DBH: Accident Prone - Becoming Human

by WayWardWonderer

Connor struggles to comprehend his newly found emotions and learns what it means to be human as Hank guides him along his journey of self-discovery as his deviancy evolves him into something more than a machine. Connor isn't indestructible and his impulsive, selfless nature to accomplish his mission will be the death of him, or even Hank, as he learns what it means to be alive.

201. Life With Henry

Life With Henry: The First Week

The good news of Henry's surprise birth had spread like wildfire through the Central Precinct and everyone in the bullpen was eager to congratulate Connor on his wonderful addition to the family. While the ecstatic police Lieutenant was out on paternity leave to bond with Henry and adjust to his new life as a proud first-time father, Hank moved around the precinct's work schedule and made sure every shift was covered during Connor's temporary absence, and made sure that Gavin could earn some overtime since he was making great strides as a detective and as a person. Everyone was improving their lives one way or another and that hard work deserved recognition.

Now that Luke was back in Boston and Rose had returned to her home to tend to her greenhouse, Connor and Hank were left alone to take care of Henry. Even though Hank had no problem adapting to the care of a newborn baby, Connor was still struggling to find the right balance for taking care of Henry, taking care of Hank, taking care of himself and taking care of the rest of the house.

"You're certain about this?" Connor asked from the front passenger seat of the Oldsmobile as he looked into the backseat where Henry was safely secured in his baby-seat. The newborn was awake and alert, but somehow seemed groggy at the same time. "I'd rather remain at home with the items and the gifts that had already been provided for Henry rather than take him out in this cold weather."

"Trust me, son." Hank gently pulled the car into park and turned off the engine as they arrived at their destination. "Henry is going to outgrow those clothes a lot quicker than you think. Grab a few extra clothes and some more boxes of diapers, and you'll be able to stay holed up at the house until your paternity leave is up in another five weeks."

"All right, I trust you." Opening up his door Connor closed it without slamming it before opening the rear passenger door to get to his son. "Hi, Henry."

The small baby was completely indifferent to the world around him as Connor slipped on the powder blue baby sling over his chest before unclipping Henry from his seat. As Connor gently secured Henry in the sling, his little legs sticking out either side of the supportive device, he grabbed the soft yellow blanket and wrapped it around the baby to protect him from the cold before wrapping the lapels of his leather jacket over top of the baby as well for extra warmth.

"Come on, kid." The senior detective and proud new grandfather encouraged as he neared the entrance of the massive department store. The cold weather had kept most of the city indoors and out of the public, but there would always be a crowd at any department store that stocked items for babies. "The sooner you go inside, the sooner you can leave."

"Yes, you're right." Taking a deep breath Connor looked down at his son as Henry rested while his chest pressed up against himself and relented. "We're right behind you."

As the duo stepped inside the store through the automatic sliding doors of the department designed specifically to cater to the needs of infants and toddlers, Connor suddenly found himself being the target of numerous stares and smiles from the people already inside. It was as if the new father was somehow the center of everyone's world and Connor found the attention rather uncomfortable considering his naturally humble and introverted nature.

"Why is everyone looking at me?" The shy new father whispered in a low voice as he put his palm behind Henry's head and held him close. Letting the baby rest his ear over top of his beating heart was a trick Connor quickly learned would help Henry relax and feel safe. "I don't like it."

"They're staring because you're an attractive guy with a newborn baby strapped to your chest. Right now you're irresistible to single people wanting to settle down with their own family."

"They want... to date me?"

"Yeah." Laughing at the naive question Hank gave Connor a casual shrug of his shoulders. "Something like that."

"I can't do that. I'm still bonded with Skye."

"That's okay, son. You don't have to do anything you don't want to do. Just grab a few things for Henry and we'll get out of here and back home to hide."

"Okay. That sounds simple enough."

Remaining protective of his son and grandson Hank stayed by Connor as he set about locating several larger sized 'onesies', as well as larger shirts and shorts to purchase for Henry. As the new father focused on grabbing what he needed Hank made an effort to keep himself between Connor and prying eyes from people who were interested in Connor for the sake of the shy deviant's sanity.

"There's always extra diapers at the front of the store." Taking notice of all the people watching Connor, particularly a young yet prematurely aging woman that gave Hank a red flag, he decided to take some initiative. "We can grab those after you get a few more clothes and then get home."

"Of course. I'll be sure Henry has enough supplies to get him through the rest of the winter."

"Hold up." Clearing his throat Hank grabbed his wallet from his back pocket and reached into the worn-out, leather object to retrieve a small golden ring. "Put this on your left ring finger."

"What?" Eyeing the offered jewelry curiously Connor didn't understand Hank's logic. "Why?"

"Just do it." Hank placed the ring down in Connor's hand and patted his shoulder. "It's my wedding band. Keep that on your finger and just tell people you're married and show them the ring. It'll help keep people away from you."

"That seems a little strange." Connor looked down at the ring in his palm and gave Hank an odd look. "This is really your wedding ring?"

"Yeah, it took me about two years before I could finally take it off, but I've kept it close to me ever since."

"Thank you." Discreetly Connor slipped the ring on his finger as requested, granted it was a little too big for his finger, but he kept in place, and resumed his shopping in relative peace. "I appreciate this."

"Sure." Moving Connor's left hand so that it was supporting Henry's back, the ring now fully visible to everyone who looked over at him, Hank gave him a subtle nod and took a step back. "And remember, the ones who don't have any respect for your marriage are the type you NEVER want a relationship with under any circumstances. If they don't respect any relationship that you're in now, they won't respect any relationship you could have in the future."

"I'll remember that."

"I'm going to go see if I can find a few extra blankets for Henry." Hank volunteered as he adjusted the blanket to ensure Henry was completely covered. "This winter is going to be brutal, and I don't want him to get a cold."

"Okay. I'll meet you up front."

Keeping his left hand on Henry's back Connor made his way through the store and grabbed what he needed so he could leave the store as soon as possible. Carrying the items under his right arm and right hand, Connor felt more confident and could see several people taking notice of the wedding ring and look away from the deviant disappointed.

However, one woman didn't seem deterred. It was the same woman that had given Hank a red flag only moments before. As she made her way toward Connor in a less than subtle manner Hank took notice and wanted to intervene.

"All right, son." Hank stepped between the woman and Connor, not being discreet in the process, and took some of the items under Connor's arm to hold. "I found a couple of extra blankets. Ready to go?"

"Yeah, I think I have enough clothes for Henry."

"How many of these things did you grab?"

"Seventy-two articles of clothing varying in size ranging from newborn to eighteen months."

"Yeah, that'll cover it. For a while, anyway."

From behind Hank the woman who Hank had been wary of spoke up and approached Connor very assertively. "Is this your son?"

