Taking that advice and finishing Sly's story before I go back to Tony's. I'm having writer's block with Tony's unfortunately anyway. Maybe it's because I'm having too much fun with this one. I'll finish it, but I'll make sure I am enjoying myself when I continue. After all, a bored author does not an interesting story make. And thank you to the small number of people who have reviewed! I appreciate your words more than you know! That being said, here's your next chapter…

8-24-18: Moment of silence for the OC whose story never got told and never will. -removes hat and bows head-

Chapter 11 Stranger Got Your Tongue?

Over the next few weeks, Carmelita admired the shiny diamond ring on her finger in excitement. It was just a matter of time before she would be Mrs. Cooper! The thought made her head spin. In a good way of course.

She was getting closer to giving birth every day too. Seven months along now. It was a little overwhelming at times, but she couldn't wait to hold her little baby in her arms. She just hoped everything would flow smoothly until that day.

Boy was she not anticipating the events of the upcoming afternoon.

Carmelita walked into the living room that morning, looking rather green.

"Hey babe, not feeling well?" Sly asked. He was at the center table. He and his gang were going over plans for their next target: one Alfonso De Luca, a card-counter and shady scammer who had overtaken many casinos in Sicily. He and his group of thugs were a force to be reckoned with.

But this particular team always seemed to come out on top.

Carmelita opened her mouth to say something, but immediately covered her mouth and dashed for the bathroom down the hall.

"Ooh, I'll take that as a no," he said, and turned back to the gang's preparations.

Embarrassed, she walked out after the waves of nausea had passed and headed back upstairs. She brushed her teeth and returned to her bed. She chalked up the sickness she was feeling to being pregnant. As she lay there, the baby squirmed about in her belly.

She laid a comforting hand on her stomach and stroked it. "Just two more months…and you'll be out of there. I promise."

Soon after the baby settled and Carmelita had drifted to sleep, as usual, Sly came in to check on her.

He sat next to her, caressing her face. Her eyelids fluttered open. "Hey Ringtail," she sighed.

"Hello, my fiancée," he said back. He loved being able to call her that. "Feeling better?"

She stretched. "A little. I think I just needed to sleep it off."

He nodded. "Well, listen, me and the others are going across town, we have to go meet a friend who's got some info on our next target."

She yawned. "Still not letting me come on the exciting adventures, yet?" she asked.

He smiled conflictingly. "I'd love for you too, you know I would, but I don't want you to get hurt. I'm just concerned about your safety." He rubbed her stomach. "And you're not feeling your best today either."

She smiled. "You're right. I'll be good and stay home."

"Thank you." He kissed her forehead. "We'll be back soon."

"Mkay. Love you."

He closed the door and she fell back to sleep.

An hour later she awoke fully and was feeling much better. She got up and got dressed, and went downstairs to the living room to notice that everyone was gone.

That's when she remembered.

Oh yeah. That's right. They'll be gone all day, she mentally noted.

So, instead of being all alone in a quiet house, she decided to go outside and take a nice walk out in the sunshine. She strolled down to the woods near the Safe House, the rays of sun warming her auburn fur, feeling wonderful.

She loved hanging out with the gang, but time alone was nice as well. She could assess her thoughts and her future.

It would certainly be a transition, being a thief. But she knew how happy her soon-to-be-husband was going to be, taking care of a family who took after him.

She was all too excited about the wedding as well. She and Sly had discussed the details. She wanted to get married before the baby was born; she just didn't want to have a baby out of wedlock. She'd scarred her family name enough already.

It was going to be a very small wedding. Only their closest friends. And her parents, if they were even willing to attend. Most girls want the fairytale wedding, but marrying Sly was all that really mattered to her.

And being a mom was going to be the scariest adventure she'd ever take, more frightening than any perpetrator she'd come in contact with as an inspector, and she knew without a doubt in her mind that there would be scrapes and bruises along the way. But she just wanted her son or daughter to be happy and know that their parents loved them more than anything.

The vixen soon found herself in a peaceful clearing, and could hear the birds singing, could smell the fragrant wildflowers beneath her feet.

She closed her eyes and smiled, taking in a deep inhale of the rustic smell of nature around her.

"Well my my! Look who it is! Cooper's little girlfriend!"

Carmelita spun around to stare into a set of piercing red eyes, of which she wasn't familiar with at all.

She stared up in fright at the monstrous creature hovering above her. This was no old foe. She didn't know who he was. She wasn't even quite sure what he was.

His dark green webbed toes resembled a frog's, but he was much too big to be a frog.

His bulging muscular thighs reminded her of one bulldog she'd thrown in jail years ago.

Resting on the ground behind him, an enormous scaly tail sat.

He had a large but well-built torso and chest that were both very furry, and just happened to be snow white, similar to a certain panda's, except leaner and more defined.

