"Dio?" Jonathan asked, looking up at the stars from one of the mansions many balconies, "have you ever been in love before"

The blond choked on his wine,"why the devil would you ask such a obsered question?" His cheeks were flushed, a major sign in showing he was drunk.

"Because In all my life I've known you,even in collage! You never once dated another lady!" Jonathan leaned closer to Dio,his cheeks were a bit flushed as well,after all this was his wedding reception,"are you...perhaps...not into woman?" He asked seriously.

It took about a minute for the question to hit,when it did Dio made a face and punched his brother in the arm,"No I'm not into men Jonathan! Honestly where do you get such ridiculous ideas from!?" He scoffed.

"Surely there must have been someone? A crush? A childhood friend? Well no,scratch that,you're horrible so I wouldn't expect you to have any friends"

"I will throw you off this balcony and make it look like an accident" he threatened.

"So then there's no one? Not a single soul?" He pestered.

"If I tell you will you bugger off?"

"Perhaps"

Dio sighed,"fine,but I want that old wine crate father gave you"

"The crate of 'Silent' wine?! The whole bloody thing!? Thats practically robbery!"

Dio pulled a half finished wine bottle from under his coat,"take it or leave it"

"Fine then! Now out with it! I need a good laugh!"

Dio handed his brother the glass and looked across the mansions small garden,"If you must know,you nosy little dog, Yes I did fall in love once"

Jonathan took a swing of the wine,"no!" He said playfully shocked.

"Yes,yes, I know but I doubt I'll ever see her again,we were both just children at the time...I wonder where she is now..."

The snow had been falling when he first met you,the evening sky was dark and cloudy as more clouds slowly rolled in. Dio shivered when a rather strong breeze slipped past his coat,blasted snow!

"Hey! Get back here!" Dio turned around, behind him there were three kids about his age running from the bobbies! In their hands were several bags filled with who knew what. Thats when it happened,he stepped on a rather slippery patch of ice,which caused him to loose his balance and bump into one of them causing a large pile up.

"Ow! Watch it you Floozers!" He snapped,the wind had gotten knocked out of him.

"Oh come of it!" One of them snapped back,they were all wearing cheaply made coats just as the two police men showed up,grabbing dio by the front of his collar and one of the other kid thieves.

"Got'cha now!"

"Unhand me! Iv nothing to do with these thieves!"

The man holding him socked him in the gut,knocking the wind out of him,"as if! I know you and your little friends are never far from each other!"

The other boy in the blond man's grip broke a hand free and whistled sharply into the air,"take everything and go!" He yelled to his accomplices.

"Ok!"

"See you boss!" They picked up all the dropped and scattered food on the ground and ran off just as a very large Doberman came skidding around the corner,barking and growling.

"Oh shet!" The man holding Dio up by the collar dropped him as the dog chased both of them down the street.

"Hey...you good?" The boy asked,out of breath.

"No i am not 'good'! You and your blasted cronies made me tear a hole in my coat!" He swore,messing around with the hole,when he looked back up he was surprised to say the least,"wait,your a girl?"

"Yes? What of it?" You looked at the damage and sighed,"come on then,I'll fix it up for you" the dog from before came trapsing back,panting,"good girl Cookie,very good girl"

"And how do I know your not going to just mug me or something? I wasn't born yesterday"

You rolled your eyes and grabbed him by the front of his coat," come on blondy, I'm sure you want some warm food too"

Free food? His stomched twisted at the mear thought,"fine then!" He followed you twords what he could only assume was your gangs little hide out. In his pocket he gripped his small knife,he could never be too careful.

"This way," blocking your path was an old gate,you moved a wooden board to the side,by now it was heavily snowing and the wind had picked up. The poor neighborhood you'd brought him too was filled with broken down homes and buildings,not to mention you were getting way to close to oger street.

"This had better not be a trap..." he muttered,crawling under the fence.

"Please,you don't have a single coin on you," you pushed the door of a run down building open,inside was alot warmer than outside which he was thankful for.

"And how would you know?" He narrowed his eyes at you.

