I know, long time, no read, I'm sorry. this is hte first chap of Eternal Darkness, the winner of my poll, which ended a few weeks ago, I've been lazy, I was going to put it up the saturday after CSI started again, but it didnt happen, duh

now read, and please, review at the end:)

Laura Sidle lay in the small hospital bad, her wide as she waited for the doctors the return. Her gaze shifted to the chair next to the bed. It was empty, like she expected. Daniel, her husband, was most likely out getting high, or drunk. She was mad at him, yes, but she couldn't get to mad, after all, the only reason she had even cleaned up slightly was the baby.

She was torn from her thoughts as someone knocked at the door. She looked up and saw the doctor with a small pink bundle in her arms.

"Is that?" she whispered as the doctor, Dr. Davis, walked closer.

"Say hello to your daughter, Mrs. Sidle" she said warmly, bending down to hand the bundle to Laura, who took it. She moved the blanket over a bit so she could see her face.

The first thing she noticed were the big brown eyes, which were staring back up at her. They instantly sucked her in, and she fell in love with the girl. Then she noticed the full head of curly brown hair. She slowly moved a finger, and ruffled a curl by her ear.

"She's beautiful" she whispered to herself.

"Do you have a name for her?" Davis asked.

"Sara, Sara Ann Sidle" she replied, smiled at her daughter.

"Okay" she heard the ruffling of paper as the doctor wrote it on the birth certificate. "And the father is Daniel Jacob Sidle, correct?" she added, not noticing when Laura winced.

"Yes" she said.

"Would you like me to contact him? So he can pick you up later today?"

"Umm, actually, could you call my son, Dan, his number is under the house number."

"I'll get on that, I'll leave you two alone for a bit" she said, before leaving.

"Hello Sara, I'm your mommy. Your older brother is coming to pick us up. His name is Dan, its short for Daniel, and he's going to be the best big brother ever. He'll keep you safe from anyone who want to hurt you" she chuckled as she lightly touched Saras face. She looked down into her daughter's eyes, noticing something odd. Her eyes weren't locking onto anything, and even though the lights were off, and the blinds closed, her pupils were tiny.

Laura lifted a finger, and waggled in front of the brown orbs, but they remained unfocused. Laura looked up as someone came to the door.

"I have contacted your son, he is on his way" Davis said as she walked in. "Is something wrong?" she continued, noticing Laura's distressed look.

"Is it normal if her eyes are not responding?" Laura replied.

"Well, we preformed some tests, and, discovered that your daughter is blind" Davis explained.

"No, no, no, no. She can't be blind" Laura whispered. "How?" she asked the doctor.

"It's a birth defect, normally caused by smoking or drinking" she explained. Laura stared at Sara, tears welling in her eyes. Davis sighed, and left the room.

Laura couldn't take her eyes off of her daughter. She had caused her blindness, and was going to take her home to her husband.

"Mom" a voice brought her from her thoughts. She looked up to see a tall man standing in the doorway. He had ear length brown hair, and emerald eyes. He looked to be in his late teens.

"Hi Dan" she replied.

"Is that the baby?" he asked, walking in.

"Yes, Dan, this is Sara" she whispered.

"What's wrong Mom?" he questioned, seeing her tears.

"She's blind" Laura stuttered. "I didn't quit the drugs or alcohol soon enough, and because of it, my daughter is blind" she added.

"Mom, it isn't your fault, if it is anyone's fault, its Dads" he reassured her.

"He didn't force me to drink," she starting, trying to defend her husband.

"But he got you addicted to the drugs, and I doubt the beatings helped her at all" Dan cut her off. "And I can tell, it wont stop her from doing anything, she will go far in life."

"I hope so" Laura whispered.

"Can I hold her?" he asked, changing the subject. Laura smiled at the attempt.

"Of course, here" she replied, lifting Sara up to him. Dan held her softly in his large arms, and stared at her face.

"Hi, Sara, my name is Dan, I'm your big brother. I can promise now, that I will protect you from everything, from playground bullies, and new boyfriends, to ex-boyfriends, and creepy old guys" he softly whispered to her, lightly brushing her hair. "You are going to come home soon, and I'll tell you exactly what your room looks like. It's blue to start; Dad really wanted another boy, so he would throw out anything that was pink or yellow. You have my old crib; it has white paint on it, which has started to chip a little. That's really it," he paused before lowering his voice even more. "I hope you have a good life" he whispered, and gave her a small kiss on the forehead.

