**Chapter forty eight**

Moving on

*Hailey*

My father smiled sadly at me, and I tried not to cry at the sight of him. "Don't cry, Hails." He said, walking closer to me.

I wiped my eyes and took a deep breath. I smiled shakily at him, and tried to hug my dad. But my hands went right through him. "I should've of expected that." I muttered, as my dad smiled apologetically at me.

"How are things, Hailey?" he asked, as I sat down on my bed.

"They could be better." I answered, feeling as if this was unreal. I was having a conversation with my dead father.

"Yeah pumpkin, you've got yourself in a real mess." He told me, and I smiled sarcastically at him.

"Let me guess, you want to talk to me about it?" I asked bitterly, and being a complete smartass. But my father wouldn't expect anything less from me.

"I want to talk about whatever you want to talk about, Hailey. I haven't talked to my favorite daughter in two years; I don't care what we talk about." My dad said easily.

"I'm your only daughter and your only child." I said, frowning at me.

My dad smirked slightly back at me. "That makes you my favorite my default." He teased.

I smiled slightly, and then frowned. "Did you know that I'm a fairy? I mean, you gave me this ring." I blurted out, gesturing to the ring on my bed.

Dad took a deep breath and looked uncomfortable. "It was a part of the stories passed down when I was a kid, Hailey. For our family, the legends didn't stop with vampires and witches. There were a few stories your grandfather used to tell me about fairies. He told me that every blood born Ellis girl in our family was a fairy, but how the men where carriers. Honestly, I thought that all those stories were bullshit. But when I turned eighteen and found out what actually happened at council meetings, I started to question what was bullshit and what was real." He smirked at me, and I suddenly figured out where I got my attitude.

"I didn't completely believe the whole fairy story- it seemed too outrageous- but when you were born, I knew what my dad would've said if he was still alive." Dad sighed again. "I remember when you were eight. You predicted that Elena would break her arms minutes before it happened. That's when I started thinking that maybe the stories weren't complete bullshit, and that I should take precautions. So, I gave you the ring that my dad always said would help a fairy control her powers. I didn't think that it would hurt to be careful. So to answer your question, yes and no." my dad told me.

I nodded, not being able to meet his eyes. I started playing with a loose string on my shirt. "Aren't you going to ask how I really died, Hailey?" dad asked quietly.

I flinched, suddenly remembering that he was, in fact, dead. I shook my head fiercely. "No, I don't." I said in a cold tone. I didn't want to know if he killed himself, if it was an accident, or if he was murdered. All that counted was that he was dead.

He nodded. "Fair enough." He said, walking closer to me. "But can I ask you a question, Hails?"

I looked up, a little surprised. But I nodded. "Sure, anything." I agreed.

"Are you ever going to tell me about your vampire?" my dad asked with a raised eyebrow.

I sighed. "Why does everybody call Damon 'my vampire?'?" I mumbled.

"Because he's yours, Hailey. He belongs to you. Whether either of you want to admit it, he's your vampire and you're his fairy." my dad muttered the last part bitterly.

I raised an eyebrow. "I wasn't going to mention Damon, because I figured since you were a council member that you'd be rather prejudice against vampires." I said coolly.

"Touché." He grinned, before sobering. "When I first found out that my daughter was in love with a vampire, I was less than thrilled. But I trust him with you. I know that Damon Salvatore would die for you, because he almost has before. But that doesn't mean that you shouldn't be careful, Hailey. You need to watch your mouth, because he is very capable of killing you in an instant. You should never forget that."

I nodded, knowing that I needed to learn how to think before I spoke. "Tell me what you're thinking, Hails. I know you've been thinking about your future with your vampire." My dad said knowingly.

I frowned at him. "Do ghosts know everything?" I asked, slightly annoyed.

My dad chuckled. "There's not much to do when you're dead, except to spy on the living." He admitted.

I half smiled, before answering his question. "I'm willing to change into a vampire, if that's what I have to do to be with Damon forever." I said honestly.

"What about your mother? Your friends?" my dad argued, playing devil's advocate.

I snorted. "Leaving mom behind is the least of my worries." I said, earning a look. "I'd miss my friends, and especially Elena- well, let's not goes there."

"Right, she doesn't even know that you're in love with the other Salvatore." Dad said, and I bit my lip.

"Let's not go there." I repeated more sharply. My dad raised his hands in surrender.

"Fine, Hails. We won't go there." He said, and I gave him an apologetic look.

I took a deep breath, and realized that I was out of things that I needed to say to my dad. "Don't rush into the whole vampire thing, Hailey. There's much more darkness to it than books and movies would lead you to believe." He said quietly, and I smiled slightly up at him.

"When you're in love Dad, you don't care what you have to do to be with that person, as long as you can be with them." I told him.

He smiled nostalgically. "I remember what it felt like, to be so young and in love." He said softly, before looking at me again.

"Are heaven and hell real?" I asked abruptly, not being able to help myself.

"I wouldn't know, Hailey. I'm stuck in between the two, in limbo, as you call it. I haven't been able to move on, not knowing if you were okay. But now I know. You're just fine, Hailey. You've grown up, you're in love, and you're just fine without Me." he smiled placidly. "I can move on."

I frowned, suddenly very alert on what he meant by "moving on." Dad's smile grew bigger, and he began to glow. "Dad, no!" I exclaimed, not wanting him to leave.

The light didn't stop; in fact, it grew brighter, enveloping his entire body. Suddenly, he burst the light swallowing up my room. I covered my face, and when the light went away, I looked around to find myself alone.

"Dad," I sobbed, tears falling down my cheeks. "Daddy, please come back. Please!"

But my dad was gone. He moved on.

I shook at the force of my sobs. I struggled to get my ring on my finger. I managed to, and suddenly felt my excess power taken from me. I ignored the loss of energy. It didn't matter, since I would never be able to see my dad again.

I didn't know how I was able to get to the boarding house in the dark, at night, by myself, and sobbing, but I did. I pounded on the door, shaking. Damon opened it, and stared at me, alarmed.

"Hailey, what's wrong? What happened?" he asked, as I walked shakily into the house.

Damon followed me into his living room, as I struggled not to cry. "He's gone." I mumbled, wiping my eyes using my wet sleeve.

"Who's gone?" Damon asked, pushing my hair out of my wet and swollen face.

"M-my dad." I stuttered, struggling to contain my sobs. "He m-moved on and I can never see him again."

Damon had no idea what I was talking about, but he still pulled me into his arms and held me, as I sobbed into his chest, ruining his shirt. I pulled away slightly, knowing what a mess I looked like.

Damon kept frowning, as if it physically hurt him, to see me in such pain. "I'm so sorry, Hailey." He murmured, pulling me back into his arms.

He kissed my forehead, as I rested my head on his shoulder. I hugged him tightly, glad that I had him, even if I didn't have my dad. "I love you." I whispered, closing my eyes.

Both of us were so wrapped up in my tears, that we didn't even notice Elena at the top of the stairs, who had seen everything.

~LMF~

A/N: thank you to: vdemily, Samantha meyers, colleenrawr, SomebodyWhoCares, and Ravenator for reviewing!

Reviews are my inspiration :)

~Abby!