[zapdragon555]

"Can you blame me?" Lupin muttered, still slurred but far quieter, rubbing the back of his neck. A bruise would probably form there from the blunt blow. "It's still alive..."

Goemon leaned over Lupin's shoulder to peer at the writhing tentacles. "In a sense," he muttered, with some wince of disgust on his face. He didn't particularly agree with the consumption of octopus, intelligent creatures that they were. "The nerves are there, but the cognition is not. Take heart in that, at least. And it would be disrespectful to refuse what you ordered."

"I didn't order this."

"Yes you did, I watched you do it," Jigen interjected, grinning and wagging his finger at the thief.

[zapdragon555]

It wasn't terribly long before yet another familiar face entered the restaurant -- but this time, though friendlier than Goemon's face, it was one that held ill intentions. Inspector Zenigata was famished; their pursuit had lasted for a good hour and turned up fruitless. They'd get at it once more, looking for clues and asking around for any witnesses, but for now, Zenigata as looking to grab some takeout for himself and his rookie.

That is, until he spotted an all-too-familiar trio at the bar, and instantly all senses were on alert. This was it--the chase wasn't fruitless after all! "Lupin!" he barked, voice echoing in the small restaurant. "You're under arrest!"

[zapdragon555]

Jigen let out a loud curse and shoved a bite of pasta into his mouth, his hand flying for the gun in his back pocket. Goemon bristled with alarm and grabbed at Jigen's arm. "We're in a crowded residential area--"

But the crowd was already starting to uproar, alarm breaking out first in a murmur and then in shouts of fear. Zenigata seemed to realize his mistake immediately. "Everyone let me through, please don't panic!" he called out over the crowd, but his voice was mostly lost in the drone. "I said let me through, damn it all!" Zenigata dodged a couple that ran out of the front door.

[zapdragon555]

Jigen holstered his gun with a grumble and turned to Lupin, but the thief was already on his feet, his previously lackadaisical expression focused with a wild grin. "Pops!" Lupin cried over the din, laughing all the way as he darted for the back door. "How nice of you to drop in! I ordered you octopus!"

Lupin was out with a flash, and Jigen, ever the fast reflexes, wasn't far behind him. Goemon's eyes darted to an abandoned, empty go-box lying openfaced on a nearby table and grabbed it, throwing Jigen's pasta into it with a practiced, lightning-fast swoosh. The samurai darted out the same back door, go-box pressed between chest and arm as the sound of tires screeching hit his ears.

[zapdragon555]

"Goemon, in, in!" Lupin barked from the front seat, waving his arm wildly to get the samurai's attention. Jigen bit down hard on his cigarette at the wheel, shoving his foot on the gas pedal and starting to screech forward. A swift movement from Goemon, and he'd alighted on top of the car, holding on tight to the roof as the restaurant's chaos faded behind them. It wasn't long before police sirens could be heard--but from the sound of things, they were getting fainter.

"Did we get him?" Jigen barked, trying to crane his neck to see the back seat.

"Yeah--on the roof," Lupin panted, still looking exhilarated from the almost-dangerous encounter. "Can't believe Pops found us there!"

"I told you it was a small city. And it's a good restaurant. And I'm pissed we didn't get to eat."

[zapdragon555]

A hotel was out of the question - pretty soon, they figured, Zenigata would have the whole city on red alert after that. He always was a bit of a show-off when it came to being town crier, whenever Lupin was involved. As luck would have it, the port side of town was full of warehouses, and a few of them looked abandoned. The sun was beginning to set as they pulled into one of the parking lots, as close to the dumpster as possible.

"Not our worst digs," Lupin mused aloud as he stepped out of the car. Goemon hopped off the roof, looking a bit windblown but altogether calm, as Jigen pulled a black tarp over the light yellow car. He kept the trunk uncovered--he'd need to get supplies from there, after all. "Goemon, will you be rooming with us?"

[zapdragon555]

The samurai's eyes narrowed. "It's not something I'd planned on," he said simply, and left it at that. Even so, he didn't leave.

Arms now laden with rolled-up mats and rudimentary cookware, Jigen muttered something under his breath about sleeping on the ground and how bad it was for his back. He headed towards the warehouse's back entrance, and Goemon followed, go-box still tucked unnoticed under his billowy sleeve.

"Aw, guys," Lupin called after them, trotting up behind them. "Don't look so glum! We got a fun chase out of it, didn't we?"

"Sure, but we didn't get the goods," Jigen replied, his voice far flatter than Lupin's attempt at enthusiasm. Goemon unsheathed his blade and sliced the lock off of the back door in a single swipe before replacing Zantetsuken back in its sheath. "Forgive me if I'm less than enthused."

[zapdragon555]

Lupin's shoulders sagged slightly as his two companions went inside without another look in his direction. He knew he shouldn't take it personally, but he couldn't help but feel a little put out by their glum demeanor. At least Jigen's -- Goemon was always like that.

Lupin's stomach growled, and he let out a harrowed sigh, trotting in after them. "Jigen, didja get the instant coffee from the back?"

