Oooofff guys I really made you wait for this one! I mean at least I didn't take 7 years but still. This was another tricky chapter to write and I'm glad to be done with it! I will ease up on the angst for a bit after this, seriously.

This chapter is Gracie-centric but we will be catching up with Larten, Darren, and the others very soon. Enjoy!

Chapter 2: Your Hero Fell

Song: Young Man by The Chicks

I had no words for you that Saturday
As we both watched our entire worlds change
Your hero fell just as you came of age
And I had no words but now I know what to say

THREE MONTHS AGO:

Walking into the Hall of Khledon Lurt on the first night of summer break never got old. The flickering torchlight, the warm smells coming from the kitchen, and the rows of familiar faces waving at Gracie and calling her name as she walked in.

At the ripe old age of 15, she'd fully come to terms with her strange upbringing. She'd memorized all the little white lies she told when her well-meaning fellow humans asked her questions about her life outside of school. She kept things as honest as she could though; all of her friends knew she was raised in a big old stone house deep in a forest, with two dads who loved her very much and had high-ranking government jobs which she legally wasn't allowed to talk about. A nice thing about boarding school was that there'd usually be someone else in the class who'd earnestly say 'yeah, mine too!' And she'd smile and nod, while knowing they had absolutely no idea just how unconventional her family was.

Sometimes she wished she had a more normal home life when she heard stories her friends told about growing up in the suburbs, going to the mall with their friends, walking to the park, road trips with siblings, all that. But then she'd come home to Vampire Mountain and start feeling sorry for all the other kids - unlike her, they'd never know the most incredible secret in the world.

Council was still two months away, but the mountain was already fuller than it usually was. Gracie, Mika, and Kurda has just completed the return trip from the school and all three were hungry. Mika was particularly tired from the long flit - carrying her had been a lot easier when she was a small child. But it was the only way to and from the mountain. Walking would've taken weeks and the conditions could be deadly for a human.

Gracie didn't even recognize half the vampires who smiled and waved at her as she made her way through the hall, but she waved back anyway. She was aware she was a bit of a celebrity within the clan but she took it all in stride. Being the daughter of a Prince - soon to be two Princes - had that effect.

"Is Aunt Arra here yet?" Grace asked hopefully as she nibbled her way through a plate of spare ribs.

"Not yet. Should be here in a couple weeks though." Mika replied.

"Aren't we fun enough for you?" Kurda chuckled.

"Sure. But she's better on the bars than you." Grace smirked.

"Well, that's true." Said Mika with a smile. "She's the best. You picked a great teacher. I can't wait to see how it goes."

Kurda's eyebrows arched ever so slightly.

"Are you sure that's how you want to spend your summer, Gracie?" He inquired in a tone of feigned casualness. "It's so easy to break a bone or get a concussion on the bars."

She felt her temper flare up just a tiny bit, but Mika told Kurda off - albeit very gently - before she could talk back.

"Kurda, she's been home for literally ten minutes. My gods. Let her live."

Kurda's eyes narrowed and for a moment it looked like he was about to come back with something even snippier, but he held his tongue.

"What do you want me to do, then?" Gracie replied with a crisp smile. "You won't let me learn swords or spears. I already know everything these is to know about unarmed self-defence, so that leaves bars and weapons."

"You're not a vampire, Gracie! You're under no obligation to learn any of this."

Mika rolled his eyes dramatically.

"She knows! She knows how it works!" He sighed in exasperation. "Can you not just be proud that she wants to develop a new skill?"

"Of course I'm proud, Mika. Don't you dare imply otherwise." Kurda growled reproachfully. "Sorry, Grace. I didn't mean to put a damper on your first night back. Practice on the bars if you must... But for the love of the gods, just be careful."

"Arra knows the bar rules." Said Mika calmly. "No more than ten feet above floor level, no weighted staffs, and nothing reckless."

"You forgot the most important rule." Kurda grunted.

