As I made you wait so long between updates I am posting another one now, rather then leave you on the cliff that the last one ended on...

Hope you enjoy...

Chapter 51 - Second Chance?

Derek smiled briefly as he gently ran his hand over a sleeping Lia's head. No matter how bad things were, as he sat in the chair next to the temporary bed Lia had been set up in looking at the little girl who had captured his heart, he marveled at the fact that her mere presence could make everything seem like it was going to be ok. He suppressed a chuckle as she moved in her sleep, a loud snore emitting from her at the same time. She was so like her mother it was scary but yet so comforting at the same time.

His heart clenched as he was brought back to reality and the current situation he was in hit him full on. The memory of the reason as to why he was there had brought him back to earth with a loud thump. He was there to waken the sleeping princess and to give her news that he knew would only cause her upset and distress.

Fortunately he had, had some time to wrap his head around what he had to tell her, that was his only small reprieve. Richard had come to his rescue last night with Ellis and had managed to convince her to wait until the morning to see Lia, giving him a few hours of saving grace. The arrival of Thatcher Grey had also helped a few hours later when it was decided that Lia should be told of Meredith's accident. He had managed to convince Ellis that Derek should be the one to break the news to Lia alone and that he should also to be the one to introduce them to her. No one however was able to convince Ellis against taking temporary custody of Lia, taking her away from everything she knew, when really what she needed more then anything at this present time was familiarity and for things to be as stable as possible.

Meredith and the twins had thankfully come through the surgery and Richard had been able to successfully go in and repair the damage to her liver and spleen, but she was far from being out of the woods and they had a long road ahead of them. She remained in a critical but stable condition and the level of her blood pressure was still giving cause for concern, there was still talk of having to deliver the twins should it increase any further. They were also concerned about some swelling to her brain and the fact that her intracranial pressure was elevated. At the moment the treatment plan was to wait 24 hours and see if it the swelling and ICP levels corrected themselves, if there was no change she would be taken back into surgery. She had been placed into a medically induced coma to give her body a chance to recover but until she was conscious they wouldn't fully know the full extent of her injuries, whether or not there would be any long term consequences.

The twins were holding on strongly enough for now and Arizona was due to come round in a few hours to do a repeat ultrasound. She had told Derek shortly after Meredith was out of the OR in an attempt to cheer him up, that during the surgery she had been able to clearly see the gender of one of the twins and had asked if he had wanted to know. Derek however as desperate as he was to know had declined, it just didn't feel right to find out with Meredith. He couldn't help but think that it was something that they should have been finding out and celebrating together. Derek brushed a tear that fell from his eyes just as Lia shifted again in her sleep, bringing him out of his thoughts and forcing him to focus on the task at hand, the reason he was there in the first place.

"Lia," he called gently as brushed his hand over the top of her head. He had to repeat her name a further two times before she woke up. "Good Morning Princess," He greeted her as he mustered up a smile for her.

"Good Morning Derek," Lia said cheerfully as she sat up, her hands automatically reached up to rub the sleep from her eyes. "I slept the whole night in the daycare." She stated in surprise, it was the first time she had ever spent an entire night in the daycare and it was also the first time that she had not woken up in her own bed since she came home from the hospital, following her surgery.

"You did indeed princess, sorry about that…"

"That's ok Derek, I slept like a log."

"I bet you did just that," Derek chuckled, Lia absolutely loved her sleep and once she was off, she could sleep pretty much through anything. Yet another thing she had in common with her mother.

"Where's Mama Derek? Did you help her to rock her surgery?" It must have been a really hard boo boo to fix if you took the whole night to do it."

Derek's heart immediately sank with her questions, he took a deep breath as he tried to compose himself, preparing to deliver the news he knew would turn her world upside down. He was dreading the look he knew that was going to take over her features, the frown that would replace her bright smile, the worry that would be evident in her eyes because she knew and had suffered far too much loss for such a young life. He wished more then anything that it would not have to be him who was the one to do it but he knew that he owed it to both Meredith and to Lia for it to be him. At the moment he was the closet thing to family available to her, whom she knew.

"Lia, I have something to tell you but first I want you to promise me that you are not going to worry because everything is going to be ok. Do you promise me?"

"I pwomise, what is it Derek?"

"Last night princess…" Derek begun, taking a deep breath before continuing. "When your Mommy left us at home after dinner to come to the hospital she was in an accident."