Connor looked uncomfortable but he was polite to the woman all the same. "...Yes."

"He's so cute!" The woman gave Connor the fakest smile that Hank recognized as that of a pathological liar and manipulator. "I bet you're so proud!"

"...Yes, I am. Excuse me, we need to be going."

"Busy day, huh?" Brushing a lock of her unnaturally bleached blonde hair behind her ear she tried to flirt with Connor and get inside his head. "Shopping without your wife?"

"No." Connor shifted on his feet awkwardly but answered all the same as he rubbed Henry's back with his left hand to ensure that she saw the ring. "She couldn't make it today."

"Too bad." Her fake smile broadened, and she took a step toward Connor as the deviant took a step back. "I'd never let my own child out of my sight if I could help it. Some people can't appreciate the children in their lives."

Hank was getting mad on Connor's behalf and spoke up. "Where is your kid anyway, lady?"

"Oh, he's at school." She never looked at Hank but kept eyeing Connor curiously and seemed to be convinced that the new father was rich since he was buying a large number of new clothes for Henry. "My own son's daddy walked out on us, and we-"

"Sweetheart," Hank rudely interrupted and gave the woman an annoyed stare as he tried to intimidate her into leaving Connor alone. "don't even try it. You already know he's married, you saw the ring and heard what he said, so back off."

The woman stared at Hank as if he had just given her a righteous dose of reality and didn't like it.

"Ready, son?" Hank turned back to his son and lightly rubbed his hand along Henry's back. "I bet he's ready to go home."

"Yeah. I'm ready to leave, dad."

The woman crossed her arms over her chest and gave Hank a dirty look as Connor made his way to the front registers with the clothing he had selected, as well as the blankets that Hank picked up. Meanwhile Hank went to grab an extra box of diapers before leaving and put them up on the register as he joined Connor up front.

Henry was beginning to get fussy, and Connor gently soothed him as he rubbed Henry's back again.

"We'll be home soon, Henry. I want to leave, too."

As the items were being paid for the cashier complimented Henry and congratulated Connor on the birth of his child politely, all the while Hank watched as the woman kept staring at Connor from a distance. When she made a move for her phone Hank left the line and stood in front of her again and then showed her his badge as his every instinct as a cop, father and now grandfather put him on edge.

"Lady. Stop."

"What's your problem, old-"

"Put the phone away before I have you arrested for stalking and harassment."

The woman's face suddenly paled as she saw the badge and realized exactly what Hank's problem was. "...You're a cop?"

"So is he." Hank confirmed as he gestured to Connor with a pointed thumb over his shoulder. "And even if he weren't, he's still too damn smart to fall for your little scheme. Not mention the fact that if he weren't married, he could do FAR better than a lazy gold-digging whore like you."

"You don't know me!"

"Honey, I've been a cop for over twenty-five years. I know everything about you, and I feel like I should let you know one very important thing." He leaned in close to her ear as he pocketed his badge. "You're not special."

Defeated at last the woman finally backed away in a huff and didn't bother with trying to seduce Connor anymore.

With the woman taken care of Hank met Connor at the exit of the store and grabbed a few of the bags to help carry the new purchases while the trio returned to the car to set off for home. Moving quickly to keep Henry out of the cold Connor secured Henry to his baby-seat and clipped the supports into place while Hank put the shopping bags in the trunk. Once the two detectives were back in the front seats of the car Connor breathed a sigh of relief and Hank turned over the engine to warm up the vehicle.

"Here." Connor slipped off the ring and handed it back to Hank. "Thanks for keeping that woman away from me."

"Sure, kid." Taking back his ring Hank slipped back over his own finger for the time being and smiled at seeing the golden band on his left ring finger once more. It still fit and it felt like he had never left his hand. "Anything to protect my son and my grandson."

"I'd never let anyone like her around Henry. I've also alerted her current location to the precinct."

"What?" Almost laughing Hank gave Connor an odd look as he pulled the car out of the parking lot and onto the street. "Why?"

"She is a known criminal with a history of prostitution, drug possession, child neglect, child endangerment, child abandonment, shoplifting, and has an active warrant for her arrest for numerous unpaid parking tickets downtown."

"You ran a scan over her?" Hank fully laughed as he pulled the Oldsmobile up to the red light in the intersection and came to a gentle stop. "You seriously scanned her and found her arrest record?"

"Of course." Removing the baby sling from his chest Connor felt an odd sense of satisfaction for identifying the elusive criminal and ensured that she was finally arrested for her past misdeeds. "She gave me a bad feeling and I decided to perform a background check on her as a precaution."

"Good work, son."

"As for her child, he is in the sole custody of his father who moved out of state because she threatened to kill him with a knife; but settled for five-hundred dollars to leave the premises. She now owes six-thousand dollars in unpaid child support."

"And she had the nerve to..." Trailing off a little Hank decided to let the matter drop. "What a bi- witch."

"I know what you were going to say, and I doubt Henry would've understood that particular word." Connor replied softly as he turned around to look in the backseat over his shoulder and saw that Henry had drifted off to sleep in his baby-seat. "I too was offended that she assumed that Skye was an inattentive mother or wife."

"Hard to believe we still live in an era where a father spending time with his child automatically means there's something wrong with the mother. It takes two people to make a child, which means both people involved should take care of the child equally, but tragedy still happens. It's not a crime for a father to take care of his child without a mother being directly involved."

"Did you receive the same treatment when you were out with Cole after Barbara passed away?"

"Yup. It never stopped pissing me off and it felt good to tell off one of those judgmental bit-" Hank was making a conscious effort to swear less now that Henry was around and was getting good at censoring himself. "one of those judgmental idiots."

"Fortunately, I won't have to deal with that again for some time. I'd rather remain at home with Henry until he's a little bigger and stronger before I take him out of the house again."

"I don't blame ya', kid. I'm going to warn you right here, right now; he's going to grow up before you know it." Glancing at Henry's reflection in the rearview mirror Hank smiled again and turned the next block to head home. Having a grandson really rejuvenated the senior detective's life and seemed to be giving him the drive to keep on striving for a better tomorrow. "But no matter how much Henry grows up and changes you'll always see him as your little boy."

"I'm looking forward to watching him grow up." Connor beamed proudly as he watched Henry napping in the backseat. "I want to see what kind of person Henry will become."

"As long as he has you to look out for him then he'll be great, son. Don't you worry about a thing."

---

Life With Henry: 0-3 Months Old

As expected, Connor took to fatherhood naturally and quite easily. He had spent the first six weeks tending to Henry on his paternity leave with only a few bouts of colic to disturb their usually peaceful routines throughout the day and at night. Hank stopped by the grocery store after almost every shift and made it easy for the deviant father to keep up on baby supplies without having to leave the house. After changing Henry's diaper and giving him a comforting bath Connor carried the infant back into the livingroom just as Hank returned to the house with a big box of diapers under his arm and greeted his son and grandson with a proud smile on his face as per usual.

