

Karkat Vantas was downing a shot of vodka when his phone began to ring loudly. He groaned, slamming down his little glass with such force that the alcohol sloshed over the sides, and cast a glance at the screen to see who was calling. His eyes narrowed as he recognized the familiar number he had never bothered to save into his phone. It had been years since the number had last called.

"Hello?" a timid voice asked on the other line that the black-haired man would recognize anyway.

"Didn't think I'd ever hear from you again." Karkat said, standing up and leaving the bar. He emerged into bright sunlight, shielding his face from the blinding rays as he fumbled his way into a coffee shop and slid inside a booth.

"Uh, well, have you heard about the new, uh, case?" Tavros spoke with a tone of curiosity, and Karkat frowned. Case? What case?
"What the f*ck are you talking about?" he snapped, waving away the waitress when she came to take his order. She gave the black-haired man an evil look before walking away.

"Oh, uh, I guess Dave hasn't found you." Tavros mumbled meekly.

"Dave? As in Strider's annoying little brother? We don't work for him anymore, Tavros." Karkat reminded, scrunching up his face in concentration. Why would Dirk ask for them to come back? He knew they were done with the police and any detective work.

"Uh, Karkat, Dirk says we—we owe him for Istanbul." The brunette said hesitantly, and the words in Karkat's throat died immediately at those words. Istanbul…it seemed like it happened just yesterday, as Karkat could envision it so vividly. He remembered choking on the smoke, dragging Tavros's bleeding body along with him, and hearing the evil laughter of the enemy as another grenade was launched. He remembered not being able to keep his balance, and Tavros and him plunging into the icy waters. He remembered not being able to breath, the surface just out of reach as Tavros clawed at his legs, sinking fast. He remembered the white boat and hazy sun pouring on them as he opened his eyes to meet concerned red.

"Are you doing it?" Karkat asked.

"As long as, uh, you do it as well…" came the nervous reply.

Karkat snorted and rolled his eyes, but couldn't help the small smile that spread over his face. Tavros was the only partner for him. He couldn't imagine taking a case without the shy brunette, ever since they met four years ago in that dark alleyway.

"Well of course, you dumbass. You're going to need my help so you don't screw up as usual," Karkat gave a loud sigh, not really annoyed. Of course, Tavros saw—well, heard—right through it.

"Ok then. Uh, I need to call Dave back and tell him." The brunette said, sounding much happier than a few minutes prior.

"Yeah, whatever, Tavros." Karkat leaned against the smooth wood of the booth, eyeing the waitress as she neared him. Maybe he would order something.

"See you soon, Karkat." The black-haired man said a goodbye and hung up. His phone gave a little chime, and he glanced down to see he had an email from Dirk Strider. Frowning, he clicked on it, and a bunch of writing popped up on his phone.

He narrowed his dark eyes as he sped-read page after page, eyes widening.

The two thieves were going to be hard to catch. He was glad he had Tavros with him.

Gamzee gave another loud hiss of pain, his eyes closed tightly. Sollux dabbed at the long gash slashed across his cheek again, ignoring the older man's groans of protest. He got a clean cloth from the cabinet, wet it, and wiped Gamzee's face rather roughly, his lips pursed.

"Ow! That motherf*cking hurt, Solbro." He muttered, but the other just ignored him, dropping the cloth into the sink.

"Wath off your makeup." Sollux instructed firmly, and the violet-eyed man did so, with a reluctantly slow pace. The brunette narrowed his eyes dangerously, and Gamzee just grinned, revealing a set of pointy teeth. But he did splash water onto his face faster, and blindly groped around for a towel until Sollux shoved a towel into his face, exiting the bathroom of the tiny motel they were staying in.

Gamzee followed suit, his hair dripping wet and his scars even more gruesome without any makeup to hide them. Sollux was tapping something onto his phone, his different-colored eyes narrowed in concentration. Gamzee flopped onto the bed, letting out a groan, and closed his eyes.
"Get up, Gamzee. We don't have much time before our robbery tharths (starts)." He sighed when the violet-eyed man didn't even stir, just snored loudly. Sollux rolled his eyes, a fond look sliding across his face. As annoying as Gamzee was, he couldn't have asked for a better partner. Even though Gamzee got drunk thanks to Faygo and various pills all the time, and sometimes was filled with uncontrollable rage and almost ruined half their plans, he was loyal and always stuck with Sollux.

"Gnnnn go away," the said man groaned incoherently, rolling onto his back. Rolling his eyes, the brunette flipped the blankets so that Gamzee rolled off the bed, falling to the floor with a loud thud, but never waking up. Sollux sighed, taking a look at the clock on the bedside table. It read 3:46 AM. They should get some sleep, Sollux reasoned, and shut off his phone, closing down the screen with a complex map on it.

He threw a blanket over Gamzee's sleeping form and climbed into the bed, turning off the lamp with a deft flick. He set the alarm on the clock for 6 AM sharp, and fell asleep.

"We're tho late." Sollux remarked, watching Gamzee stuff his face with pie. The two had woken up late, and an hour later were promptly sitting in a table across the street from their cruddy hotel, each clutching a bag full of materials for their robbery. Well, Sollux was holding the bags, actually. Gamzee was too busy grabbing every dish in sight that was placed on the table and devouring it.

The brunette shivered in disgust and scooted his chair away, mouth curving downward in a disapproving frown. The violet-eyed man grabbed a handful of chips with one hand and the spoon for more spicy soup with the other. Sollux hastily took away the spoon and carefully dipped it into the soup bowl, giving Gamzee a normal portion. He was rewarded with a wicked grin.

"Thanks, Solbro, you're a motherf*cking good friend." the ex-stoner (well, sort of—he still took pills and smoked on occasions) cuffed Sollux on the back, hard. His chin bounced off the edge of the table, and he rubbed it, glaring.

"For thomeone (someone) who eathh (eats) a lot and ith (is) incredibly thinny (skinny), you're pretty throng." Sollux muttered, poking his chin gingerly and ignoring the smug look on Gamzee's face. He finally finished eating, draining his fifth glass of orange juice. Sollux had point-blank refused to let him have Faygo before a hesit, especially one this big.

"So what are we up and robbing today, Solbro?" Gamzee asked as they walked down the sidewalks. Sollux didn't appear to hear him; his different-colored eyes were locked on his phone as his slender fingers feverishly flew across the small keys. Gamzee sighed; when his partner got really into hacking or whatever he was doing on his phone, it was nearly impossible to pull him out of the zone until he was finished.

"Let'th (let's) thee (see)…thith (this) jewel called the Heart of the Othean (Ocean). It'th (it's) thupposed (supposed) to be worth two million dollarth (dollars)." Sollux said, finally looking up from the screen and fixing Gamzee with a slightly excited look.

"Awesome, motherf*cker. Let's go steal us a gem!"

Ending there. Please review!

Don't worry; the thieves and the cops will meet in the next chapter ;D and some JohnDave for ya!

~samx