"What kind of accident? Is she ok, did she get a boo boo?"

"Whilst she was driving, another car hit her car…." Derek tried to explain but as soon as he mentioned Meredith's car being in a collision Lia began to cry.

"N- nooo, has has she l- left me too, li- like my my other Da- Daddy?" Lia sobbed out as big fat tears rolled down her face.

Derek immediately gathered Lia into his arms and pulled her onto his lap on the chair he sat in, one hand soothing her head as the other rubbed her back as he cradled her in his arms. "No Princess she has not left you I promise, she did get hurt and she had to have surgery to fix some boo boo's but she is out of the OR now."

"Where i- is she?" Lia asked as she pulled back from Derek's chest, her eyes searching his. "I want my mummy…" Lia sobbed.

"I know you do princess but she is sleeping at the moment sweetie, she needs to recover from the surgery, you know like after your surgery you had to sleep?"

"I think so, has she gone to visit with Daddy and my grandma like I did?" Lia asked as her sobs subsided.

"I am not sure but you will be able to ask her when she wakes up." Not every surgeon believes in an afterlife but having heard Lia's story of seeing her father and deceased grandmother during her surgery, Derek had become more convinced that there was one. Lia had technically died during her surgery and when she had woke, she knew things that there was no way of her logically finding out.

"She will wake up won't she Derek? You gots to pinky swear…" Lia expectantly held up her little finger to him.

Derek knew from the surgeon within him that he shouldn't really make a promise like that to her, given Meredith's injuries but at that moment he was not thinking like a surgeon, he was thinking like a father. A father who's little girl needed reassuring that her world as she knew it was not about to end.
"I pinky swear that she is going to be fine…" Derek joined his little finger with hers and shook on it and in that moment he said another prayer that what he told her was the truth and that he was not proven to be a liar.

"Can I go see her Derek, I pwomise I will be good and not wake her up?" Lia asked with her huge puppy dog eyes, which instantly bought a smile to Derek's face, apart from her red rimmed eyes Lia once again looked content, he had managed to reassure her.

"Of course you can see her princess but first there are some people that you have to meet."


"Which one is Amelia?" Ellis asked Derek as she stood with Thatcher and Amy outside the daycare looking in through the window.

"That's her isn't it?" Thatcher asked pointing at Lia as she sat at the cutting out table. After Derek had told Lia about Ellis and Thatcher he asked her to wait in the day care whist he went to get them. Lia for once was being extremely compliant and agreed saying that she would make a picture for her Mommy whilst she was waiting. "She looks just like her mother did at that age."

"Yes, that's Lia," Amy answered on Derek's behalf. She could see how difficult this was for her brother.

"She looks well," Ellis suddenly commented.

'That's because she is well…" Derek responded.

"But I don't understand, what about her tumor?"

"You know about her tumor?" Derek asked.

"Meredith may have cut us out of her life but that didn't mean that I was not aware of what was going on in it. Her chief of surgery at Seattle kept me updated, also why do you think so many surgeons agreed to do consults even after seeing from the scans that her condition was inoperable."

"You pulled strings?" Derek asked in shock, there was no way that Meredith was aware of that. Ellis looked almost human in his eyes now he was almost speechless.

"Of course I did she is my family, Meredith's former chief hasn't been able to update me though since she left Seattle, he and Meredith apparently had a falling out. So I am a little out of date on her condition. How is her out look now?"

"Like I said she is a healthy five, soon to be six year old. Do you know why Meredith came here in the first place?"

"I assume it was for a consult for my granddaughter? I have never had the chance to meet him but I know that Richard has the great Dr. Shepherd on staff as head of Neuro surgery… wait are you saying that Dr. Shepherd successfully removed the tumor?" Ellis questioned.

"That is exactly what my brother is saying," Amelia interrupted. "My brother the great Dr. Derek Shepherd as you just put it, minus his first name, operated on and saved your granddaughters life…"

"You're Dr. Shepherd, you're a surgeon?" Ellis stared at Derek in disbelief.

"I am…"

"But your surname was Maloney? I assumed earlier that you were friendly with all the doctors here because of Meredith, it never crossed my mind that you worked here. I was always sure you would follow in your fathers footsteps."

"Well like him you were mistaken and as for the surname I changed it taking my mothers maiden name."

