The evil plot bunny is sitting in the corner, sniggering... this is mostly domestic... but hopefully satisfies those of you who like things in the "awwww cute" category...

Her name was Mai. And she was 5. Mummy and Daddy had disappeared. Apart from being cold, wet, hungry and alone she was remarkably unscathed. Social Services were involved and there was no real reason for Stuart, Jo and Stevie still to be hanging around the hospital. Accept that Stuart had no intention of leaving until he was certain that she would be okay.

Mai had other ideas. She had been handled, and poked and prodded and looked over by strangers who spoke to her in a language that she didn't understand, all she really wanted was something familiar, and the woman who took hold of her hand and spoke to her, Mai took instant exception to. Something about her bossy tone of voice was just too much. Mai shrieked at the top of her voice and bit the hand that held hers, then bursting into tears threw herself bodily at the man who had found her.

Stuart crouched down and caught her as she hurled herself at him, scooped her up and glared at the woman that Social Services had sent along. "Don't you think she's had enough of strangers?" Mai wrapped her arms tightly round his neck and glared defiantly at the woman she had just bitten.

Clare Jones, the social worker, frowned. "I've organised a Chinese family for her, she will be fine." She held out her hand, with the clear imprint of Mai's teeth upon it; Mai shrank back against Stuart's shoulder and clung even tighter.

"I think she has other ideas." Stuart cleared his throat, which was quite difficult considered the death grip Mai had round his neck, "how about, I look after her for a bit." And turned his eyes to Mai to avoid the incredulous expressions on the faces of his two colleagues. Truth be told, he was fairly amazed himself.

"Well, it isn't usual, there will be a lot of paperwork." Clare Jones looked him up and down, "you're a single man." She looked at him doubtfully.

"I'm a trained police officer, I have a perfectly respectable home life, no girlfriends coming round at all hours, I also have a spare bedroom and she will be safe with me." Stuart wasn't particularly comfortable with revealing the information about his current lack of romantic attachments in front of Jo and Stevie, god, it makes me sound desperate... but he sensed he was winning and that Clare Jones might even consider letting him keep Mai for the time being.

He crouched down again, letting Mai stand on her own two feet, and taking her hands from around his neck, he held onto them. "Do you want to come home with me?"

Mai hadn't got a clue about what the large friendly man was saying to her, but it sounded warm and reassuring, and the fact that he was saying it at her eye level made all the difference. She nodded. And was rewarded by a warm, friendly smile which made her feel much better. She smiled back. Took her hands from his and threw her arms around his neck again. Stuart hugged her, and scooped her up in his arms again. "Well, that's settled."

"It's very far from settled, DS Turner," Clare Jones looked annoyed, "but under the circumstances I see I have little option but to agree." she pinned him with a glare, "this is only a temporary arrangement."

"Of course." Stuart felt he had to concede that point. "But she will be safe with me for a few days."

Sitting on his desk in CID, swinging her legs and munching on another Wagon Wheel, Mai settled herself in happily. Oblivious to the amused looks that she was getting from the other officers in the room. Stuart, on the other hand, was not oblivious to the amusement of his colleagues, or to the mixed amusement and annoyance being directed at him from management offices. But the happy look on Mai's face convinced him that he'd done the right thing.

"Stuart, do you have the slightest idea what you're going to do with her?" Jo took pity on him, "you can't feed her on Wagon Wheels, and she could do with a change of clothes."

Stuart hadn't thought past the second that Mai's little arms had closed round his neck in a death grip of panic, and that he wasn't going to abandon her to her fate. If it cost him in the street cred stakes, well so be it. His recent brush with possible death had changed his outlook on life considerably. And it was good to have something else to focus on other than his growing feelings for Jo. "Er ... No." he admitted.

Jo brushed a hand over Mai's tousled hair, and got a glare in return. "Well," she sighed, "we'd better take you shopping then."

Stuart felt unreasonably chuffed at the news, until he'd processed the we part. "We?" he questioned.

"I have no experience in buying clothes for children," Jo spread her hands wide, "so Stevie and I figured we'd better invite DI Nixon along too."

A small part of Stuart wished that the ground would open up at his feet and swallow him whole, a slightly larger part wondered how Sam was going to take buying clothes for a child that wasn't quite his, but definitely wasn't hers, but by far the largest part was relieved that he wasn't going to have to work out such things as girls' clothes and what to feed a five year old, on his own.

Two hours later, and a shopping trolley full, he was starting to reconsider that relief. Sam and Stevie had picked out a number of nice little outfits from the supermarket for Mai, and Jo had done the food shopping, the bill had come to a staggering one hundred and twenty two pounds.

But later, when he'd bathed Mai, and put her in her new pyjamas and dressing gown, and she was sitting on his lap, all sleepy and warm, he knew he'd done the right thing.