(no subject)

[lupintrois]

It was Lupin's third theft in as many weeks. After his conversation with Sunshine he'd gone off and gotten himself properly drunk, just to get a third perspective on the matter, and then struck out twice with two increasingly annoyed women and gone home alone.

The question was never 'is Zenigata worth it'. Obviously, Zenigata was great, but Zenigata was not the treasure he was trying to hunt down here. The question was 'is trying to get a relationship with Zenigata that's more than occasional drinking buddies and sworn rivals worth it'. Was it worth it to disrupt the status quo, and would the treasure he got by disrupting it be worth the loss?

Klaus had, unfortunately, been incredibly unforthcoming about whether the sex was any good and Sunshine hadn't had as much perspective on romancing him as he'd hoped. (Boy, he'd read that one totally wrong.) He'd poked Fujiko about it a little but she'd assumed he was jealous and played up Zenigata's prowess and romantic charms just to needle him, only to find him storming out on her.

The next week, a diamond quietly went missing in Sweden. After that, a gold-plated vintage car in Australia vanished from a mob boss's personal collection. It wasn't quite the same without Pops but it also wasn't boring...losing Pops as a rival wouldn't shatter what made theft worth it. He'd had to convince himself of that before he could escalate to the next step.

(Of course he hadn't bugged the apartment. That would just be rude. But he had hidden a camera next to the door, just so he could see when Pops started residing in it again.)

Comments

[lupintrois]

"Look at you, all sappy over me. It's cute." Lupin streches out on top of him, legs on top of legs, chest to chest, nibbling on his ear. "Hey, how much time you had to explore this place, huh? You checked all the drawers?"

[zenigatcha]

There's a little harrumphing, while the original tsundere turns his head and says, "It's not like that!" Except he just said that it was, so best to move on to an entirely different topic whatsoever.

"Lupin, I went straight to the office when my plane hit the tarmac," Zenigata said, though he's stroking a hand along the other man's back, feeling the slick leather blazer under his fingertips in a whole new way. "I didn't get here until-- a few minutes before you showed up, probably. I haven't even unpacked except to shower. I just found the robe in the bathroom, so I used it."

[lupintrois]

Lupin reaches to one of the nearby bookshelves and does a little twisting of his fingers, opening a false bottom. When his hand comes back he's got two condoms and a little lube packet. Coyly, he puts one of the condoms in his teeth.

"I got plenty more things you can use here."

[zenigatcha]

A red flush races from Zenigata's chest to his brow. He looks at Lupin. Then, he looks at the bookshelf. For a moment, his detective's brain engages and wonders how it works, why THERE of all places, why--

--but then he looks back at Lupin and the condom packet hanging from his teeth.

"...you randy son of a bitch." He's in awe. Truly.

[lupintrois]

"I figured, y'know, either I got lucky or you did. Either way, it'd be useful." He winks, settling in to straddle the man's hips.

"Chasing you instead of getting chased isn't my favorite thing, but it was nice to mix things up a bit."

[zenigatcha]

Settling back, Zenigata's eyes rake over Lupin as he shifts position, and then bites his lip on all the things he could say or the thoughts he could express. He doesn't have to, they're all over his broad, blushing face.

Then he cuts his gaze to the side, and said, "After we got back from the Jin dungeon, I just kept-- feeling good. Not just because we got Wen Qing out, but... because we got Wen Qing out and we'd just taken her. Without anyone knowing or being able to stop us." For a hot second, he was a thief and he loved it.

"So maybe keep chasing, okay? Sometimes -- change is nice."

[lupintrois]

"Ooh, so you're saying you like being a naughty criminal?" Now that does send Lupin into a fit of smug giggling, because he knows exactly how good a criminal Zenigata could be if he put his mind to it. That's the real shame of the whole thing - but then again, Lupin would probably be a decent cop if he cared to be. His hands try to get that robe off Zenigata's shoulders, to see more of what he's 'stolen'.

"We should take you on a few shifts, let you get that energy off robbing millionaires."

[zenigatcha]

"I didn't say that," Zenigata replies, burying himself in gruffness as Lupin tugs at his clothes. He eventually pushes himself up straight, robe slopping off one shoulder. "I said I liked stealing from bad people. Very different. But maybe next time they need a thief, I'll just do things myself."

The way the padlock gave under his hands was downright amazing, knowing it was coming off and that they'd walk out with Wen Qing scot free... He could see why Lupin enjoyed it. Didn't approve (no never!) but... he could at least understand it.

Upright, Zenigata hides his face in the crook of Lupin's neck; the scent of pickles and champagne is there, leather under that, the musky smell of money, mineral spirits of gun oil, and the scent of gin as a sharp edge. He is still teetering on the brink, on the edge of falling, brought this far by everything that's happened with them in the last year or two, Millways providing the largest push.

To think, once, he wanted to kill this man. Zenigata would laugh at the absurdity of who they were versus who they are now. Still...

"I'm going to still beat you, you know," he murmurs, just so he's clear. "Just so we're clear. Every innocent person you rob, every goddamn treasure you pluck from the public -- I'm going to be on your ass like I stole it, you got it?"

[lupintrois]

"I look forward to watching you try," Lupin purrs, and goes in for another kiss. Oh, thank god. There's nothing more romantic he could have said than "This won't ruin the chase for us".

[zenigatcha]

One hand comes up to the back of Lupin's neck, as Zenigata's other hand slides to the small of his back. He savors the kiss, and then pulls him back down.

The right things will change, and the needed constants will remain. Maybe this isn't the best idea, and maybe this will shake thing up in too many ways... but Zenigata's done denying it.

He plucks all the packets from Lupin's hands, and then has to really think about the final plunge. When he looks up, with those eyes that no longer hide their adoration, he asks, "So you going to show me what you hid in the bedroom, Lupin?"