"I will remind Arra she's working with a human. Not a vampire, not a half-vampire. A human. She will adjust her expectations accordingly." Mika affirmed placatingly.

"Can you train with me til Arra gets here so I can practice?" Grace asked Mika eagerly. "You're good on the bars, right?"

"You're right, I am good." Mika shrugged with a grin. "Just good though. Arra's great. She's been running circles around me on the bars since we were young."

"Of all the basic skills, he scored lowest on the bars." Kurda added.

"Still higher than you, though." Mika replied drily.

"Can we go down to the bars tonight?" Grace pressed.

"I'll go down with you." Said Mika gently. "We can work on a few basic things but we'll stay on the floor for tonight. That was a long flit and I'm a little sore."

"That's what happens when you get old." Kurda remarked.

"Next time you can carry the kid and I'll carry the luggage." Mika snorted. "Let's see how that goes."

"Although if you pack any more stuff, your bag will outweigh you." Said Kurda with a wayward grin at his daughter. "Even just three separate outfits would be more than most vampires here have."

"Neither of you would have to carry me or my bags if I could just flit myself bacj and forth." Gracie commented. She did so in a casual manner, so she was not expecting both her dads to freeze and shoot a lightning-quick uncomfortable glance at each other. "Or not." She added, raising one eyebrow.

"Trust me, being able to run really fast isn't worth the hassle." Kurda replied with a very forced smile. "No more sun, you'd have to drink blood... it's not all it's cracked up to be."

"But on the other hand I'd live for centuries." Grace added cautiously. "You know... if I became a vampire too. Just saying."

"That's not up for discussion." Said Kurda abruptly. There was a strange edge to his voice, one Gracie had never heard before. Almost panic. Of course she hadn't expected them to say "Sure, honey. Let's get you blooded". She wasn't even sure if that was what she wanted. But it had crossed her mind more than once the past several years. Although she was alarmed by how quickly Kurda tensed up at the mere suggestion. She looked to Mika instead, trying to read his face. He looked visibly concerned, but less agitated than Kurda. The two vampires glanced at each other for a moment, faces impassive. She wondered if they were speaking telepathically. That was probably the vampiric power she envied most. After a moment, Mika refocused his attention back on her.

"You're still a minor. We don't blood children, Gracie." Said Mika firmly, albeit much more calmly than Kurda. "And there's a lot of good reasons for that. I can explain it all to you if you want. But if joining the clan is something you think you might want, let me be perfectly clear. It's absolutely not up for consideration until you're an adult."

She looked back at him curiously for several moments, nodding slowly.

"So you'll blood me when I'm an adult?" She asked at last.

"No." Kurda snapped immediately. Gracie frowned. Mika gave Kurda a look of weary exasperation before turning back to look at her again with a forced smile.

"What he means is... not necessarily, and not right away." Mika sighed. "It's a massive, life-changing decision. No matter how smart and mature you are right now, your brain is still developing and we wouldn't allow you to to do anything like that until we knew for sure you understood all of the consequences."

"What parenting book did you regurgitate that from?" Kurda snarled at Mika, seeming to forget Gracie was even there. "She's talking about joining the legions of the undead, not taking out a student loan."

"I'm saying we're NOT talking about joining the legions of the undead right now. I'm not disagreeing with you, Kurda. So don't act like I'm the enemy here." Said Mika coolly. "We'll talk about it when she's old enough to understand what she's getting into. That's the only point I'm making here."

Mika was trying his best to keep his tone light but his frustration with Kurda was visible. Gracie knew her unlikely duo of dads disagreed on plenty of things, but usually not things that involved her. This was strange, and she didn't like it.

"She's not getting into anything! We're not talking about it at all. Now or ever." Kurda snapped through gritted teeth.

Mika rolled his eyes and Gracie drew breath to yell, "I'm right here!" But before either of them could utter a reply to Kurda's declaration, Paris and Seba came strolling over to join them for supper. They showered Gracie with hugs and kisses and questions about school. She happily greeted her pair of beloved grandfathers, and decided to let the issue rest since it seemed to bother her dads so much. For now, anyway.

