Charlie's POV

"What's all this?" I had been walking past the boy's desk at the station, coffee in hand and nearly ready to check out for the evening. That was when I noticed the file sprawled across his workspace and I stopped to look over his shoulder.

"Well Chief…" He began slowly and I braced myself. He called me Chief instead of Charlie, which meant he was sucking up to me.

"I've been thinking a lot lately… and I've been considering moving out on my own. My parents are amazing people, but I think it's time for me to start thinking about my future." He began and I nodded. I could see where he was going with this… but I wanted him to actually say it.

"These houses are just some possibilities that I've been thinking about." He confessed as he gestured to the file's contents, scattered in front of him. There were printouts of several houses listed for sale in Forks, most of which were easily recognisable – all of them nice options.

"I haven't made any decisions yet… I wanted to talk to both you and Bella before I make any sort of decision at all…" He continued and I nodded slowly. "I know that Bella isn't ready to move out of your place yet… but one day, I truly hope that it will be the correct time, and that Bella will be healed enough for me to ask her and Nessie both to move in with me." He spoke cautiously. I could understand why. I had just gotten my daughter back… and here he was stating that his intention was to take her away again. He didn't realise though that I was already prepared for this (as prepared as any father could be, really!), and he was the one person that I would fully support in his wish to be with my daughter in the future. I knew I wouldn't lose Bella just because she might move in with… or heck, marry him one day. Despite, the past, it was my job as her father to love her, support her, and to encourage her continued growth… it was normal for her to build relationships… to eventually want her own life.

"I know it seems soon… and to be honest it is… but I want to get out my parents' place anyways, and I'd like to plan for the day that I do ask them to move in with me." He finished speaking and ran his hands through his hair. The kid's hair was always a disaster because of the sheer number of times in a day he did that.

For a moment I remained silent, my eyes trained on his desk and the images of homes in the area. As I thought through his statement, I scanned the words on the pages… glanced through some of the details.

"I like this one." I reached down and grabbed the sheet I was referring to. It was a little house about three blocks away from my own home. I knew it well… the Jefferson family had lived there for years and had taken great care of it. Now that their kids were grown and off starting families of their own… they were selling, getting ready to move into one of those new condos down in Seattle. When I thought about it, I could picture the three of them there… close enough that Bella and Nessie could come over anytime. It also had a huge backyard which would be great for Nessie… the girl loved to be outside, even in the pouring rain. Even if they didn't move in with him for some time… I knew that Bella would be happy having him close by… the Cullen house was on the outskirts of town… but this place was so close to my own.

"Thanks Charlie." The kid was choked up and I smiled down at him, squeezing his shoulder before continuing out of the station. He was good for Bella and Nessie... I knew he would take care of them both.

It had officially been nine months now since we had found our girls. Summer was here and Nessie was out of school for the summer – Angela Weber had given her a glowing report for her first year of class… although Nessie still had difficulty with the amount of time spent inside the classroom on average. As a reward for her great job in school, Bella and Edward had registered her for summer art classes at the community centre. It was mostly older kids, so Bella ensured that she was there to supervise each week… but Nessie was thrilled to be getting dedicated art instruction. Her work was phenomenal, and the girl had a natural affinity for transforming paint, crayons, paper… into something magical.

As for Bella, she had taken her GED test and was waiting on the results to arrive by mail, but in the meantime had surprised us all when she announced at dinner one night that she had picked up a part-time job. It was two set days a week, at the used bookstore downtown… and although it didn't pay great, she was proud of it and her ability to begin to provide a little more for her and Nessie on her own.

In her spare time, I often found her sitting at the desk in her room, or lounging on the sofa, with one of her notebooks and a pencil, writing out a new chapter for one of her stories.

I had read a few of these chapters now and they were amazing. Generally… I hated to read novels… but this one was so well written and intriguing… combining fantasy with adventure, warfare, and dark secrets. I had no idea where she had gotten the inspiration… but I knew that she would be going places if she continued to write like this.

One day she came out to join me on the back steps. It was a humid day, and I had taken a break from working on the yard to have a beer. She seemed nervous as she sat beside me and I waited for her to gather her words… knowing that many of our conversations together had started out this way. Communication wasn't either of our strong suits.

