Disclaimer: I don't own Fringe.

Author's note: Well, this is done now. It's a tad long for a first Fringe fanfic, but it rather expanded on me. I quite like it, although I deviated from my usual writing style a little. Thanks for all the story alerts and reviews!

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It had been three years since Olivia returned from the alternate universe and then vanished again. Peter had followed her trail to Las Vegas and traced her steps in the city, but when she had got off the first bus, he had lost the trail. He had stayed in the city for a couple of weeks, hoping that she might be lying low, but in his heart he knew that she was long gone. Broyles had not been able to justify calling a manhunt to look for a resigned agent of his and although Peter had used all of his own contacts to try to find her, it had been as if she had vanished off the face of the earth. He had even asked Walter to check whether doors had been opened to other realities in the Las Vegas area, but they had found no evidence of that. This gave him confidence that Olivia was probably still in their reality, even if he could not find her. He continued to keep tabs on various aliases he thought she might be using, as he had done for the past three years, but so far nothing out of the ordinary had caught his attention.

The first months after he returned from Vegas had been the hardest. He drank too much and slept too little, consumed by shame, hurt and regret. Slowly Walter had lured him into working on projects to prevent from becoming an embittered hermit. He had welcomed the distraction, as any moment alone with his thoughts was unbearable. Astrid had after a while tried to organise him dates with her single friends and he had gone along with it at first, mainly out of politeness. But when he had spent a second night listing all the ways the woman before him was not Olivia, he had made it clear to Astrid that he did not want any more dates. For once she had given up without a fight.

Walter had hesitantly given him the framed photo he had once secretly taken with Astrid's camera as a Christmas present the first Christmas after Olivia's disappearance. It became a focal point for his life and his eyes automatically drifted to dwell on Olivia's smile whenever he was in his room. He knew it was foolish of him to be so fixated on a past mistake and a love he had lost. For all he knew, he would never see or hear from Olivia again. Still, he could not help the hope that remained fluttering in his heart. As it was, he slept just enough to function and spent most of his energy on maintaining some semblance of a life while he was waiting.

The morning the letter arrived, he was running late. Astrid had picked up Walter earlier, allowing Peter to oversleep. Now he was rushing around grabbing something to eat while trying in vain to get his hair under control. As he was looking for his keys, he heard the post arrive. He was only going to move it aside and leave opening it until the evening, when a small envelope caught his eye. He recognised Olivia's handwriting immediately and his heart started beating faster. He forced himself to inspect the envelope thoroughly, noting with interest that it was posted from Montana. Only when he deemed that nothing more could be gleaned from the envelope did he carefully tear it open. It contained only a single photo. Peter took one look at it and felt his heart skip a beat. A toddler that was so clearly his was smiling brightly at the camera, standing under the watchful gaze of a big Doberman next to a sign saying 'Olive Branch Ranch'. On the reverse of the photo were the words 'Skye Isabel' and a date that confirmed his suspicions about when the child had been conceived. He frowned when something wet landed on the photo and then realised that he was crying.

With the clue Olivia had given him, it took no time at all to find her. Peter phoned Astrid to say that he would be coming to the lab later, if at all, while he waited for his laptop to wake up. A quick Google search found the Olive Branch Ranch's website, which was clear and concise, explaining the ranch's history, what kind of holidays they offered and had plenty of photos of the ranch, the horses and groups on horseback. Peter noted that Olivia had been careful as there were no photos of either her or her daughter, nor did the website mention anything about who owned the ranch. Aside from the fact that the ranch was in Montana, the only indication that he had found the right place was a large Doberman that was show in several of the photos.

Having read through the website twice, Peter then looked through some of the other search results and found several blog entries from people who had been on a riding holiday at the ranch. Here Peter had more luck, because one of the photos showed Olivia on horseback, clearly leading a group on a trail ride. She did not seem to be aware that she was being photographed. She looked different dressed in jeans and a t-shirt rather than a suit and appeared relaxed and happy. The same blog entry mentioned that the ranch's owner Olive Lane had made her guests feel immediately welcome and had ensured that they had a wonderful holiday.

"Olive Lane," Peter muttered, "very clever Olivia."

Another blog entry specifically mentioned Duke the Doberman, who was supposedly the sweetest guard dog the guests had ever met and who seemed to adore the owner's young daughter completely. The only time they had seen Duke's guarding in action was when a guest had broken a thermometer and the dog had immediately, and rather strangely, gone to high alert.

