Title: Knowledge
Author: Tiffany Adams
Summary: Willy, from his mother's POV
Rating: PG
Pairings: None
Spoilers: None
Disclaimer: The characters of Willy, David, and Susan DuWitt belong to
Neal Adams and co. Just try to sue me. I have no $$. The lawyer fee
will be more than the settlement.


	"And in other news, researchers say the unusually high pollen
count could be contributing to - "

	I like to have the news on. I'm usually not watching; David says
there's no reason to listen to a media source controlled by Washington
polluters and fat cats, and I mainly agree. But the house is too quiet
sometimes, especially on Tuesday, when my husband has meditation
classes after work and I allow Willy to forgo the usual family meal
and stay at work right through the evening. He's usually too busy to
talk during the meals anyway, shoveling his food so he can get back to
his job. 

	There's a noise downstairs; the microwave pings. Willy must be
back. It's late and I didn't hear him come in, as usual. I shut off
the TV and head downstairs.

	In the kitchen, Willy is shoving leftover tofu burgers onto a
plate, holding the bun in his mouth. As I come in, he says, "Hi mom"
but it's more like "hee mmmmummth" as he shuts the microwave door. I
never wanted to buy that thing, what with the radiation and all, but
he nagged us for years and we broke down. 

	"You can sit down, honey," I point out, and he practically drops
the plate on the table, unloading the other snacks and beverages he
had in his arms. 

	My little boy - well, he's not so little anymore. Over the last
two summers, he's just shot up and he's taller than me now. As usual,
his shirt is torn and disheveled, and he's working his work jeans,
which are covered in grease stains. His T-shirt has some kind of logo
on it, with writing I've never seen around the emblem. It must be
Asian characters or something; he says he got it at work. 

	"So, how was work today?" I ask, sitting down across from him at
our round kitchen table.

	He smiles and says between mouthfuls, "Good. I'm installing the
mark-5 in the Righteous. I almost got it working, too." As he reaches
for the all-natural pear juice, he flinches, and for the first time I
notice a bandage around his left hand. He glances at, noticing
something ominously red seeping through the padding. "Darnit."

	"What is it?"

	"Nothing," he says, quickly. He always plays down his many
injuries, which only makes me more suspicious. As he touches it, "Ow!
Jesus. I think the painkiller's wearing off."

	"Painkiller? What did you do -- "

	"Mom, it's nothing, *really* -- "

	I frown at him and take his hand, suddenly realizing how huge it
is in comparison to my own slim fingers. Unwinding the bandage, I gasp
at the angry diagonal cut grazing his palm. "Where did you *get*
this?"

	"I was clumsy. You know how it is. Open wiring and stuff. I was
just gonna get a band aid - "

	I give him one of my looks, and he backs down and follows me as I
lead him to his bedroom, careful not to get any blood on the carpet.
"Just lie down and let me get you some herbs."

	He lies down reluctantly on his star wars-themed bed dressings as
I fetch some of the new herbs I got from the health food store and
some ready-made tea. When I return, he's already soaked through the
rag I gave him to press down on.

	I sit down on the bed next to him and start rubbing a potion on
his palm. He flinches involuntarily. "Now, honey, I just picked this
up at that new 'Circle of Light' store, and the lady behind the
counter said it's very good for draining bad energy."

	"Mom, you're not going to capitalist, yuppie hell if you say
'prevents infection,'" Willy mumbles, and I detect a growing tiredness
in his voice. He always comes home from work so exhausted. "Why can't
you just buy antiseptic like *normal* people?"

	I grin and finish cleaning the wound, "Drink your tea. It'll help
you relax."

	"Mo-oooom!" he says tiredly, but manages to gulp down the tea, and
lays back against the pillow. "You don't have to act like this. I'm
not a baby."

	"You'll always be my baby, honey." I take another careful look at
the wound, ignoring the grimace on his face. "I don't think you need
stitches. Did you let your captain see this?"

	"He was kinda busy."

	"You want to tell me what happened?" I've already started
re-bandaging the hand, not expecting an answer. 

	"Told you. Careless," he yawns, his eyelids dropping. "That and
this storm toad - charged at me. I should've remembered the panel was
lyin' open so I didn't jump back into it. But what was I supposed to
do, man? He had a blaster."

	"Of course, honey. And where was Captain O'Hare in all of his?"

	"I thin' he was takin' care of the toads in piloting. How they got
on'na ship, I dunno, but - man, wha' a mess ..."

	The medical aspect done, I release his hand as he rolls on his
side, burrowing into the pillow. He's already half asleep as I pull
the blanket over him.

	"You won' tell anyone 'bout my space job, right?" he mumbles into
the pillow. "'cause if my parents found out, they'd, like, freak..."

	"Of course not." What does he think we are, idiots? I kiss him on
the forehead, knocking stray hair out of his face. "Get some sleep.
You have school tomorrow."

	But he's already asleep. As I turn out the lights and shut the
door, I can see the moonlight seeping in on my baby's sleeping form,
and I make a silent promise to give that green hare a piece of my mind
whenever I finally meet him.

The End