OOC - Background
Rating: PG-13-ish
Warnings: Language
Summary: The conversation Dan had with his parents before being sent to St. Jude Thaddeus'.
"…Where did we go wrong with you?"
Dan shrugged, looking away from his parents. He hated it when his mother cried. It always made him feel awkward.
"Surely there's been a mistake. You've always been such a good son, surely you couldn't have done any of those things they said." His mother was wringing her hands. "Please, Taichi, tell me it's not true…"
"Of course it's not," he lied, straight-faced, eyes wide and innocent as ever. "You know me, mother. I'm not like that at all desu."
"We'd like to believe that." His father sighed. "However, the accusation has been made. It's casting a bad light on our family name."
"…I'm sorry desu." Dan lowered his gaze. And he really was. Mostly he was sorry for being so stupid as to get caught, though.
"You should be." Another sigh. "I really don't know what we should do with you."
"It's all my fault," his mother moaned, even more tears rolling down her face. "I've failed to raise you properly and that made you gravitate towards the bad crowd! And then they led you astray, my poor little lamb…"
Lamb? His mother was turning to religious phrases. She only did that when she was really distressed. Not a good sign at all.
"It's not you," he murmured, not sure what to say. But whatever was wrong wasn't his mother's fault, no really. She was a great mother, the best anyone could have.
"Yes, it is! I failed to teach you proper faith!" The fuck? He had good enough a religion and faith, himself. Just… not hers. "Jesus - Jesus surely would have kept you away from such people! It must be that, nobody else in my family has ever even been accused of such things before…"
"What about cousin Chris?" Dan couldn't help but point it out.
His mother suddenly stiffened. "…We do not speak of cousin Chris."
"Oh?" Dan tilted his head to the side. "Will you not speak of me, either, then?"
"Oh, Taichi dear!" And suddenly he was pulled into a tight hug. "You're nothing like him. You're innocent! We just need to give you a nice, fresh start. Get you past all that bad influence. You'll be just fine, just you see."
"I'm already fine," he murmured into her shoulder. Or at least that's how he felt about it.
"You've just been misled," his mother continued as though she hadn't even heard him speak. "We'll get you right back on your feet, okay? Find somewhere you can forget about all those bad things and heal. Find yourself again."
Which himself, though? Dan Taichi, presumably, but was it the Dan Taichi they believed him to be, nice and kind and innocent, or the Dan Taichi who quite willingly lost his virginity at thirteen years of age to a guy he'd just seen beating another into hospital?
"We shall do that," his father agreed. "We'll find a correctional facility that'll set you straight. Somewhere far from here, preferably, to remove the circumstances that led to your little mistake." Mistake? He'd known very well what he was getting into, thank you very much. "I'm sure you'll eventually make us proud again, son."
When 'make us proud' essentially meant 'get yourself an education, a nice job, a pretty wife and two kids and uphold the family reputation'? Well… maybe. Aside from the wife part, anyway. And provided he didn't die of boredom long before that.
Finally, his mother released him. Wiping the tears from her eyes, she gave him wavering smile. "Oh, Taichi. Everything will be all right again, I promise!"
"I'm sure you're right, mother desu." Dan smiled. What else could he do but smile? He loved his mother, he didn't want to upset her any more. She'd never been meant to find out about… anything, really.
His mother just smiled bravely at this. His father, however, looked at him seriously. "…Taichi."
"Yes, father?" Dan looked up at his father. When it came to appearance, everything but his eyes were from his father - they were both short, slim, dark-haired, typical Japanese men, really. The brown eyes were the only thing he'd got from his mother, really.
"…Please give that back." His father sounded rather pained.
"Huh?" Looking down at his hand, Dan realized he was holding his mother's cell phone. He must have taken it when she was hugging him. "…Ah. Right desu. I'm sorry, mother."
Looking somewhat startled herself, his mother took the phone with a slightly more awkward smile. "Don't worry about it, dear. I'm sure you didn't do it on purpose. It's just another thing for us to fix, right?"
Dan returned her smile with one of his own, his eyes equally empty of any sign of mirth, and wondered if he didn't really have more in common with his mother than he'd thought.
