FAKE Ficlet: In Uniform
Title: In Uniform
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Dee, Barry, Tommy, mentions Jess, Arnon, and Mother.
Rating: G
Setting: Before the manga, but with references to Vol. 6, act 18.
Summary: Dee has made it all the way through the academy to become a cop.
Word Count: 607
Written Using: The tw100 prompt ‘Impersonate’
Disclaimer: I don’t own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.
“So, whaddaya think?” Dee asked his friends, adjusting his cap and flicking a miniscule shred of lint off the sleeve of his immaculate navy blue uniform jacket. “Looks pretty sharp on me, doesn’t it?”
Barry walked slowly around him, checking him over from every angle. “I dunno, man. I mean, a lot of the folks around here, they still remember you from when you were the mastermind behind all our forays into petty thievery. Not sure they’re gonna buy the new look.”
“Yeah, Barry’s right,” Tommy cut in, an expression of mock concern on his face. “Some good citizen might see ya dressed like that an’ call the cops. If you’re not careful, you could be arrested for impersonating a police officer.”
“Up yours, Tommy,” Dee said, a good-natured grin spreading across his face. “I’ve turned over a new leaf; as of today I’m officially an officer of the law, duly sworn in to protect and serve, so maybe you’d best be careful that I don’t decide to arrest you for insulting a police officer!”
Dee wasn’t serious and the other two knew it, laughing along with him at his joke.
Barry was the first to turn serious again. “Why’d you do it though, Dee? I never understood that. You had so many dreams about what you were gonna do with your life; play basketball, start a band, travel the world… That’s never gonna happen on a cop’s salary. Why’d you throw away your dreams for this?”
“I didn’t.” Dee shrugged. “My dreams just faded over time. I was never gonna be good enough to turn pro, makin’ it in a band takes more talent than I’ve got, and travellin’ takes money. Couldn’t spend all my life dreamin’ of things that would never happen. This is different, it’s real, and it’s what I want to do, who I want to be. But I’m not just doin’ this for myself, I’m doin’ it for Jess and for Arnon too; I couldn’t save them, but by puttin’ on the uniform I can make a difference, maybe save other lives, get some of the scum off the streets, make this city a little bit better. That’s gotta be worth doin’, right?”
“Yeah,” Barry nodded. “Jess would be proud of you, Arnon would call you crazy, but I think he’d be proud too. How’s Mother takin’ it?”
“She worries, but she knows how important this is to me so she pretends not to, and I pretend I don’t know.”
“She needn’t worry, you’ll be fine,” Tommy said firmly, as if saying it would make it so. “You’ve got more lives than a cat! Lady Luck follows you around while she ignores the rest of us.”
“Luck’ll only get ya so far though,” Barry reminded his friend. “Whatever ya do, Dee, just don’t forget to be careful out there. From what I see on the news, bein’ a cop is like paintin’ a target on your own chest.”
“I won’t forget, I promise.”
“Good, ‘cause I don’t wanna lose another friend. We will still be friends though, right?”
“Count on it. Just stay out of trouble. I’d really hate to have ta arrest either of you two idiots. Anyway, I gotta go, things to do. Catch ya later!”
“Sure. See ya, Dee.”
An hour later, Dee stood in the cemetery, still in uniform, looking down at Jess’s grave. “Told you I’d do it, Jess,” he said quietly. “But I’m not gonna be like you, I’m gonna do this right. No takin’ bribes or payoffs, I’m gonna be an honest cop. You just wait and see.” Somehow, Dee just knew that Jess approved.
The End
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Dee, Barry, Tommy, mentions Jess, Arnon, and Mother.
Rating: G
Setting: Before the manga, but with references to Vol. 6, act 18.
Summary: Dee has made it all the way through the academy to become a cop.
Word Count: 607
Written Using: The tw100 prompt ‘Impersonate’
Disclaimer: I don’t own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.
“So, whaddaya think?” Dee asked his friends, adjusting his cap and flicking a miniscule shred of lint off the sleeve of his immaculate navy blue uniform jacket. “Looks pretty sharp on me, doesn’t it?”
Barry walked slowly around him, checking him over from every angle. “I dunno, man. I mean, a lot of the folks around here, they still remember you from when you were the mastermind behind all our forays into petty thievery. Not sure they’re gonna buy the new look.”
“Yeah, Barry’s right,” Tommy cut in, an expression of mock concern on his face. “Some good citizen might see ya dressed like that an’ call the cops. If you’re not careful, you could be arrested for impersonating a police officer.”
“Up yours, Tommy,” Dee said, a good-natured grin spreading across his face. “I’ve turned over a new leaf; as of today I’m officially an officer of the law, duly sworn in to protect and serve, so maybe you’d best be careful that I don’t decide to arrest you for insulting a police officer!”
Dee wasn’t serious and the other two knew it, laughing along with him at his joke.
Barry was the first to turn serious again. “Why’d you do it though, Dee? I never understood that. You had so many dreams about what you were gonna do with your life; play basketball, start a band, travel the world… That’s never gonna happen on a cop’s salary. Why’d you throw away your dreams for this?”
“I didn’t.” Dee shrugged. “My dreams just faded over time. I was never gonna be good enough to turn pro, makin’ it in a band takes more talent than I’ve got, and travellin’ takes money. Couldn’t spend all my life dreamin’ of things that would never happen. This is different, it’s real, and it’s what I want to do, who I want to be. But I’m not just doin’ this for myself, I’m doin’ it for Jess and for Arnon too; I couldn’t save them, but by puttin’ on the uniform I can make a difference, maybe save other lives, get some of the scum off the streets, make this city a little bit better. That’s gotta be worth doin’, right?”
“Yeah,” Barry nodded. “Jess would be proud of you, Arnon would call you crazy, but I think he’d be proud too. How’s Mother takin’ it?”
“She worries, but she knows how important this is to me so she pretends not to, and I pretend I don’t know.”
“She needn’t worry, you’ll be fine,” Tommy said firmly, as if saying it would make it so. “You’ve got more lives than a cat! Lady Luck follows you around while she ignores the rest of us.”
“Luck’ll only get ya so far though,” Barry reminded his friend. “Whatever ya do, Dee, just don’t forget to be careful out there. From what I see on the news, bein’ a cop is like paintin’ a target on your own chest.”
“I won’t forget, I promise.”
“Good, ‘cause I don’t wanna lose another friend. We will still be friends though, right?”
“Count on it. Just stay out of trouble. I’d really hate to have ta arrest either of you two idiots. Anyway, I gotta go, things to do. Catch ya later!”
“Sure. See ya, Dee.”
An hour later, Dee stood in the cemetery, still in uniform, looking down at Jess’s grave. “Told you I’d do it, Jess,” he said quietly. “But I’m not gonna be like you, I’m gonna do this right. No takin’ bribes or payoffs, I’m gonna be an honest cop. You just wait and see.” Somehow, Dee just knew that Jess approved.
The End