"You trained a dog to react to mercury," Peter whispered to himself, astonished. "At least you know how to protect yourself, even on a ranch in Montana."

A final search of a different nature revealed that the ranch's registered owner was indeed Olive Lane, who had purchased the place almost three years ago. This confirmed that Olivia had been living there for most of her absence, although how she had ended up buying a ranch in Montana he could not understand. Not that it mattered any more. He had found her and since she had sent him the missing piece of the puzzle, he could only assume that she was ready to be found.

"Hey Astrid," Peter hit his speed dial while pulling some clothes out of his wardrobe and into a bag. "Do you think you could keep an eye on Walter for the next few days? I'd like to follow a possible lead."

"Sure Peter, where are you off to?" Astride was used to Peter running off to different places following obscure leads in an attempt to find Olivia. She expected that this would end up as another disappointment for him.

"Montana."

Peter took a taxi to the airport and bought a ticket on the next flight to Helena. It was late by the time the plane landed, so he got himself a room in a nearby motel. He had a long drive ahead of him and Peter assumed that Olivia would not appreciate it if he turned up in the early hours in the morning, like in the old days. After three years of not seeing her, even one more night seemed far too long, but Peter knew he had to be patient. He lay down on the motel bed with a sigh and hoped it would not take him too many hours to get to sleep.

Peter woke up early the following morning and rented a car from the airport. He entered the ranch's address into the satnav and followed its directions out of the city. While he drove he had plenty of time to consider what he would say to Olivia when he finally saw her. All the words seemed so inadequate to describe how much he had missed her and how terribly sorry he was that he had been fooled by the Olivia from the alternate reality. How would he explain that seeing the hurt in Olivia's eyes was enough to break his heart into a million pieces? And to discover now that they had a child together, what did one say to that? Part of him was furious that he had missed so many moments of his daughter's life and another past was determined that he would never miss another thing.

As he turned off the motorway and followed smaller roads towards his destination, Peter began to see why Olivia might have found the area appealing. He had been to Montana before, but had never really looked at what was around him. Now he found a certain sense of tranquillity about the scenery. It only intensified when he turned to a side road signposted 'Olive Branch Ranch'.

Thom was grooming one of the horses outside the stables when the black SUV pulled up by the farmhouse. A man stepped out and seemed to be transfixed by the ranch sign next to the house. When he made no sign of moving, Thom left the horse and approached the car.

"Can I help you?"

Peter turned to look at the young man before him and frowned at the flash of recognition in the stable hand's eyes. "I'm looking for Olivi…Olive. Is she around?"

"Yes," it was Thom's turn to frown at Peter's slip. "She is in the lakeside paddock, with the two appaloosa horses. Just take the path leading towards the lake and you can't miss it."

"Thanks," Peter nodded and headed the way Thom pointed. Thom watched him go, still frowning. No one had come looking for Olive in the three years she had owned the ranch. She had been frightened of something for a long time and Thom wondered whether she would be pleased about being found now.

Peter's heart began to pound as he opened the paddock's gate enough to slip through. Ahead of him, the lake showed a beautiful reflection of the mountains and distant woods, where the leaves were just beginning to turn red and yellow. Near the lake a black appaloosa was grazing next to a woman seated on a chequered blanket. A large Doberman was also asleep on the blanket. On the far side of the woman an appaloosa filly was laying in the long grass, snoozing. Olivia had let her hair grow long and hours outside every day had bleached it almost white. When the gentle breeze swept it aside, he saw that she no longer had the tattoo at the back of her neck and he was glad.

Duke was the first to acknowledge his approach and the dog rose to greet him. He did not seem the greatest of guard dogs, considering that he met Peter with a wagging tail, but the blog entry about mercury suggested that there was more to the dog than met the eye. The black mare also glanced his way, but then continued her grazing, pausing only occasionally to rub her nose against Olivia's shoulder. Peter stopped at the end of the blanket, uncertain how to proceed. Just then Olivia turned her head to look at him and gave him a radiant smile. His breath caught in his throat, for despite having looked at a photo of her every night and morning, he had forgotten how truly beautiful she was. Whatever she had been looking for in this place, she had clearly found it, because gone were the lines of worry and sadness from her face. Her skin was more tanned from her work outside and although she was as thin as ever, there was a healthy glow about her.

