Falling From the Tree

Falling From the Tree
PsychoChick



Erika Hanae tapped fitfully on the steering wheel of her undercover car, her eyes darting everywhere, never resting for a moment. Her boss had disappeared, and even though he'd been gone for only ten minutes, it had seemed like ages.
There was a brief rapport of gunshot, and the redhead automatically turned the key in the ignition. If there was gunfire, he would have his prize.
And there he was.
The man had a gun out, but both his arms were full of the little boy he carried.
Unlocking the doors from a switch in the front, the woman watched as her boss opened the back door and slid in, then shifted her gaze to the little boy Takatori Shuuichi had carried into the back seat.
"Drive," the man told her.
Her eyes remained locked on the little boy.
"Drive, dammit!"
Coming out of her reverie, Erika put the car in drive and pushed down on the accelerator.
After several blocks of silence, the redhead spoke.
"Well?" she asked.
"I don't know," came the soft response. "I just don't know. His father doesn't want him back. I don't even think he knows he's alive."
Erika glanced softly back at the child. His head was resting against the man's shoulder, his little arms wrapped around his savior's neck.
"I might just take him home," she finally heard the man say.
"And do what, Shuuichi? Raise him as your own? That would make for some lovely family reunions! Or maybe you could make him a Kritiker agent!"
The man's eyes brightened for a second, then shuttered up, and Erika cursed herself. When her boss got an idea in his head, it was impossible to dislodge it.
"I wasn't serious," she told him, trying to delay the seed she'd planted from growing any faster than it already was.
"I know. But still...."
The man's voice trailed off as he looked down at the boy nestled in his arms.
"I couldn't raise him as my own, could I? As Takatori Shuuichi."
A minute shake of the head was all the response he got from his driver.
"I doubt Persia could raise him, as well," he continued. "On the other hand, the chief of police...."
"Can't just find a five year old and adopt him. It wouldn't work."
Takatori sighed. "Who's open?" he asked.
"You are. And Tsang. Maybe Ong."
"He could be raised as a Kritiker agent, like you said."
Erika cursed herself.
"I could bring in trainers, the best, and they could teach him."
"He's *five.*"
Shuuichi smiled gently down at the boy he believed was his nephew.
"But he's a Takatori. He'll learn quickly."
Better switch gears. Go along with him, her mind told her.
"What will you call him?"
"Tsukiyono. After Omi. He'll even keep the code-name."
Erika took a deep breath. "Are you sure that's wise? People are still--"
"I am the leader of Kritiker. They cannot say no."
Letting her brain digest the information that had been heaped on her mind in so little time, the redhead forced a smile.
"I'm sure he'll be a good agent, sir."
"Oh, yes," the man said, running a hand lightly over the sleeping boy's hair. "The best. I'll make sure of it."

*Owari*