Disclaimer: August Rush belongs to Warner Brothers and its affiliates. I'm a poor college student -- I own nothing but the shirt on my back and the top ramen in the cupboard.

Suggested song: "Be Here Now" by Ray Lamontagne

As soon as the music stopped ringing through the air, there was utter silence for almost 10 seconds. August was too focused on his parents to care about the stunned sea of faces, all with their jaws dropped and their eyes misty – until the slow break of applause came. It seemed to wake up the thousands of people in the audience, and soon everyone was loud and screaming, the thunderous waves of applause letting August know that his music was appreciated. He smiled and, with a gesture from Louis, took an awkward bow, before running offstage into the arms of Mr. Jeffries.

"Evan, that was simply… amazing. I…" Mr. Jeffries seemed momentarily lost for words. He closed his eyes and seemed to collect his thoughts. "What made you change your name? It made it impossible to find you, I was worried sick!" August felt guilty for worrying Mr. Jeffries, but the excitement of finding his parents overwhelmed every other emotion. Just then, the beautiful woman with the curly blond hair came running backstage, Louis running right alongside her. Somehow, she managed to remain incredibly graceful, even though she wore a long white dress and high heels. August immediately felt a little awkward in the presence of such a lovely woman. He looked up at Louis, who had his arm wrapped tightly around the waist of the woman he was sure was his mother, his face filled with wonder. Mr. Jeffries cleared his throat, slightly embarrassed at the silent intensity of the moment. He felt like an intruder, and yet it was time to do his job.

"We don't have any tests to prove it yet, but I'm fairly certain that… Evan, I would like you to meet your mother, Lyla Novacek. She's been searching for you. And this is…?" He gestured towards Louis, looking confused.

"His da'." Louis said, tears welling in his eyes at the statement. His voice sounded rough, and his accent was thick and heavy with emotion. "I see you made it to your concert. Was it all you wanted it to be?" August nodded, hope and fear simultaneously choking him up and quieting his voice.

"Yes… sir." Unsure of what to call him – da? Dad? Father? He stuck with the 'sir,' though he felt a bit silly. Louis cautiously stepped forward and reached out his shaking hand, finally resting it on August's head. He ruffled his hair and let out a short laugh, sounding more like a bark than anything. He knelt down to August's level, finally meeting his son's eyes in a way that almost felt intrusive. But August was so nervous and so happy at meeting him, he barely minded. Louis' eyes searched his, hopeful and stunned. Hesitantly, he held out his arms. August launched himself into them, burying his face in his father's shoulders to hide his tears. His small body was literally shaking with his sobs, though he tried to calm himself down. Louis held onto him, rubbing soothing circles on his back and whispering in a strange language that August had never heard before. It was comforting and it felt like home, strangely enough. August's tears had slowed with the calming sound of his father's voice, and Louis pulled back a little, holding onto August's shoulders.

"You can call me whatever you like, I don' mind. I'm right here for you." Louis smiled at him and turned to Lyla, who was wringing her hands and shaking from excitement and fear. "Now, I believe it's time you met yer Ma," he said, pushing August forward towards her. Lyla sank down to her knees and looked at August so hopefully that it almost broke his heart. He walked forward slowly, hoping to preserve the moment in his mind forever; her eyes shining in the dark with unshed tears, her quivering smile, and her softly clenching hands. August paused as he got closer to her.

"Can I… hug you?" He asked her softly, his eyes downcast. He felt her finger pushing his chin up, and he found himself staring into her beautiful green eyes. She very gently pulled him into a hug, and he could hear her sobbing into his shoulder.

"I always knew you were alive, I always wanted you." She cried, holding onto him tightly. August, too, was crying, clinging onto his mother like he had never held onto anything before. "I could hear you; I could hear your music. I knew I would find you, they said I was crazy, but I knew I could hear you!" They were both pulled into a pair of strong arms, and that strange language filled August's ear again. August could scarcely believe his luck – the parents he had dreamed about for years were finally here, holding him. When his parents pulled out of the hug, his mother held his hand and his father rested a hand on his shoulder.

