Sly Cooper: Family of Thieves

by Blackdrag-rose

Interlude: Happiness

Two months went by since the gang had assaulted Kaine Island, and the scientist that had taken the island's deed for himself so law enforcement couldn't touch him, which failed once everyone figured out that the deed had been stolen and a new one had been created to replace it, though the Cooper Gang was far from relaxing after their adventure. Shortly after their return to Paris, and their warehouse, Diz, Bentley, Penelope, and even Clockwerk got to work creating a new Cooper Vault door that acted like the one on Kaine Island, so that it would only open with the cane that Sly was carrying and not one of the other ones that existed, and then hauled it into position once the golden door was ready. In addition to that they carved six special emblems into the metal, the ones that Sly and Carmelita used being near the top of where the slot was, Bentley's on the left of the cane while Murray's sat to the right, and finally Gilda and Derpy rested at the bottom of the slot. Diz also surprised them by surrounding the cane slot in an emblem that resembled an oddly shaped six pointed star, and oddly enough the gang agreed that it brought the seven of them together as a family, showing Sly that the others, even if they were only temporary members, were okay with this since they would be remembered for their deeds by the stories that they told the next generation.

Sly, of course, was happy to have another piece of his family's history secure, because with the Cooper Vault and the Thievius Raccoonus in his possession any thief that carried the Cooper name, and came after him and his family, would know the full history of their clan and be able to add to the massive treasure hoard that they had been gathering since the Vault was first created... though what he needed to do, at some point in the future, was figure out where he was going to set aside a section for his family and himself inside the incredible Vault.

Once their work on the door was complete, and Diz connected the pocket dimension that Kaine Island was being stored in to the other side of the new metallic door, so that the portal would open once the correct key was inserted into the slot, they spent a few days installing some hazards for whoever the next generation was. The moment they were done installing the latest obstacles that would protect the Cooper Vault, and sealed the door behind them until Sly wanted to take another peek inside there, the gang got to work on something that had held Sly's attention since they got back, and that was planning his and Carmelita's wedding. One of the things that they agreed on was that it was a small ceremony, mostly because they didn't want to make an announcement to the world that this was happening, despite the records showing that such a thing happened, and they got to work sending out invitations to the people that they wanted to invite to the ceremony, and the first one sent was to Carmelita's family. In addition to them, since they were family, there was also the fact that they invited the rest of the gang, because without them they wouldn't have gotten inside the Vault at all, though figuring out where to have the ceremony fell to Clockwerk.

If someone had asked Sly a week ago if he would have trusted the ancient owl he would have said that they were out of their minds, and that was if they were referring to the hateful owl that they fought in Russia, but the new Clockwerk, who seemed to have fun with them and enjoyed his time inventing with Bentley, even though he now had to share his first friend with Penelope these days, was someone that Sly could trust. Clockwerk proved himself by finding a lovely spot in the hills about an hour outside Paris, much like some of the vineyards that he flew over, that was an ideal spot for them to set up their own wedding area and not be disturbed, especially once the area was reserved for some time so they could hold the ceremony and have some fun. The moment he found the area out, and told the others about it, Sly and Carmelita went out and made the arrangements for the big day, allowing the others to get all the food and other accessories that were necessary for the ceremony, making sure to check every box that Bentley and Penelope could think of so the wedding was one that they would all remember for years to come... and they even convinced the Panda King to make some fireworks that weren't actually explosives, rather the works of art that he had originally tried to create, and that made him very happy to have someone want his old passions back once more.

During all that, however, the rest of the gang could tell that both Penelope and Bentley were working on their own feelings and relationship, as it was official that they were boyfriend and girlfriend, but for right now they were focusing on making sure that Sly and Carmelita had the best wedding day they could possibly have... and, at the same time, both of them had a special gift that they were working on and told no one what it was that they were doing, wanting to keep it a surprise until the time was right.

The days following the reservation being made for the wedding, resulting in Sly and Carmelita finding a store to get the necessary clothing attire for such a formal event, was quite busy for the gang as they made their preparations and ensured that everything would be ready on the date that the couple set. The people that the couple sent invitations to also sent them a reply, where Sly and Carmelita, upon opening and reading all of them, were pleased to find that everyone they had invited to the ceremony were going to come and help them celebrate this wonderful day. Despite the fact that almost all of Carmelita's friends before joining the gang had been her coworkers at Interpol, who had betrayed her by siding with Neyla and listened to her lies, there was one officer that she, as well as the rest of the gang, trusted and that was her friend Judy Hopps. An invitation was also sent to Secretary Sen, since it was because of him Sly and Carmelita were able to start working on their relationship and eventually reach this point, but considering his position they knew that he might not be able to make it and left him marked down as a special guest that may or may not arrive... though that didn't stop the two of them from looking forward to the special day that was approaching, along with the memories that would be made after the ceremony.