"I see," Ellis simply said, Derek wasn't entirely sure but he thought he saw a brief look of admiration in her eyes. "So is she well?" Ellis asked nodding in Lia's direction, changing the subject.

"Completely…"

"Thank you Derek, for saving her life." Thatcher stepped forward and unexpectedly pulled Derek into a man hug, patting him on his back. "It's also good to see you again." He said as he pulled back.

"Thank you Mr. Grey, I wish the circumstances would have been different…."

"I doubt this reunion would have happened had they been," Ellis snorted. "Now that's over with lets get on in there and meet our granddaughter Thatch."

"Derek," Lia called as she turned around having heard the door open.

"Hey princess, what are you drawing there?" Derek greeted as he walked over to her with Ellis, Thatcher and Amelia following behind.

"A picture for Mommy silly, I already told you that. Hey Aunty Amy." Lia answered Derek, acknowledging Amelia at the same time as she glanced at Ellis and Thatcher.

"Hey Lia," Amelia replied, waving back.

"Oh silly me." Derek responded to Lia. "Princess remember I told you that there were some people you had to meet? Well…" Derek began his next sentence, only to be interrupted by a forceful Ellis.

"Hello Amelia, my name is Ellis and this is Thatcher. We are your grandparents, your Mom's mommy and Daddy."

Lia regarded Ellis with a frown, "But my mommy don't gots a mommy?" She questioned her. "I only had one grandma my daddy's mommy but she is in heaven now with my other Daddy."

Ellis walked forward towards Lia and to everyone's astonishment she bent down to her level and her voice took on a softer tone.
"Well your mommy and I have not seen each other for a long time but I promise you, I am your grandmother."

"I never saw any pictures of you either?" Lia continued to question her. "I know that mans my grandfather," Lia nodded in Thatcher's direction. "He has not seen my mommy in a long time either but mommy showed me his pictures, why didn't she show me your pictures too? Do you not like your picture being taken grandma? Is that why she didn't show me your picture as well?"

If it was anyone else Derek's heart would have ached for the woman resembling Ellis Grey who was crouched down in front of him. He instantly saw her eyes well up with tears and the hurt across her features was immediately evident.

"That's part of the reason Amelia," Ellis said as she quickly composed herself and smiled at her last words. "The rest is a long story which it's probably best for your mommy to tell you."

"She is sleeping you know, the doctors had to give her medicine to make her sleep for a little while so that she can get better. Oh are Dora and boots sleeping too Derek?" Lia asked, her attention now diverted away from Ellis and onto Derek. "Did they get a boo boo too from the accident, are they ok?"

"They are ok Lia, Mommy protected them in her tummy and they are sleeping some of the time but not all of it." Derek reassured Lia, as Ellis looked on with a bemused smile.

"Dora and Boots?" Ellis questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes they are my twins." Lia happily answered. "Mommy and Derek let me name them, do you like their names grandma? I thought of them all by myself, no one helped me."

"You are a smart little girl aren't you?"

"Yes I am, I am the smartest in my entire class…"

"Lia!" Derek admonished whilst Ellis and Thatcher both laughed at her, Amy laughing and shaking her head at the same time at Lia. "What does your mama say about saying things like that?" Derek continued whilst shooting a glare at the adults for encouraging her.

"She says that it might hurt the other kids feelings so I shouldn't say it, but guess what?" Lia said as she looked around. "There are only babies around, no bigger kids and they don't understand, so it's ok."

Derek shook his head at her whilst looking at Ellis who was sporting a huge smile on her face, trust Lia to be able to thaw out the ice queen.

"I think you are right, you are the smartest little girl," Thatcher told her.

"You certainly are," Ellis agreed. "I am really looking forward to getting to know you a lot better too. I have some news for you as well, whilst your Mommy is sleeping what do you think about staying with your grandpa and I?"

"What about Derek? Will he stay too?"

"I am afraid not but we will have lots of fun…"

"No, I don't want to," Lia said as she stood up quickly from her chair and moving to Derek, where she threw her arms around his waist. "I want to stay with my Daddy, Daddy please don't let me go to stay with her, I want to stay with you."

Derek instantly picked Lia up as his heart soared, she called him Daddy for the first time ever. He was beginning to think that she never would, he instantly thought of Meredith and how he wanted to tell her. "Princess it's ok," Derek soothed as he kissed the top of her head, his eyes searching out Ellis Grey's as they silently pleaded with hers once they found them.