Warnings: Language
Summary: The conversation Dan had with his parents before being sent to St. Jude Thaddeus'.
"…Where did we go wrong with you?"
Dan shrugged, looking away from his parents. He hated it when his mother cried. It always made him feel awkward.
"Surely there's been a mistake. You've always been such a good son, surely you couldn't have done any of those things they said." His mother was wringing her hands. "Please, Taichi, tell me it's not true…"
"Of course it's not," he lied, straight-faced, eyes wide and innocent as ever. "You know me, mother. I'm not like that at all desu."
"We'd like to believe that." His father sighed. "However, the accusation has been made. It's casting a bad light on our family name."
"…I'm sorry desu." Dan lowered his gaze. And he really was. Mostly he was sorry for being so stupid as to get caught, though.
"You should be." Another sigh. "I really don't know what we should do with you."
"It's all my fault," his mother moaned, even more tears rolling down her face. "I've failed to raise you properly and that made you gravitate towards the bad crowd! And then they led you astray, my poor little lamb…"
Lamb? His mother was turning to religious phrases. She only did that when she was really distressed. Not a good sign at all.
"It's not you," he murmured, not sure what to say. But whatever was wrong wasn't his mother's fault, no really. She was a great mother, the best anyone could have.
"Yes, it is! I failed to teach you proper faith!" The fuck? He had good enough a religion and faith, himself. Just… not hers. "Jesus - Jesus surely would have kept you away from such people! It must be that, nobody else in my family has ever even been accused of such things before…"
"What about cousin Chris?" Dan couldn't help but point it out.
His mother suddenly stiffened. "…We do not speak of cousin Chris."
"Oh?" Dan tilted his head to the side. "Will you not speak of me, either, then?"
"Oh, Taichi dear!" And suddenly he was pulled into a tight hug. "You're nothing like him. You're innocent! We just need to give you a nice, fresh start. Get you past all that bad influence. You'll be just fine, just you see."
"I'm already fine," he murmured into her shoulder. Or at least that's how he felt about it.
"You've just been misled," his mother continued as though she hadn't even heard him speak. "We'll get you right back on your feet, okay? Find somewhere you can forget about all those bad things and heal. Find yourself again."
Which himself, though? Dan Taichi, presumably, but was it the Dan Taichi they believed him to be, nice and kind and innocent, or the Dan Taichi who quite willingly lost his virginity at thirteen years of age to a guy he'd just seen beating another into hospital?
"We shall do that," his father agreed. "We'll find a correctional facility that'll set you straight. Somewhere far from here, preferably, to remove the circumstances that led to your little mistake." Mistake? He'd known very well what he was getting into, thank you very much. "I'm sure you'll eventually make us proud again, son."
When 'make us proud' essentially meant 'get yourself an education, a nice job, a pretty wife and two kids and uphold the family reputation'? Well… maybe. Aside from the wife part, anyway. And provided he didn't die of boredom long before that.
Finally, his mother released him. Wiping the tears from her eyes, she gave him wavering smile. "Oh, Taichi. Everything will be all right again, I promise!"
"I'm sure you're right, mother desu." Dan smiled. What else could he do but smile? He loved his mother, he didn't want to upset her any more. She'd never been meant to find out about… anything, really.
His mother just smiled bravely at this. His father, however, looked at him seriously. "…Taichi."
"Yes, father?" Dan looked up at his father. When it came to appearance, everything but his eyes were from his father - they were both short, slim, dark-haired, typical Japanese men, really. The brown eyes were the only thing he'd got from his mother, really.
"…Please give that back." His father sounded rather pained.
"Huh?" Looking down at his hand, Dan realized he was holding his mother's cell phone. He must have taken it when she was hugging him. "…Ah. Right desu. I'm sorry, mother."
Looking somewhat startled herself, his mother took the phone with a slightly more awkward smile. "Don't worry about it, dear. I'm sure you didn't do it on purpose. It's just another thing for us to fix, right?"
Dan returned her smile with one of his own, his eyes equally empty of any sign of mirth, and wondered if he didn't really have more in common with his mother than he'd thought.