Title: Trouble Magnet

Author: badly-knitted

Characters: Dee, Mother.

Rating: G

Setting: Many years before the manga.

Summary: Little Dee is quite a handful, always landing himself in trouble.

Written For: The tw100 prompt 'Cross'

Word Count: 620

Disclaimer: I don't own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.

.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

.

"Are you mad at me?" a small voice asked, big green eyes gazing worriedly up at her, expecting the worst.

Mother Maria Lane tried to remain stern, but how could she? Dee stood before her, five-years-old, his broken arm in a sling and a white bandage around his head, tousled black hair flopping over it. He was just a small child; far too daring and fearless for his own good, but still… Her expression softened; he was a magnet for trouble, this one, and probably always would be, but more importantly he was her boy.

"I probably should be; what you did was very silly. You could have been killed climbing out of the window like that; you were lucky to get away with nothing worse than a broken arm, some bruises, and a bump on the head."

"I know. I'm sorry. I just really thought I could reach. The tree isn't very far from my window."

"You scared me a lot you know. It makes me very sad when you get hurt; I'm supposed to take care of you, keep you safe, and I can't do that if you go around falling out of windows."

"I won't do it again, Mother; I promise."

Maria knew he wouldn't, not on purpose, but then he hadn't meant to this time either; it had just happened, the way so many avoidable accidents 'just happened' where young Dee Laytner was involved. In two or three years, when he was bigger and had a longer reach, he'd most likely try it again, having forgotten how badly he'd hurt himself this time. Maybe she should just save herself a lot of sleepless nights by having that tree cut down right away, before her boy really did get himself killed trying to reach it from his second floor bedroom window. Right now though, all that mattered was that he was alive and would heal from this latest accident, just like he had from all the other accidents that had come before. It was nothing short of a miracle he'd survived such a fall. If the tree's branches hadn't slowed his descent… Well, she didn't like to think about that. She hugged him gently.

"Just please try to be more careful in future, alright? You're a boy, not a cat with nine lives." Or maybe he was a cat, disguised as a small boy; he certainly got himself into enough scrapes, and with those vivid green eyes and black hair…

Dee nodded solemnly. "Yes, Mother, I will, honest."

"Good boy; now let's go home, and on the way maybe I'll buy you an ice cream for being such a brave boy."

Dee's face lit up; ice cream was a rare treat at the orphanage, reserved for special occasions like birthdays. "Really?"

"Only if you promise to behave and do as you're told."

"I do, I promise!"

Mother smiled, knowing the good behaviour wouldn't last for long, a few days at most. Dee wasn't a bad boy, just a young scamp, into everything, full of wonder and insatiable curiosity, and she found herself hoping he wouldn't grow up too fast. He was a handful, and caring for him was either going to keep her young or make her old before her time, but despite all the trouble and worry he caused her, she would always bless the day he'd come into her life. Trouble magnet he might be but she couldn't imagine being without him.

Taking his good hand in hers, she led him out of the ER into the bright sunshine. Maybe she'd treat herself to an ice cream too; if Dee deserved one after what he'd just been through then she was certain she did to.

.

The End