A/N: Hello, hello. So… Notes at the end about why I'm writing this instead of updating any of the fics that are current in progress. Feel free to read those if you're curious.

Important notes about this fic. So, this story takes place in the 'Wheelchair Accessible' universe. It takes place about a year after that. You don't really have to have read that to read this. Main things to know are that Arthur's in a wheelchair, he and Alfred are dating, Arthur and Francis are roommates & childhood friends, Francis has a daughter named Emilie who he had really young… Um, PruCan may show up. Depends how things go. Gil is legally blind… We'll see how things proceed. xD

And this fic will be OC-centric. Besides Emilie, who is an OC, this will also involve Francis/OC. If that bothers y'all, then feel free to skip! There will probably be more stories in this universe that will be non-OC'iffic. Probably involving PruCan, once I can figure out what to write for them. So there will be more for those of you who don't like OC's. (Also, if y'all have read my P'Ville series, then know this is basically an AU of that AU… so, same couples, it's like AU-ception.)

And now that that's out of the way, hope you enjoy!

We Really Have to Stop Meeting This Way

Part 1

She was right behind him.

The words kept repeating in his mind like a liturgy. She was right behind him only a moment ago.

Emilie was always so good about staying with him. Usually, she would cling to his jacket or hold his hand, but even if she wasn't doing either of those, she always stayed within sight. She was a good girl; she understood that sometimes Papa needed to help her uncle with his wheelchair and she knew it was her job during those times to stay right next to him, especially when it was so crowded.

She was better than even he was about that. This sort of thing had happened before, but he'd promised never again. He'd never do that ever again and he'd somehow broken that promise, but he'd only looked away for a moment.

"Fuck. Fuck fuck..." Arthur's repetitive cursing felt almost like its own ritualistic prayer. "How could she just disappear? Where the fuck is a security guard? Where do you bloody hell do you go to report a missing kid?"

His boyfriend, Alfred, quickly responded. "I think it's upstairs. I'll go right now! You guys just keep looking around for her!"

Francis was paying little attention to his companions. He was too busy searching the crowd. This was his fault. Oh, God, why had they decided to come to the mall during the holiday season? Why did it have to be so fucking busy? He frantically searched for even a glimpse of a grey winter coat and light blue hat at a four-year-old's level.

"Emilie!"

Some of the other mall-goers turned toward him as he shouted, but he couldn't care less what they thought of him.

God, what if someone had grabbed her? It would be so easy to shuffle a little girl away in a crowd like this. She was so small. He'd told her hundreds of times to never go anywhere with a stranger, but she was only four. If she was scared enough, she might agree to go with someone who said he could take her back to her papa.

"Maybe she went ahead to see Santa? She kept talking about it in the car," Arthur suddenly said.

Francis turned toward his roommate. He'd removed his winter hat as soon as they entered the mall and was now twisting it between his hands as he anxiously performed his own scan of the crowds. Although, it was doubtful he'd be able to help much. His chair left him at a much lower level, so all he could really see were the backsides of their fellow mall-goers.

"Emilie wouldn't have gone ahead without saying anything," Francis replied. Arthur knew that just as well as him; he'd probably just offered the suggestion because it was the only thing he really could offer. "She—she has to be nearby. She has to."

But, if so, why wasn't she responding? He'd been calling her name ever since he noticed that she was missing and he'd only looked away for a few moments. Just for a moment, because one of the brakes on Arthur's chair had malfunctioned—as the fucking things had a tendency to do during the winter—and Alfred hadn't been sure how to fix it.

He shouted her name again.

More people turned and Arthur took over, yelling at them, "Hey, has anyone seen a little girl in a grey coat and a blue hat?" A smart idea. One Francis wouldn't have thought of. Now, there were more people scanning the crowd, calling her name. But, still… No one was finding her and the panic only rose in his chest as the seconds ticked by.

She was right behind him only a moment ago.

~.~.~

You know, sometimes Leon started to wonder if his grandmother secretly hated him. It wasn't something he could legitimately consider for very long, because he knew she didn't, but he felt like a secret hatred would just explain so much about her. Like, why she would call him the very moment he finished a twelve-hour shift, just to tell him that she'd forgotten to buy a present for a Christmas party she was going to tonight and ask if he could go out, right away, and buy her a telescopic backscratcher.

And no, it couldn't be any other present. It had to be a telescopic backscratcher. And what was a telescopic backscratcher, you may ask?

"Oh, you know, Leon," she'd said, her voice echoing tinnily over the phone. "A telescopic backscratcher. They sell them everywhere. Just go to the mall and you'll find one in no time."

That was a lie. A definite lie. And why would his grandmother lie like that unless she secretly hated him? Or, perhaps, Leon considered, she was just a sadist. He could believe either, honestly.

Unfortunately—even if she was a sadist—she was also his grandmother. And you couldn't just say 'no' to your grandmother.

So, now he was here, at the mall, looking at the directory and trying to think of where in the world he would find a telescopic backscratcher... It was such a random request. Would a department store have one? Or maybe one of those kitschy gift stores they always had in places like these?

He had the sneaking suspicion that he wouldn't be able to find one anywhere. He'd had to Google the damn thing on his phone just to get an idea of what it looked like—and verify that such a thing actually existed—and while his grandmother insisted they sold them everywhere, he was pretty sure he'd never laid eyes on the thing he'd looked up in his entire life.

Leon sighed and decided that the only reasonable option was to just pick a random direction and peek into any store that seemed promising. Then, if he couldn't find the backscratcher within, say, an hour, he'd just call his grandmother back and ask if he could buy something else. He found it hard to believe that someone would really have their heart set on receiving a telescopic backscratcher for Christmas, after all.