"Will you help me get my license and teach me to drive?" She asked a few minutes later and I chuckled, releasing a breath. If that was all that she wanted to ask me right now, that was an easy one.

"Of course Bells… I was waiting for you to ask." I answered her and she smiled back at me.

It melted my heart to see her settling into life again… taking steps and finally moving towards these milestones that I had almost begun to believe that I had missed and would never get to see. Going on dates with Edward, her first job, getting her high school equivalency, and talking about college; up until nine months ago, I had nearly lost hope. But now she was here, and she was doing it… taking her time and building confidence… she had blossomed from the girl we had lost nearly thirteen years ago, to the shell we had found the previous September… to this – my daughter.

"I never really got to thank you Dad." A few more minutes had passed and I had filled her in on what I knew about getting her license.

When she spoke this time though, I simply listened.

"I know that what happened that day at the fair… the day that I went missing… I know that it wasn't my fault. I was targeted and whether it happened that day, or some other day… there is a good chance that the situation would have been pretty much the same." She said looking up and staring across the yard. Nessie was sitting in the lower branch of the tree she liked to climb, staring up at the sky… no doubt imagining shapes in the clouds. "And while I wish I hadn't been naïve enough to get into that car in the first place… and while the years that followed were downright awful… I have Nessie, and I can't imagine life without her in it. But I also can't imagine what it would have been like to be found… brought out of the darkness and back into the light; without you there waiting for me." She told me and I blinked. That day was one that I'll never forget… finding my daughter after all of those years; regardless of the guilt and shame I felt for taking so long to find her… I can also never compete with the sense of relief I felt at seeing her that first day… broken, scared, and malnourished… but alive.

"Between you and Edward…" she began again and I couldn't help but smile… the two of us had been determined to bring her back… it was unspoken between us once she had been found, but we both knew it was the goal.

"I talked to Esme and Carlisle a little bit… I've talked to Rosalie and Alice, Jasper and Emmett… even Angela Weber. They've all told me about how neither you nor Edward ever gave up looking for me – even when the others, even when they couldn't keep searching… when years passed… you guys… you kept looking anyways." She kept going and I could feel my eyes welling up with tears. I blinked them back, letting out a long slow breath.

"Even when Mom gave up… when she lost faith that I was still out there… you kept it up." I couldn't hold back the tears any longer. Renee's death still bothered me, and in the days, weeks, and months that followed her suicide, I felt as though I had been broken beyond repair. I had lost my daughter, and then my wife.

"When I first got to the hospital, and when we came back here to live with you… it felt like the entire world was one massively terrifying place. Nothing was comfortable, and nothing felt right… I was pretty lost, confused, and scared. I hated that when you touched me or surprised me, I flinched. I hated it because truthfully… this was where I felt safest when I got out. Flinching never made sense. It was never an option to go anywhere else or to live with anyone else… even Edward. It was like I was a little girl again, and the only thing that I knew was that no matter what, my Daddy would keep me safe." I couldn't speak. For a minute I felt all of the guilt that I had shouldered for so long crush me. If only I had kept a better eye on her… If only I had found her sooner… If only I had known… If only…

But as my girl shifted beside me, reaching around my back and leaning against my shoulder… the weight was lifted. Suddenly the burden wasn't nearly as heavy and I could breathe as we sat there, watching my Granddaughter across the yard.

"I love you Bells. Always."

Life had a funny way of making sense sometimes… and yet, through her tragedy and her grief… through an experience that should have broken her down permanently, one that changed not just her… but each person who had been involved in her life; both before and after her disappearance; it had somehow blossomed into something unexpected.

Now I had this remarkable woman in my life… this girl who was my daughter… my pride and joy. And I also had her daughter… another amazing person.

Nothing would make up for the years I had lost with them; but I knew now, that the good years were set to come… from here on out, it might not be perfect… but it would be us, as a family… whatever that might look like as she and Edward continued to draw closer… drawing on me, and also the rest of the Cullens and the Hales for love and support.

This was a life that I would never take for granted again.