"Hey," her voice was warm when she spoke.

"I finally found you," Peter managed to find words after couple of false starts.

"You were only ever a heartbeat away," Olivia pointed towards the filly lying nearby.

Peter had been so caught up in seeing Olivia again that he had forgotten to wonder where their daughter was. Now that he followed Olivia's hand, he saw that tucked against the filly's warm side on a smaller blanket lay Skye, fast asleep. Skye was facing Shale and her small hands were pressed against the horse's short coat. The photo he had of her did not do justice to the way his and Olivia's features had combined to create a beautiful new person.

"She's perfect," Peter smiled at Olivia, awed by their daughter.

"Yes she is," Olivia agreed and patted Duke who had settled down next to her.

Peter sat down on the other side of Olivia, closer to Skye. There was a picnic basked in front of the blanket and a bone for Duke that he had abandoned. Peter felt something warm brush against his palm and then Olivia's hand slipped into his and their fingers entwined. He looked at their joined hands for a moment and then lifted his eyes to find Olivia watching him. He thought he saw a hint of uncertainty creep into her eyes for the first time.

"I missed you," her voice was barely above a whisper.

"I missed you too, more than you know," Peter replied, squeezing her hand gently. He took a deep breath. "Olivia, I need you to know how sorry I am…" Olivia's finger on his lips stopped him in mid sentence.

"It's okay Peter," Olivia assured him. "I forgave you a long ago and it's all in the past anyway. The future is what matters now."

Peter searched her face for a while, but saw only affection and sincerity in her eyes. Then, looking braver than he felt, he leaned forward and brushed his lips against hers before pulling back to gauge her reaction. Olivia only smiled and leaned closer to Peter, who met her half way. The kiss that followed was warm and gentle, a far cry from the desperation that had tinted the one night they had spent together. Gradually the kiss deepened, until they were interrupted by a small, sleepy voice:

"Mummy?"

Olivia lingered against Peter's lips for just a moment longer, before breaking the contact and turning to Skye.

"Come here, sweetheart," she called, smiling and beckoning with her free hand. "Come and meet your daddy." Peter's heart swelled at Olivia's words.

"Daddy?" Skye frowned slightly but then pushed herself up and walked a little unsteadily towards her parents, who were still holding hands. She settled into Olivia's lap and looked at Peter curiously. "Are you my daddy?"

"Yes, yes I am," Peter replied, suddenly blinking back tears that were threatening to fall. The little girl nodded seriously and turned to play with Duke's ears.

"So this is Skye Isabel Lane," Peter said, still awed by his child.

"Actually no, not Lane," Olivia looked away and used her free hand to stroke Skye's blond hair. "She's Skye Isabel Bishop."

"You gave her my surname?" Peter asked incredulously. This time a tear did escape from the corner of his eye.

"It seemed like the right thing to do," Olivia explained, blushing slightly and glancing at Peter. He did not reply, but instead leaned in to kiss Olivia again.

They sat in silence for a while, just watching Skye stroke Duke, and they were content to enjoy one another's company. Peter's thumb was rubbing slow circles on the back of Olivia's hand and the simple gesture was enough to re-establish a connection between them. When Skye got restless, they gathered up the blankets, said goodbye to the horses and headed back to the farmhouse. Thom saw them coming and then had to pause to look again. Olive, who always did her best to avoid physical contact with people other than her daughter, was carrying Skye and holding hands with the newly arrived man, who in turn was carrying their picnic basket in his free hand. Thom was still standing there, staring, when the trio reached him. Olivia smiled to him brightly, looking happier than she had ever looked before. He had to suppress a twinge of jealousy, despite there having never been anything romantic between him and his employer.

"Thom, I would like you to meet Peter," Olivia introduced the men. "He is Skye's father."

Thom's eyes widened in surprise and he looked from Skye to Peter. He had to admit that the resemblance was striking. Realising that he was staring again, he offered his hand to the newcomer. Peter put the basket down to shake his hand, rather than letting go of Olivia. The smile he offered Thom was almost as wide as Olivia's.

"Thom, could you get Falco out, please?" Olivia asked, her eyes sparkling with amusement at his reaction. "I want to show Peter the rest of the ranch. Can you get Falco ready while I go get Sierra?"

"Yes ma'am," Thom nodded and headed for the stables. Olivia and Peter shared a smile, before she directed him to leave the basket on the porch and to keep Skye entertained while she got her horse ready.