At that time a knock came from the door, and he turned to look at it.

"You must be Dan" Davis said as she walked in. "I'm Dr. Davis" she added, holding put her hand.

"Nice to meet you" Dan replied, and she turned to Laura.

"We normally would have liked to keep you here over night to keep an eye on Sara, but other then her blindness, she is perfectly healthy, so I have your release forms" she explained, handing Laura a few pieces of paper and a pen. Laura quickly filled out the form, and handed them back, as Dan walked around the room, gathering her stuff with one hand.

Davis stepped outside to grab a wheelchair, and helped Laura lower into it after she had changed back into the clothes Dan had brought with him. When she was sitting, Dan handing Sara to her, and followed as Davis wheeled her to the entrance.

"Thank you," Laura said to Davis as she climbed into the car.

"No problem" Davis replied, before walking inside.

"Mom, Mom… Mom!" Dan almost yelled. He looked at her through the rearview mirror. She was staring into her daughter's eyes, tears rolling down her cheeks. She looked up when he called.

"Hmm?" she replied.

"We're almost home. What's on your mind?" he asked.

"I'm worried about how your father is going to react" she mumbled.

"What do you mean?" he pushed.

"You know how much he wanted a boy, and shes, well, a girl. And on top of that, she's blind. I wouldn't put it past him to try to kill her" she explained.

"I wont let him touch her, don't worry" Dan told her, his voice low. He turned into a driveway as he said it, and stopped the car. At the end of the driveway was a small, single story house. The window shutters were falling off of their hinges, the paint was chipping, and the grass in front of it was dry and yellow.

"At least she will never have to see it" he sighed as he climbed out and held Sara as Laura got out.

"Well, here goes nothing" Laura whispered, before walking to the door. She slowly opened it and called out. "Dan, I'm home." A tall man walked into the room, running his hand through his dirty blond hair.

"Where have you been Laura?" he asked, his green eyes harsh, the complete opposite of his sons.

"I was at the hospital, the baby came" she softly explained, his face instantly lifted.

"Where is he?" he questioned.

"She, is right here" Laura replied, holding Sara up for him to see.

"It's a girl?" he asked, disbelief covering his face.

"Yes, Sara Ann Sidle" she told him, as he took the bundle.

"What's wrong with her eyes?" he questioned, immediately noticing that they were unfocused.

"She's blind" Laura stated.

"How is she blind?" he raised his voice, causing Sara to whimper.

"It's a birth defect" she explained. "Caused by drinking and smoking."

"So it's all your fault it's blind, just like it's all your fault it's a girl" he yelled, and Sara started crying. "Shut up!" he looked down at her and yelled. Sara instantly stopped crying, and made no more noise except for the odd whimper. "Here, take it, it's no good" he said, thrusting the baby into her mothers arms. Laura glared at him for a second, before rushing to the back of the house.

For the first time, Daniel noticed his son standing in the doorway. Both pairs of emerald eyes glared into each other.

"What do you want?" he asked his son. Dan just shook his head and followed his mother.

He found her in Sara's room, gently rocking her daughter in her arms.

"Mom" he softly said, she looked up.

"He doesn't want her, its all my fault" she whispered, tears rolling down her face.

"No, Mom, its his fault. If he doesn't realize how beautiful she is, tis his loss" he reassured her.

"I guess, but he just met her, and he hates her" she sighed.

"He doesn't hate her, just give him some time to come around. He really wanted another boy" Dan said, taking the sleeping Sara from her arms, and gently placed her in the crib. "She's so cute" he whispered.

"She looks a lot like you did when we first brought you home, just smaller" Laura told him, smiling softly at her daughter.

"I hope she has a better childhood then I did," he said.

"Me too" she replied, before leaving the room. Dan stood next to her crib for a moment longer, before leaving quickly.

A few minutes later, he returned with a thin mattress, a pillow, and a few blankets.

Daniel had refused to get a baby monitor, and Dan knew that if Sara woke him up in the middle of the night, she might not survive the night. He also knew that his father would have no qualm over sneaking into her room, and take her life. He wasn't going to let that happen. He was going to protect her with his life, now and forever.

Kinda long, well, for me at least, the chaps will be longish, review if you want more:)