"Hey. How'd Henry do today?" Dropping the box of diapers down on the kitchen table Hank made his way to the livingroom ready to take the infant from Connor's arms to hold for himself. "He seems pretty content."

"Henry's begun consuming more formula than usual over the past forty-eight hours, which is indicative of healthy growth." Connor placed a dark blue pacifier in the baby's mouth as he watched Hank walk into the livingroom. Passing Henry over to Hank's awaiting hands Connor continued to talk about their day. "He then spit-up once on my shirt after his first bottle and then spit-up a little more on Sumo after the third bottle approximately twenty-four minutes prior."

Hank laughed a little as he looked at the massive bundle of fluff laying on the floor next to the couch and saw the still damp patch of fur on Sumo's back where Connor had cleaned him up. "Getting spit-up on is much better than 'accidents' during diaper changes. Trust me on that!"

"Henry's also begun to show more strength in his limbs whenever I place him on his blanket on the floor or place him in the crib for a nap. He really seems to enjoy the stuffed dog you bought for him, too."

"Yeah, stuffed animals are almost always a win with babies. They're soft, lightweight, and don't break when thrown across the room during tantrums."

"I'm not looking forward to leaving Henry at the daycare tomorrow." Connor admitted as he watched Henry being protectively cradled in Hank's arms. The small baby was grabbing on to Hank's shirt collar with both fists and looking at his grandfather's face as he rested against Hank's chest. "But I know I must go back to work. I cannot take any additional time off."

"He'll be fine, son. Besides, Abby will be stopping by Skye Tower from time to time since she's still a volunteer, so I know she'll be watching over him, too. And Henry will have a little playmate with Aria. They don't have a biological connection, but they might as well be half-siblings considering Abby was Henry's surrogate and you're Aria's godfather."

"I'm also a godparent..." Connor's eyes briefly flashed as if something important suddenly popped up in his mind. "That's right."

"Connor?" The way Connor seemed to suddenly worry about something immediately held Hank's attention. "Something wrong?"

"No, I was just thinking about the future."

"Stop it. It's a bad habit."

"I agree." Returning his thoughts to Henry and to the next day Connor focused on his conversation with Hank again. "I also agree that the daycare is the perfect place for Henry to begin developing his social skills and that he will be safe there. How could you stand going back to work after Cole was born?"

"Not gonna' lie," Hank smirked as Henry grabbed onto the collar of his shirt even tighter and began pulling at the fabric. "it wasn't easy. I'd call Barb on my breaks or use my phone to 'face time' with them both whenever I could get away with it. It helped a lot with the separation."

"That's a good idea. I'll be able to watch Henry without accidentally smothering him in the process by cybernetically linking with Skye Tower from time to time."

"Yup. Once you start to blend your work routine with parenting then you'll feel a lot more confident about everything and the worries will begin to ease."

"But never fully go away, right?"

"Nope. They never will." Henry yawned and the pacifier fell from his mouth as he snuggled in against Hank's shoulder for a nap. Happily, Hank obliged in Henry's request and sat down in the recliner so he could gently rock his grandson as Henry snuggled down against his shoulder. "Get used to worrying. Right now, this little guy's ready for some sleep and I couldn't agree more. A nap sounds damn perfect to me."

---

As much as it pained Connor to do so he took Henry out to Skye Tower the following morning and dropped his son off in the tower's daycare for the first time since he had been born. Connor was happy to introduce Henry to the volunteering staff, notably Lila who was thrilled to have another baby to look after, and was very proud to let Abby see Henry for the first time since he was born and since she recovered enough from the delivery to return to work. Dr. Wilson was also excited to meet Henry and happily gave the small infant a complimentary wellness check; although it was more or less just an excuse to play with the baby, and then congratulated Connor with a firm handshake on his big and wonderful changes.

"He's doing great, Connor!" Abby complimented the deviant father as she held Henry in her arms for the first time since he was born. Seeing Henry thriving and the look of joy in Connor's face told Abby that everything she had done was indeed very much worth it. "I'm so proud of you!"

"Again Abby, I cannot possibly thank you enough for doing this. Henry is... my whole world." It was the only logical answer Connor could give to explain how he felt about his son. "I can no longer picture my life without him as a part of it."

"I was happy to do it, and I'd do it again. You know, as long as the hospital can give me better pain medication or just straight knock my ass out."

"I was wondering if you would..." The young father knew that he needed to ask a very important question, but it still somehow felt a little rushed. "If you and Gavin would consider being Henry's... godparents."

"Wha- Connor, of course I would! I'm sure Gavin feels the same!" Smiling at Henry again Abby stood up on her tiptoes to give Connor a kiss on his cheek as she beamed with pride in her eyes and continued to cradle Henry in the crook of her arms. "It'd be an honor to be Henry's godmother."

"Thank you." Relief washed over Connor as soon as he had the answer. "I'd ask Luke, but he's so far away from home, and Hank is... Well..."

"I know, I get it. Remember, it doesn't mean you don't trust them to look after Henry, you're just making sure that if the absolute worst case scenario were to happen that your son will be safe and have someone to watch over him and raise him at all times. That's how me and Gavin decided to ask you to be there for Aria."

"Thank you again. I know if something were to happen to me that Hank would step up and raise Henry as his own, but Hank is a detective too, and of an advanced age that'd make it far more difficult for him to handle."

"It's okay. I'll talk with Gavin tonight after we both get off work and can discuss this. Until then," she briefly passed Henry back to Connor so he could say goodbye to his son before heading on his way to the precinct to begin his first shift after six weeks of paternity leave. "go do your thing. Keep the city safe."

"Always do." Smiling with a subtle nod Connor gave Henry a kiss on his head and handed him back to Abby. "I'll be back tonight at six-fourteen tonight, Henry. I love you very much."

---

Once at the precinct, his mind still focusing primarily on Henry, Connor was greeted with a bunch of 'Welcome back!' and 'Congratulations', and dozens upon dozens of requests to see a picture of Henry from his coworkers. Holding up his palm Connor showed a holographic display of Henry at the daycare center laying on a soft blue blanket with a plastic mobile spinning slowly above him. The response was always a collective 'awe' or 'he's so cute', but for Connor it never got old as he was still a proud new father and very proud to have a son of his own. It felt good to share something so positive with the people he had grown to trust and befriend over the past four years.

As Connor walked by Gavin's desk, he gave the detective a nod of respect and the gesture was sincerely returned without a single word being uttered. The two detectives were officially able to work together and see one another as equals without any bitter resentment between them.

