(Darry)

I was worried. I couldn't let Sodapop or Ponyboy know, I didn't want them to be worried too, but I really was worried. Seeing those footprints at my worksite and now having that cop bastard come to my house, asking about Pony. I couldn't shake the fear that was settling in my gut, fear about what would happen if the Moore's ever got their hands on Pony again.

I wouldn't let them hurt him again. Not after I just got him back, no way was anyone taking him from me again.

I hoped the Christmas decorations, along with the crazy antics of Steve and Soda, would keep him distracted enough from being too worried. Lord knows that kid has had enough worry about.

I turn over the card in my hand that Dallas had given me. Now that I know the kid I'd been trying to help is actually Ponyboy, it's more important than ever that this is figured out so that I can get custody of him and bring him home for good.

I sigh, trying to figure out what exactly I'm going to tell the cop. I can't tell him that I have Ponyboy with me, that'd send social services after him, but I have to somehow convince him that I got this information from Ponyboy himself if I'm gonna make the cop believe me.

The phone next to me rings, startling me.

"Curtis residence" I answer.

"Hello, this is Mrs. Smith. Am I speaking to Darrel?" The usually professional voice sounds a bit frazzled.

"Yes this is Darrel" I reply. In all the chaos I had almost forgotten about the supervisor and her plan to go visit Pony after she had found his real name in the files.

"Oh Darrel, good. I was worried you would still be at work. I was wondering if you would be able to come into my office this afternoon? To talk about your brother Ponyboy?"

Her voice carries an edge of stress and I'm sure I can guess why. She must have gone to his foster placement and not found him. I wonder what kind of story they spun for her to explain the absence of my brother.

"Yes of course. When would you like me to come by?"

"As soon as possible would be best I think"

"Alright. I'll head over right now"

"Good. Thank you Darrel, I'll see you soon"

Soda pops his head into the living room as I hang up the phone, a questioning look on his face.

"You call that cop?" he asks.

"Not yet. That was the supervisor from the child welfare office with an update on Pony". We share a tense look.

I stand up, pocketing the card with the cop's number on it. "I got to head over to her office" I lower my voice, "You going to stay here while I'm gone?"

Soda nods, "Of course, Darry. I'll keep an eye on Pony while you're gone"

"Good. You guys can start decorating while I'm out if you want"

"Nah we'll wait for you" says Soda with a grin and then adds seriously, "If you're still gone by the time I got to go to work I'll call Two Bit or Dal to come hang here. So Pony's not by himself"

"Thanks Soda" I tell him, ruffling his hair. I hate to leave Pony right now, especially right after that cop was sniffing around but I figure the faster we figure this mess out the faster he'll be safe.

"Hey Pony" I call down the hall. He comes out, looking at me almost nervously.

"Yeah?" he asks, hands stuffed in his pockets.

"I got to run out for a bit, get some things taken care of, but Soda is going to stay here with you. Don't leave the house and don't open the door while I'm gone, savvy?"

"Okay" he says. Just like I had just done with Soda, I ruffle his hair. This causes a small smile to cross his face as he tries to bat my hands away and fix his hair.

"See ya kiddo" I say and give Soda one more look before heading out the door.

XXXX

Sitting in the waiting room of the child welfare office gives me the heebie jeebies. I feel like I've been sent to the principal's office and I'm awaiting my punishment.

Luckily I don't have to wait long before I'm brought back to Mrs. Smith's office. I follow her secretary down the hallway to the office and then take a seat in one of the chairs facing a large desk. Mrs. Smith sits behind the desk, small glasses perched on her nose and her hair slicked back tightly in a bun. Despite her intense appearance, she greets me warmly as I take a seat in a chair opposite of her, "Hello Darrel".

"Hi Mrs. Smith"

"How is Sodapop settling in?"

"Very well, mam. We're both real happy to have him home"

"Good" she says, and then a sour look settles on her face, "Now, onto Ponyboy"

I nod, feeling nervous even though I already have a good idea on what she's about to say.

"As you know from our phone call, there was a terrible mix up with his name leading to his file not being able to be located. Once we found the mistake, I planned on going to his current foster placement to check up on him and see if he would be open to visitations with you and your brother."

She straightens up in her chair and pushes her glasses up further on her nose, looking me straight in the eyes.

"I went to see him today at his current foster placement and was not able to talk to him. According to his foster father, it seems that Ponyboy has run away and he isn't sure where he's gone"

'He didn't run away. He's at home, looking at Christmas decorations with Soda. He's safe' I remind myself, despite the nauseous feeling her words give me.