Ellis Grey had hated Derek Maloney with a passion ever since he had had been irresponsible enough to get her daughter pregnant. She blamed him for the fact that Meredith had cut her out of her life, when all she was trying to do was stop her from ruining her life. She had seriously believed that had she allowed Derek to remain a part of her daughters life and had allowed her to have the child, Derek would have inevitably destroyed her by following entirely in his fathers footsteps. When the news had come out about his fathers affair all those years back Ellis had not been surprised, her only surprise was that it had taken him so long to be caught out. She knew that he had been playing around on Carolyn for a long time, he had even propositioned her on more then one occasion. She never wanted for Meredith to be put in Carolyn's position and that was what she feared would have happened. Looking at the man standing in front of her now, holding her Granddaughter, the little girl whom she was meeting for the very first time, a child whom he was not even responsible for, a child who's life he had saved when many others had failed, she could not help but wonder if she had been wrong all those years before. Not wrong about the fact that she persuaded Meredith to have an abortion, she still believed that, that was the right thing for her at time, but wrong about keeping Derek out of her life and lying to him about Meredith moving on when he had come looking for her all those years ago. The man standing in front of her was not a clone of Michael Maloney, he was his own person, an honorable man, he couldn't have been more further apart from Michael if he tried. Not only was he fiercely loyal to her daughter and granddaughter, she had discovered that by her interactions with him since she had arrived at the hospital, his reputation in the medical field spoke for him, apart from her daughter he was the most sought after neuro surgeon in the state. Yes she decided, she had made a mistake and it was time to start putting that right, she only prayed that Meredith when she woke up would allow her to continue to do so, they had lost way too much time already.

"Amelia, it's ok if you want to stay with Derek, you can." Ellis said as she gave Derek a rare smile. "I just thought that with your Mommy being unable to look after you, you may have liked to stay with your Grandfather and I."

"Maybe once Mommy is better and she and my Daddy say that it is ok?"

"I think that, that would be perfect. In the meantime though, whilst your Mommy is in the hospital we could get to know each other a little. What do you think about that?"

"But I gets to go home with my Daddy and Swiper?"

"Of course you can go home with your Daddy. But who is Swiper? Don't tell me another sibling?" Ellis asked with an amused look.

"No silly, he is my puppy. Mommy and Daddy buyed him for me, I named him too."

"You certainly have a knack for naming things Amelia." Ellis laughed. "Would that be ok then Derek if Amelia spends some time with Thatcher and I, whilst Meredith recovers?"

Derek knew that by Ellis asking his permission she was backing away from her claims to guardianship over Lia. He didn't have to look too far for the answer as to what had changed her mind, he was holding said answer in his arms. As he took in Ellis's form as she stood in front of him, he could notice the difference in her, it seems that Lia had definitely worked her magic and thawed the ice queen. Up until last night he had held nothing but contempt for the woman stood in front of him, he had blamed her for ruining his life but the truth was she hadn't, not really. Yes she had set in motion for him to spend nineteen years without the love of his life, but he and Meredith had put that behind them now and had moved forward, it didn't do anyone any good to keep living in the past. Provided that the woman and his babies that were currently in the ICU pulled through his life was far from ruined, as long as they and the little girl whom he held in his arms remained with him he was the luckiest man alive. Looking at Ellis and Thatcher it suddenly dawned on him that they were the unlucky ones in all of this, Meredith had cut them off and as such they no longer knew her and they certainly did not know the little girl who he was currently holding and that must be killing them inside. The Ellis he was seeing now in front of him as she stood anxiously waiting for an answer to a question she didn't legally have to ask had changed, even last night she had listened to him and not just that she had done what was best for Meredith, not just her physical well being but also her emotional well being. She could have instructed for their babies to be delivered but she had not, hence giving them a fighting chance and just now she had put Lia's needs first, relinquishing her claims on her. Maybe she had learned her lesson, he wasn't thinking that he would ever forget the past or even completely forgive her, but seeing Lia's eyes light up when she learned that she had more family to love her was enough for him to think that it was time to move on and that maybe, just maybe it was time to give Ellis a second chance, life was just too short and as they all knew too well it could change in an instant, he just hoped that Meredith agreed with his decision...

So as always would be grateful if you left me a comment with your thoughts...

Jen xx