There was an impressive stack of case files waiting for Connor on his terminal screen, not that he minded, since it'd keep his mind distracted. Not to mention the less time he had to spend in the field the more opportunities he'd have to cybernetically check in on Henry without it interfering with his investigations.

"Hey, Connor." Chris walked over to the deviant's desk and placed a dark blue stuffed teddy bear on the desk, as well as yet another box of diapers with a red bow on the side. "Congratulations, man! How's fatherhood treating you?"

"I thoroughly enjoy it." Looking up at Chris beside him Connor gave him a proud smile where he sat as he showed Chris the picture of Henry. "I really do."

Jack, despite being deviant for almost two years, was still unused to human customs and didn't fully comprehend emotions. However, as a sign of good will he also congratulated Connor and asked to see the picture of Henry. Seeing the small infant made Jack's head tilt curiously, but upon seeing the happy looks on both Connor and Chris's faces told him all he needed to know to confirm that a new baby was indeed worth celebrating.

Tina managed to jog over to Connor's desk and give him a small hug before placing a special dark blue blanket down on his desk as a gift for Henry. Instantly Connor recognized the material and technique that went into crocheting the blanket and realized that the purple blanket Aria had was a gift from Tina as well.

"Congrats' on being a daddy!" Tina beamed as she admired Henry's photo. "Oh, man... He looks like you! Except way smaller!"

"I'll take that as a compliment." Picking up the corner of the blanket Connor eyed the gift and gave Tina a curious look. "Did you make this?"

"I wish. My mom loves to crochet and always gives blankets to anyone who has a baby. She made a pink one for Mei, a purple one for Aria, made a red one for Damian and then a sunny yellow one for Renee." Tina smiled as Chris nodded and showed Connor the picture on his phone of his two kids napping in their respective blankets made by Mrs. Chen. "I let her know about Henry and she set to work and all but demanded I give this to you the moment I saw you."

"This is exquisite." Appreciative of the skill and dedication it took to make the blanket Connor gracious accepted the gift. "Tell your mother I appreciate this, and I know Henry will, too."

"Just send me a pic of Henry sleeping in the blanket so I can send it to my mom, and that'll be thanks enough."

"Consider it done."

Hank noticed that Connor had arrived some time ago but waited for him to get back into his routine before speaking with him. Exiting the private office, he approached the desk and handed Connor a tablet to view. "Got something for ya', kid."

Accepting the tablet Connor glanced over the details and his brow arched slightly. "What's this?"

"Joel wants to see you for a check-up. It's been six weeks since you reinstalled that update without checking in with a technician. It's just a precaution, son."

"Very well. I'll go see Joel and ensure that I'm healthy."

Beyond thrilled to have Connor finally being more cooperative Hank gave his son a knowing glance as the deviant rose from behind his desk while Chris, Jack and Tina went about their business. "I take it everyone's already seen a photo of Henry by now?"

"Everyone who's asked anyway." Connor confirmed as he motioned to the provided gifts. "It seems Henry is quite popular."

"What about at Skye Tower?"

"He made a good first impression to the volunteers, especially with Abby and Dr. Wilson."

"Not surprised. He has your looks and my charm."

Smirking a little at the comment Connor straightened the lapels on his gray blazer and made his way toward the corridor across from the bullpen to get to the elevator on the other side. "Sounds like a lethal combination."

"Only from a certain perspective." Chuckling at the quip Hank could only shake his head as he walked back to his desk. "Smartass."

---

Just as he had done while down in the bullpen Connor happily showed Joel a live feed of Henry at the daycare. Henry was playing as best as he could with his still developing motor skills with the plastic mobile spinning above him. The technician was just as awe struck as everyone else and spoke about how when he first met his now fiancée after as she had been divorced and was struggling to raise her two kids alone that he ended up falling into a natural paternal role as well. Joel had his own experience with raising kids and had become really attached to them, even considering them as his own. He truly understood why Connor was so proud of his newborn son and couldn't wait to officially be a dad, too.

"Looks like you're still completely healthy." Joel announced after he finished listening to the deviant's chest with the audioscope. "I'm glad all the glitches in that update have been sorted out."

"As am I."

"You haven't experienced any discomfort or unexplained sensations since the download, right?"

"Correct. I haven't been afflicted with any glitches or bugs, and my self-diagnostic has returned with one-hundred percent functionality readings on a daily basis."

"That's great to hear. My intern Lily returned to Digital Sentience and is using the knowledge she gained from her experiences here to keep bugs and glitches under control. It seems like deviants won't have to worry about any more shady tactics from groups like CyberLife anymore or rely on untested third-party programs."

"That'd be nice." Connor confirmed with a breathy sigh. "I don't think I could handle anymore setbacks or faulty software now that I have Henry to take care of."

"You should bring Henry by the precinct some time." Joel suggested in a sincere and hopeful tone of voice. "I know I'd like to meet him in person."

"I'll consider it." The protective father replied honestly in turn as he finished adjusting his tie and cybernetically filed his approval for active duty. "Thank you for your help. Hank told me that you assisted him in furnishing the house while I was at the hospital during Henry's birth. I appreciate it."

"No problem. You're my friend and you help keep my job interesting. Not to mention you fixed up my truck, so the very least I could do was help you get situated in time to welcome your son home."

"All the same, thank you. I'm so very appreciative to have caring friends in my life and now a part of Henry's life."

"Sure. And remember, me and Sonya are getting married on July 30th this year, you're all invited."

"Thank you. I'll make a note of your wedding date and be sure to have the time off."

---

After his shift ended at six in the evening Connor promptly returned to the tower to pick up Henry and to speak with Abby in person once more. She told him that she'd discuss things with Gavin and get back to him as soon as she had a firm answer later that night regarding potential godparenthood, but it seemed as if everything was already set in stone. As the deviant detective and new father gently picked up Henry from the soft blanket where he was laying, he gave Aria some attention as well and was pleased to see that the two small children were interacting very well together. Seeing how big Aria was in comparison to Henry made Connor excited for the future as he continued to watch Henry grow up and become his own person.

"I'm glad Henry isn't shy." Connor noted as he held Henry in his arm against his chest and held Aria in his opposite arm up against his hip. "I have difficulty with my own shyness at times, I don't think I'd be able to help him very much if we both shared the same trait."

"He'll be just fine." Abby reassured Connor as she took Aria from his arm and gave her daughter a kiss on the cheek. "He's tough. Just like his father."

"...And his mother." The thought of Skye made his faint grin disappear for a moment. "Thank you for everything you've done for us."

"You're very welcome. Are you going to head home?"

