Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight, I merely play in the sandbox. I do however, lay claim to my original characters; Ella, Adrian, Christine and others, and the inclusion of the Fey world.

AN: Another Monday, another update. Am so tired, can barely open eyes. Short and mushy, enjoy ~Hannah

Chapter Seventy-Seven – Daddy's Girl

When Dad and Christine returned from their honeymoon, smiles were plentiful in our expanding family. It took a while to explain what they had missed and what we had missed. I had been most nervous to discover what Dad thought of the Ethereal's who had messed with my life and given me powers. I mean it was one thing to learn that your birth had been altered to prevent a future no one wanted but to tell your parent the same thing, well I worried how Dad would take it.

I think Dad and Christine had intended to sit the three of us down, Bella, Angela, and myself, and talk through what had happened to both parties in the space we'd been apart. So, when Dad suggested we have a morning to ourselves, I was understandably worried about what would follow. Usually, if Dad wanted a word alone, I was either in trouble or he was worried about me.

"Explain to me again what these Ethereal's told you?"

He asked as we sat opposite each other on the sofa in our living room.

As relaxed as I was in the presence of Dad, I was also nervous, and that nervousness was showing in the way my hands twiddled in my lap.

"According to the five Ethereal's, my birth was supposed to be two years after Bella's but due to complications or something, my life would have been a short one and I would not have made it past my fifth birthday. The Ethereal's saw the world as it would have been without my presence and rebelled against it. That future was so bleak and dark and all-consuming that it had to be stopped. The Ethereal's engineered my birth to coincide with Bella's, thus it wasn't the doctor's fault for not seeing another baby in Renee's womb but the meddling of the Ethereal's that put me there."

The silence that stretched between us was long and deafening. I dare not lift my head from where it was staring at the floor less I see what expression Dad had on his face.

"I never want you to think that you weren't wanted. Whatever these Ethereal's conspired to create, they did not engineer the love I have for you. I will always be your Father, I will always love you and I will always care for you and look after you. No amount of manipulation from others is every going to change that. If anything, it seems I owe these Ethereal's a big thank you for saving your life. If everything is as they said, I would have lost you after just getting you and that is something I don't ever want to think about."

"Do you think Renee would have loved me if I'd been born after Bella?"

"I think Renee has her own issues that she never addressed and instead took out on you. That was not fair to either of you and I am forever sorry that you did not receive the love and affection that you should from a Mother. We could talk about 'what ifs' till the cows came home but Ella, the past is the past for a reason, we cannot walk it again."

"I was so scared you would hate me."

I'd managed to lift my eyes away from the floor and now stared at Dad's adams apple. For some reason the nervousness hadn't left my system. I had heard the words Dad had said and though it warmed me that he still loved me despite what had been engineered, it was like my soul needed more proof. It was silly because I knew my Dad loved me, but I guess I was feeling a little vulnerable now.

"When I rushed to the hospital with your Mother, she was already screaming and insulting my name but all I could think about was the bundle or bundles of joy I was going to meet. It was a long labour and Renee was less than appealing to everyone she met during that process. I remember feeling tired and dizzy, the pain in my hand from Renee's clench prominent until the first cry was sounded. Bella came first with a howl of a cry, her eyes scrunched up and fists poised to punch. I remember the devotion that came over me as I looked her over. Then, through the confusion and the love that was blossoming, Renee was asked to push again. While Bella came out with a battle cry, you came out with a whimper. You were such a slip of a thing, smaller than your sister, relaxed and almost non-moving. The nurses rushed around you, checking you over and while Bella was given to Renee to hold briefly, you were given to me. From the moment you were put in my hands, I felt an instant connection to you, it was like I could see gold threads connecting us to one another. You opened those eyes of yours briefly and gazed at me with such wonder, I didn't ever want to disappoint you."

"Dad."