"You learn a thing or two out here, OI WHERES THE FOOD! MONSTAD BRING ME MY SEWING KIT!" you yelled,catching the blond off guard,how were you so loud? "The fire place should be lit,you can go hang out in the living room with everyone else"

"Everyone else?"

"Yup,just a bunch of kids trying to survive," you slapped him on the back,"dont tell me your shy?"

"Im nothing of the sort!"

"Well go on! Get in there!" You wandered off into the kitchen while dio eventually found his way to the living room where a bunch of dirty looking kids around his age were sitting around a fireplace that looked like it hadn't been cleaned in ages.

"Who are you?" A small,pale skinned child asked,she was wearing very large,oversized jacket with her long red hair framing her face.

"None of your business,I was told to come here"

"Wow,ass much?" She scoffed at him and went back to talking with a taller boy,he had a head of long dirty black hair that desperately needed to be cut. He was wearing some heavy gray and dark green overalls,Dio could see some wrench and screws sticking out of his pockets.

Sitting down near the fire he quietly waited for your return,while this wasn't the best situation to be in it was certainly better than being with his drunk bastard of a father.

"Ok I'm back!" You said,Sitting next to the blond,"which colors do you want? we have piss green and puke green,pick"

"Are the girls here always this vulger?" He snipped.

"I dont know, do all blonds bitch as much as you do? I'm offering to fix your ugly ass jacket,take it or leave it shit stick"

He looked you,a bit appalled at how creative your curses were,"it was your fault to begin with, whatever,the lime one will do,just don't ruin it"

"Yeah,yeah Keep your wig on" you started sewing,"...how many days a week do you eat?"

He twitched at your sudden question while he liked how straight forward you were with him Dio didn't like it when people pried into his life," whats it to you? I could as you the same thing" the house you and your little friends were living in was large but empty. Devoid of furniture and real insulation to keep the heat in. The walls were moldy and peeling not to mention looked like it would fall apart the moment someone sneezed wrong.

"Every other day if you can believe it, this place may look like shit but its actually alot better than most homes," you pointed to the kitchen where low chatter could be heard as pots and pans cranked together," we all work together to steal as much food as possible every day and we've even got our own garden! Not to mention jobs" you bragged a bit.

"And what does this have to do with me?" The smell of bread and broth wafted from the kitchen making his stomach growl, "and when do we eat?"

"Iv seen you at that bar playing chess for food and your pretty smart not to mention clever, I want to make a deal with you,"

From the kitchen, Mondstad brought poorly made wooden bowls and spoons for everyone along with a small loaf of stale bread, "this was a good haul, I'm going to mark it on our map"

"Sounds good,Thanks" you stood a sip and sighed. Nothing felt better than warm food on a cold winters night,but you had business to talk,"anyways as I was saying- hey? You could atleast pretend your listening!"

Dio was too busy eating his fill,he hadnt eaten in days,"what? I can eat and listen"

"Boss are you sure we can trust this guy?" The red headed girl asked,taking a chomp out of her bread,"he can't even hold a conversation with you"

"Its fine pandera, just goes to show that we're all in the same boat" Food brought people together and it could also tear people apart. You knew that first hand, "but I digress, We're hoping to add some brain to our braw and seeing how you ate I'm guessing wouldn't be against helping us?"

He licked the edge of his mouth,bowl completely empty,"whats in it for me? And how do I know you won't betray me if I did join your little rag tag team of no bodies?"

"Why you little-" Pandera hissed and teaches for something under her leg.

"...dont" the boy with the wrenches and screws warned,holding her back.

"This rag tag team saved your ass! But thats besides the point, you don't want to go hungry and neither do we but about trust well we'll just have to work our way up too it," you held out your hand,"well? Do we have a partnership?"

Dio thought It over, while the food was nice and warm he wasn't completely sure you lot wouldn't use him as a escape goate once things got hairy but so far he couldn't think of anything he had to lose.

"Very well,I'll allow you to work with me! But on one condition," he held your hand.

"Which is?"

"I call the shots"

Pandera stood up,"you can't just do that! We have rules here! That's not-"

"Fine, if it makes you feel better"

"Boss!"