"Not just yet. There is one errand I must run before I return home. It's very important for myself and for Henry."

"Do what you need to do." Sensing what Connor was going to do Abby nodded in approval and waved her friend off. "See you later Connor and Henry."

Quietly Connor left the tower with Henry in his arms, then placed him in the baby-seat in the back of the Oldsmobile and drove out to a local flower shop. The final step after his purchase of a lovely flower was to go to the church that held the android cemetery in the back of the property. It was a bleak sight to behold but Connor knew he owed it to both his late bondmate and his son that they should have the chance to meet in some way.

Carrying Henry in his arms and wrapped up in the crocheted blue blanket, Connor approached Skye's headstone and knelt down slowly. Placing the newly purchased lily down on her grave and a second lily on Lucas's grave next to her, the deviant father took in a deep breath. Holding Henry in his arms against his chest Connor, held back the tears in his soulful eyes as he spoke to Skye in a low voice.

"Hi, Skye."

Smiling through his emotional pain Connor introduced his son to his bondmate and did so proudly.

"There's someone very important here that you need to know about. And he's beautiful, just like you..."

---

Life With Henry: 4-6 Months Old

In a matter of a few months Henry was beginning to look more like Connor and was undeniably his son in the eyes of anyone who saw them together. He was sporting thick dark brown hair and had Connor's fair skin complexion. While his eyes had remained blue, they weren't as dark as they had been previously and were now the exact same shade of blue as Hank's eyes. No doubt that was a little detail that was intentional for the sake of a deep familial resemblance on Abby's part when she was selecting what traits to give to the baby during the (literal) conception phase. The way Henry was thriving and reaching his milestones made Connor feel especially proud and confident as a parent.

Connor was laying on the livingroom floor next to Henry and helping the baby to stand up on his own two little feet. As Henry balanced against Connor's forearm he randomly babbled and proceeded to grab for small, brightly colored toys and cram them in his mouth to taste them. As much as Connor hated seeing Henry stick toys in his mouth, he knew that it was normal behavior and understood that for infants their sense of taste is the most sensitive and a great way for him to explore the world around him.

Tugging lightly on the oversized squishy green foam block in Henry's mouth Connor replaced it with the blue pacifier as he watched his son practicing how to balance on his feet and making silly sounds around the pacifier in his mouth. All the while Sumo laid on the floor near Connor with his chin down atop his paws watching Henry curiously.

"Hey, Connor?" Hank walked into the livingroom from the kitchen with a couple of small plastic cups filled with various fruit blends in his hands. One cup was a dark blue shade and the other was reddish-pink hue. "There's six of these in the fridge. Where'd you get these things?"

"I made those. They are pureed fruit blends." The deviant father replied as Henry sat down on the floor, then laid on his tummy as he made a grab for Sumo's tail. The massive dog didn't mind and patiently put up with Henry's little hands pulling on his fur with Connor making sure he never pulled too hard. "I decided to make Henry's baby food myself to ensure I fully understand exactly what he likes and what he dislikes."

"Okay, cool. What are these filled with?"

"The blue container holds blueberries, and the red container holds strawberries."

"When'd you do this?"

"This afternoon while you were at the precinct."

Henry dropped the pacifier from his mouth and grabbed on to the green foam block again. As he clumsily put the toy back in his mouth Connor just shook his head and picked the baby up from the floor with both of his hands. Positioning Henry on his right hip Connor took the toy from his mouth once more and carried him into the kitchen.

"Henry, you shouldn't put items that aren't edible in your mouth."

Hank just laughed and gave Connor a sheepish glance. "Like father, like son..."

"Funny." Connor flashed an amused grin as he placed Henry in his highchair and tucked a pale blue bib around his neck. "I suspect now might be the best time to try new foods since he seems to be a little hungry."

"Good luck."

"What do you mean?"

Hank crossed his arms over his chest and gave Connor a knowing look. "Just wait and see how he reacts if he doesn't like what you offer him."

"I doubt he'll do anything that I can't handle."

"Never assume, son. NEVER assume."

Taking the two cups of fruit purees from Hank's hands Connor selected the strawberry puree and placed the blueberry back into the refrigerator for a moment. As he took a seat next to the highchair Connor dipped a small clean spoon into the fruit and offered Henry a small portion to taste. The baby turned his head away from the offered food and Connor tried to offer it again.

Hank just stood back against the wall and kept his arms folded over his chest as he watched the ongoing ordeal. It was thoroughly amusing to watch Connor trying to feed the little baby while Henry himself wasn't exactly feeling cooperative that day.

"Please, Henry." After a little coaxing Connor was able to get a small amount of the fruit on Henry's lips and the baby responded with a strange curiosity. It seemed as if the new flavor was appealing if not interesting. "Do you like it?"

Intrigued by the flavor Henry was suddenly more receptive and made a grab for the spoon in Connor's hand.

Hank saw what was about to happen from a mile away and tried to warn his son before it was too late. "Uh, Connor-"

With a swift motion Henry proceeded to pull the spoon in his father's hand and shake it enough to send a splattering of red-pink fruit over himself, the highchair, the surrounding floor and of course Connor's face. Without flinching Connor just patiently took the spoon back from Henry's grip and used the bib to clear off the baby's face.

"...I can't tell if that was a positive taste test or negative."

Keeping quiet Hank just smirked as he walked over to the table and looked at the mess Henry had created. Lightly he pressed his finger to the side of Connor's cheek and wiped away a smudge of the strawberries and laughed. "I think he liked it, but I can't guarantee he liked the way it tasted."

"I might need some wipes before this is over."

Still laughing Hank patted Connor's shoulder as he walked down the hallway to retrieve the necessary wipes from the bathroom as the deviant had wisely suggested.

Trying again Connor put a small portion of the fruit on the spoon and offered it to Henry. This time Henry was willing to actually taste the fruit, but as it turned out he disliked it. Letting out a small grunt of discontent as he made a face Henry again shook the spoon in Connor's hand creating an even bigger mess as he tried to push the offered fruit away from his lips.

With the container of wet wipes in his hand Hank returned to the kitchen to see more of the strawberry puree all over Henry, the highchair, floor, parts of the walls and Connor himself. "I take it he's not a fan of strawberries."

Wiping more puree from his face Connor sighed and answered his father accordingly. "Apparently not."

"Don't worry about it." Taking a wipe from the container Hank offered some fatherly advice on the silly situation at hand. "Why don't you try the blueberries instead?"

"What makes you certain that the blueberries will be received more positively?"

"Because you like the taste of blueberries. Maybe that sense of taste was inherited by Henry."