And the most captivating feature he possessed? The colossal set of brown feathered wings, which were keeping him suspended a foot or so off the ground. His furred black arms were crossed, but instead of paws at the end of them, he had menacing bird-like hands with talons sticking out nearly two inches.

His feline-like face was surrounded by a majestic mane.

Carmelita stared up at the beast, wide-eyed, her mouth falling open.

He grinned, flashing a set of sharp teeth, long and thin like needles. "Aren't you going to say hello to me, Carmelita? Oh come now, what ever is the matter, dear? Don't tell me. Stranger got your tongue?" He laughed darkly.

She backed up slowly, and he glided forward slightly for every step she took backward, until he had her cornered up against a tree.

"H-h-how do you know my name?" she squeaked out.

The creature smiled haughtily. "Oh I know all about you dear. Think of me as an omniscient god."

Her wide eyes were locked on him. "Who are you?" she demanded.

"Oh my, how rude of me! Where are my manners?" he cleared his throat and spun sinuously in the air, holding his arms out in presentation, extending his large feathery wings. "I am Mélange."

"M-M- Mélange?" Carmelita stuttered in pure fear. Just who the hell was this guy? He wasn't one of Sly's old enemies, that much was certain. And didn't appear to be a criminal she had hauled off to jail. But one thing she couldn't deny was how much he bore a striking resemblance to five certain creatures.

He flashed a smile again. "Ooh, I do love hearing a beautiful woman saying my name. It's French for a divine mixture of elements, just in case you were wondering."

He put a talon lightly under her chin, and she shuddered at his contact.

"What do you want?" she asked in fright, her breathing grew erratic.

Mélange's perturbing red eyes narrowed, the smile never leaving his features. "Oh so eager to hear my evil plan, eh my little blue-haired fox? Yes, I suppose I wouldn't be a proper villain if I didn't reveal to you my malevolent purpose. Well you see, my expectant vixen…" she immediately wrapped her arms tightly around her stomach, as if that would protect her defenseless kit in the slightest, "…I'm quite sure that if you're as sharp as your raccoon boyfriend-"

"Fiancée," she corrected.

"Oh, my mistake." His voice was unnervingly charming. "If you're as sharp as your little fiancée, then you've already figured out that I've taken some kind of form of five of Cooper's well-known previous enemies."

"The Fiendish Five."

He caressed her face, nearly breaking the delicate skin beneath her fur with his sharp talons. "Quite right. You are bright after all. But let's get back to me, shall we? I was a lion to begin with, so my superb mane and striking facial features had to stay of course." He whipped his mane about in superiority. "And, combining my incredible knowledge of DNA sequencing and chemical slash biological extractions and permutations, I've decided to avenge the poor foolish souls who lost everything because of Cooper and his revolting little gang. And I figure, why stop at avenging them? Now that I have all their strongest attributes, I'm much more powerful than they, so I might as well do what they failed to do from the start, and wipe out all traces of the Cooper clan, don't you think?" he laughed, a booming maniacal laugh.

"No," she whispered, her whole body trembling.

He stopped laughing and looked down at her. "Oh yes, my dear." His voice sounded as if torturing her gave him the ultimate pleasure. "I'm killing them all, slaughtering each member slowly and savagely! Starting with YOU." He glanced down at her largely swollen stomach in mock disappointment. He clicked his tongue against his rows of needle teeth, making a tsk-tsk sound. "A real shame the little one will never see the light of day. Ah well."

No! NO! He would not kill her baby! She would sacrifice herself before ever letting him touch her helpless child she loved so much.

With a rush of adrenaline, she broke into a run, trying desperately to escape this evil nightmare. Within mere seconds he was in front of her, his massive avian wings looming behind him. She screamed out.

His smile disappeared. "I really didn't expect you to make this easy. Unfortunately, the exchange of pleasantries is over. We must get down to business. And running will only make your death a more excruciating process for you, so I suggest you don't."

Despite his order, she ran in another direction, faster than she ever had in her life, her heart nearly bursting in her chest.

Out of nowhere, a large clawed hand struck her hard across the face. The force sent in her falling backwards, and she fell onto the unforgiving ground.

A slow drawn-out sound of agony escaped her lips. She held her cheek, which was now dripping blood. Luckily she hadn't hit the ground too hard. But her face hurt pretty harshly.

Her eyes closed, holding her face, she curled up into a ball, grunting in pain.

Mélange stalked up to her position and towered over her.

She peeked up at the monster, and he smiled maliciously. He turned one of his hands palm up and an ethereal glowing green energy appeared in it. He moaned ominously. "Mmmm! Oh seeing you in pain really gets me going, my little Spanish fox." He narrowed his fiery red eyes, blazing with purpose. "Now hold still so I can finish you two off properly." He drew his hand back, the green energy intensifying.

Carmelita closed her eyes, preparing for the final blow, holding her stomach instinctively. I guess this is goodbye, she thought to the baby. Sorry I never got to meet you.

I love you…

All of a sudden, an orb of electricity hit Mélange in his mutated muscular back.