Dio smirked, "you're not as dumb as you look, bring me a map, I have some plotting to do"

You bit back a nasty comment,"I'll go grab it, Pandera,be nice" you gave her the 'I'm watching you' sign and left for the 'war room' as you liked to call it. It was basically just another empty where you and your friends schemed together. Digging through the papers on the desk,a crafted gift from Tai, you pulled out a map from city hall. It was covered in pencil marks and littered with footnotes.

"You sure about this?"

You jumped,"Monstad! Dont scare me like that!" You held your chest and slipped the small knife in your hand back into your pocket,"of course im sure about this! whether Dio keeps his word and trusts us is a different story,hey cookie" the large Doberman stood between your legs,you patted her side.

"What are you going to do if he does decided to betray us? Bringing him here wasn't the best idea" Monstad popped his pale fingers, he was a tall boy and wore a thick black coat he'd stolen from a high quality shop deeper in the city. Ironically thats where you'd both met for the first time.

"I think he understands that joining up with us is for his best interest, but if he does try it I'll get cookie to bite his dick off! Isnt that right cookie? Awww such a good girl! Yeahhh you gunna bite his dick off for me?"

She barked excitedly,not understanding a thing you were saying but agreeded none the less.

You kissed the side of her face,"I dont think we have anything to worry about" leaving Monstad behind in the war room,Cookie followed behind you back downstairs where Pandera and Tai were quietly talking.

"Here you go blondy," you handed him the map and sat down in the old recliner you and Pandera made together,with the help of Tai of course.

Dio looked at the map,it was very detailed in where people lived, how they acted what they threw out.

The Grayson family: clothing store full owned by rich-ish people,if you ask the wife she'll give you some old laundry

Old bakery: isn't doing as well as the new baker down on laven Street but still some good,they give out bread crusts for free

And the list went on and on,hell he could even see the bar he went too listed on there!

'Mmmh,perhaps these fools are more capable than I originally thought...' he looked over the large map. Where would be a good place to strike?

"We've hit here,here and here recently so those spots might be on high alert" you pointed to several inns.

Oh yes he knew about these inns,they were some of the nicer ones that were close by,interesting...

"Your group targets these inns for the money,correct?"

"Yeah,we also steal clothing and sliver wear" Pandera explained,"but we mostly do it for their appliances,Tai here is amazing when it comes to crafting things" she patted her shy friend on the back.

"Hmm...I'm not that good at it.." he still alot to learn.

"What about here?" Dio pointed to a rather large and fancy inn that hosted the occasional ball and party, the rich people kind.

"Thats 'The Swallow' we haven't scoped that place out yet,its to big for just us and- Oh my god! Are you thinking what I'm thinking?!" You turned to Monstad who was alreary pulling out a torn envelope,"here blondy,look at this!"

'Dear Miss.Waker, You are invited to 'The Swallow' for Miss.Yuu's anniversary party on the 9th of February From 8pm to 1am, We hope to see you there'

Oh this,this could work!

Dio's mind was already thinking up different ideas and plotting.

"So how are we raiding it blondy? Any ideas?" You could see the gears grinding in his head and smirked, bingo. You knew he couldn't resist a chance to prove himself better to the world, your stalking and eaves dropping had paied off! You knew right from the start when you first saw the blond playing chess for food and money that he was alot smarter and clever than most boys his age. Now that you had him hooked onto one of your plans all you needed to do was get him attached to someone! Thats where Pandera and cookie came in.

"Mmm, Alright then,listen here twats, this party is going to be held next month and we have until then to get everything ready,we'll need supplies, inside information-" Pandera cut him off with a smile.

"Guess its my turn to step up to the plate huh?" She snickered. Pandera was a manipulator in ever sense of the word, she could lie her way out of just about anything.

"Here,right a list down of what you'll think we'll need, Tomorrow we can scope out the place, Pandera bring your A-game!"

She blinked her long eyelashes at you,"But of course,I am the beauty and brains of this whole operation!"

"Ill be back tomorrow morning to scope out the hotel, do not waste my time" he scooped up a few paper and left for the door. You stood nugged cookie off your lap and followed him.