You're of me, not mine
Walk your own crooked line
I promise you'll be fine
Take the best parts of him
As your own life begins
Leave the bad news behind you

PRESENT DAY:

Mika Ver Leth:

Chosen apprentice to the legendary Paris Skyle.

Howling Contest Winner of Festival 1860.

Current record holder for fastest trip through the Path Of Needles.

Vampire General.

Highest swordsmanship marks of any General OR Prince in the last 500 years.

The clan's best negotiator, bar none.

Indomitable warrior.

Master strategist.

Sass Master.

Second youngest Vampire Prince in history (thanks a lot, Darren).

And the newest addition to the resume:

Single dad.

Mika sighed heavily - not for the first time in recent history, not by a long shot - as he crumpled and discarded the sixth rough draft of how he was going to start explaining this to Gracie.

48 hours had elapsed since Kurda's exile had taken effect. 36 hours since Mika fell to the paralyzing breakdown that had been at least several years overdue. In those 36 hours he hadn't set foot out of Arrow's cell and didn't plan to do so anytime soon. The couch was more than comfortable enough to sleep on, there was an en-suite bathroom, and Paris and Arrow had been taking turns bringing him meals so as long as they continued to do that, he could theoretically live out the rest of his days here. Not to mention the desk drawers were full of snacks. More often than not he had the place to himself since Arrow was extra busy. Although he was only extra busy due to the fact that Mika was locked away in this room, not being particularly useful to anyone.

There were two pretty major reasons Mika hadn't set foot in his own cell since that night. First reason: he'd trashed the place so thoroughly it would need a deep cleaning before it could be inhabitable again. Not to mention he no longer had a coffin to sleep in, he'd smashed his to pieces in an attempt to dispel the memories of Kurda it held. That brings us to the second reason: the memories. They haunted every corner of this mountain, but nowhere more than his cell. Even two days later there was still a dull ache in his head from the truly unprecedented amount of crying that had taken place. Or maybe it was from Larten punching him. Or maybe he was still hungover.

"You get a week." Arrow had told him. "One week to lock yourself in here and scream, cry, drink, lay on the floor, whatever you need to do - as long as you don't break any of my stuff. After that, it's back to work. I'll still help you however you want me to, but you can't hide in here forever."

As unappealing as facing the world sounded, the fact remained that the hardest part was yet to come. Mika still had to break the news to Gracie.

How do you explain this to a fifteen year old? The pile of drafts was increasing by the hour and Mika still didn't have an answer to that question. He was resting his head defeatedly on the desk when Arrow came in.

"How's it going in here?" Arrow asked cautiously.

"How does it look like it's going?" Mika sighed.

"Bad." Said Arrow.

"Always so astute." Said Mika with a grimace.

"Are these all what I think they are?" Said Arrow with dismay, picking up a crumpled sheet and reading it. "Mika, you can get up in front of a thousand vampires and pull a speech out of your ass that would put any human world leader to shame. This is just you and your daughter... you don't need an entire thesis."

"You don't even know what a thesis is, Arrow." Mika snapped, abruptly turning around to glare at his friend. Arrow's eyes narrowed but he didn't retort.

"When are you going to the school?" Arrow asked calmly, sitting down on the couch. Mika didn't turn around.

"I don't know."

"You should go tomorrow. Get it over with." Said Arrow gently.

"Every minute I sit here... is another minute where she still knows peace. Where she still has a happy family. Where her dad didn't turn his back on everyone he ever loved."

"I'm not going to lie to you and tell you you're worrying too much, or that she'll handle it well." Said Arrow. "It's going to hurt. But Mika, believe me when I tell you she's going to be fine. Maybe not soon, but someday. Because she still has you."

"I don't know how to help her though this, Arrow. I can't even help myself!" Mika replied tensely. "Where do I even begin? Not to mention we're going to war on top of all of that. Her childhood's about to end. She's never going to see the world the same way again."

