For castle100; prompt was "Family." Technically, it's 200 words, because I don't play by the rules. Title comes from the Dr. Seuss book of the same name.
Among gun cabinets and perp walks, four detectives who had improbably become part of the village that raised her sent Alexis off with a Georgetown Survival Kit.
From Montgomery, mace, a security whistle and the name of a Metro cop.
From Ryan, rolls of quarters wrapped in names of bars that didn't check ID. (He got a slap upside the head from Lanie.)
From Esposito, Redskins tickets for when the Giants were in town, in case she met a guy. (He got a slap upside the head from her father.)
From Lanie, some sweet oddities: a stuffed bear (when she needed a friend); Dr. Seuss' Oh The Places You Will Go (when she needed something to read other than organic chemistry); and bright yellow duck flip flops (because the ME knew the amount of bacteria in communal showers.)
From Kate, a photograph she'd taken of Alexis with her father. They sat on a patchwork quilt, playing poker on the roof, Fourth of July fireworks their backdrop. The silver frame highlighted the sepia tones of the print, and simply read, "Family."
Alexis looked up at the detectives who had become far more than friends. "Sometimes your family is one you choose."