"Ah, I see." Wiping more of the strawberries from Henry's face with the bib Connor replaced the lid on the strawberries and swapped the disliked fruit out for the blueberries instead. Using a clean towel Connor wiped off the residual strawberries from the spoon and opened up the second container and proceeded to offer up the new fruit to the self-amused infant. "All right, let's try this instead."

Henry was still being cooperative and let Connor feed him the blueberries and didn't seem to protest the offering. After the taste had a few seconds to set in the little baby let out a happy noise and made another grab for the spoon in his father's hand. This time Connor held a tighter grip to keep a third mess from being made and proceeded to dip the spoon back into the fruit blend to continue feeding Henry.

"You were right." Connor noted the positive reception with a smirk. "Henry does like blueberries."

"What other fruit did you buy for him?" Hank asked as he took one of the wipes from the container and proceeded to remove the strawberries from the kitchen walls to keep the red hue from staining the surface. "Nothing exotic I hope."

"No, I went with more simple fruits for the time being." Happy that Henry was eating well Connor continued to dip the spoon into the blueberries and let the infant guide the spoon to his own mouth in the process. "Strawberries, blueberries, apples, bananas, red grapes and peaches. I had considered watermelon as well, but that would've been a very large amount of fruit. I may pick up some cherries next time, as well as mangoes, kiwis and perhaps pineapples and oranges."

"Are you seriously going to let him taste every single fruit in the world one at a time?"

"Yes." Waiting to see if Henry was still interested in the blueberries Connor turned to look at Hank as the senior detective moved away from the wall and slowly knelt on the floor to clean up the rest of the mess. "I will move on to vegetables next."

"One at a time, right?"

"Correct."

"Man, when I said you needed to become more patient I didn't expect you to get THIS patient."

"Does this seem excessive?"

"Nah, it just seems like a big project. But if anyone will see it through to the end, it's you."

Henry had enough of the blueberries and shook the spoon again as he let out a small noise of protest. This time Connor was ready and used his hands to keep the mess from splattering against the walls again by hold them up around Henry in a shielding manner, but in turn he became coated under another layer of sticky fruit. Connor looked at Henry's messy face, his own face not fairing much better, and got a big smile and a little laugh from the baby as a result.

"Perhaps I'll skip the wipes and go straight for a bath." Removing the bib from around Henry's neck Connor picked up the baby from the highchair and held him in his arms against his chest. "Let's go, Henry. Bath time."

"Hey, Connor."

Turning to face Hank he saw that the senior detective had his phone out and pointed straight at his and Henry's messy faces. "Yeah?"

"Smile!"

---

The warm spring was steadily turning toward an even warmer summer and Connor was enjoying every moment of learning how to be a good father for his young son. With Henry happy, healthy and thriving in his father and grandfather's care, it was no wonder that the deviant detective felt an overwhelming sense of pride whenever he went anywhere with Henry or was asked about his young son. As he slept peacefully in his bedroom knowing that his son was sleeping in the crib right beside his bed without a care in the world, Connor was awoken by a strange whispering sound and what seemed like an excited energy building in the air. The deviant had developed a new sense of hearing thanks to his paternal instincts kicking in as Henry grew up.

Opening his eyes Connor looked around his bedroom and noticed that Henry was curiously absent, and that Hank was awake far earlier than usual. Sitting up in his bed Connor made sure to feed his fish in the aquarium then went in search of Henry, although he knew that Henry was already spending time with Hank since there was no way for his still infant son to escape the crib itself.

"Dad? Henry?" Walking down the hallway Connor entered the livingroom and saw the space empty save for Sumo still asleep on his pillow in the corner of the room. Turning his attention toward the kitchen the deviant then saw his father and his son sitting at the kitchen table with Hank reading the morning newspaper and Henry nursing from his bottle. "Why are you up so early?"

"Because we need to be at the restaurant in twenty minutes." Hank replied in a sly manner as he flashed Connor a knowing look. "We're ready to go, how about you?"

"...Restaurant?" Having no idea what Hank was referring to Connor tilted his head and tried to understand what was happening. "What're you talking about?"

"Today is Father's Day." Standing up from the table Hank plucked Henry from his highchair and held him in his arms with great pride. "And it's your first Father's Day in general. We need to celebrate it."

"Oh." The day's significance had completely eluded Connor since he had been so focused on Henry as of late. "I hadn't even considered celebrating that particular holiday with Henry."

"A lot of new dads forget about it the first time it happens. Come on." Motioning for Connor to head down the hallway and change his clothes Hank checked Henry's bottle and opened the backdoor so Sumo could go outside for a few minutes. "We need to get going before it gets too crowded."

"All right, give me five minutes."

"No problem. I'll make sure Sumo's fed and then me and Henry will meet you in the car."

---

The selected restaurant itself was of a nicer caliber in comparison to the usual fast-food places that Hank preferred to dine at, and due to it being a special day the restaurant was far busier than what one would consider normal. Even though it was fairly early in the morning there were a lot of people already sitting at their tables and booths while the frantic staff set about taking care of their numerous customers as efficiently as possible. Dozens of people from all walks of life were sitting together with their families - both big and small, biological, blended and adopted, - as they all celebrated the special day with their beloved familial patriarchs in one way or another.

Hank, Connor and Henry were shown to a very large private booth in the back of the restaurant where some good friends were waiting for their arrival. While Hank wasn't at all surprised by the familiar faces at the booth, Connor was a little shocked but happy all the same.

"Captain Fowler." Connor acknowledged his former commanding officer in a polite voice. The man was wearing a nice navy blue dress shirt and slacks while his wife was wearing a red sun dress, his son was wearing a sky blue dress shirt and his daughter was wearing a sunshine yellow sun dress as they sat together in the booth. "It's nice to see you again."

"Hey, Connor." Greeting the deviant with a strong handshake the retired Captain gave Connor a small smile. "And it's just 'Jeffrey' now. I'm no longer a Captain and you don't have to be so formal."

"Apologies. It's an old habit."

"No harm done. And this little man," noticing Henry in Connor's arms, Jeffrey smiled brightly and reached his hand out to shake with the little baby. "must be Henry. When I heard the news of you stepping into the role of fatherhood, I couldn't have been happier for you."

"Thank you." Placing the baby in the highchair at the side of the booth Connor sat down and stayed right beside his son. "I'm happy, too."

"And Hank," Jeffrey looked at the older man as Hank sat beside Henry on the other side of the table. "you seem damn proud to be a grandfather."

"You have no idea." Proudly giving Henry's hair a small rub Hank smiled at his grandson with utter joy. "My sons and my grandson are my whole world."

"I know what you mean." With his wife and two grown children sitting beside him Jeffrey was truly in high spirits as well. "I couldn't be prouder of my own family. Especially since Jeremiah and Ruby both made the Dean's list this year."

