The cold winter air had made the beginning of the new year uncomfortable for everyone in the Anderson household. Hank ended up catching a small cold while on his late night patrols, and poor Hannah had developed a nasty ear infection. Despite having brought Hannah in for an appointment with her pediatrician Connor still felt like he needed to do more for his young daughter as she cried and refused to lay down for a nap. Carrying her back and forth through the livingroom as she cried loudly and her right ear burned with the infection Connor whispered to her rubbed his left hand along her back as he supported her with his right arm.
"It's okay, Hannah." Promising his daughter that she'd be okay Connor gracefully paced back and forth and ignored her shrill cries right in his own ear. "It won't last forever."
Pausing for a moment Connor put his left palm over her right ear and could feel the heat radiating from her entire ear.
"I know you're in pain and very uncomfortable but the medication your doctor gave me will work in time." The small vial of antibiotic ear drops was supposed to clean up the infection and ease her pain, but it didn't do much for the nausea she was feeling from having her inner ear inflamed. "I wish I could something more for your fever and help you feel less stressed."
Glancing up the staircase toward Hank's closed bedroom door Hank sighed and resumed pace with Hannah.
"Hank is also unwell and I cannot ask for his advice this time."
Unwilling to risk Hannah catching Hank's cold or interrupting Hank's sleep Connor resumed doing his best to take care of Hannah by himself. Sitting down on the couch Connor thought about the past remedies he and Hank had used whenever they took care of Hannah and tried to rely on those proven methods to see her through her current sickness.
"I know a movie won't settle you down." The deviant father thought out loud to himself. "But music seems to help."
Making a move for the stereo system Connor froze and remembered that Hank was upstairs trying to sleep.
"I can't do that." Backing away from the stereo Connor sighed and sat down on the couch for a moment as Hannah continued to cry. "I want to play music but if Hank is also sick I don't want to disturb him."
Rubbing Hannah's back Connor closed his eyes and tried to think of an alternate solution.
"Music: An art of sound in time that expresses ideas and emotions in significant forms through the elements of rhythm, melody, harmony, and color." Reciting the true definition of music Connor began piecing together a possible solution to his problem. "The tones or sounds employed, occurring in single line, melody, or multiple lines, harmony, and sounded or to be sounded by one or more voices or instruments, or both."
The additional information seemed to make the pieces of the puzzle click into place.
"...Voices."
Rubbing Hannah's back again Connor looked at his daughter for a moment and then closed his eyes again. Downloading information on songs of comfort and of a soothing nature Connor made his selection, downloaded the lyrics and lowered his voice as he began to sing to his sick daughter.
"Blackbird singing in the dead of night... Take these broken wings and learn to fly..." As he began to sing he could feel Hannah snuggling down against his chest and pressing her sore ear down against his heart. "All your life... You were only waiting for this moment to arise."
As the song continued Hannah seemed to calm down a little and her crying started to quiet down.
"Blackbird singing in the dead of night... Take these sunken eyes and learn to see..." Lowering his voice a little more Connor continued to sing and let the quiet of the house be its own comfort. "All your life... You were only waiting for this moment to be free."
Hannah began to quiet even further and soon her crying began to stop all together.
"Black bird fly... Black bird fly..." Rubbing his hand slowly along her back Connor could feel Hannah getting heavier and heavier as she drifted off to sleep. "Into the light of the dark black night."
Feeling her growing heavier and quieter Connor carefully stood up from his position on the couch and began carrying Hannah toward the staircase to put her down in her crib for the night."
"Black bird fly... Black bird fly... Into the light of the dark black night."
Reaching the top of the staircase Connor opened up the closed bedroom door and crept in Hannah's room silently.
"Blackbird singing in the dead of night... Take these broken wings and learn to fly... All your life..." Laying her down gently into the crib on her back Connor pulled up her yellow blanket from the end of the crib and draped it over her lower body to keep her warm as she slept. "You were only waiting for this moment to arise."
Backing away toward the door Connor continued to sing to his daughter.
"You were only waiting for this moment to arise..."
Pulling the door partially shut Connor let out a sigh of relief and felt someone's eyes watching him. Turning toward the source of the eyes Connor saw Hank standing in his own opened bedroom doorway watching him with a smile on his face.
"Did I awaken you, Hank?"
"Nah, I was already awake." Smirking again Hank just shook his head and put his hand on Connor's shoulder as the deviant approached him to check on his current vital signs. "Did I hear you singing?"
"Y-Yes." A pale blue blush appeared on Connor's face as he admitted he was singing. Pressing his left fingertips to the interior of Hank's right wrist Connor counted the senior detective's pulse. "I... I wanted to use music to soothe Hannah without disturbing you in the process."
"You know, you never cease to amaze me."
"How so?"
"You can actually sing. You're talented."
"Being an android allows me to change my voice, pitch, tone and everything to carry a tune perfectly. It isn't talent, it's software."
"No. I heard those android musicians countless times on the radio," watching as Connor walked into the nearby bathroom Hank continued to speak to him in a low voice. "they sound good, but you sound better. You sang from your heart, not your brain."
"...I was merely trying to make Hannah feel better." Stepping out of the bathroom with a bottle of medicine in his hand Connor open up the bottle and put two pills into Hank's palm.
"Like I said, you sang from your heart."
Still blushing Connor tried to dismiss the compliment and deflect the attention. "You should continue to rest. Your fever is still holding at one-hundred point two degrees."
"Yeah, sure. Do you need any help with Hannah?"
Glancing back at Hannah's door Connor sighed and shook his head. "...No. I have it under control."
"Good answer." Popping the pills into his mouth Hank retreated to his bedroom to continue sleeping off his cold. "Wake me up if you do need anything, son."
"Right. Good night, Hank."
"Goodnight, kid."
Smirking slightly at last as Hank returned to his bedroom Connor opened up Hannah's door again and peered inside his daughter's bedroom. "Goodnight, Hannah." Feeling relieved at the quiet of the house Connor decided it was time to go to bed for the night, too. "Daddy loves you..."
-next chapter-
Author's Note: "Blackbird" by "The Beatles".