"You'll manage." Said Arrow steadily. "You've always had a connection with her. I constantly forget you don't actually share DNA. I can't explain it, but when I see you together I can just tell that you get her. And I think she gets you too."

Mika felt his heart lurch, but for the first time in weeks it wasn't in a painful way. He knew Arrow was right. He'd always had a powerful bond with Gracie, they simply clicked. Of course her relationship with Kurda was just as solid, but when she reached her teenage years she tended to argue with Kurda much more frequently. A fact that frustrated Kurda to no end; he'd always considered himself to be overall a much more amicable person than Mika. Mika couldn't really explain it, he just knew her mind seemed to work largely the same way as his did. He was firm but kind, protective but not overly so. And always honest. Sometimes so honest it earned him a scolding from Kurda.

"I just really, really don't want to do this." Mika whispered, staring down at the black piece of paper in front of him.

"When's the last time you got what you wanted?" Arrow asked sadly.

Mika knew it was rhetorical but he answered anyway. He thought back to the day that was supposed to be his wedding to Arra. The months of planning that went into it. How at the last minute he realized he'd seriously miscalculated, and he found himself in Kurda's cell. How after months of confusion and misplaced frustration, Mika and Kurda had finally stumbled into his coffin together, slept tangled in each others' arms. And when they woke up they proceeded to spend the entire day in the coffin together. Laughing, talking, catching up, apologizing, and getting laid. How that lazy, hungover day was the happiest either of them had ever been... ever.

"About five years ago." Said Mika.

"Sorry." Arrow sighed. "I shouldn't have asked. How are you feeling? You look better today. Like you're not about to drop dead."

"Yeah well, mentally I'm still sitting on the floor in my cell, exactly where you found me." Mika replied bluntly. He no longer had the energy to mask his emotions.

"Fair enough." Said Arrow offhandedly, but then his eyes softened. "We miss you in the Hall of Princes, by the way. It's not the same."

"Not the same?" Mika replied quietly. "Imagine that..."

"I meant because you're not there." Said Arrow, frowning.

"I know. Sorry." Said Mika.

"Have you eaten yet today?" Arrow asked.

"No."

"Well, you get points for honesty. Why don't you come down to the Hall of Khledon Lurt with me? It'll be empty at this hour." Arrow suggested hopefully.

"You don't know that." Mika grunted.

Arrow sighed and squeezed Mika's shoulder tightly.

"Okay." He said softly. "I'm going to go eat... I told Vanez I'd meet him for supper. He's still getting used to finding his way around."

"How's he doing?" Mika inquired, feeling a pang of guilt that he hadn't asked before now. He'd known Vanez almost as long as Arrow.

"I think he's having a hard time but I haven't heard him complain once. He's taking it a lot better than I would." Said Arrow with a faint smile. "It's only been a few days and he says his other senses are already getting stronger. Once he adjusts he'll be as unstoppable as ever."

"Good." Said Mika distractedly. "That's good."

"Yeah... I'll see you in an hour, then." Said Arrow before the heading for the door. But he paused. "Mika, I know it's still fresh but let me tell you from personal experience... the longer you stay away, the harder it is to come back."

Mika whipped around much more sharply than Arrow had anticipated.

"That's a bit of a detour from the 'don't worry, take all the time you need' lines you were feeding me yesterday." He snapped.

"No, I stand by all of that." Arrow replied firmly. "I'm not going to drag you back before you're ready. Believe me, I know it takes time. But when I lost Sarah, I just... gave into the dark. I didn't even try to fight back. And you know exactly how that went for me. I wandered out there for over five years and every single day the loss still felt as fresh as the day before. I didn't start healing until I came home."

"It's not the same situation, A."

"I know it's not. But loss is loss, and pain is pain." Said Arrow gently. "Just promise you won't end up like me. You've always been stubborn. Don't let this be the first time in your life you stop fighting back."

Mika exhaled slowly and turned back away from Arrow to lean heavily on the desk.

"I'm fucking trying, Arrow."