"No, let me get this out. I thought my world couldn't get any happier when Bella arrived but then you popped out too and I knew, life could get better because I was gazing down upon something so innocent and so beautiful that I knew my life was set. I would protect you until the ends of the earth."

"I get it Dad."

"I don't think you do. See, from this beautiful baby came this rambunctious little toddler that had a mind of her own and wanted to do everything that she saw or touched. You walked before your sister. You were so determined to be up and running, once you started you never stopped. I never had to teach you that much, you took it upon yourself. Your eyes would get this steely expression and your brow would wrinkle up and you watched me so intently, learning how I walked for yourself. From that it was hard to stop you learning. You wanted to be independent, even from an early age you and Renee were like chalk and cheese but I never thought that much about it. I realise now that I should have seen the signs earlier. Once you started talking, you never stopped, you and Bella would have secret conversations, that, to this day, I still don't understand. It was when you came to me with a book that I knew you were really struggling because you were so independent in learning things for yourself. With reading however, you'd decided that you needed help to learn. It was one of the loveliest moments to see you pitter patter up to me and present me with a book. The depth to your eyes and the almost disappointed expression on your face melted my heart. My moments teaching you to read are some of the most prominent to me, to me it strengthened that bond we'd shared since your birth."

This was more emotional than I'd thought it would be. Dad rarely talked about his emotions but he'd got better since Christine had come into his life. My ears were red in embarrassment, I could feel my face rising in colour with every word Dad said. This trip down memory lane was embarrassing for the both of us which made me appreciate how difficult it was for Dad to talk in the first place. It was doing me good hearing what he said even if it did make me want to crawl into a hole and die.

"I should have fought Renee when she left with you both. I should have acted more like a man and put my foot down on the matter but I didn't. Renee was right in a sense, I did love my job, I still do love my job and I didn't want to leave it. My job is demanding and it meant I wasn't always around when needed. I couldn't fight to have you when I wouldn't be there to care for you but I wish I had done more. I could have worked out a way to keep the both of you and my job. Renee leaving was unfortunate but it was her taking both you and Bella that broke me. I could feel the bond we had straining under the pressure of being so far away. I tried to cope and I was strong for you. I can never take back the damage Renee did to you and I can never stop regretting that I never took action against her."

"Dad, it's ok."

"No, it's not. That vibrant, boisterous kid that you were disappeared the longer you were with Renee. No child should ever have to suffer at the hands of a parent and you survived through everything that Renee through at you but you didn't start thriving until much later. I could hear the despair in your voice and was powerless to help you. Between all our phone calls, Bella and I tried to help you as much as we could. When Renee started to let you both visit for the summer I tried to fill those weeks with as much fun and excitement as possible. I wanted to show you that you were loved and valued by at least one parent. I watched you grow up from afar but during the summer it was like you had never left and we could be a family again. I cherished the moments I got to watch you grow in, for there was no greater gift than watching you flourish. The moment you showed an interest in music, I pushed you towards that avenue. I'd read all these articles about how music helps with emotional struggles and I didn't want you to fall down a darker route. Little did I know that it was the start of something big."

"I don't think I knew it either but music just speaks to me."

"More than speaks, it practically shouts at you. Art however, art seems to speak through your soul. Watching you tackle those two things gave me hope that you would be alright with what was thrown at you. Your music had such soul to it and your art such passion and you were so delighted when doing either one activity. It became my goal to add as much music and art to the summer months as possible and I used Bella to get supplies to you when you weren't with me. Together, Bella and I grew a world that could keep you safe from the emotional torment you were subjected to."

I'd never realised just what Dad had done to keep me afloat all these years or that Dad and Bella had conspired together on it. It made me appreciate the two of them a lot more. I had just seen them as my support and not considered what my dependent state was doing to them. I would have to remember that in future, to check on the people I went to support for.

"I never realised you did so much for me."