"Are we going home?" August asked, looking at his mother. She hesitated, her smiling waning as she turned to Mr. Jeffries.

"What is the, um, the legal process in this situation? Since I never willingly gave him up for adoption and he's been found…" She trailed off, her hope dying at Mr. Jeffries look of resolve.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Novacek, Mr.… ah," Mr. Jeffries floundered for a moment.

"Connelly," Louis filled in for him, his grip tightening on his son's shoulder.

"Mr. Connelly," Mr. Jeffries repeated. "Unfortunately, Evan is a ward of the state. Until a hearing with a proper judge, you are not recognized as his legal guardians." Her face crumbled and Louis' lips tightened in anger.

"Now, I don' know all of the details – frankly, I have no bloody idea what is going on!" Louis said exasperatedly. "All I know is that August is my son, and I don' frankly care for your legal processes." Mr. Jeffries sighed and rubbed at one of his eyes.

"The best that I can do for you right now is to take you to my office, take samples of your DNA, and have it shipped over-night to a lab where they can prove that you are Evan's parents." Mr. Jeffries looked at them wryly. "Not that I doubt that you are his parents in any way; your strong family resemblance and obvious connection says a lot to me. I'll be breaking office regulations by opening up after hours, even for a special case such as yours. Can we keep this our little secret?" They nodded, solemn faces all around. "Ms. Novacek, I know that you don't live in New York City – where exactly will Evan live? Where will he continue his education? And Mr. Connelly, will you be staying with them? Do you both have suitable jobs at the moment and the funds to raise a child? These are all questions that you should have answered and taken care of before you find yourselves in front of a judge, trying to win custody. So long as you have the means with which to provide for Evan, I'm sure that the judge would approve of your case without much fuss." August's mother nodded.

"That's incredibly helpful, Mr. Jeffries. Thank you." She bowed her head and then enveloped August into a warm and blissful hug. As she pulled away, August started to feel sick.

"Will I… will I have to go back to the orphanage?" He asked, his chin quivering.

"I can make arrangements for you to stay at an orphanage in the city – would that be better?" Mr. Jeffries asked.

"And we'll visit you every day until you're ours again." His mother added, her pretty eyes intently focused on him.

"What about… what about Juilliard?" August asked.

"We can make special arrangements for that, Evan." August smiled weakly at Mr. Jeffries. "In the meantime, I suggest we head for my office. You all must be exhausted." Lyla stood up, still clutching August's hand. Louis took a hold of August's other hand, and they all followed Mr. Jeffries to the street. They shared a cab, August and his parents in the back, and Mr. Jeffries sitting up front with the cab driver.

"It seems you have two names, kid." Louis said, gently elbowing him in the side.

"Yes, what would you like us to call you?" His mother asked, her nails gently scratching his head. August sleepily contemplated.

"I… I grew up as Evan, but there are a lot of bad memories that go with that name. I never really minded it, but I like the name August. I've never met another August before..."

"August, then." His mother said firmly. "We'll call you 'August'." He nodded, finally dozing off on his father's shoulder. Without any prompting, Louis lifted him onto his lap and held the boy tightly, his thumb gently rubbing August's temple.

"Out like a light." Louis said softly to Lyla, a wry smile on his face. She bit her lip gently, a smile forming. "After we drop our boy off, can we have a talk?" He asked. Her face fell, but she nodded. "I only want to know where you've been all of these years and how this… how this whole thing came to be." When he didn't get much of a response, he added, "I missed you every day." Her frown lifted into a shy smile.

"I missed you too."

"Is there…?" He hesitantly asked.

"No." She said quickly. "There was never… there was never anyone after you." She looked up at him from beneath her lashes. "You?"