"See you tomorrow blondy! And remember! If you ever try and backstab us! cookie never forgets a scent!"and you knew she'd tear Dio completely apart too,"stay safe! Dont get mugged!"

Dio rolled his eyes,he wasn't going to get mugged on the way home! But he did however worry that his father might still be awake. He didn't feel like listening to that bastards yelling and wheezing. The old son of a bitch really did need to just hurry up and croak.

By the time he managed to get back home his father had already passed out meaning he could get a good night's sleep on his shitty bed.

The morning came in the blink of an eye as Dio quickly slipped on his coat and grabbed a hard biscuit he'd hidden away,thankfully no rat nor roaches had gotten to it....he hoped. Doing his morning duties he slipped on his torn up shoes and pulled out the map the group had given him.

He turned the corner when he felt something being thrown at the back of his head, he easily ducked and watched an acorn bounce off the ground and into a puddle.

"Nice duck blondy"

"Don't do that again and why are you here so early?"

You came up to him and offered him a warm biscuit, "I saved mine for you, as a show of good faith"

"Does it look like I want your 'faith' biscuit?" He stuck his nose up at you a bit.

The vein in your neck bulged a bit,"listen here shit nips-" then you caught youself, you wanted dio to be on your good side! Even if it meant dealing with his shitty attitude.

" fine I'll take it" he slowly nibbled on it, not wanting to choke due to the lack of drinkable water anywhere.

"The others are already waiting by the Hotel, so you come up with a plan yet?" You asked hoping a fence that lead to your destination.

"Ill explain once we get there,be patient"

And patient you were,it took about twenty minutes to get to the Hotel. When the Hotels peaks and chimneys grew closer in the distance you pulled Dio over to a side ally,"this is the route we've been taking so far." Cookie trotted across a muddy puddle to meet you,"there's my good girl!"

"Finally your here!" Pandera groaned,jumping off a crate.

"We weren't even that late,Anyways your up blondy!" You slapped him on the back.

"What we want are the rich peoples Jewelry and anything of value we can get our hands on, we need more info on who's going to be at this party and we need someone who knows the inside personally"

"We got that covered,"you pulled out a small envelope," Monstad and I did so digging around a while ago, sorry we didn't give it to you the first time it took us a while to find all the papers"

He made a face but looked over them,so far he could point out maybe one or two 'important' names but no one of real high class. The security would be low if not non existent.

"Pandera and I can handle getting inside as a maid or something"

"Yeah,easy money!" She grinned,petting cookie on the head.

"Hmm...this could work,Get me a map of the inside and then the real plotting can begin, we need something to carry all the loot we'll get how will we move it all?" He wonder, he personal didn't have anything at home to use but maybe...oh! "Where's that quiet boy? The one with all the wrenches in his overalls?"

"Here" Tai said,he'd been sitting on a damp board on the opposite side of Pandera.

"Can you make sleigh? The kind you pull?"

Tai looked at his feet,then at you and nodded,"how big do you want it?" He pushed his shaggy hair out of his face.

"About this big and-" he snapped his fingers and smirked," we'll have your mutt-"

"Cookie isn't a 'Mutt' she's a Doberman,get it right" no one called your cookie a mutt,Dio was going to put respect on her name!

"Right...anyways we'll use your dog-"

"-cookie" you corrected.

"Yes...Cookie,we'll use cookie to pull the sleigh, who would suspect a dog of by carrying off all that jewelry?!"

"Thats actually a really good idea!" You pulled Panderas hair,"see i told you asking him was a good idea!"

"Well see," she hopped down from the crate and dusted off her jacket,"im going in to ask for a job" she pulled it off and revealed a high quality winter pants and jacket then touched up her black dyed hair,"I'll be back"

Dio looked at the red head, why would someone like her have something of such high quality? Did she steal it? The seemed like the right answer.

"I need to make reins..."Tai muttered to himself.

"Thats right, we might need some leather,do you think belts would work?" You asked while Dio looked over the map and marked some things down.

"It could work"

While you two chatted Dio eyed Cookie wearily. She was a massive dog alright and was very well trained, He noticed how you'd use certain hand signs and she'd follow them to a T without problems. It reminded of military dogs almost...

