Somewhat tired from Hannah's previous fussy night Connor sighed deeply as he carried the newborn out of her crib and into the livingroom to start the groggy morning. With the baby swaddled in her light purple blanket Connor waited for Hannah to awaken so he could give her a fresh bottle of formula to ensure she was content for the next few hours. As he sat on the couch with the baby in his arms Connor received a notification from his own system regarding his low power level, and his L.E.D. pulsed yellow in his right temple slowly.

Sumo was watching the deviant a newborn from his pillow in the corner of the livingroom, and his tail was wagging slowly in a happy response to seeing the duo together on the couch.

"Maybe if I enter rest mode earlier tonight I will be able to compensate for my current low power level."

"Doubt it." Hank replied as he heard Connor's comment and leaned over the back of the couch to look at Hannah still sleeping in Connor's arms. "Once you lose sleep while taking care of a baby you'll never get it back."

"...Oh."

"Need a break?"

"No, I can function." Feeling Hannah squirming about a little as she began to awaken Connor readjusted her in his arms to keep her comfortable. "I'll change her into a fresh diaper and give her a bottle."

"Sure. I'll go warm up the formula for you in the kitchen while you get her taken care of."

"Thank you, Hank."

With a smirk on his face Hank watched as Connor got back up from the couch to carry Hannah down the hallway to get her changed and just shook his head. It didn't take long for the experienced father to fall back into a routine of preparing a bottle of formula while also preparing his own coffee in the brewer on the neighboring countertop.

Placing the clean bottle down in the water purifier Hank waited for the warm and purified water to reach its ideal volume and then took it over to the next counter to put the appropriate amount of powdered formula into the bottle, and stirred it up a little. To ensure all of the powder was dissolved properly Hank put the lid on the bottle and shook it a few times to make sure it was completely mixed.

A small cry and sound of discontent sounded off as Connor carried Hannah into the kitchen just in time to be handed the bottle of formula from Hank's hand.

"Thank you, again."

"No problem." Watching as Connor sat down at the kitchen table and adjusted Hannah in his arms Hank couldn't stop himself from having flashbacks to the first few times he fed Cole a bottle in the morning and ended up grinning brightly. "We go back to work tomorrow, think you'll be able to get enough sleep to keep functioning?"

"Yes. As long as Hannah isn't too fussy I will be able to resume my schedule." Offering the bottle to Hannah with his right hand Connor made sure she didn't drink too fast, and was in a comfortable position in his left arm. "Why do you ask?"

"Some parents need a little more time to get in a routine, that's all."

"...Are you referring to paternity leave?" Glancing up at Hank as the senior detective watched him feed the baby Connor gave Hank a questioning look.

"Well, yeah. There's a reason new parents are given six weeks to take care of their newborns."

"Six weeks seems excessive."

"Trust me, kid. When it comes to time off and your baby you'll never have enough days or weeks."

"I don't want to take time away from the precinct. I want to be able to keep supporting Hannah."

"I'm here to help ya' out, kid. Not only are you my son but she's my granddaughter, remember?"

"Yes, I remember." As his L.E.D. remained yellow in his right temple Connor focused on Hannah's demeanor. "But I want to ensure that Hannah knows that I'm going to always be there for her as she grows up."

Sensing something else was weighing on Connor's mind Hank poured himself a cup of coffee and carried it over to the table to sit beside his adopted son and his new granddaughter. "Kid, are you worried that she's going to feel abandoned by you when you have to leave her alone for even a minute?"

"...She had a very rough start to her life." Answering honestly and with a heartbreaking lilt to his voice Connor readjusted the bottle as it began to steadily empty. "I know how that feels."

"So you also have abandonment issues."

"Huh?"

"CyberLife. You deviated and did the right thing, so they left you behind to just... die. Kind of like that ass- jerk," again making an effort to not swear as much around the baby Hank corrected his term quickly. "who abandoned her in the burning building to die. You're projecting your worries onto her because you can relate to her on a personal level."

Pausing for a moment Connor's L.E.D. flashed to red and he took the bottle from Hannah just long enough to move her up to his shoulder to pat her back to ensure she didn't suffer colic again later that night. "...You might be right."

"Don't worry about it, kid. We all have personal sh- stuff from our pasts we have to deal with from time to time."

"...Will my own personal grievances and pain affect Hannah as she grows up?"

"Not if you don't let it, son. I'm not exactly the expert on letting the past go and avoiding self-destructive behavior, but I'm learning. I guess you can learn, too."

"You're right about that as well." Returning Hannah to his left arm Connor offered her the remainder of the formula and his L.E.D. returned to yellow. As he watched Hannah nurse Connor received another warning about his low power level and dismissed it. "We'll learn how to move on from our traumatic pasts and help Hannah learn to do the same."

"Sounds like a plan."

Due to Connor's low power mode his ventilation program wasn't functioning at one-hundred percent capacity causing his thermal regulator to stress a little. In turn he let out a reflexive small yawn that was the result of his slightly overheating core temperature, and could feel himself cool down slightly.

Smirking at the very human response to Connor getting up early after a late night to take care of a newborn Hank patted Connor's shoulder and made a move to take Hannah from his arms. "You're exhausted, go get some sleep."

"I'm not-"

"Son," silencing the young deviant by using his 'dad voice' Hank was insistent on taking Hannah from Connor's arms. "you just yawned. I've never in my life seen you yawn before. You are tired. You won't be able to do much for Hannah if you're too tired to hold her."

Admitting he was in fact tired Connor relented and gently passed Hannah over to Hank to hold, and continue to feed the newborn her formula. "I am tired."

"See? You're agreeing with me too, so I know you're exhausted. Go get some sleep and I'll take care of Hannah. Remember, she's my granddaughter and I have more experience with taking care of a newborn."

"I appreciate your help." Standing up slowly from the kitchen table Connor wobbled slightly on his feet but caught himself by pressing his left palm down over the surface of the table before he fell. "...That was strange."

"Are you okay?" The sudden lack of coordination was another red flag.

"My low power mode has disrupted my gyroscope's ability to recalibrate properly. I was... dizzy."

"Oh. Can you walk by yourself?"

"Yes. I'll be fine once I enter rest mode and my system recalibrates."

"Cool. See ya' in a few hours."

Nodding a little Connor reached out his right hand and used his index finger to lightly caress Hannah's left cheek before he left. "I'll see you both in four hours."

Watching as Connor slowly walked out of the kitchen and down the hallway to retreat to his bedroom Hank sighed and held Hannah up to his chest.

"Your daddy is going to make sure you never see a moment of unhappiness in your life, Hannah. You don't have to worry about him messing up, either." Giving Hannah a loving smirk as he held her in his arms Hank made her a sincere vow. "I'll be there the whole way and I'll help him succeed. I promise."

-next chapter-