"No one could replace you, though they tried. You were the only girl I ever wanted." With that, he unwrapped an arm from around August's waist and gently touched Lyla's face. She leaned into the touch and closed her eyes, breathing his scent in deeply. "It was a constant ache, not having you with me. I'm just… there are no words to express my happiness right now." Lyla's smile made his heart thud in his chest.

"I know what you mean." She said, and she turned her face to kiss his hand gently. He breathed in deeply, content for the first time in 12 years.

After Louis and Mr. Jeffries split the cab fare (as Louis refused to let Lyla pay), Louis carefully carried August into the darkened public office. Lyla sat next to Louis, resting her head on his arm and gently stroking August's hair with one hand. With a little difficulty from the sleeping August, they took cheek-swab DNA tests from the three of them, and Mr. Jeffries filled out the paperwork for the lab.

"The results should be back in about a week; after that, you can gain custody of August from the state." He gave them a meaningful look. "I have a feeling that you two would like this to be done and over with as soon as possible, yes?" They nodded fervently, tightening their grip on each other's hand. "Then it would be wise to schedule a courtdate as soon as is possible; I doubt they'll have any openings in the next week or two, but maybe with a recommendation from me, we can speed up the process?" They both broke out in wide, shining smiles and nodded, expressing their thanks over and over. He held up a hand, calming them down a bit as he reached for the phone. "I need to find accomodations for August, please excuse me." Mr. Jeffries called a nearby orphanage, apologizing for the lateness of his call, but explained the situation and let them know that he and August would be arriving within ten minutes.

"We're very close to the orphanage. I think it's a few blocks away – we could easily walk there in a few minutes." Mr. Jeffries explained a bit wearily. After some gentle shaking from Louis and Lyla, August's eyes opened, though he was a bit groggy from the nap.

"We're going to go to the orphanage now – would you like walk with us, or would you like to go back to sleep?" Lyla asked. August closed his eyes and fell back into sleep, and Lyla tried to stifle her giggle. "I suppose we have an answer." Her voice was light and happy, and Louis got the feeling that she hadn't been happy in a very long time.

They walked in silence, Louis carrying little August with ease. The walk was indeed short, and in a few minutes they found themselves inside of the small orphanage. Louis carried the small boy to bed, and he and Lyla tucked him in together. August woke up for the goodbyes, and after a kiss goodnight from them both and making them swear to come back the next day, he drifted off to sleep. Lyla quietly drank in the sight of her long-lost child, and though teary-eyed, she smiled as she took Louis' hand and left the room.

"Should we make any appointments with you, Mr. Jeffries?" Lyla asked. "Is there anything else we need to discuss?"

"We can have a chat before your court-date – I'll give you a call in the morning after I set it up."

"And the paternity test? Will you call us when the results are in?" Louis asked anxiously. Mr. Jeffries nodded and gave a very tired smile.

"The moment I receive the results, I'll call you both." He promised. They said a quick goodbye, thanked Mr. Jeffries again for his help, and stepped back out into the night air.

"Where would you like to talk?" Lyla asked Louis apprehensively. His smile sent an excited shiver through her.

"I know a place where we can grab a nice cup a' coffee."

"You Irish and your coffee." She said, chuckling.

"Ah, yes lass – we Irish are very serious about our coffee. The caffeine is essential to our way of life – how else do you suppose we came up with such silliness as leprechauns and fairy rings?" She burst out laughing. "It was a caffeine-crazed Irishman who came up with that rubbish, not some superstitious scholarly fellow." The corners of his mouth were barely turned up, as he was desperately trying to keep a straight face.

"Is that true?" She asked, playfulness in her eyes.

"No idea." He said, finally laughing as he slung an arm around her. "Onward, lass – we have much to talk about."

A/N: Thank you to my 2 lovely reviewers -- you guys really brightened up my day! Sorry it took so long to come out with the next chapter; things got a bit hectic with my job and my landlord. I should have another chapter out ASAP!

-- Ammi