Peter got Skye and Duke involved in a game of fetch and while he kept an eye on them, he could not help watching Olivia from the corner of his eye. She had called Sierra to the gate and led the horse to the stables. As she got started grooming the mare, she spoke to her quietly. Olivia looked relaxed, confident and perfectly at ease with the task at hand. It was a far cry from working for the Fringe division and yet she fitted here just as well. She had made a place for herself here and now she belonged. Peter realised suddenly that she was here to stay. He began to wonder how he would create a life here in the heart of Montana for himself and Walter. Now that he had found Olivia again, it was inconceivable that they should ever be apart.

Thom led a roan horse to him, rousing him from his thoughts. He eyed the horse a little uncertainly, acutely aware that he had not ridden a horse more than a handful of times.

"It's easy, really," Thom said, holding Falco's reins. "Put your left foot on the stirrup and pull yourself up using the saddle horn."

Peter managed to get himself up onto the saddle, feeling a little precarious and rather jealous at the ease with which Olivia swung herself onto Sierra's back. Thom picked up Skye and together they waved goodbye. Olivia headed off and Falco followed Sierra without any prompting from Peter. Duke hesitated for a moment and then sprinted after the horses.

They rode at a sedate pace while Peter was getting used to being in the saddle. When he felt more confident, they tried trot and even slow canter, but mainly they walked their horses. As they rode, Olivia spoke of the ranch and the horses, in particular about Sierra and her plans to train Shale to be Skye's horse in a year or two. Peter was content to simply listen to her and smile, marvelling how happy she seemed. He loved seeing her so openly enthusiastic and passionate about her life, which was worlds apart from the cool reserve behind which she had hidden herself as an FBI agent. For the first time she was allowed to be herself, without a superior complaining if and when she got emotionally involved.

"What is it?" Olivia asked and Peter realised he had been staring.

"I can see why you love it here," he replied, making Olivia's smile widen.

Their slow ride took longer than Peter expected and by the time he dismounted outside the stables he could feel his muscles beginning to ache. He nevertheless insisted on helping Olivia with the horses, as he figured he might as well start learning as soon as possible. As they worked, Peter talked quietly about how the remnants of the Fringe division had been transferred to Homeland Security's science department and given more or less free rein to work on whatever they wanted. He also outlined some of the projects Walter, Astrid and he had been working on, despite it all being classified information. Olivia listened without interrupting and Peter thought he saw a glimpse of wistfulness in her eyes.

Once the horses had been returned to the paddocks, they headed towards the house to find Thom and Skye. Duke ran ahead, leading them behind the house where Thom and Skye were reading in the late evening sun. When she spotted them, Skye got up and ran a little unsteadily towards them. She hugged Olivia's legs and then indicated that she wanted to be picked up by her father. Peter's face split into a huge grin as he took the little girl into his arms. Olivia stroked Skye's hair and then rested her hand on Peter's arm. Thom, feeling like he was intruding on a private moment, bade them good night and headed for his car.

Olivia asked Peter and Skye to get the ranch's barbeque going while she got the dinner ingredients ready, and headed for the house. She came out some time later, having changed into a red summer dress and carrying on a tray steaks and vegetables for cooking. While Olivia watched the barbeque, Peter got his bag from the rental car and took it inside, where he quickly changed into a clean t-shirt and another pair of jeans. He glanced at his reflection in the bathroom mirror and ran a hand over his chin. He had shaved in the morning, but new stubble had already grown. He wondered about having a quick shave, but decided against it because he did not want to keep Olivia and Skye waiting.

When Peter returned to the patio, Olivia was just finishing feeding Skye her dinner. He got the food cooking, while Olivia wiped the little girl's hands and face and gave her some baby crayons and paper to keep her entertained while they ate. When the food was ready, Peter served first Olivia and then himself. They ate while chatting about Skye, who seemed to like being the centre of attention. As Olivia told him stories about the little girl, he hung onto her every word, eager to learn as much about his daughter as possible. After dinner Olivia put Skye to bed while Peter cleared the table. He then returned to the patio to watch the setting sun, enjoying the quiet of the countryside.

"She's asleep," Olivia said from behind him some time later, rousing him from his thoughts. He turned to watch her approach with two glasses and a bottle of red wine. She sat down opposite him and set down the glasses and the wine. She smiled a little shyly as she nodded towards them. "I've barely touched alcohol while I've been here, but I figured this was a good occasion for opening a bottle of wine."

