~Location: Carmelita's Apartment - Paris, France~

~Date/Time: Present Day, 11:47 PM~

Carmelita Montoya Fox wandered around the vibrant party setting, seeing important guests and undercover Interpol members like herself everywhere she looked. However, none of these guests interested her tonight. There was someone more important that she needed to be with.

Slinging her purse over her shoulder, she finally found him. 'Constable' Sly Cooper was casually leaning over the banister railing, looking out into the night sky. Fireworks lit up the sky in a pink hue and produced a genuinely romantic moment for her. She didn't dare question why he was here or question the purpose of the coincidental fireworks display, she just relished in the moment.

She was about to approach him when the handcuffs that dangled from her purse clanked. She nonchalantly slipped them into her purse, mentally cursing away an old habit. Silently, she approached him as his back was turned, not seen until it was too late. The most that Sly could do was turn to face his attacker and raise his hands in surrender. Carmelita acted swiftly, tying the loose tie around his neck into a fancy red bow. Sly lowered his hands and smiled, embarrassed that his old habits had reacted for him. Carmelita simply laughed and hugged the raccoon tightly, earning an embrace in return.

While the purpose of the fireworks will remain a mystery, the purpose of the party was clear. The occasion was to celebrate the arrival of new artifacts for display. A few nights later, Carmelita was watching security footage for the museum when she found Sly hiding inside. The idea that he could be here to steal something right from under her nose made her snap. She rushed to the museum to stop Sly only to find that he had an ancient Japanese dagger in hand and was making his escape. Looking out the window as the Cooper van sped away, she felt anger. Pure anger.

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The fox now sat up in her bed, tears in her eyes caused by waking up from a perfect dream. It was more than a dream... It was a memory. Since the night that she had caught him red-handed, she had always felt alone. She did see Sly again several times later, but they were always so harsh to each other. They barely had a moment together before Le Paradox's blimp imploded, the moment before Sly was lost forever.

If only they had treated each other differently... If she only knew how he felt sooner... The thought had brought to another happy memory. Holding the slightly charred photo in her hands, she was taken back to this memory, remembering almost everything in detail. They had an afternoon date together on the streets of Paris like any couple would. Sly randomly suggested to take a couple's photo while using the Eiffel Tower as the backdrop. Standing together for the photo, the moment was normal. They looked like a happy, young couple that was about to get a picture taken together. The fact that they were once on different sides of the law didn't matter to them now. It would've been a convincing picture, even if Sly wasn't planning something. Timing it perfectly, he lightly kissed Carmelita on the cheek, momentarily stunning the fox. Everything was captured at once in that more-than-perfect picture. His lips hadn't left her cheek yet. The shock of the moment had just hit her and her eyes widened in surprise as the camera captured the moment.

This was originally a happy moment, but it made Carmelita feel bad, finding it charred after Sly had vanished. The fact that Sly had developed the photo and kept it with him to the end was a blunt reminder to one fact: He loved her. Pure and simple. She already knew this and he knows that she loves him, but her work had distracted her in a contest of mind over heart.

Standing up out of bed, she searched for something under her bed. She pulled out a shoe-box and placed it on her bed before opening it. It may have been childish to keep little mementos about the relationship that she had with the thief, but she didn't care. This was her treasure chest and what she needed to do right now was to admire the loot. Notes, pictures, calling cards, and fake roses to represent real ones littered the bottom. All of these treasures gave her the hope that she desperately needed. It's been months since Sly had disappeared, but she never lost hope. Carmelita admired the photo in her hands for some time before setting it among the other keepsakes. After burying her secret collection, she climbed back into bed, pulling a pillow to her waist and hugging it. She did what any lonely lover would do and imagined that the pillow was Sly's waist, no doubt thinking of hugging him when he returned and hugging him every night afterwards.

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