"Probably not. Go look yourself, m'hands are full."

Lupin sighed dramatically and spun on his heel, sauntering back towards the car.

Inside, Goemon eyed Jigen's laden arms, and shifted the go-box so it wouldn't be damaged when he reached over to grab a rather heavy bedroll. Jigen made a sound of surprise, then smiled a genuine smile. "Nice to see you around, samurai," he murmured, and Goemon gave a rare smile.

[zapdragon555]

The warehouse was spacious and damp, a sign that the air conditioning unit had not been in use for quite some time. The empty shelves held a rather haunting quality, and caused their footsteps to echo far louder than they would otherwise. "Spooky," Jigen commented, once they'd found an out-of-the-way clearing near an air vent. Easy escape if things got hairy.

"No. Just vacant," Goemon mused as he unfurled one of the bedrolls and laid it on the ground. "Perhaps lonely."

"Perhaps," Jigen answered him with a fond smile, staring at the other man for a few brief moments before starting to spread out beds as well. Only two. They weren't expecting Goemon. "You look more tired than usual, Goe-chan."

[zapdragon555]

The nickname gave Goemon pause for a brief moment, a ghost of a smile passing over his face before he shook his head and corrected it into false irritation. "I'm still recovering from a difficult job recently."

"Something was difficult for you? Color me impressed," Jigen grinned as he pulled a cigarette out of his pocket and plopped down cross-legged on the floor. A second later, the go-box was placed in front of him, and the cigarette nearly fell out of his mouth. "What's--did you grab my food for me?"

Goemon just smiled as Jigen tipped his hat back to look him in the eyes properly, then sat down cross-legged himself. Jigen looked genuinely touched. "I was lookin' forward to this pasta. Thank you."

[zapdragon555]

"It's cold by now," Goemon murmured, almost like an apology, or an excuse for Jigen to not look at him with such kind eyes. "Eat before you smoke."

"You're too good to me, honey." Jigen smiled as he popped open the box--indeed, the pasta was intact, if not incredibly mixed up and tossed around. Still fully edible--and to his empty stomach, it looked like a feast fit for a king.

"Honey is better than 'Goe-chan.' Call me that more often." A rare moment of flirtation that Jigen would be hard pressed to not notice. He side eyed the samurai with raised brows, and after a brief meeting of eyes, the two burst into quiet chuckles. The moment passed, as it often did.

[zapdragon555]

Outside, Lupin had taken a perch sitting on the edge of the trunk bed of the car with a trail of smoke coming from the tip of his cigarette. He held a phone against his ear, pinned with his shoulder as his fingers fiddled with a questionably old energy bar. "No, Fujicakes, I'm not... No, it's nothing like that," he muttered. "Come on, you know me--sometimes I'm just looking for a little... you know, womanly comfort. And some food. Do you have food on you?"

Lupin sighed and reclined against the edge of the car, the sound of the other line furrowing his brow. "No, the guys didn't abandon me. Yes, they're already inside. NO, they're not making out," he bristled, the laughter on the other end of the line bringing a smile to his face. "At least not without me, they better not be."

[zapdragon555]

He smiled, drawing a knee up to his chest. "S'real rude of you to steal those jeweled eggs out from under me. Don't make chicken jokes, it's uncalled for," he interjected seemingly before she could respond. Seemed it was a no, her answer--Lupin was on his own tonight, then. "Alright," he murmured, taking a drag on the cigarette before tonguing it to the corner of his mouth to speak once more. "I miss you, Fujiko. I hope you're well."

He blinked slowly, his face softening with love as she whispered something in kind, and with a beep, the phone hung up. Lupin properly opened the old energy bar and frowned at the stiffness of the food inside. Stale... but edible.

[zapdragon555]

When Lupin returned to the warehouse, it took him a moment to locate the others--but soon enough he found them, with Jigen reclined on one of the bedrolls and Goemon sitting cross-legged near him, head tilted down and eyes closed. One opened as Lupin approached, and Goemon held a finger to his lips, pointing down at Jigen. Asleep.

Lupin nodded and smiled, for once in an agreeable mood. He set down the box of instant coffee and took the other bedroll, feeling sleepy from hunger and the excitement of the day. There was still a chance that Zenigata could find them in here - luckily, they were all light sleepers to some degree. It usually depended on how much alcohol was in their systems.

[zapdragon555]

With both Lupin and Jigen out cold, Goemon's half-sleep was halved yet again. He kept his eyes closed, but his ears fully open, listening for any sound of trouble. Luckily, the warehouse was like a big amplifier--even the sound of cars outside swooshing past was loud enough to hear. More distracting, however, was Lupin's shivering and teeth-chattering.

Goemon's mouth formed a thin line as Lupin let out a particularly pitiful sound of discomfort, his lanky body curling into a tight of a ball as it could. Goemon silently shifted out of his haori and laid it down on top of the thief. After a few moments, Lupin's shivering stopped, and Goemon was satisfied. When dawn cracked, he'd put on a pot of coffee, he silently decided.

[Wild Pet Found]