---

Eventually the day of the wedding ceremony arrived and the gang gathered at the small chapel that Clockwerk had found, which was large enough for him and all of the guests that had been invited to the ceremony, and outside the building rested an area where they'd gather for the food and hold the rest of the celebration. The members of the gang sat on the left side of the building, each and every one of them dressed up for the ceremony by wearing tuxedos and dresses that were appropriate for the occasion, while at the same time Bentley stood next to Sly at the alter, though what surprised them was that Murray was fine with this arrangement. On the right side of the room sat the rest of the guests, which included Carmelita's parents, Edward and Margret Fox, her grandfather, Haytham James Fox, a smiling Mz. Ruby, and a few family members that Carmelita had known about and invited despite not having seen them very often, but at the very least they seemed supportive of what was going on. The oddest thing was that Secretary Sen actually showed up for the ceremony, surprising the gang in the process, but what really surprised them was that the other four Secretaries also joined him, as they were taking a day off from their duties and the others decided to join him... though after meeting Bast, Anu, Kaji, and Jaxie, before they took their seats, Sly suspected that this was Bast's idea, but put it to the back of his mind for now as he waited for the ceremony to begin.

A few moments later he heard the door behind him open and turned his gaze towards it, where he and the others found Carmelita, dressed in an elegant wedding dressing that perfectly fit her body, standing there with a smile on her face with some roses in her hands, before her father stopped by her side and escorted her down the aisle towards the alter, where Sly was patiently waiting. When Edward reached the alter he stood to the side as Carmelita stepped up beside Sly, allowing him to return to his seat to watch the ceremony, and the two of them faced the Priest that was standing in front of them, who began the ceremony now that the two of them were ready to go. The ceremony progressed as the gang thought it would, as both Sly and Carmelita stood there with smiles on their faces as the priest spoke the 'binding' words, or whatever they were officially called, and eventually reached the point in the ceremony when they were supposed to speak, and, to no one's surprise, both Sly and Carmelita said 'I do' when one of them were asked if they would stand by the other's side, before the two of them were pronounced husband and wife.

That, of course, was followed by everyone heading outside and having the rest of the celebration that they had carefully planned out for today, where they ate the food that had been prepared, danced to the tune of the music that had been picked out for today, and had a great time while smiles graced all their faces... and the roses, when it came time to toss them, was actually grabbed by Penelope, granted that she didn't have a lot of competition to get it, but that didn't stop her from blushing as she glanced at Bentley.

There wasn't much in terms of wedding gifts, not when Sly and Carmelita had a good number of the everyday items that people used in their lives, like cooking pots and items like it, but there was a decent surprise from Carmelia's parents, and that was a nice house that was half an hour from where the warehouse was located, one that happened to have four bedrooms and two bathrooms. Sly and Carmelita didn't need to be told why the house had that many bedrooms, as it appeared that Carmelita's parents wanted to be grandparents at some point in the future, but they told Edward and Margret that they intended to have kids at some point in the future, and it wasn't to continue the Cooper line, they wanted to be like other families, despite that they were thieves and their kids would follow in their footsteps when they came of age to receive the Thievius Raccoonus. Gilda, Derpy, and Diz learned that there was a specific reason that Sly had been given the family tome when he was eight years old, as it was the night he was supposed to begin his studies to become a thief like his father, but they said nothing about that as they let the duo enjoy their special day.

Bentley and Penelope's gift, as it turned out, was for Sly and Carmelita to take a few days off from being thieves and have their honeymoon in one of the more beautiful parts of Venice, where they wouldn't have to worry about a gang like the one they helped topple, allowing the remainder of them to continue their work as thieves of the Cooper Gang before it was time for them to come back.

As the ceremony progressed, however, Gilda, Derpy, and Diz noticed that the tattoos on Bast's arms glowed for a moment as she wished Sly and Carmelita a prosperous and peaceful future, while the other Secretaries thanked them for allowing them to come and visit them on what was one of their most important days, before apologizing because they couldn't stay for much longer, as Sen discovered that there was something they needed to do and that duty was calling them back to their jobs once more. They were positive that at least Bast had some sort of magical power, and potentially Anu as well, but since neither of them seemed to be giving off any hints that such a thing was happening they decided to say nothing and simply enjoyed the rest of the celebration. The three of them were sure that, at some point in the future anyway, this would happen to them, that they would find true love and eventually get married as well, but for now they were focused on making sure that Sly and Carmelita's day was as great as they had planned, without anything terrible happening to them, as they would never live with themselves if something actually happened.

Fortunately the day ended without anything happening, other than everyone enjoying themselves and wishing both Sly and Carmelita well with the new part of their lives, though when the celebration was over, and those that had been invited headed back home, Bentley pulled the duo over for a moment to tell them something before they went off and enjoyed their honeymoon.

"Bentley, is something wrong?" Sly asked, as that was the only thing that crossed his mind at the moment, which would have put a negative mark on this otherwise successful day, but instead of saying anything else he and Carmelita stood there as they waited to hear what was happening.

"No, I just wanted to tell you that Penelope and I are going to start work on our secret project tomorrow." Bentley told them, to which a look of understanding crossed their faces for a moment, as they understood that what he was talking about was trying to figure out a way to see the past so they could record the true history of Clockwerk and how he came to be the hateful owl he used to be, "It should take us a few years to get everything right, considering that this is an unknown field that we're working in, but I'll be sure to tell you guys when something happens... but for now you should go and enjoy yourselves, because you both have earned some time off."

Sly smiled as he wrapped an arm around Carmelita, as they both agreed that Gilda, Derpy, and Diz, backed by Bentley, Murray, Penelope, and Clockwerk, would be able to carry the Cooper name until they were ready to return from their honeymoon... and they both knew that the future was going to be just as exciting for them as the last few years of their lives had been, which made them look forward to seeing what the future held with a smile on their faces.