"-ey! Blondy!" You patted his cheeks and swatted your hand away,"did you hear me?"

"Dont touch me so casually,who knows where your hands have been!" He wasn't used to touch,especially from a girl or that wasn't aggressive.

"Calm down Blondy, We wanted to know if you wanted to come eat lunch with us?" You stared him dead in the eyes with a pleasent smile on your face. If you wanted to bond with someone the best way to do it was over food! Everyone liked food!

"...I'm not sure what games your trying to play here but do not think of me as a fool"

"Wow, Paranoid much?" Tai blurted out.

Dio didn't respond to the jab

"Come on Tai,be nice"

"So you just started working with a bunch of random kids to go rob a Hotel!?" Jonathan looked at his brother with wide eyes. How? No- it shouldn't have come to a shock. Dio was always willing to trample just about anyone who got in his way so this really shouldn't have come as a surprise.

"Shes the reason I didn't jerk and kick Danny in the face when we first met, her and that damn Doberman..." he still remembered that stupid bow you always placed on her head.

"Guess who got the job!" Pandera came back with a skip in her step.

"Nice!" You high five each other," now its my turn, dont beat each other up while I'm gone ok?" You waved goodbye and left to try and convince the staff to give you a job as a sweeper or assistant.

Once alone Pandera dropped the smile and pleasantries before kicking dio with her muddy shoe.

"What the bloody hell is wrong with you!?" He caught himself with his hands but ended up scraping his hand on a sharp pebble.

"I didn't get to say this before but you hurt any of us in any way shape or form and You'll get a beat down everyday for the rest of your pathetic life"

"Pan,I dont think-"

"How dare you!" He rose to his feet,ready to fight the red head until Cookie started growling at him. He stared into the dogs deep,brown eyes for moment. She didn't move to attack him nor did she bear her teeth but it was a warning to think very carefully about his next action,"harlot" he hissed,dusting his hands off. Nothing was worth getting his ass bit.

"Hey! I got a small part time as a bellgirl, which was surprisingly easy,I have to work under this lady named Veronica though" you honestly didn't think you'd get the job! "What happened? Hey your bleeding!" Why did this have Pandera written all over it? "Pandera? Did you do this?" You glanced at her.

"It was just a warning boss,besides he's a big boy,he can handle it,its just a small scrape"

You made a face at her but sighed,"Im sorry about her,Dio, give me your hand"

"Why so you can spit on it? Ow!" You slapped his arm and he gave you his hand.

"Thank you" you took his hand and pulled out a small strip of clean cloth that you always kept on hand,"My shift starts later today, noonish, once I find a map ill give it too you"

"Fine" he flexed his hand,you'd wrapped it rather tight,good, less chance of infection.

"Hey,Lets go,we'll see you later Dio" and you shooed your group out of the ally leaving Him alone.

Dio looked at the small cloth on his hand and sighed,"bunch of idiots" but atleast you were kind enough to wrap it for him. If he ever decided to sell your group off to the police he'd try and keep your name out of it.

Jonathan looked at Dio,blinked then blinked again,"So you plotted to rob a hotel? You had to have been atleast what? 15?!"

"And we got away with it too," he had a pleased smile on his face,"it took weeks of preparing and throwing ideas back and forth,___, would have made an excellent phantom thief" he had this far away look on his face as well,"anyways when the day finally came-"

"-Are you nervous?" You asked Dio with a teasing grin.

"I dont get nervous,Just make sure you do your job" he tightened his shoe laces.

Pandera was on the floor,serving glasses to gusts while Monstad was trying to crack open the safe of the hotel. Tai was waiting outside with cookie while you and Dio would take the gusts jackets and jewelry and put them in the massive closet.

"Your lucky I think your cute otherwise i would have smacked you" you teased him a bit.

Dio looked away from you,"focus on the damn mission" he wouldn't let you know how flustered your comment made him. After weeks of working together and picking each others brains he'd come to respect you in a way.

"Awww don't be like that blondy~ if you do good Ill give you a kiss on your widdle cheek!" He wasn't a blond anymore,both of you had dyed your hair,including Pandera. No one could find out your real names!

