Years ago, if you would have asked a teenager named Hope Estheim if he ever thought he would be playing with dolls, the answer would have been a very adamant hell no. The explanation that would have followed would have been along the lines of the things were girlie, and he didn't swing that way. It is interesting how that answer would have changed as the boy grew into a man. The man who became the director of the Acedemy of Bhunivelze eventually became a father. That changes everything.

Five years ago, after over 500 years, the Estheim name had gained a new member of the family. A little girl with the pink hair of her mother, and dual colored eyes came into the world. With the exception of castration threats, life that day was perfect... for him. Lightning probably would disagree with that statement. She was the one going through constant pain, but in the end, Light thought Haleigh is worth it. From the first time her lungs drew breath, she had daddy wrapped around her little fingers.

Hope understood that day exactly what Sazh had meant about fathers loving their kids. Even when your busy, the child is usually not that far from the front of your thoughts. He understood why his father poured so much of himself into his work. It was really legitimate concern to be the best for his family, to provide for them. The only thing the director is determined to do differently would be to make sure that Haleigh doesn't have the same doubts that he did.

That meant Saturday evenings, unless there was other plans were spent with his little girl. That meant they would spend a few hours before bedtime doing whatever a five year old's imagination could come up with. That meant the boy that would have swore off dolls would be well aquainted with Ken as a man. Fortunately for him, Haleigh wasn't the sort of girl that was interested in those infant dolls that really needed their diapers changed or wanted to pretend to be a mommy.

Pretending to be mommy meant she and her cousin Evan played in the back yard pretending to beat up monsters. The princess vibe is all Aunt Serah's influence. Even then, most of the time it is protect Princess Krystal. She wasn't all tomboy.

Haleigh insisted and was correct that tough girls were allowed to have cutsy things. As long as they didn't act like one of those dumb damsels in distress. Her bed was covered in a My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic comforter with various ponies on it. Matching Pillow and off to the side a Princess Luna head shape pillow. Right by it was a Hello Kitty plushie. Various posters of cats and other girly images, and other decorations.

Hope glanced up from the round of playing barbies with his little girl. He was on the bored side with the game, but this was Daddy/Daughter time. That meant playing the games that she wanted to play. At the moment it was Barbie and Ken being crime fighters and beating up the bad guys. Sending them to jail. Jail was the extent of it though. It was nothing more than robbing stores or being mean to someone. The other crimes of humanity Haleigh didn't need to know about, and would worry Hope if she enacted those in her playtime.

Gesturing towards the Fairy clock on the dresser, Hope caught Haleigh's attention. Soft and encouraging, he asked her "Can you tell me what time it is?"

Haleigh turned around and stared for a moment. She was a smart cookie, but was still five years old. They need to start learning things before they go to kindergarten, to prepare them and make them feel accomplished. Her mind processed the numbers one by one. "Seven...two...six?" she asked, thinking about that for a moment.

"Your right!" Hope exclaimed, ruffling her hair. The child sulked for a moment and patted it back down as the father continued. "You know what day it is, right."

"Saturday," she pronounced correctly as the light started to come on. She took another look at that clock as the six turned to a seven. Her face lighting up as it fully sank in what time it was. "IT'S TIME FOR PONIES!"

Hope just smiled, in pride and the fact that he can now put the Ken doll down. Yes, it was okay for him as a father to play with this, but it was for Haleigh's sake more than anything. While Haleigh went after her favorite blanket, Hope put away the dolls. Time to head downstairs, turn on the tv, let his girl sit on his lap and kill thirty minutes before bedtime watching My Little Pony. It was their thing to do while Light took online classes.

Yes, a grown man can sit on the couch with his little girl and enjoy watching a little kid's cartoon. Yeah, there was no shame in being able to identify what pony was who and keep up with the story line. Fluttershy was the yellow pegasus pony with pink hair. Rainbow Dash was Cyan with a Rainbow Mane. Twilight Sparkle was purple and loved her books. Princess Celestia and Luna were at least a thousand years old. Yeah, it was good to keep tabs on the story of the things you let your kids watch, and maybe deep down, he enjoyed the light plot of it too. Something simple.

Hope's curiousity peaked during one of the commercials, and he gave his girl a loving and questioning look. When he had her attention, he would ask a question. Pointing to Rainbow Dash on the blanket, "I know who this is, but which one of us would be Rainbow Dash?"

Haleigh thought about it for a moment, not too long. She must have already had given it some thought. Taking some time to make sure she spoke in complete sentences while still sounding like a little girl. "That's Aunt Fang. She's loud and full of herself. Aunt Fang is there for us, and loves us."

Loud and full of herself... Yeah... That's her mom talking while she's frustrated at the Pulsian huntress. It was pretty reassuring however for Haleigh to add there was doubting Fang's love for the group. Hope would mentally agree with the assessment, it was a pretty good connection. Dash and Fang, they both were shades of Blue and strong.

"Okay," Hope replied, the commercials were going to be a bit of a long stretch, and Haleigh seemed to pick up on the fact that this was something to kill the time. "What pony do you think Vanille would be?"

"She's Pinkie Pie," the child answered, logically. Before she could be asked why, she explained the connection. "Vanille likes to have a lot of fun. She can keep up with us kids, and is never a meanie. She knows how to play lots and lots of games!"

Time for another quick question before the commercials ended, and time to lose the child's attention to a plot about Rarity and some underground dogs. "Who do you think Spike would be?"

Haleigh had a short answer as her attention drifted to the purple dragon that Twilight Sparkle always let ride her back. "He's Maqui. He's short and he put Barbie's head back..."