Take a good look at my life and
Try to understand I've done my best
The best I know how to
And my blues aren't your blues
It's up to you

When Gracie was called to Headmaster Redford's office and saw Mika sitting there looking like he'd aged a hundred years in the month since she'd seen him, she assumed someone had died. That could be the only explanation.

Redford and Mika exchanged a solemn look as she stepped into the room. Redford was a half-vampire who'd defected from the clan but kept on good terms; he was the reason Mika and Kurda had chosen this school for her years ago. The headmaster left the room quietly and shut the door behind him.

"Hey, Gracie." Said Mika. His voice was rough and hoarse and his face had a haunted, almost shellshocked look about it. He pulled her into a tight hug as soon he saw her.

"What are you doing here? Is everything okay?" She asked, already knowing it wasn't.

Mika blinked a few times and tiredly ran his hand through his hair as he sat back down. For a few seconds he seemed to stare past her at the wall before he could meet her eyes. He looked like a ghost of his normal self.

"Dad? What happened?" She pressed, feeling cold dread settle into her very soul. But yet it was so much worse than she could have prepared herself for. Mika took a few deep, shaky breaths.

"Your dad... Kurda did something bad, Gracie." He finally croaked out, seeming to struggle with every word. "Really, really bad."

The vampire gods had clearly taken some small amount of pity on Mika because they allowed him to get through the full story without breaking down. Watching his daughter's face fall further and further as tears began to stream from her eyes was the most excruciating thing Mika had endured in his entire life - including Kurda's trial. They sat together in that room for hours. Mika explained everything slowly and honestly. Starting with Kurda's secret dealings with the vampaneze and concluding with his exile sentence. Paused to answer her many questions throughout. Described how the investiture was interrupted, the battle that followed, the trial, and finally the conditions of the exile.

"I don't understand how he could do all of that. You must have misunderstood! He'd never hurt anyone!" She choked out when it was all over.

"I don't fully understand it either." Mika replied. "I wish I knew what to tell you... but I'm just as hurt and confused as you are. I keep thinking I'll wake up and it'll have just been a nightmare. But I do know that he legitimately felt like he didn't have a choice. He lied about a lot of things but I know he was being honest about that. He was desperate. He thought he was doing the right thing."

"I fought with him so many times this summer..." she said slowly, her voice trembling.

"I know you did. I had a difficult few months with him leading up to all of this too." Said Mika sadly. "He was scared, Gracie. He was carrying this secret for years... But I know he loves you more than anything in the world. That will never change."

"Do you hate him for what he did?" She asked.

"I feel like I should, but I don't." Mika replied truthfully.

"Does he still love you?"

"I don't know. Maybe." Said Mika, remembering the way Kurda seemed to stare directly into his soul the moment before they parted ways for the last time.

"Do you still love him?"

"...Yes."

"Am I ever going to see him again?"

"Only if you want to." Said Mika firmly. "If you want a relationship with him after this, than can exist separately from everything else. It's completely your choice and I'll support you no matter what. I know it's complicated."

Suddenly she looked panicked.

"Do I have to decide right now?"

"No, no. Definitely not." Mika assured her quickly. "You can think about it as long as you want. If you ever wanted to contact him, I'd use the Stone to find him. Like I said, the terms of his exile were not to initiate contact with you without your permission. So if you don't want to hear from him again, you don't have to."

She stayed quiet for a long time. Her eyes were red and swollen and her face was still stained with tears of shock and grief. Mika gently reached out and held her hand.

"I don't know what to do." She whimpered eventually. "What do you think I should do?"

Mika sighed wearily.

"It's not my decision, Gracie."

"Pretend it was."

Mika closed his eyes for a moment.

"I hope he can be a part of your life again someday." He eventually answered, his voice starting to crack. "It's too far gone me. But you can form your own opinion of him now that you have all the facts. And if there's still hope that you can ever consider him family again, then I want that for you."

She nodded slowly, looking deep in thought. Then she reached over to pull a Kleenex from the box on the desk and carefully dabbed at her eyes.