He finally turned from the directory, attempting with a stretch to remove all of the knots from a very, very long shift that he should be sleeping off right now.

Man, there were so many people here—not surprising, of course, since it was the last weekend before Christmas—but it was still something he noted. Many were heavy-laden with bags; some had rather harried, anxious expressions. He was glad he'd already finished his own shopping. Since the majority of his family and close friends lived halfway across the country, he had to stay on top of that sort of thing and make sure everything was mailed early enough to arrive on time.

He yawned, glancing around again as he considered the best direction to begin wandering. Left looked good.

Honestly, he thought, if it weren't for the exhaustion after a long shift and the weird specificity of his task, this wouldn't be too terrible of a trip. There were Christmas carols playing over the speakers, red and green garland stretched overhead, and decorated trees placed in a regular pattern. It all looked nice and festive. And while he wasn't a massive fan of Christmas, he didn't mind the holiday.

Still, he'd do his best to find his grandmother's weird telescopic backscratcher thing as quickly as possible, because he really deserved that nap.

Although, he suddenly remembered that there was a decent coffee shop not too far away… He might make a stop there first and get something pepperminty and caffeinated.

He set out, then, destination firmly in mind. But was suddenly interrupted by…

"Mr. Policeman!"

And the very disorienting experience of having a high-speed weight smash into the back of your legs and then cling fiercely to you with the strength of a four-limbed octopus.

"Mr. Leon Policeman!"

The force of impact had almost caused him to fall right into an old woman, but he thankfully managed to catch himself on the back of a bench. Still took him a second to get over the surprise, though, and realize that he definitely recognized that voice. Although, it wasn't one he had expected to hear.

He looked down, to see that his legs were currently caught in the stranglehold of a blonde, curly-haired little girl—although most of said hair was currently covered by a light blue winter hat—with big blue eyes and a sweet, obviously-delighted smile.

"Emilie?"

The girl's smile grew even brighter and her hug tightened. "Mr. Leon Policeman! I caughted you!"

"You did, indeed." And… Leon wasn't entirely certain how to respond to this situation.

He'd first met Emilie Bonnefoy…almost half a year ago now? It'd been at the grocery store; he'd been there, just doing some shopping, when he came across this little girl sitting on the floor underneath a clothing rack and sobbing. She told him, after he showed her his badge and reassured her that he was a police man and not a stranger, that she had lost her papa. Leon, then, of course, immediately helped her find an employee so they could call her dad over the announcements, all while doing his best to cheer her up. Apparently, it had worked and she had taken an immediate liking to him.

Something he realized later when he ran into her again, three or four months ago. He'd been jogging at the park, after work, when he suddenly heard a little girl shouting his name. He'd stopped, turned, and saw Emilie running toward him with an excited smile on her face. While a man ran after her, with an expression of obvious horror on his face.

Which, that was how he met her dad. Francis Bonnefoy… A guy who had understandably been rather freaked out when his daughter suddenly started running toward a stranger, but who then, once Leon explained who he was, immediately started thanking him profusely and saying how much he'd wanted to thank him for what he did at the store. He said it'd been his fault. He'd been distracted and wandered into the next aisle without checking to make sure Emilie was behind him…

The guy had been self-deprecating—to a point that went beyond what Leon felt the situation warranted. He reassured him and then Francis offered to take him out for lunch—it was the least he could do—and Emilie seemed extremely excited by the idea, so Leon definitely couldn't say no. They went to a nearby diner, had a really delicious lunch, talked, and… It had been nice.

Nicer than he'd expected, honestly. Francis was a very easy person to converse with; he was intelligent and funny while also being an excellent listener. And Emilie had been a delightful presence. She told Leon about her school and her friends and told him which things he should definitely order, because this was apparently her favorite restaurant.

It had been nice, but he hadn't really expected to see either of them after that day. He may have momentarily thought about asking Francis if he might want to meet up again, but… That might not be wanted. After all, the lunch had just been repayment for helping his daughter. Even if he really had enjoyed the other man's company…

Anyway, none of that was really important to think about right now, as Leon was suddenly faced with a rather unpleasant realization.

He didn't see Francis anywhere.

"Emilie… Where's your dad?"

Emilie blinked up at him for a moment, then suddenly released his legs and looked around. "Papa? Uncle Artie? Where they go?"

Well, this definitely wasn't good.

Could be worse, but definitely not a good situation. Francis must be absolutely terrified right now, especially with how busy things were. Leon hurriedly reached a hand toward her, so he could make sure she didn't get separated from him. "Here, Emmy, take my hand."

She immediately obeyed, but he could tell she was worried now. She kept looking around at the shoppers hurrying by. "Where did Papa go?"

Leon gave her hand a light squeeze. "Don't worry. We'll find him, Emmy."

And maybe her dad would invest in a leash for her afterwards.

A/N: Okay, so I know I have so many multi-chaps I need to write, so I imagine people are wondering why I started a new one. There's a couple reasons…

First off, I really really like this universe and have so many ideas for it. And I just really could not get this out of my head, plus it's Christmasy-related so it's the right season for it.

Secondly, and probably more importantly, life has kind of mega mega sucked and my depression has been really really bad recently. To the point where I haven't been able to write at all and when I do have energy/will to write… I really need to just write some fluff. So, I know people are probably disappointed that ON2B still hasn't been updated, but I promise that it will once I'm in a better headspace (which, since I'm starting on antidepressants next week, will hopefully be soon).

Anyway, love y'all. And I hope you enjoy this! I imagine it won't be too many chapters, although I'll avoid giving a number because whenever I give a number it's always incorrect. :P

So, hope ya enjoyed, let me know what you think! Also, if you DO want more stories in the universe, let me know that too! I really like writing in this universe, but… That's me, so let me know if y'all want more too. xD