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Daniel Berry

"Do you think they put that strawberry stuff on the banana fudge bars too?" asked Daniel, excited to find someone who had a mind like his. "'Cause then, it would look like part of an arm that was chopped off, or a finger!"
Meanwhile, Ellery pulled out his phone, looking at a picture of him and Lock as kids, holding up a bike that was barely held together. "And even though sometimes their best isn't exactly the best, they still try to be as good to us as we are to them." He could remember all too clearly that day Lock had returned the bike once more, dropping to his knees and begging Ellery to forgive him for breaking the bike. He'd even fixed it up even better than before, with even more tape! Ellery had only smiled and hugged the tall blonde, shaking his head and calling him a moron endearingly.
With a small sigh, Ellery put the phone back and stuffed his hands back into his front pockets. "Do you think Daniel will make friends like ours?"



Ellery Advimi

Daniel Berry

Daniel grinned excitedly. "Ooh, get that too! You're so smart, Mr. Officer!"
The songwriter blushed from Fredrich's sort-of praise, reaching one hand up to rub the back of his neck. "I wouldn't say famous," he gushed, bowing his head a bit. "I mean, I'm only in the group because I can write decent music and I look the part of the baby of the band." Once his blush was gone and Ellery had mentally humbled himself once more, he looked up at Fredrich and smiled. "But with such a remarkably gifted detective as his guardian, the kid's bound to make good friends. I mean, if he gets my dashing good looks, he at least gets your brains."



Ellery Advimi

Daniel Berry

"Too many syllables," said the boy, holding his ice creams away from Cameron's head so as to not get ice cream on his hair. After thinking for a moment, he brightened. "Can I just call you Uncle Cameron? My last uncle was kinda the worst, so it's not like you'lll be bad at it."
A large bead of sweat ran down the side of Ellery's face, his smile weakening just a bit. "It was just a joke," he explained, leaning on the counter. "Anyway, what kind of ice cream do you want?"



Ellery Advimi

Daniel Berry

"Yay! I have a new uncle!" cheered the child, tasting his ice cream and giggling. "Can we sit down in a booth?"
The songwriter looked over all the choices, then smiled softly and pointed at the one tub. "Rocky road, please," Ellery ordered, reaching into his pocket to pull out his wallet.



Ellery Advimi

Daniel Berry

The boy bounced into the seat beside Cameron, tongue already lapping at his ice cream. "Hehe, look, I have blood on my mouth!" he laughed, looking to Cameron with the sauce on his face.
Ellery blushed at Fredrich's actions, then forced it down. "Alright. Thank you," he said softly, starting for the booth. Once there, she sighed and took a napkin, leaning over Cameron to clean off Daniel's face. "Honestly, Daniel, you're such a little mess. I can't leave you alone for five minutes without you looking like you rubbed food all over your face."
The child pouted, then stuck his tongue out at the man as he moved back to sit on the other side of the booth. "It seems, Officer West, that little Daniel has taken a shine to you."



Ellery Advimi

Daniel Berry

But Daniel wasn't moving. He was remembering the last person who ever called him "Danny boy". He clenched his fists, the sprang out of the booth and into the restrooms.
Ellery set his ice cream down and stood. "Daniel!" he called, only to just barely see the boy shut the door. Ellery looked down to Fredrich, eyes full of worry. "Fredrich-"



Ellery Advimi

Daniel Berry

Daniel sniffled inside of the last large stall, his arms crossed and facing the wall. "N-no," he said, shaking his head. "H-he called me... he called me D-Danny boy....like Un-Uncle T-Tom did..."
Ellery watched Fredrich go, clasping his hands to his chest and craning his neck to see something or anything, looking every bit the worried mother. "I hope he's alright..."



Ellery Advimi

Daniel Berry

Daniel instantly ran into Fredrich's arms, crying and shaking. "I-I kn-know... but i-it made me th-think about i-it!"
Back at the table, Ellery turned back to Cameron and tilted his head. "Relationship? We don't have one. Why do you ask?"



Ellery Advimi