Maybe if I write about them enough, they'll belong to me. At least I own Julian, Maddie, and Sophie. They rock! Everyone else belongs to JE

This story takes place between 'Julian's First Day of Kindergarten' and 'Sophie Learns to Fly'.

Maddie's Hero

Maddie Elliot had a crush.

At the tender age of seven, she was of the opinion that most boys were 'icky' and had cooties. They were either mean or smelled funny and she didn't want anything to do with them.

Except for Julian Manoso.

There was something different about him; he was nothing like the other boys. He was cute and sweet and he made her laugh. He protected her from the mean boys who liked to trip her on the playground or pull her hair in the hallway. He never treated her like she wasn't good enough.

All those traits combined made Maddie decide that Julian was the bestest boy in the entire world.

Maddie knew what superheroes were. Julian knew a lot about them, taking the time to teach her about Batman and Superman and Wonder Woman. Even though she enjoyed learning about them and playing with the action figures that Julian had, she knew in her growing second grade mind that there were no such things as superheroes in real life. Nobody could fly for real. Nobody could really leap tall buildings in a single bound.

But then, one day, she learned that you didn't need to fly or leap over buildings to be a hero.

It had been a normal day at school. They had been given a math test that morning and Maddie got an "A plus". At lunch, she shared her turkey Lunchables with Julian and he gave her half of his peanut butter and olive sandwich and Butterscotch Krimpet. At recess, icky Paulie Morelli tried to get her to play "choo choo" with him; he threw dirt on her when she refused. The instant the dirt hit her clothes, Paulie was sprawled out on the ground, clutching his knee and crying and Julian was helping her brush her clothes clean. After recess, the class had a guest speaker and Maddie learned all about "Stranger Danger".

She already knew that she wasn't allowed to talk to strangers. Her parents and Julian's parents all stressed the dangers of it. The only exception was if it was a police officer and even then, you had to ask to see his badge.

That made sense to Maddie. She knew there were bad people in the world and sometimes, you had to protect yourself from them. She never thought she would have to worry about that, though. Nobody had ever tried to hurt her before.

After school, Auntie Steph picked them up and drove them to Michelle's house. Michelle's Mommy and Daddy were Julian's Uncle Tank and Auntie Lula, and they lived down the street from Julian's house. Michelle was in the first grade, but Maddie and Julian thought she was still cool. And Auntie Lula was funny, so they liked going there after school.

They played video games for an hour before it was time to go back to Julian's house. Maddie's Mommy was going to pick her up after dinner and Maddie was excited to spend the extra time with Julian.

Michelle's house was close enough that they could walk back. They were halfway there when a car pulled up to the curb and stopped beside them. A police officer climbed out of the car and walked over.

"I'm glad I found you," the officer said, blocking their path. "You need to come with me. Your Mommy and Daddy were in an accident."

He was looking straight at Maddie and her eyes widened in fear. Mommy and Daddy were hurt?

Julian put a hand on her arm, stopping her from moving. "Where's your badge?" He asked instead, his eyes narrowed in suspicion.

The officer's eyes narrowed slightly before pulling a black wallet out of his pocket. He snapped it open for a second, something silver inside flashing before he replaced it in his pocket.

"We have to hurry, honey. They're asking for you."

Maddie's mind was spinning at the thought of her parents being hurt. She barely remembered learning about "Stranger Danger", but the man was a police officer. And he showed them his badge. So he was safe, right?

Before she could move, Julian stepped in front of her, blocking her from the large man. "Are you a Trenton Police Officer?"

The man began to fidget, and he tried to reach around him to grab Maddie's arm. "Yes, I am. We need to hurry."

Julian shook his head. "How long have you been a Trenton Police Officer?"

"A long time."

Julian stepped back, which pushed Maddie even further away from the man. "What's your name?"

The man began looking around nervously. "Officer Smith. I'm serious. We need to go now. Your parents could die at any moment."

Maddie let out a sob, but Julian pushed her back even more. "What's her parent's names?"

The man stood up straighter then, hovering over both children. "Now look, boy, I don't have time for this. You're interfering in a police investigation. I could arrest you for this."

Julian's eyes narrowed as he glared at the man. "No you can't. And you're lying. I know all the Trenton police officers and I don't know you."

Maddie's eyes were wide and full of tears as she stared at the officer. She was scared. He'd said her parents were hurt. Possibly dying! Why wasn't Julian letting her go with him?

The sound of heavy footsteps sounded and they all looked up to see Julian's parents running towards them. The man stumbled back slightly and Maddie recognized fear in his face.

"Who are you?" Uncle Carlos demanded as Auntie Steph grabbed them both and pulled them behind her.

Before the frightened man could speak up, Julian rushed up to his father. "He said he's Officer Smith and he's a Trenton Police Officer. But he's lying and his badge is fake. He tried to take Maddie."

Uncle Carlos' face turned scary as he grabbed the man and held him so he couldn't move. "Babe, call Eddie and Carl. Take the kids inside."

Maddie felt Auntie Steph's soft hand grasping hers and she looked up at her. "Are Mommy and Daddy okay? That man said they were hurt!"

Auntie Steph glared at the man angrily. "Your Mommy and Daddy are just fine, sweetie. This man lied to you. He's a bad man."

Maddie began to cry. She thought she knew everything about protecting herself from strangers, but she had been wrong. If it hadn't been for Julian, she would have gone with the man and been in big trouble.

Another warm hand grasped her free one as they started walking back to the house. Maddie turned her head and met Julian's eyes.

"Don't cry, Maddie. You're not in trouble."

She felt her chin trembling and tears falling down her face and Julian reached out to wipe them away.

"But I almost went with a stranger!"

Maddie felt her feet leave the ground as Auntie Steph picked her up and cuddled her, still walking quickly towards the house. "You were told to trust policemen, sweetie. Sometimes, it's hard to tell when the person is really who they say they are. You're not in trouble, I promise."

Maddie held on to Auntie Steph tightly, her eyes looking behind her to watch Uncle Carlos holding the bad man. A big black SUV pulled up beside them and three men jumped out. She recognized Julian's other uncles before she was carried into the house.

00000000

Maddie and Julian were sitting in the living room, eating from the plate of cookies that Elizabeth had given them. The adults were in the kitchen talking, and bits and pieces of their conversation drifted into the living room.

Maddie turned to Julian. "What's a pedophile?"

Julian blushed and looked down, not meeting her eyes. "It's someone who does really bad things to children."

"Oh." Maddie's eyes were wide as saucers. "And that man was one?"

Julian nodded, staring at the untouched cookie in his hand. Maddie thought about that for a moment. The bad man had wanted to hurt her, really hurt her. And she would have gone with him if Julian hadn't stopped her.

She looked up at her friend. He had saved her. He was a hero.

Her hero.

Maddie leaned over and kissed Julian on the cheek. He immediately turned fire engine red.

"What was that for?" He managed to ask. She grinned.

"For being my hero."

Seems like I'm addicted to writing about these kids. LOL. I wanted to write a Maddie story and this is what popped into my head. Hope you like it!