"No kidding?" Hank looked at Jeffrey's son and daughter with genuine happiness in his words. "You two must be working your butts off. How do you two like college life?"

"It's all right." Jeremiah admitted as he waved over more invited guests to the booth. "I like the independence, but I hate paying for every little thing I have."

"Sounds like you're ready to face the world already."

Ruby tilted her head a little as she agreed with her older brother. "I could go for less mornings needing to be fueled by coffee, but I'm enjoying it, too."

"That's good to hear. I'm glad you're both in school and doing well."

Gavin, Abby and Aria soon joined everyone at the booth and sat down after Connor moved aside so they could slide into the booth to sit down. Happy to locate a booster seat for Aria to use Connor was thrilled to see his goddaughter while enjoying his first Father's Day with his family and friends.

"Nice to see you again Cap- Uh, Jeffrey?" Gavin replied in a somewhat confused voice as he looked at the retired detective across from in the booth. Like Connor, he wasn't sure how to address his retired former Captain out in the real world. "Is that cool?"

"Yeah, Gavin." Laughing at the remark Jeffrey settled into his new role as a retired detective socializing with his former detectives and officers elsewhere. "It's nice to see you again, too."

"I'm glad you made a full recovery." Pressing his palm over the faded scar in his chest beneath his purple dress shirt Gavin sighed and then gave Aria a loving glance as his daughter snuggled in her booster seat between himself and Abby. "Getting shot sucks."

"Don't I know it." Acknowledging Gavin's daughter in the booster seat Jeffrey smiled and offer her his hand, too. "And this lovely little lady must be Aria. If I stuck around a little longer at the precinct I could've met you sooner."

Aria smiled as she held onto Jeffery's hand and made happy noises.

"We're missing a few more people." Jeffrey admitted as he picked up one of the menus sitting on the middle of the table. "But we could order something for the kids while we wait."

"Good idea." Hank looked through everything on the menu and motioned to something for Connor to see. "Check it out. They have a kids menu that has stuff for really little kids to try. I bet Henry would like to sample all these sugary fruit syrups."

"After the incident with the purees," Connor gave his father a small glare and then a smile. "I think we'll wait a while longer before letting Henry try anything of a sticky variety."

Abby laughed as she held up her phone and showed Jeffrey, Marie, Jeremiah and Ruby the photo that Hank had sent her. "I think Henry has excellent taste in fruit! Don't you?"

As everyone laughed at the picture Connor blushed a pale blue and then noticed Joel heading into the restaurant with a woman and two young children beside him. Needing the distraction Connor directed everyone toward the technician and his family at the doorway. "Is Joel the last person we're waiting for?"

"He's one of them." Jeffrey waved toward Joel to let him know where to find his booth. "Chris, Julia, Damian and Renee are on their way, too."

"I see." Connor noticed that Joel and his fiancée, Sonya, were together with their kids. The way the kids were holding Joel's hands helped confirm that the technician was ready to be the loving stepfather the kids really needed. "Joel, it's nice to see you without it needing to be a meeting up in your dispensary."

"The feeling is mutual." Happy to show his family to the booth Joel introduced everyone at long last. "I'd like you to meet Sonya, my fiancée."

Sonya was a slender woman with a dark purple blouse, had fiery red hair, dark green eyes, a fair complexion and a noticeable beauty mark on the left side of her chin. She had an award winning smile and seemed thrilled to be meeting Joel's friends at long last. "Hello, it's nice to meet everyone!"

"It's nice to meet you, too." Connor confirmed politely as everyone made room for the additional four guests. "And your children."

"This is James," Sonya introduced her son, a seven-year-old brunet with his mother's green eyes and an energetic personality, and then her daughter who was four years of age, shared her mother's red hair but had her biological father's brown eyes. "and this is Bridgette."

"Hello, James and Bridgette." Connor greeted the two children politely. He knew Joel was fond of his now fiancée's children, but he never had the chance to meet them until that day. "My name is Connor." Nodding to Henry beside him in the highchair he introduced his son to them as well. "And this is Henry. He's my son."

"Baby!" Bridgette pointed to Henry and then to Aria excitedly. "Baby! Mama has a baby in her tummy!"

Sonya discreetly shushed Bridgette while Joel sighed and shook his head a little. "Yeah, we were going to wait a while longer to say anything, but... Sonya and I are going to add at least one more Forrest to the family in the next six months."

"Congratulations!" Abby beamed as she laughed a little at Bridgette's outburst. "Hopefully this new little one will be better at keeping secrets than their big sister."

"That'd be a nice change. 'From the mouths of babes' and all that... " Sonya laughed at last as she too sat in the booth and made sure her kids were sitting properly in the booth beside herself and Joel. "I keep forgetting how kids have no appreciation for discretion or timing."

"Which is why Gavin and I agreed to have our more personal discussions either over text or after Aria has gone to bed. She might end up accidentally telling a big secret and putting us in an awkward place."

Sonya grabbed Joel's hand and nodded at him. "We're totally using that technique until the kids are old enough to recognize the power of embarrassment."

"I'm going to take all the parenting advice and techniques I can get."

"Formula and diapers." Connor and Gavin replied in chorus as they gave Joel a knowing look. "You'll need them."

While the booth laughed and placed small orders for their meals Chris arrived at last with his family and happily joined everyone else in the back of the restaurant. After securing Damian and Renee in their own booster seats and exchanging introductions, Chris happily enjoyed the Father's Day breakfast with his wife, his friends and coworkers while sharing stories of his kids and experiences as a father.

The table was filled with delicious food, and everything looked incredible. Connor fed Henry his small helping of cinnamon applesauce and juice while everyone else had their own breakfasts, and made sure all the younger kids were able to eat without any problems.

"And thanks to Damian cramming a peanut butter and jelly sandwich into the old Blu-ray player I can safely say it's much cheaper to just stream his favorite movies and keep my own movie collection safe in the bedroom." Giving his son a playful smirk Chris watched Damian giggle and grab onto an apple slice to put in his mouth. "You owe me one Blu-ray player, little man."

Damian looked his dad right in the eyes and never lost his smile as he gave his answer. "No!"

The answer resulted in everyone laughing as Chris just shrugged his shoulders in defeat.

The way the kids were all enjoying the day as much as the adults was heartwarming. Everyone was in high spirits and Connor couldn't help but feel as if he were going to miss out if he didn't celebrate future Father's Days with Henry. The way his friends and family were all laughing and enjoying themselves just confirmed that his desire to become a father and have his own family had been one of the greatest dreams he could've ever have, and it had come true.

"This is pretty fun, huh, Henry?"

Henry smiled as he smeared some applesauce on the tray of his highchair with the spoon in his hand while his dad spoke to him.

