Till Death Do Us Part
Part 1
by Mary Christmas (unicorn_76010 at lycos.com)
2/1/03
Okay, this is a weird crossover between Lupin III, SH22
and...well, you'll see...I've had this thing in my head for
weeks....
Prologue
San Francisco - 1981
It was nearly midnight, and the darkness provided the perfect
cover for the figures that slipped silently into a second floor
window of a seedy motel in a poorer district of the city. A few
seconds later the light came on.
Inside, one of the figures -- a tall, lanky gentleman with black
hair and a devil-may-care attitude -- lay back on the threadbare
sofa and grinned up at his three companions. One of them was an
older man wearing a dark coat and fedora that shielded his eyes
from view, and he didn't seem to happy with the situation he had
found himself in, though he kept his opinion to himself. The
other male -- a samurai -- was expressionless and appeared to be
waiting for what came next. The last of them was an attractive
woman, and she had no qualms voicing her objections.
"Five weeks preparation -- and for what? Costume jewelry?" She
placed her hands on her hips and glared at the man on the sofa.
"Lupin, I didn't get into this business for useless pieces of
plastic. I could have become an actress and had more money!"
Lupin just shrugged and grinned. "Well, of course you could have,
Fuji-cakes..." he winked, "But then we wouldn't have been able to
spend this quality time together."
This was met by a snort from the man with the fedora.
'Fuji-cakes' rounded on him, her glare like a poisonous snake's.
"I'm outta here. You're entirely too childish, Lupin." She turned
around and marched out the door, then spun around and spat out,
"Just like pointlessly sneaking into a motel room you've already
paid for!"
After she was gone, Lupin shrugged and sat up, an affable grin on
his face. "She'll be back; don't worry, Jigen."
The man with the fedora scowled. "I'm not worried. I just hope
she stays gone a little longer this time or our plan won't work."
Lupin's face grew serious. "Right. She's got to think we're dead
for real or Haagen'll never buy it, no matter how good an actor
she is."
"And what of Zenigata?" the samurai asked, breaking his silence.
"Good question, Goemon," Lupin stated as though speaking to a
prized pupil, "And I'm glad you asked it. Zenigata's gonna be the
one to kill us...at least indirectly...."
******
Two weeks later....
Dead calm. The smell of gasoline. Then an explosion....
Fujiko Mine lay quietly in the box, waiting for the drug to put
her to sleep. She wasn't sure why she had agreed to this, but
when Taki had proposed it she had gladly accepted. It was a
chance to revolutionize the future. Sure, she would be in
cryogenic stasis for twenty years...but it would be worth it.
Flames, disturbing the quiet night...he was gone...they were
all...gone....
"Hey, babe...."
She jerked her head up at the voice, her heart pounding, then lay
back in disappointment. It was just her brother.
"Fuji...are you sure about this? I mean..I only asked you first
because...."
"Just get on with it, Taki."
The younger of the two sighed before assuming an indifferent
manner. "All right, now, you know that there can be some side
effects such as..."
"I don't care."
"...amnesia, heart problems, permanent brain damage," he went on
as if she hadn't interrupted, "And...death."
"I. Don't. Care. And I don't see why you do. I'm a disgrace to
the family, remember?"
Taki sighed and injected the rest of the drug into her system
before closing the lid of the chamber. She began losing
consciousness.
Gone...
Chapter One
Inspector Beth Lestrade folded her arms across her chest and
glared at the excited girl who was jumping up and down in front
of her.
"But Inspector! You 'ave to come see what me and Wiggins found!"
Lestrade rolled her eyes. "Okay, okay, Deidre, I'm coming. Though
I don't understand why you want me and not Holmes."
The girl just grinned mischeivously. "You'll see, Inspector,
don't worry." Then she turned and practically ran towards the
entrance to the Underground.
Lestrade followed -- albeit at a more sedate pace. The way Deidre
acted, sometimes reminded her of someone, though she couldn't
place a name with the face. And sometimes she couldn't even
picture a face....
When she arrived, she understood what Deidre meant. It was a
coffin, in the same style that Holmes had been done. Except that
this one had Hebrew lettering on it, and there was an old woman
inside.
"Where did you find this?" Lestrade asked softly.
"In a place that looks like it was lived in, at least for a little
while," Wiggins answered, "Although it must have been cramped...."
"D'you think Mister 'Olmes knew her?"
Lestrade shrugged. "I don't know...let's...take her to Sir Evan.
It doesn't seem right to leave her here...."
Especially not when I think of what might have happened to
me if they had just left me....
On to part 2!
Back to the fanfic index
|