The beast roared out, stumbling backward, but still standing his ground. Instantly, several more shots of electricity hit him in numerous fatal places on his body.

A thunderous growl escaped his throat as he fell backwards into the earth, writhing as the electrical impulses coursed through his partially biological veins, halting his defense mechanisms.

"ARRGGGH! YOU LITTLE BASTARD!" he snarled deafeningly, but remained on the ground.

Carmelita looked up in astonishment to see a male fox run to her position. Though her vision was slightly blurred, she still recognized his face.

"Carmelita!" Tony's alarmed voice sounded in her ringing ears. "Carmelita, can you hear me?"

She sat up, still holding her cheek; the blood was beginning to dry. She had never been so relieved to see her fox friend. Well, former friend.

"Yes."

He examined her cheek quickly, and she flinched in response.

"I'll KILL you! You disgusting little furball!" the winged beast roared, his voice echoing through the trees.

Tony turned to see Mélange trying to get up, and showing no mercy, shot him twice more with his pistol. But he was starting to stand despite the electric shock. He was…adapting.

Tony's head snapped to the vixen's face. "Run Carmelita!" he ordered.

She couldn't move; she was petrified, frozen in fear. "What?"

He braced her shoulders, shaking her out of her stupor. "RUN! Get out of here! NOW! I'll fight him off as long as I can. Now go! GO!"

She sprang to her feet and tore for the Safe House, and could hear Tony calling for backup far behind her, terrifying thunderous growls in the background.

As the trees zoomed past her in a blur, she wasn't thinking of anything but doing exactly what he told her to. Run. Get to safety. Despite the severe protest in her lungs, she loped all the way to the back door of the Safe House and slammed it shut behind her. She walked over to the couch and collapsed onto it, the image of the new enemy burned in her brain. She lay there, caressing her baby inside her belly.

After a while, the little one shoved against her touch lightly, and she sighed, so glad he, or she, was still alive.

Not too long after, the Cooper Gang returned, entering through the front, Sly walking in first. He looked ahead to see Carmelita on the couch, and as soon as he noticed the slash marks on her face, and the bruises covering her arms, he rushed up to her instantaneously, a look of extreme worry on his face. "Carmelita! What happened?" he set his cane down and sat beside her.

She opened her mouth but nothing came out. She slowly shook her head back and forth. She couldn't say anything. She just held him tightly, and began to sob deeply, as you do when a villain nearly slaughters you to death.

The others ran up to her.

"Carmelita! Oh my gosh you're hurt!" Penelope gasped.

"What in the world…?" Bentley asked.

"Whoa! That looks bad!" Murray rushed over as well.

Sly rested his chin on Carmelita's head, his mind flying through the possibilities of what could have happened. Who all could have come after her? Neyla? No she was dead. Rajan? Not likely. Someone from Interpol?

Sly stroked her back gently, periodically saying things like, "It's okay Carm. Everything's gonna be alright. You're safe now. I'm here sweetheart," until she calmed down and her sobbing turned into normal breathing once more.

He took her face in his hands, mindful of the blood-dried lacerations.

"Carmelita, who did this to you? Start from the beginning." The others gathered around, Penelope sitting on her other side, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

Carmelita sucked in a ragged breath. "Well…I was just going out for a walk…and this…mutated monster confronted me. H-he said t-that he's taken parts of the Fiendish Five an-and morphed in-into a much stronger being. He attacked me, I didn't stand a chance."

Sly and the group looked around at each other, taking in what Carmelita was saying.

"He told me th-that, that he was going after the entire Cooper Gang, starting with me, and the baby." More tears fell. "I was so scared we were both gonna die!" she croaked hoarsely.

Sly hugged her close. "I'm so glad you're alright!" he whispered.

"I'm fine now. But if it wasn't for Tony-"

He pushed her away so he could look at her. "Tony! What's he got to do with this? What was that guy doing anywhere near you?"

"Ay dios mios, Sly!" she cried out. "Now is not the time to be jealous! I wouldn't be here right now if it weren't for Tony!"

He held his hands up. "Alright, alright. I didn't know. I'm sorry," he said, trying to calm the shaking vixen. If this was true, if he had really saved her life today, Sly decided that maybe this Tony Fox wasn't such a bad guy after all.

Sly put his hands on her stomach and looked at her tear-stained face. "Is the baby ok?"

She looked down. "I…I think so."

"Well we should find out for sure. You look pretty banged up. I think I should take you to the hospital. I'll be right back after I change clothes."

She nodded.

Once he removed his hat and slipped into a normal shirt and jeans, an outfit that wouldn't make him recognizable to the general public, he helped her up and led her out the door.

Penelope, Bentley, and Murray all exchanged worried glances.

It was very apparent that a new villain was out to seek vengeance upon the Cooper Clan. And they had to stop him, before he ended their lives.

This unquestionably will not be the last the gang will see of Mélange.

Stick around for his inevitable return.