I wipe my sweaty hands on my jeans, "Why would he run away? Things must have been really bad in that foster placement for him to run"

She sighs, placing her hands together on the desk, "I can't tell you why he ran. I spoke to his social worker after the visit. She says he has other issues but that he's never been a runner before."

"What other issues?" I ask sharply.

"Well apparently he has had problems with authority as well as problems with lying in the past. Unfortunately his file does not seem to be properly updated so I don't have any clear information on his issues, just what the social worker has told me"

'The bitch social worker who's married to the bastard cop' I think bitterly.

"How do they know he actually ran away? What if they hurt him? You're just going to take those people's word on this?" I ask, unable to keep the anger out of my voice.

Mrs Smith looked at me sharply, the way a teacher looks at a misbehaving student, "A young boy's welfare is at stake here, Darrel. That is not something I take lightly. His case has already been improperly managed and I want nothing more than to do right by him. So no, I did not just 'take those peoples word on this'. That was something else I needed to tell you. I called the police so I could file a missing person's report on him."

I had to suppress my groan. If she filed it in Barnsdall, Officer Moore could screw with the investigation.

A knock on the office door interrupted our conversation.

"And this must be the officer. I will be filling him in on everything I know, I thought you would like to stay and listen. Add anything else that might be important" She says as she goes to open the door to the office.

"Yes mam. I would like that" I say, also standing up to greet the officer.

She opens the door and a tall officer stands there in the doorway. He has thick red hair and thick red sideburns. He's taller than me, an impressive feat, and looks as thick as a bull.

"Hi, Patty Smith, we talked on the phone" she says, shaking the man's hand, "And this is Darrel Curtis, the brother of the boy I told you about".

He swings his large hand over to me to shake, clasping my hand in a firm handshake. "Officer McMann. Nice to meet you, Darrel". Despite his intimidating size, his voice has a soft quality to it and his eyes seem to hold a genuine kindness. Despite the kindness in his eyes, I can't help but look at the Barnsdall PD uniform suspiciously.

Mrs. Smith gestures to the chairs and we all take a seat.

"So, sounds like we got a missing boy here. Why don't you fill me in on what you know" the officer asks Mrs. Smith.

She nods and begins to fill him in on the mixed up name and her visit with the foster father where she discovered that Ponyboy was missing.

"And he hadn't been reported missing, even though he's been gone three days, by his foster father? This Jimmy Moore?" the officer clarifies.

"No, Mr. Moore seemed to think that the boy had simply run away. And his social worker said the boy wasn't a runner."

"And she hadn't reported him missing either? How long had it been since she last checked on him?" Officer McMann asked.

"Mrs. Moore said she had just seen him last weekend and that he had seemed fine. No issues to report"

I bit down a scoff at this.

"Mrs. Moore? Any relation to the foster father?"

Mrs. Smith seemed a little uncomfortable for a moment but then she squared her shoulder and answered honestly, "Not by blood but she does happen to be his sister in law"

Officer McMann raises an eyebrow at this, "Is that not a conflict of interest?"

"Yes. Normally it wouldn't be allowed but for some reason this boy and his case have really slipped through the cracks"

I admire the way she was taking responsibility for how they mishandled everything but it didn't take away any of the anger I felt about how Pony has been neglected through this whole ordeal.

He hums and then asks "Do you know if there's any relation to Officer Peter Moore?"

"I believe that is her husband" Mrs. Smith answers.

A brief look of distrust flashes quickly across his face but is quickly replaced with a neutral expression. Officer McMann turns his gaze to me, "Any idea on where your brother would have run off too? Friends, family?"

"I got separated from my brother almost ten years ago so I don't know about friends of his. And me and my other brother are the only family he's got left" I tell him. "I do know that it must have been real bad there for him to run and not go to his social worker. I'd bet anything they were hurting him. He was probably really scared".

Officer McMann scratched his chin and nods slowly. "I think you're right, son. Something about the situation doesn't sit right with me".

I'm so shocked my jaw almost hits the floor. I close my mouth quickly, trying not to look like an idiot. But it sounded like this cop believed me, and he seemed actually concerned for Ponyboy. Maybe against my better judgment but I feel like I can trust him. Honestly, he kind of reminds me of my dad, with his large stature and kind eyes.

"Do you have a recent picture of him?" he asks.

Mrs. Smith nods, sliding a photo of Ponyboy across the desk to Officer McMann and I have to hide my shocked expression. The boy in the photo is Pony alright but instead of the bright blonde hair I've gotten used to over the last couple of days, light brown, almost red hair sits on top of his head. It looks like how I remembered him, it's tuff and it suits him much better than the blonde. I had suspected he'd bleached it, doubting his hair could have lightened that much naturally but now I knew for sure. I bite down a chuckle at the thought of him bleaching his hair, but then I remember why he had to do it in the first place and the chuckle dies in my throat.