"Actually, I would rather be clear-headed tonight," Peter said as he pushed the bottle away.

"Okay," Olivia smiled for a moment and then her expression grew serious. "Peter, I owe you an apology for not telling you about Skye sooner. I knew that if you found out, you would find me and I simply wasn't ready for that until now. But it was selfish of me to keep your daughter a secret from you and for that I am very sorry."

"Thank you," Peter said, glad that she seemed to understand things from his perspective.

They sat in silence for a while, openly watching each other, until Peter spoke. "Walter is going to go nuts when he hears that he has a granddaughter. She is going to be the most spoilt little girl. That, and he will want to start teaching her the periodic table soon." Olivia laughed at the thought.

"Have you told him yet?" She asked.

"No," Peter shook his head. "I wanted to see you first. And I wanted to make sure that you wanted to be found. Once I tell Walter, he will never leave you alone again."

"Is he still bugging you to get married in his purple suit?" Olivia asked, raising an eyebrow.

"He hasn't mentioned it at all since you disappeared." Peter grew more solemn and Olivia's smile faltered.

"I'm sorry Peter," she whispered, "I just couldn't stay."

"I get it," he held up his hand. "Had I found that someone had been living my life and taken the woman I loved, I expect I would have needed some distance too. I blame myself, not you." When their eyes met, they saw their own sadness mirrored in the other's eyes. Olivia wanted to explain that what had happened between him and the other Olivia was only a part of the reason why she had chosen to disappear, but she felt that time was not right for that conversation just yet.

"So what happens now?" Olivia finally asked.

"I would like to be part of your life," Peter replied without hesitation, "if that's okay with you?" His eyes showed a hint of uncertainty.

"I'd like that," Olivia smiled, "and I'm sure Skye would too." They sat in comfortable silence for a while.

"You should call him," this time it was Olivia who spoke. "Call Walter and tell him about Skye."

"I will," Peter nodded, "but I would like to keep you to myself for just a couple of days." Hesitation crept to his eyes again, but it disappeared when Olivia's smile brightened.

In silent agreement they rose and headed inside. Peter put the wine and the glasses away, while Olivia lit several large candles. She took the two of them to her bedroom and then indicated that Peter should take the remaining two through. "I'll go check up on Skye," she whispered.

Walking in with the candles, Peter entered Olivia's bedroom for the first time. As he set the candles on her chest of drawers, the light reflecting off glass on her bedside table caught his attention. He frowned and walked closer for a better look. By her bed were the three framed photographs she had taken from her apartment three years previously. One was an old photo of young Olivia with her mother, one of Rachel and Ella, but it was the last one that made him smile. In it Astrid, Walter and himself were gathered around one of the lab tables, working on something no doubt gruesome. Astrid was looking at Walter, who was explaining something to her, while Peter had just glanced up in time to see the camera and there was a small smile plying on his lips. He remembered seeing the camera from the corner of his eyes and later teasing Olivia about it, but he had no idea she had framed the photo. He could not recall seeing it anywhere in her apartment, as he had with the other two photos. He could also not help noticing the significance of Olivia having a picture of him by her bed just as he had one of her by his bed.

"You were in my thoughts every day," Olivia said quietly from the doorway.

"You were in mine every day, too," Peter replied as Olivia came slowly closer.

Peter raised her hands to stroke Olivia's bare shoulders along the edge of her dress and drank in the sight of her before him. She ran her fingers lightly along his stubble and the similarities with the last time they had stood together like this struck him. But this time there was no sadness in her eyes and no unspoken horrors hung between. When he leaned in to kiss her, there was only love and tenderness in that kiss, rather than desperation.

This time, as they made love, they took time to savour each moment. They moved slowly to memorise each curve and angle in one another's bodies and every inch of skin bared was a new revelation. Three years spent apart and thousands of miles between them melted away as they found in each other everything they had been looking for.

Much later, when Olivia lay in Peter's arms, she smiled at him while tracing the lines of his chest with a finger. "I love you Peter," she said quietly, but with conviction.

"I love you too, Olivia," Peter replied and leaned down to kiss her.

As they got lost in the kiss, they could feel drowsiness claiming them. The kiss slowed when they drifted off to sleep, each safe in the knowledge that the time was finally right for them. They had lost one chance to be together, but now they had found a new moment for their love.