"Please your breath probably smells"

"Not as bad as your shitty personality!"

He chuckled at that.

"Ill see you on the floor blondy!" And you left the room,ready to rob these people blind!

Dio pulled a paper out from his jacket, he wouldn't be with your group anymore. In a few days he'd be off to go live with the Jostars, another rich family whom he planned to steal from. He was excited for the chance to rise up from the bottom of society ut at the same time...he was going to have to leave you and your annoying friends even Cookie! That dumb dog that he thought he'd never like!

'I need to focus' he needed to hurry up and finish looting before someone or something happened! Pulling a bag out from the corner he placed an old dirty coat and the bottom and went around feeling up pockets. He found a necklaces,cufflinks, and earrings made out gold and silver. He found loose change and money along with small perfume orbs and pocket lint. So far everything had gone off without a hitch,it made him nervous.

Thats when the door started to easy open and Dio threw himself into the forest of expensive clothing. The massive closet was long and a bit dark due there only being three light bulbs but it was better safe than sorry!

"-I can handle it Mr.Buer, Please enjoy the party!" You said. Dio could hear the door close and you sighed out,"ok he's gone!"

"You were supposed to be watching the damn door!" He snipped,clawing out from the floor.

"Well sorry! I cant control when people get hot!" You snapped back,"anyways here" you lifted up your skirt and a bunch of rings and wallets fell out.

"H-how? What?" This shouldn't have been possible! How did no one notice all these rings and wallets go missing?! Your pick pocketing skills were abnormal!

"Your jaw is touching the ground, anyways I was talking Pandera while she was on break and Monstad finally got the safe open! So let's get you out of here" you grabbed a few random coats off the wall and dumped some wine on them,"if you get caught just say your taking this to the laundry room,its right next to the Door when Tai is waiting"

"I know where the door is" he pulled over a clothing cart with his foot and dropped the heavy bag into it.

"Yeah yeah,I'll see you back at the place!" You stepped out side leaving him to wait another five minutes before exiting the closet. No one paied him any mind as he pushed the cart towards the hallway door. Once outside he quickly made his way to the laundry room.

"Hey!"

Shit! Maybe if he kept walking the man would give up?

"Black head boy I'm talking to you!" The muffled sound of shoes got closer,"I dont remember your face" Dio glanced at the man,this was the manager and from what he'd gathered from listening to you and Pandera talk about work,he was a very particular man who was a bit of a control freak.

"Your getting old Mr.Handerson,you hired me a few weeks ago? Remember?" He lied,Mr.Handerson was an old man. With wispy gray hair and face with more wrinkles than a crumpled leather wallet he often forgot things he didn't write down.

"None sense! I would have memorized your face!" He leaned down to Dios level,staring the blond down,"no I definitely don't remember you,let me check my pocket book right quick!"

'Shit! If this old crone finds out I'll be compromised for sure!' Dio swore,"Mr.Handerson,I have this load of laundry to take care of so if you don't mind-" he pushed on the cart but the old man's freshly polished boot stopped him.

"....A...B...C...D...what did you say your name was again?"

'I cant give him my real name,I need to buy myself some time! Think,whats a common but inconspicuous name?' He bit his tongue,"My name is-"

"Mr.Handerson! I accidentally knocked wine on one of the guests coat!" Dio released a stressful sigh of relief,"Im so sorry, but I don't think I have enough money to pay for repairs!" You held a nice fur coat with a bright splash of red on the sleeve. Your face was all teared up like you were on the edge of sobbing your eyes out,"Im so sorry Mr.Handerson! Its my fault but iv never worn such shoes before and I tripped and-"

"Go see if you can wash it out then!" He shooed you towards the laundry room, "its still wet,maybe it won't leave any noticeable marks!" He turned to go apologize to the woman in the ball room.

"Just in time huh?" You grinned and wiped away the fake tears.

"A little too close if you ask me," he took a few deep breaths,trying to keep his heart from beating out of his chest as the both of you stepped into the large laundry room. It smelled clean like chemicals and soap.

"I have to go back to Pandera but ill see you later,good luck! And don't mess this up!" You opened the back door for him.