"It's his most recent school photo" she says.

"Were any of his belongings missing?" Officer McMann asks Mrs. Smith while studying the photo of my brother.

"I'm not sure. I did see his room and everything appeared to be there. There were some clothes in the dresser. And a backpack and some books on a desk, and there was a jacket on the desk chair too."

"A kid wouldn't run away in the middle of winter without a jacket, not unless he had to leave in some kind of hurry" Officer McMann said quietly, almost like he was talking to himself.

"Alright. I'm going to bring this Jimmy Moore and the social worker down to the station, interview them and see if they have anything to add to this missing person report. This might be more of a missing person case than a runway kid. In the meantime, we'll send the kid's picture around, have the local PD's keep an eye out for him. Anything changes, give me a call" he says standing up and holding out a card to Mrs. Smith and me. Mrs. Smith and I stand up too, shaking hands with him once more. He heads out the door and I feel the urge to go after him and tell him more, tell him what I know about the Moore's.

The card from Dallas seems to burn hot in my pocket. I can't help but feel like Officer McMann will help me, and might have a better chance of finding dirt on the Moore's than a Tulsa cop since he works for the same department. I weigh my options, call the cop Dally said was good and risk him not believing me and not looking into anything or trust Officer McMann and hope that he isn't another dirty cop. Deciding to trust my gut and praying that I'm not making a mistake, I start towards the door.

"Are we done here today, Mrs. Smith?" I ask.

"Yes. I'll keep you updated on everything" I nod and go towards the door, "And I am truly sorry about all of this Darrel. I'll do everything in my power to make it right".

I know she's being sincere but I really want to catch up with Officer McMann before he leaves, so I just shoot her a quick smile, "I know. Thank you, Mrs. Smith".

I hustle out to the parking lot, grateful to see the cop car still idling out front. I jog over to it, waving at Officer McMann through the window to get his attention.

"Something I can do for you, Darrel?" he asks, rolling down his window.

I feel suddenly nervous, afraid to say the wrong thing and raise his suspicions on where Ponyboy is. But I had seen his face when Officer Moore had been mentioned and the dislike had been obvious.

I square my shoulders, "Yes sir. I think I might have more information for you".

He steps out of the car and then leans against it, "Go on, son"

"I believe Mr. Moore was abusing Ponyboy. And that the social worker and Officer Moore were in on it. They knew he was being hurt and didn't do anything about it".

He gives me a deep look, likes he's studying me, but I hold his gaze, not backing down.

"That's quite an accusation. Do you have any facts to back this up or is it all speculation?"

"Officer Moore came by my house this morning. Asking if I had seen any kids hanging around my worksite. He was looking for Ponyboy but he didn't know I was his brother, they don't know about the name mixup."

Officer McMann's eyebrows shoot up at this, "What exactly did he say?"

"He said a foster kid in the area ran away, broke into a few houses and stole some things. But my brother isn't a thief and he wouldn't run away for no reason"

"They knew he was missing but it wasn't reported. I checked all the missing kid files before I came over here" Officer McMann says slowly, putting the pieces together, "That is mighty suspicious".

"So you're going to look into him? Officer Moore and his brother?"

"Of course, Darrel" he says earnestly, "I'm going to type up this report and hand it over to my sergeant as soon as I get back to the station. I'll be talking to the detectives too, see if they can dig anything up on these Moore characters."

"Could I get a copy of it? Your report?" I ask, figuring if I ask for a copy he'd actually have to file it.

"Of course. I can bring a copy by your house tomorrow afternoon"

I stick my hand out to shake his, "Thank you officer. This means a lot to me and my brothers". He grasps my hand tightly, shaking it and then giving it a squeeze.

"We'll figure this out, son." he promises.

He gets in his car and drives off and I head to my truck also, feeling overwhelmed from all the information but also a little relieved to know that I have Mrs. Smith and Officer McMann on my side.

It's later than I realize by the time I make it home. Steve's car is gone meaning he and Soda must have left for work. I felt a surge of guilt at leaving Pony for so long with everything that's been happening but I figured there was no way to have avoided that meeting.

Hurrying up the porch, I'm surprised to find the door locked. I tug at it again, not used to the door not just opening when I turn the handle.

I take my keys out of my pockets and start searching for the house key and unlock the door. I try to pull it open only to be stopped by the door chain. Never in the entire time I'd lived here, had the chain ever been locked. Starting to panic a bit about why it was locked, I call through the crack.

"Anyone home?"

"Yep" a voice answers from right on the other side of the door. I groan, Two Bit .