Well, Hope thought as the cartoon grabbed attention. He kinda hoped that she would say that he was the little dragon. Maqui was good with his hands, and always running errands for someone, so it made sense at least. Besides, who got jealous over a TV show? Estheim knew his daughter loved him, and that's what mattered.

When the next commercial break came on, Haleigh's attention came to rest on her daddy. It was clear as a bell that she was having fun with the who is who game. "Who do you want to know next?"

"Lets start with Uncle Snow," the father answered, challenging Haleigh to answer with a gentle expression.

"Easy!" Haleigh grinned, with a giggle. "He's Big Mac! He is HUGE! 'Member when Uncle Snow threw some idiot into mom's cherry tree when he saved Evan from kid'appers?"

"Yeah," Hope answered, with a chuckle as he shook his head. That was one bold fool that got his back broke. Attempting to take a kid from the yard when Snow was working the BBQ Grill. It was probably some druggie doing something really stupid. "Mom was mad until she found out what happened."

"Yup yup," Haleigh agreed. "Momma's scary when she mad."

"Speaking of Mommy," Hope continued, figuring now would be a good time to see who she thought Light would be. It was probably Apple Jack if you considered the fighting monsters thing. "Is she Apple Jack?"

"No silly," Haleigh corrected, which mildly surprised Hope. He knew her pretty well, but it wasn't as if he could read her mind all the time. She was her mother's daughter. "She's Princess Cel...Cel..."

"Princess Celestia?" Hope offered, watching Haleigh nod the confirmation. It must be the sun that is on Celestia's rear end.

Haleigh nodded and then stopped, sending an explanation was needed. "Cel... She is super smart and pretty and magical. Nobody wants to make her mad!"

"Okay, we have a few more minutes before the next break. Who do you think Serah would be?" Hope asked, planning to go through the most important people in her life.

"Twilight Sparkle," the child answered. "She is helping mommy teach me how to read and knows lots of things!"

"What about Shining Armor? Who would be him?" Hope asked, the last one he would ask.

"He's Noel because he protects people." Haleigh answered. The bright child had realized that she hadn't told Dad which pony was him yet. "There is no Daddy pony yet. Maybe they are making a Daddy pony now."

She seemed really hopeful at that idea while she searched for something. Hope smiled, picking up on that fact. Haleigh was smart, and knew about feelings, something Vanille and Serah helped her learn about. "Yeah, maybe next season. It will be a while before new pony shows are out. Okay?"

Haleigh nodded, not liking the fact that it would be a while before she got a new show. It was one of her favorite series and taught her about social interactions. Friendship is Magic after all.

"You forgot the pink pony with the purple hair and really pretty." Haleigh was talking about Princess Cadence, but that name was too new and hard for her to pronounce. So she opted with description. "She makes Love magic, just like Lebreau does with those funny smelling drinks."

Hope stared at Haleigh for a moment. Funny smelling drinks that make people love? Hope realized she didn't know exactly what that meant, but it required investigation. Unfortunately, that would have to wait. He had a couple ideas on where to start. Kids are parrots... Little mockingbirds that somehow made the world spin a little smoother each day.

His chance to ask her about this love potion that Lebreau makes was slipping down the drain when the series started back up. During the last part of it, Haleigh's little body leaned more into her father, curling up with her blanket. She usually fell asleep around this time in the show. Just barely able to stay awake to see the end credits start. With his only free hand, Hope reached for the remote and shut it off.

Time to put his daughter to sleep. The director rocked back and forth, singing a soothing lullaby. Sensing the child had passed out, Hope lain down on the couch, letting her rest on him. Kissing her forehead, Hope found himself starting to drift to sleep too. Normally this wouldn't be comfortable, but Dad can adjust to anything.

After a short while, Lightning had gotten down with her project, entering the living room. A soft smile notes the two sleeping on the couch. Light bent down, picking up the bundle that almost woke up. "Shhh... It's okay... Mommy's gotcha. Go back to sleep baby..."

Haleigh drifted back to sleep as Light carried the child to her room. She too kissed the girl good night before tucking her into bed. Before she had shut the door, Light turned on the night light. "Your a brat, but mommy loves you." The door was softly closed.

Lightning made her way back to where her husband rested. "Your a brat too." she noted. Mischief suddenly struck, causing her to pounce her husband awake.

"Whumph." Hope woke up with a start, finding a feminine hand cover his mouth. A familiar and heavier weight replaced his daughter's and found his heart racing.

"Shhh," Light chuckled, mischief accomplished. A purr in her voice, teasing the man. "You wouldn't want to wake up our baby would you? That would be counter productive to bed time. Now, do you have any of that affection left for me to have some, or did your girl use it all?"

"You didn't have to scare me half to death to get attention, Claire." Hope whined, feeling his heart start to settle back into place. Not to mention his back complained about the awakening.

"Yes I did," Light chuckled for a moment then gasped as Hope began kissing the fingertips of her hand. A small form of intimacy that answered her question. "The two of you are too adorable for your own good. Makes me consider having another one."

"Consider?" Hope asked, remembering she didn't enjoy the pregnancy. She was quite adamant what would happen to him if that had happened again. While they share the last name, protective measures were taken. He would have reminded him of that, but decided that it wouldn't benefit him to bring it up. Not that Light kissing him had any negative impact to that.

"Yes," Light answered, playfully, running a hand through Hope's silver hair. "Jury is still out, but lets face it. Haleigh could benefit from a sibling. Now... Lets go to bed."

Author's Note:

There we go. I am thinking that this version of it is one that I can actually be happy with. Added a couple characters to it, and made it a little more detailed. The first was a rushed job while getting back into the swing of things, and the revision was just working with what was there. This version of it was typed out, word for word except for one paragraph from the original incarnation.

I might extend it for a chapter, but I think it's still pretty much complete.