"Just don't blow your cover"

You grinned at him and swatted him on the butt, for good luck,"I won't if you don't!" and you closed the door behind him. Now it was up him,Tai and Cookie.

"You got this guys..." but a nervous knot still weighed heavy in your gut.

"___!"

"Coming Mr.Handerson!"

Outside the snow had began to pick up,leaving a thin layer of snow and ice on the ground.

"Come on,Cookie is ready to go" Tai, helped Dio remove the large bag from the cart and dump it onto the sleigh,it groaned underneath the sudden weight,"come on girl,take us home" Tai got behind her and pushed.

"Where's Monstad?" Dio huffed and pushed over a few crates out of the way.

"He went home to drop off the goods,Last thing we need is for people to notice us" his foot slipped on some wet ice.

"We have to push this piece of junk all the back?" Dio's legs were already feeling tired but Cookie seemed to be enjoying the workout.

"Not to mention the thieves and pickpockets running around,we have to be smart about which allys we take"

Dio nodded,he'd had his fair share of mugging.

"God bless help us..."

Dio wanted to laugh,"your asking God to help us steal?"

"He's all my family left me,"

He could see a glint of a silver cross under the dirty boys collar,"Lets just pray that your God is merciful one"

"Huh!? S-so let me get this straight,you and your friends, were the ones that robbed 'The Swallow' Blind!?" He read about it in the news and even heard from his father how the Hotel was almost complete swiped clean of all its money.

"Mmm yes, It was an addictive rush of adrenaline no knowing if we'd got caught or mugged, I thought we would have too cross through Oger Street at one point,thank God we didn't"

Jonathan blinked,"You...you're very weird...and crazy"

"I get it from my Mother" Dio said with a content leer.

"Well look at what we have here!" A voice called out.

"Shoot" one of the sleigh legs had come un done,"buy me some time,I need to screw this back on" Tai whispered.

"And what the blood hell do you expect me to do!?" Dio hissed back,"Alfred? Was it? Iv seen you around" Brando replied.

"Dont act so familiar,Checker boy,Iv seen you at the dinner, seen your drunk failure of a father teetering around as well,do tell me? Is being an alcoholic a family trait?"

He grit his teeth,"I wouldn't know,Have you tried asking your who-" he caught himself

"What.Was.That?" Alfredo got right up in Dios face. He was taller,older and his hair had a sandy tone to it. His green eyes burned holes into Dios red ones as the two had a stare down,"your lucky I have food waiting for me at home,Other wise I would rocked you to the moon and back" he shoved Dio onto the back of the cart and spat at his feet before walking off.

"Ok done,this should hold" he patted cookie on the back and she looked back at him and licked Tais hand,"good girl"

"This better be worth it, Dio groaned and continued pushing the sleigh over snow and pebbles. They moved quickly through the rising snow until they made to base where Monstad was already waiting for them.

"You guys are late,you didnt have any trouble on the way did you?"

"Lets get this inside, then ask questions" Monstad opened the door and let cookie pull the sleigh inside.

"Finally,its over" Tai flopped onto the rug by the lit fire place,"I cant believe we did it"

"Thats because I,Dio, was here" but even Dio had to admit that his heart was racing still. He felt exhausted and wanted nothing more than to eat,shower and got to bed.

"Im sure your both hungry," Monstad went and grabbed two bowls of potatoe soup with some cheese crackers on the side.

Both boys eagerly took the bowls and ate as Monstad pulled out a small bag and flashed the inside to them.

"Theres about four grand in here,I'm going to look at the jewelry and see if I cant sell it on the black market" he started shuffling through the back,"your cut is in the kitchen Dio"

But he was starting to get sleepy. He wasn't used to running around like that but man did he just want to close his eyes and sleep! But he to get home,he had to pack for his trip to the Joestar manor! But he felt so full and tired!

"We're home! Did everyone make it back ok?" Your voice shook him awake.

"Mmhm" he moaned.

"Well look at that,blondy didn't mess everything up!" Pandera kicked off her shoes as Monstad went around and grabbed a few blankets,passing them around to everyone.

