"I swear, if those government dopes so much a pluck a hair on his head I'm gonna eat them for breakfast

Author's Note – I do not own Outlaw Star or anything that has any affiliation with it. This is my first attempt at an Outlaw Star fic so be gentle. It's also only the second fic that I've written. Thanks to everyone for the comments, quite frankly I wasn't expecting quite so many. Please keep reviewing; I appreciate everyone one of them.

"I swear, if those government dopes so much a pluck a hair on his head I'm gonna eat them for breakfast!" A very irritated Ctarl Ctarl growled from the backseat of the rental car on the way to the social service offices.

"I must admit I am also slightly perturbed with the events that have been taking place. I must say that I do not agree with the way that this situation has been handled." The slightly calmer voice of Aisha's backseat companion, Suzuka, spoke up in the feline's wake.

"Look everyone, I'm sure it's just some kind of mistake or something, we'll have it settled out in not time. I'll just flash this Michelle lady some of my killer Gene charm and will have James back in not time flat." Gene's cocky voice broke through both of the women's comments. However, Melfina did not seem as assured as Gene obviously felt.

"Gene, are you sure everything is going to be okay? I'm worried about Jim."

"Are you kidding Mel, everything is absolutely fine. No problems at all." Gene flashed the group his most confident grin and hoped they bought it.

"Excuse me sir, may I help you?" The secretary behind the desk asked slightly nervously. Two days on the job and he was currently facing a very irritated looking Ctarl Ctarl, a slightly less perturbed beautiful woman, a very concerned looking young girl, and an extremely cocky looking Outlaw.

"Yeah you can help us. The name's Gene Starwind, and I'm here for Jim Hawking."

"Excuse me one moment, let me see if I can find his file." The man began to type furiously on his computer, only looking ever so often to steal a nervous glance at the group before him. Finally, after several minutes of frustrated searching, he looked up to the group. "Uh…I'm can't seem to fin…"

"Mr. Starwind?" The man's statement was broken off by the appearance of a well-dressed woman. "My name is Michelle Summers, could you please come with me?"

Michelle led the group into an office in the back. After seeing the group seated, she asked to speak with Gene separately. Gene followed her into another unoccupied office. Once inside Michelle shut the door and turned to address the Outlaw.

"Mr. Starwind, I know why you're here. I simply wanted to tell you that you're wasting your time. What's been done has been done for the good of the boy. You're only making the situation worse by coming here."

"What the hell are you talking about woman? You can't just waltz in and take Jim away. You have no right to do so. I swear that if you don't intend to give him back, I'll take this thing to court and earn him back from you no matter what it takes."

"Quite frankly Mr. Starwind the idea of you're going to court for Jim is quite ridiculous. You are a well-known Outlaw who's wanted in conjunction with several mysterious incidences around the galaxy. You step one foot inside that court room and you'll immediately be placed under arrest."

"Fine then. If I can't do it then someone on my crew will. Rest assured, we will get Jim back lady."

"Oh, so you'd send the famous "Twilight Assassin" into court to get custody of Jim. Oh, how about the Ctarl Ctarl, or the bio-android. I'm sure they would have a grandly successful time of gaining custody." The woman paused for a moment to survey Gene. "Look Mr. Starwind, let me be frank. I can tell that Jim means a lot to you. It's obvious by how quickly you came over here after you heard of what happened. The boy cares for you greatly as well. I'm also not trying to say that you've been doing a poor job of raising the child. Lord knows that he's extremely intelligent, and he has in no way been mistreated. It's simply that we've found a family who can provide things for Jim that you can't. They can send him to school. They can allow him to live without having to scrape for every dollar so that he can eat. They can give him a normal childhood and allow him to grow up like a normal kid. Quite frankly these are all things that you simply can't give Jim with the lifestyle you lead. What would happen if Jim were to be hurt in one of your adventures? Can you imagine the tragedy if a life like his were cut short because he fell victim to your reputation? Please Mr. Starwind, if Jim really means anything at all to you, let him go. Let him go for his sake. Let him grow up and live normally with a normal family. I beg of you Mr. Starwind, so few orphaned children get that chance. Please let Jim have it. Please."

Gene simply sat and stared at the woman. For a moment, all the times he had shared with Jim flashed through his mind. From the quiet times playing cards at the bar, to the moment when their lives had been turned upside with their encounter with Hilda. Then began all their adventures with Melfina and the Outlaw Star. During all their adventures images of Jim constantly hassling him for not thinking about thing enough kept popping into his mind. All their constant bickering, but in a brotherly way more than in any kind of animosity. Finally, a brief image of Jim, laughing while tears poured down his cheeks when they were strapped to that bomb ship. For some reason Gene just couldn't seem to get that image out of his head. It kept repeating over and over as Michelle's words sank into his brain. Finally, he looked up at her out of tear-rimmed eyes and simply said one word.

"Okay."