Richie briefly contemplated shutting the bedroom door so any noise he made would be slightly more muffled. He quickly decided against it, though. He had no desire for it to let out a loud creak and alert the Immortal that he was awake. Pulling on his jeans and shoes, Richie was amazed at how much energy those simple acts took. His intention to pull on a sweatshirt was quickly amended by the simple fact that it was in his closet, four long steps off his path. He would just grab Duncan's coat from the store. At least that was on the way.

Sliding though the slightly ajar bedroom door, Richie carefully eased his way across the living room and into the store; relieved that he heard no signs of movement coming from the master bedroom down the hallway. Pausing briefly as he descended the stairs to replenish his strength and compose himself following a wave of dizziness, he caught a glance of what could only be Jason's car in the alleyway. Trudging the rest of the way down the stairs, he searched the office for a few wasted moments before remembering that Duncan had been wearing his coat when they came back from the hospital and it was most likely in the loft. Sighing, he slipped out of the building to join his waiting friend.
"Long time no see, little man." Jason greeted him easily when the boy made his way into the alley.

Richie couldn't help but smile at the sight of his old friend. "Hey, Jason; good to see you. Thanks for coming so quickly."

"Your message said it was important." The man replied. "You know I'll always come if you need me to."

Richie shivered slightly and nodded in acknowledgement before replying. "Yeah, I know. New car?"

"I've gotten wiser. Moving up in the world." Jason replied. "Seems I'm the only one, though."

"Huh?" Richie replied, slightly thrown.

But Jason's wiry smile didn't tip the teen off to his meaning. "I see you haven't wised up."

"What's that supposed to mean?" The teen replied defensively.

The tense reply earned him a slightly more disarming smile this time. "It's cold out, man. And you sure aren't looking top notch. Ever thought of a coat?"

"Oh." Richie blushed slightly at the observation. "I'm fine."

"Well, you sure don't look it; even in the dark." Jason countered; then abruptly dropped the subject. "So what's up?"

"You've been talking to my boss." Richie stated flatly, yawning in spite of himself.

"MacLeod." Jason replied with a nod, lighting up a cigarette to warm himself. "He came looking for you. I see he found you."

"With a little help from you." Richie replied.

The teen's response caused Jason to frown slightly. "He seemed really concerned. You pissed?"

"No." Richie replied honestly. "Confused, though. I never thought you'd help someone track me down."

"He's not the cops, Rich. He seemed to want to help you. Was I wrong? You need help getting out of here?"

"No, you were right." Richie responded. "I'm glad he found me. What all did you tell him?"

"Just to check the bridge for you." Jason replied casually, taking a drag of his cigarette.

Richie wasn't completely reassured. "You didn't tell him why?"

"I didn't figure it was mine to tell." Jason shrugged. "You don't want him to know?"

"I told him tonight." Richie admitted.

Jason gave him an odd look at that. "So why're you asking?"

"He said you didn't tell him." Richie explained. "I just wanted to make sure he wasn't, like, testing me or something."

"Still having trust issues, huh?" Jason questioned.

Richie looked up at him seriously. "I learned from the best."

"True." Jason replied with a nod before turning serious. "He give you reason not to trust him?"

"No." Richie answered, surprised himself when he realized the truth in his own words. "He's been really cool."

"He seems to care about you." Jason noted.

"Yeah." Richie replied quietly. "He says he wants to be my dad."

"Seriously?" Jason questioned.

"Seriously." Richie looked up at him again. "He, like, made it legal and everything."

"Fostering you?" Jason replied.

"No." Richie answered with a shake of his head. "He, like, adopted me; got my name changed and everything."

"To what? Arthur?" Jason questioned, now concerned about the man's intent.

"No. It's still Richie." The teen assured him. "He just made it MacLeod, like him."

"He seriously adopted you?" Jason replied.

"Yeah."

But the man was still skeptical. "How could he do it so quick?"

"Mac has a way of getting through red tape pretty quickly." Richie replied.

"Amazing." Jason responded. "So you like it here?"

"Like I said, Mac's been awesome." Richie told him. "He came and got me from the bridge. When he found out I was 15, he didn't even care. He just, like, apologized for not realizing earlier and promised he'd start being my dad. And he's been totally fussing over me since I got back. He's taking care of me like you wouldn't believe."

"By letting you run around outside in the middle of the night with no coat?" Jason questioned skeptically.

But Richie was quick to defend the man. "He thinks I'm asleep in my room."

"Oh." Jason replied, not commenting on the lights turning on throughout the house even as they spoke. "So you do like it?"

"Well, his girlfriend, Tessa, isn't exactly sold by the idea of me. But even she's been pretty all right. And, like I said, Mac's been amazing. He never had kids of his own and I think he really likes the idea of having me around."

"So you think you want to stick around?" Jason questioned.

"Until they get sick of me, yeah; I like the place." Richie told him.

"Good, 'cause it doesn't look like you've got much choice, anyhow." Jason told him flatly.

This earned him a blank stair. "Huh?"

Richie turned to see what the man was pointing at and was surprised to find Duncan rapidly approaching them from the store. The teen barely managed to identify the blanket that sat at the top of the hall closet before he found it wrapped tightly around him.

Hoisting the startled boy into his arms, the Immortal turned his attention back to the man standing before him. "What are you doing here?"

"Talking to Richie." The man replied flatly.

But Duncan was far from satisfied with that answer. "What business do you have talking to a sick, tired little boy in a dark alley in the middle of the night?"

"He called me. I always come when Richie calls." Jason told him matter-of-factly.

Duncan was not impressed. "What do you want with him?"

"Nothing." Jason shot back. "I'm just making sure he's safe."

"He has me now." Duncan told him shortly. "I'll take care of him."

"You damn well better." Jason told him evenly.

Duncan turned furious eyes on him. "I want you to stay away from him."

"Well, that's just too bad." The man returned, looking at the teen instead of the Immortal as he spoke. "I've been looking out for Richie for a long time now. He needs anything; I'll be there for him."

The Immortal stared at him for a few seconds before responding. "Call next time."

The man didn't respond to the order. Instead he looked at the bewildered teen nestled in the Immortal's arms. "It's getting pretty cold out." He told the Scotsman. "Don't you think you ought to get him back in the house?"

Duncan looked down at the boy briefly before turning silently on his heals and heading back into the store.

Richie kept his eyes glued on Jason as he allowed himself to be carried back inside. It was not until Duncan had awkwardly pulled the door closed and continued to silently carry him towards the loft that he began to really worry about his current situation. He couldn't help but wonder what on earth the Immortal was going to do now.