"But with that said, I think you should give it a few years to settle before opening that door." Mika added. "Come to terms with it at your own pace. It won't happen overnight. And I know you don't feel like it, but you're still a child, Gracie. Figure out who you are, then decide who you want Kurda to be to you. And know you'll always have me. I'm on your side forever."

Mika didn't realize there were tears streaming from his own eyes until she gently pushed the Kleenex box towards him.

"Fuck, sorry." He muttered, quickly grabbing one and wiping his eyes as quickly as he could. She frowned.

"You're not the one who should be sorry." Said Gracie reproachfully as she watched him pull himself back together.

"I know." Said Mika dejectedly. "But I still am."

"Are you okay?" She asked gingerly.

"Gracie, I'm here for you. Don't worry about me." Mika replied firmly.

Her frown changed sharply to a glare and just for a moment, Mika saw a spark in her eyes.

"Don't tell me what to do." She snapped back. "I'll worry about you if I want to. Kurda had all these secrets, I don't need you hiding things from me too."

"Wow." Said Mika quietly, with a ghost of a smile at her tenacious attitude. "You're my kid, alright. To answer your question... I'm taking it a day at a time. It's still fresh and I don't know if it's completely sunk in yet. The first night I was... very much not okay. But your Uncle Arrow got me through it." Mika explained calmly. Gracie didn't need the gritty details of that night, but if he expected her to be honest with him about her own feelings, he had to give her the same courtesy.

"And I wasn't okay yesterday when I was trying to figure out how I was going to tell you all of this. But now you know everything I know. And we can start moving forward until we're both okay again." He added.

She was nodding contemplatively again. Her eyes had dried but they were still so red. She was trying so hard to be strong and it broke Mika's heart all over again. He knew all too well what that felt like.

"So what now?" She asked, with a hitch in her voice. "Where do we go from here?"

Mika exhaled deeply.

"Well... I have to go back to Vampire Mountain and deal with the fallout of all this. The clan is going to war. There's a lot going on."

"And what about me?" She added, looking apprehensive.

"As much as I hate the idea of leaving you here to deal with all of this... school is the best place for you right now." Said Mika regretfully. "You can call me on the old phone whenever you want. No matter what I'm doing, I'll drop everything and talk to you about whatever you want to talk about. And if you need me here, I'll flit to you as soon as I can."

She still looked uncertain.

"But if you really want, I'll bring you home. You can stay in the mountain and worry about school when you're feeling better." He added, his voice breaking again. "But trust me, Gracie. If you stay here you'll have friends, sports, all that stuff you love. You need distractions... believe me when I tell you, I'd give anything for that. If you come back to Vampire Mountain now, you'll only be reminded of it, every second of every day. It'll drive you insane."

"I'll stay." She whispered at last. Mika breathed a sigh of relief. He knew Vampire Mountain wasn't the place for her right now but the thought of forcing her to stay here against her will, after the revelation he'd just dumped on her, was more than he could handle.

"I'm so proud of you." Mika told her, knowing there were tears forming in his eyes again. "No one deserves this. Especially a kid. You shouldn't have to be this strong, but you are. And I love you so fucking much."

When Gracie broke down again, Mika no longer had the energy to keep himself from doing the same so he just held her as tightly as he could. Until the last angry, bitter tears had fallen and all there was left for either of them to do was learn to exist in a world without Kurda Smahlt.

After this storm there's nothing you can't navigate
Point to the truth, you'll see it's the only way

You're of me, not mine
Perfect in my eyes
You're gonna be alright
Take the best parts of him
As your own life begins
Leave the bad news behind

Honestly Mika's greatest flex at this point is he inadvertently became a shockingly good parent given the circumstances.

Also this chapter was really short I'm sorry. I had severe writer's block this week but I'm trying to get past it. As always, I have a lot of future segments written but I'm still working out what comes after this.

Please leave a comment, it'd make me happy. Thanks for reading. Cheers!

- Roxy