Hi guys! Hope you enjoy this one, it was a rather..interesting idea I had. Don't hate me please *wink*

Disclaimer: Standard, really: I'm only borrowing"As Time Goes By" and its characters.

The day was sunny and warm, not too hot, for the height of summer was past for this

year, as Lionel walked along the street to his home, his arms laden with library books and

shopping. Juggling his load he managed to unlock the door. He entered into the stillness,

and acknowledged that though he didn't miss the girls as much as Jean did, the house seemed far more empty and silent since Judy had married Alistair and Harry had literally whisked Sandy away to Canada. Still, it would only be a few months most likely, before Sandy and Harry would back in London, and Judy and Alistair did visit frequently. In fact, they were coming for supper that night, which was why Lionel had been given the grocery list as Jean headed out, rushed, to work at the charity shop earlier. He put his bags down on the kitchen table and checked his watch. His wife would be home in a few hours. He then ran his library books upstairs, put away the food, and fixed himself a light lunch. He was just finished tidying up the dishes when the doorbell rang.

The caller was a young woman.

"Yes?" he said politely.

She didn't respond, in fact she seemed frozen to the spot. He regarded her, found

himself studying her, as if drawn in. Her hair was long, past her shoulders, and ash

blond, thick and curly. She wore jeans, a purple t-shirt with a design in black on the

front, no makeup, a bit of jewellery – he noticed a silver charm bracelet, and dangling

beaded earrings, topped on one side by small studs, also of silver, all the way up her left

ear. Someone average looking enough, to his eyes, but with a bit of flare too, or so one

of the women in his life might have judged. She was young, perhaps no more than 20. He wondered why she was here, and slightly irritated, that she had neither identified herself nor stated her purpose. At the same time, he saw that her tall thin frame trembled, the distress written in the angular features, her pallor, that made the smattering of freckles across her cheeks and nose stand out.

So his tone was gentle as he asked

"Can I help you?"

She met his gaze with green eyes that all of a sudden seemed to strike him, to resonate a deep familiarity.

"Hi. Y-yes. M-my name is Cecily Evans. I'm looking for Lionel Hardcastle."

"I'm he." His whole being tingled, but he could see she was stressed, and was about to suggest she come in and sit down, and offer her a cup of tea, but before he could do that, she rushed ahead.

"I'm here for school, that starts in a few weeks... so I thought in the meantime that I would.. my parents, I was afraid of hurting them, but they understand and support me on this." She paused, and drew in a ragged breath. Lionel was thoroughly confused.

"I'm adopted, you see. Which.. well it doesn't mean that my Mum and Dad are somehow are any less my parents. It's just...it means I need to see where I come from."

Lionel's stomach began to roil.

"When I turned 18 this year, I got to see the records, and we managed to trace my birth mother. I met her just a few days ago. And I asked her.. because there was a blank space on the birth certificate, I asked her, and she did tell me."

The world suddenly began to spin around Lionel as he was hit by the meaning of the words.

Her eyes filling, she nodded in affirmation.

"Yeah. I'm your daughter."