"Two Bit! Open the door"

"You didn't do the secret knock" he says seriously, "Only those who do the secret knock may enter"

I pound a loud fist against the door, "Open up, Two bit"

"Sorry, that's not the secret knock. Do you wanna try answering a riddle instead?"

"Keith!" I growl.

"Okay no riddle then. We'll make an exception and let you in this one time" Two Bit says as he fiddles with the chain, getting it unlocked. I shove the door open and then shove him as I make my way into the house. Pony and Johnny are sitting on the floor of the living room, smirking at me and Two Bit while Mickey plays on the TV in the background. Johnny has a new bruise on his face and his lip is split. 'Damn that Mr. Cade'.

"What the hell was that about?" I ask, facing Two Bit angrily.

He just shrugs and holds his hands up defensively, his eyes dancing with mischief, "Hey, I'm just following orders. Soda told me not to let anyone in the house"

"Obviously he didn't mean me, you moron" I say, giving him another shove as I make my over my recliner and taking a seat in it.

Johnny has turned back to the television but I can't help but notice Pony has gone a little pale and his shoulders are hunched up like he's scared. He nervously looks between me and Two Bit. Another wave of guilt washes over me. I must have scared him when I yelled and pushed Two Bit. Two Bit knew I was joking, even if I was annoyed, but Pony clearly didn't. I can't take the feeling like I was scaring him, so I nudge him gently with my foot.

"I ain't really mad, Ponyboy. Me and Two Bit are okay" I tell him gently.

"Yeah kid, no harm done over here" Two Bit says easily, plopping down on the couch and ruffling Johnny's hair.

Pony seems to relax a bit but he tenses up again, "Did everything go okay? With the cop?"

He seems so nervous it about breaks my heart, I just want to scoop him up and hug him but I know he's not always crazy about being touched so I just give him the most reassuring smile I can.

"Everything went real good. I talked to a cop who's going to look into the Moore's and I talked with social services about getting custody of you when this mess is all figured out"

"Really? You think they'll let me stay here?" he asks, his eyes brightening a bit as some of the nervousness falls away.

"It seems like they will, kiddo. I promise, I ain't going to give up until you're home for good"

His smile is real and genuine and warms me down to my bones, "Thanks Darry"

"You don't have to thank me, Ponyboy" I tell him.

"Great, now that you worked that out, can you keep it down? I can't hear Mickey!" Two Bit says. I roll my eyes and Pony lets out a laugh, settling back on the floor next to Johnny. Johnny gives him a playful nudge with his elbow and Pony elbows him back, the two of them grinning at each other.

We all relax back, watching Mickey when I remember something from earlier. I look over at Ponyboy, who senses me staring at him and shoots me a questioning look.

"Everything okay, Darry?"

"Everything's fine. I saw a picture of you earlier today, with your normal hair, and now I'm just trying to picture you without the blonde." I say with a chuckle.

He groans, his hand going to his hair, "I know it looks lousy but I didn't want anyone to recognize me".

"It don't look lousy, man" Johnny reassures him.

"You didn't see it before! It used to look good" Pony whines.

"I did too see it before. When you used to come in to the library, remember?"

"Oh yeah" Pony says almost sheepishly, "I forgot about that"

"Your hair was real cool, man. But just because this is different don't mean that it's bad" Johnny reassures him.

"Still feels like it looks bad" Ponyboy grumbles.

"It doesn't look that bad" I tell him but he's looking like he doesn't believe me, "We can always dye it back if you want"

"No way. I ain't dying my hair like a girl"

"That didn't stop you from dying it in the first place" Two Bit teases.

"I had to do it" Pony all but whispers, the light hearted teasing gone from the air.

I get out of my chair and crouch down on the floor to reach out to him, putting a hand on his shoulder. "I know you did. And your hair color really ain't a big deal, I didn't mean to upset you"

"I know you didn't" he answers, "I just don't like seeing it. Reminds me of what happened that night"

I nod and give his shoulder a squeeze, "Well you don't gotta keep it forever. We can fix it up once it grows out a bit, okay?"

He nods and gives me a small smile that turns into a laugh as I ruffle his hair, sending it in all different directions.

"I'm going to get started on dinner, okay? And then we can all start decorating once Soda gets home" I say, standing up and heading into the kitchen and start pulling out stuff to make chili.I hear the three of them start to talk again out in the living room, Two Bit's voice carrying it's usual hint of mischievousness.

"You know what they say about blondes, right Ponyboy? Let me tell you, because I consider myself a blonde expert. You see, blonde girls have –"

"Two Bit!" I yell exasperated, sticking my head into the living room from the kitchen.

He just cocks an eyebrow and smiles, "A story for another time then, kiddies."