"Leave him alone and go take a shower or something"

"You don't have to tell me twice!" She left for the upstairs bathroom.

Grabbing your own bowl and cookies bowl of dog food, you sat in front of the fire,eating quietly. You couldn't believe how well the heist had gone off! It was an absolute miracle! "You should stay with us! Your father passed away right? We don't mind taking in another stray" you offered.

"Hmph, Bold of you to assume that I,Dio would spend the rest of my days looting like some sort of Phantom thief! I will however admit that this plan was brilliant," if things at the Jostar manor went south he could always come back here,not that he'd tell you or anyone else that. But Dio had grown a bit fond of everyone,even Cookie but his destiny lied elsewhere and he planned on pursuing it to the bitter end!

Slipping his blazer on he finished off the last bit of his soup. It was late and he needed to leave early to catch the carriage at his home tomorrow.

"Im leaving my cut here,if I dont come back,you can have it, no good money is worth letting collect dust," he put on his shoes and coat and made a beeline for the door.

"Ill walk you home" you said,following him outside and closing it.

"Your rather obsessed with me aren't you? What? Got a crush on me?" He teased.

"As if id want to date your troll ass personality!" You bluffed.

"I dont blame you but I won't return the feeling,I have a mission of my own you know?"

"Yeah...I know"

The sound of crunching snow filled the silence,it was nice having Dio around. He was snarky and stuck up but you liked him, alot. His home eventually appeared in the street lamp light distance and you came to a stop.

"Hey Blondy, lets see you grit those teeth!"

"Grit my wh-HOUGH!" You'd punched him dead in the gut then placed a small kiss to the corner of his lips,"you witch!" He wheezed, first your assult him? Then you kiss him!?

"Go cause chaos you little troll! Turn up hell!" You backed up with a sad smile,"And I hope to see you again one day"

"And that was the last time I saw any of them..your lucky I've run out of booze" Dio shook the bottle in his hands. This was alot more info than he'd been willing to spill. Alfredo was right, alcoholism did run in the family.

"That's it? You didn't even try to reach out and find them?!"

"Fate had different plans for me,Jonathan besides I can hear your blushing bride calling for you"

"There you are Jonathan, Iv been looking everywhere!" Erina was a bit out of breath.

"Whats the matter? is everything alright?"

"Some of the gusts have reported that their jewelry went missing! At first I thought maybe it was just the typical broken clasp but watches, purses, necklaces and even earrings have gone missing!" Erina didn't want to admit it but had a thief snuck inside their wedding reception?

"Don't worry, I'm sure its nothing to fret about, Dio I leave you to your lamenting" taking his wife's hand Jonathan entered the crowd, "now explain to me whats-" thats when he felt it,the slightest of touches to his wrist and cufflinks. Acting on pure reflexes alone Jonathan held the wrist in a skin bruising grip.

"Oh dear,it seems I've gotten careless!" The woman had a head of red hair with black streaks in it and a plain black mask resting over her nose.

"You-" that's when the power started flickering on and off.

"What in the world?" Dio looked around for the wine Jonathan had left but couldn't find it,"where?"

"Blondy oh Blondy! Let down thy hair!"

No, there was no way-

He looked over the balconie and saw table cloth tied together to form a make shift rope. On other balconies he could see three other people climb down and rush to the center of the garden where a carriage sat.

"Stop!" Jonathan yelled, as if any of people would stop. Both brothers climbed down using the rope as the people continued loading up the carriage, "Give Erina her ring back!"

Oh so they'd stolen Erinas ring had they? By the time they'd reached the center of the garden the thieves were already gone; They were but a mear shadow among the tree line.

"Blast it!" Jonathan punched a pillar.

That's when something shiny caught Dio's eye, "hmm?" Leaning down he looked at the card" 'Cometh home child of gold, to seek the rouges throne of Gold' " oh? A fanged smiled grew across his lips.

"Dio if this is one of your old 'friends' warning I swear-" Jonathan snapped

"Fret not Jonathan,I'll be sure to get your blushing brides ring back" he stuff it into his pocket and began to walk back to the manor.

It was time he returned to the thieves den~