No Power Challenge by kijikun

Title: Parade rest
Rating: PG
Characters: BF
Word count: 522
A/N: Fits into a AU I'm working on. Don't worry if it doesn't make sense with canon.

The Inspector’s office smelled like wood polish and old cigars. Ben had to fight the urge to wrinkle up his nose. A large desk sat in the center of the room, right in front of the door.

The large wooden desk reminded Ben of the instructor’s desk at the Depot. He put his hands behind his back to keep from tugging at his collar. Parade rest had its uses.

The bandages wrapped around his upper arm pulled from the angle he held his arms. Ben had to keep from wincing.

“You wanted to see me, sir?” Ben asked his commanding officer. He felt like a raw cadet about to be flayed for some misstep.

Inspector Carven looked up at Ben and sighed. Ben recognized that look, the ‘no I don’t want to see you, but I have to’ look. “Yes, Constable, I did.” He eyed Fraser’s arm. “How’s the arm?”

Ben swallowed hard. “Better, sir.”

“You could have been seriously injured with that stunt, Constable.” Carven pointed out. “I was told you were more…sensible than that.”

Ben’s hands twitched with the urge to rub his eyebrow. “Sir, I was simply following through on a lead. My investigation had brought me to--“

Carven smacked his hand down flat on the desk. “An investigation you had no business conducting, Fraser.” He sighed, running a hand over his shiny bald head. “I understand you feel you’re doing right by your father. He was a good officer, one of the best we had.”

Ben nodded stiffly and wondered if Carven had even known his father.

“But I cannot allow you to pursue this any further.” Carven told him firmly.

“Sir, I must protest. At least allow me to show you what I’ve discovered.” Ben protested. He’d been so close to the answers. He was sure if he just pushed a bit harder…

Carven’s mouth pressed into a hard, thin line. “The matter is closed, Constable.”

Ben gritted his teeth. “Yes, sir.” He didn’t know how he kept his voice at a normal tone.

“Oh, and Constable?” Carven looked at the memo on the top of his desk. How he could find anything on that desk was beyond Ben’s understanding. “This building is not a child care facility and nor are your colleagues baby sitters. I don’t want to hear about your sister being left here for extended periods of time.”

Ben froze, his back stiffened. “Sir?”

“I’ll let it go for now, since you’ve been under a great deal of stress, Constable. If you cannot put effort into her care yourself, you should consider other options for her. Vancouver is not Hay River. You cannot leave ten year olds by themselves for hours at a time.” Carven looked back to his paperwork. “Dismissed, Constable.”

Ben nodded rigidly and made his way out of the office.

The office still smelled of wood polish and old cigars when Ben left. He’d been wrong about feeling like a cadet. He’d been more in control of his life as a cadet.