"It was my idea. Bella would have happily told you but I figured it would just set you back or feel guilty that we were looking out for you. It didn't matter that we were miles apart, you're my daughter and I know how to look after you. I knew that in your delicate state you would jump to conclusions and I didn't want that. I wanted you to accept the help that was being offered and not question it. Don't give me that look, you know what I mean and I'm not insinuating that you're weak. Far from it, but everyone needs support in their lives and you just needed a little more than most."

"I tried to do it alone but it was too hard."

"Ella, life isn't made to be suffered alone. There is no shame in admitting that you couldn't do it alone. In fact, I think it shows more strength that you could see you weren't coping, admit it to yourself and be open to receiving help from others. I know now that if you're struggling you'll come to me or another for help but it wasn't always like that."

"It might have taken me a while to learn that I didn't have to solider things by myself. It was a learning curve I suppose because I'd gotten so used to shielding myself against things that Renee said that letting others in again was hard. I didn't want to have to burden you or Bella with the issues I was going through and while I know that was a stupid thing to do now, then I thought I was sparring you from my problems."

"Ella, we all do things in life that we regret, we always do something that holds logic to us and nonsense to everyone else. We cannot change the past but I'm a proud Father for knowing that you can now look after yourself and are confident enough to ask for help when you need it. You have grown up in many ways Ella and those ways make me proud to be your Father, everything you do makes me proud to be your Father. So, don't ever change, you hear me?"

"I think I have changed Dad but before you argue, I couldn't have stayed the same through all that has happened to me and I think it's a good thing that I've changed. I believe I've become a better person and fighting through the problems I've met has made me stronger and more resilient. Inside I'm still your little girl Dad and I always will be."

"I almost find it hard to put into words how excited I was to find out that Renee had relinquished her hold on the two of you and was allowing you two to move here and live with me. For weeks before you arrived I was rushing around like a headless chicken making sure everything was ready for your arrival. I wanted everything to be perfect for your arrival because it was important to be that you both felt at home here. I saw a change in you from the moment you arrived in Forks, it was like a weight lifted from your shoulders and that sass I'd come to associate with you came through in full force. It was like watching you transform from a caterpillar into a butterfly, shedding your old life in favour of the new. It was an amazing thing to watch Ella, you've flourished under the canopy of Forks and have transformed all our lives."

"I didn't exactly do anything Dad."

"I disagree. You let yourself live here and that did wonders for you and for everyone around you. Without your presence and Bella's presence, you'd never become friends with Angela and I never would have stumbled across Christine. You wouldn't have found someone that holds you through thick and thin and who loves you unconditionally and Bella would never have found Adrian who would fly to the moon and back to earn her love."

"It's not all been good though."

"Yet you said it yourself Ella, what has happened has made you stronger and more resilient. I believe that everything, good or bad, happens for a reason. Instead of focusing on the bad in life, look at all the good that has come to us. My love for you and Bella is never-ending, if I could cross galaxies to prove it, I would do it in a heartbeat. I never thought I'd find love again and was content to get my love from my two girls but I am lucky to have found Christine and to have earnt her love as well. It has been my biggest worry that with all these changes, we would drift apart as a family but I don't have to worry about that anymore. Bella will live forever as Adrian's consort, you will live forever when you decide to complete the bond with Edward and I will live forever because Christine started my change when we were on our honeymoon."

"What, Dad?"

"I didn't want to tell you outright, I didn't want to scare you. I know you think that being Chief of Police is my life and it was once but since you and Bella have moved to Forks, I have learnt that there is more to life than working hard and having a good career. I want more from life now, I want to share with my girls all the wonders of the world. I never thought I'd want to live forever but I believe we have a great group of people around us. We can learn from each other, grow from each other, love each other and live for eternity."

"You've thought so much about this haven't you? I didn't take you for the overly mushy type but you have changed as I have. I'll admit, finding out that you'll become immortal is a shock to the system but it is equally a relief that I won't someday have to say goodbye to you."

"Forever and always you and me kiddo, that bond isn't ever going to be broken."