"We'll be sure to spend Father's Day together every year." Using a small wipe Connor cleaned off Henry's chin and watched his son still mastering the art of feeding himself safe-to-eat baby food. "We don't always have to go to a restaurant, but we will be sure to do something together."

Hank overheard the comment and agreed as he put a small amount of maple syrup on his spoon for Henry to taste. "And you'll cherish every single one of them, son. I did with Cole and I know I will do the same while watching you bond with Henry."

"You're my dad." Connor needlessly reminded the senior detective. "You'll be invited to these moments, too."

"Nah, you deserve to have some one-on-one time with your son." Hank insisted as he watched Henry love the syrup taste and pine for more. Offering Henry a small amount of blueberry syrup next, the sweet flavor just as enticing to the little baby as the maple syrup, Hank gave Connor a warm smile. "We'll do something together, too. We'll do something as father son, and you'll do something with Henry as a father and son on the same day."

"All three of us can't do something together? Or with Luke?"

"Oh, sure we can." Hank next placed a small amount of raspberry syrup on his spoon and watched as Henry loved that new fruit taste, too. "But having moments with just your son is precious time you can never get back. We can split the day up so we're all together and bonding in our own ways after you and Henry have your time together. Sound good?"

"Yeah." Smiling proudly at his young son as he happily tried every little thing offered to him, Connor agreed to the future plans. "That sounds like the best."

---

It was a hot summer day, but it wasn't too uncomfortable thanks to the large wedding venue having powerful air conditioning. A modest gathering of friends and family had converged together to witness the upcoming wedding that was to take place just outside along the scenic lakefront, and they were all currently taking advantage of the cooler atmosphere while they waited for the ceremony to begin. The bright sunny day made capturing the special day easier for the photographer, but for the guests and members of the wedding party it was proving to be a tad uncomfortable. Without any complaints the group patiently waited for the ceremony to begin before heading outside to take their seats and watch the young couple be wed.

Inside the venue Connor noted that the only familial parties invited to the wedding were from Joel's side of the family. It seemed Sonya didn't have a very supportive family, or she had a very small family in comparison. Connor politely introduced himself and Henry to Joel's mother, his grandmother and to Joel's aunts and uncles, and watched as Joel's best friend and the best man roamed the venue to make sure everything was happening according to schedule.

"This is what's called a wedding, Henry." Connor stated casually as he held his son in his arms. They were both wearing simple black suits with white dress shirts, but only Connor was wearing a tie, shoes and socks considering how hot it was outside. "This is a gathering to watch two people who love each other get married. Perhaps someday you'll have a wedding of your own."

"I think you're thinking WAY too far ahead into the future on that one."

"Abby?" Spotting his friend walking his way Connor happily let Abby take hold of Henry to hold for a few minutes. The woman was wearing an elegant teal gown, had her hair pulled back in a half ponytail and looked as radiant as ever. "I was unaware that you were also invited."

"What can I say? Us technicians have to stick together." Grinning at Henry in her hands Abby lightly rubbed her nose against his nose making him giggle. "And I'm an old softy when it comes to weddings. Where's Hank?"

"He was unable to get the day off, but he sent a gift to Joel and Sonya all the same. What about Gavin?"

"I asked if he wanted to come with me today, but he couldn't pass up the chance to have a daddy-daughter day with Aria at the waterpark. Who am I to say no to a toddler getting hyper on snow-cones and putting up a fight every time she needs new sunscreen applied?" Handing Henry back over to Connor for a moment Abby peered over her shoulder to the other guests and gave Connor a small smirk. "Kind of a small gathering, huh?"

"I've noticed that as well." Connor readjusted Henry in his arms and counted all of the people gathered at the venue. "I see that Sonya has many friends in attendance, but I don't see any family members."

"From what Joel was willing to tell me, she escaped a pretty strict and religious household, and her family shunned her for it." Lowering her voice respectfully Abby helped Connor understand the situation. "They hated the idea of their oldest daughter running off to wed a man outside their religion, but when they ended up getting divorced a few years later, she was disowned entirely."

"That's a ridiculous reason to stop talking to a family member." As he spoke Connor subconsciously tightened his arms around Henry to hold his son closer. "I could never do such a thing."

"Me neither. That's why I figured I'd sit on the bride's side during the ceremony so that Sonya has more support. Care to join me?"

"Absolutely." Glancing about again Connor realized two important guests were apparently absent. "Where are James and Bridgette?"

"They get to be the ringbearer and the flower girl, so they'll be right up front with their parents during the whole ceremony."

"And what of Sonya's ex-husband? From Joel told me, he is unreliable and at times dangerous."

"That won't be a problem." Grinning mischievously Abby leaned in and whispered in Connor's ear. "That piece of shit has a history of showing up and ruining special events between Sonya and her kids while dodging child support payments, so Gavin spent the past week hunting him down and had him personally served with a bench warrant for all the missed child support payments, then personally pulled him over and had him arrested for attempting to elude a court date yesterday morning when he failed to show. He's spending the weekend in jail and won't be coming around Sonya for a while until he's caught up on his payments."

"That's a very creative solution to an ongoing problem."

"Yeah, and it was Gavin's gift to the happy couple." Abby admitted with a twisted glee. "I just got them a gravy boat, so I think Gavin wins this time."

Music began playing and the group in the venue began to slowly file out to take their seats outside. The white chairs were lined up in even rows along the lake under some shady trees and would allow everyone to see the ceremony without needing to stand in the sun for too long. A short aisle ran between the two rows toward the lakefront where a small white gazebo had been set up for the bride, groom and their party to gather while they exchanged vows.

"That's our cue." Abby sighed and smoothed out the front of her satin dress to make sure she looked her best. "Ready?"

"We both are."

Politely Connor took Abby's arm in her own and walked with her out toward the lake and promptly took their seats on Sonya's side to show the bride support where her family failed to be. Holding Henry on his lap Connor observed the other people gathering outside and smiled as Dr. Wilson, Jack and even Lily also showed up to celebrate the couple on their wedding day. It didn't take long for them to see what Connor and Abby were doing, and promptly moved to the other side to show support for Sonya. They were all friends of Joel, and as his friends they wanted to show how much they cared about him and Sonya by approving of Sonya and giving her as much acknowledgement as Joel's own family were already doing.

It was a simple gesture, but one that was sure to have a massive impact in the long run.

---

Despite the ceremony being small in size, the party that followed was absolutely massive and full of fun energy. Joel and Sonya were beaming with genuine love for one another, and they were happily dancing around and celebrating their marriage in style. Shortly after the couple cut their cake and Sonya tossed her bouquet into the crowd to be caught by her maid of honor, the couple gave everyone another reason to celebrate as they announced that Joel had officially adopted James and Bridgette to be his children, and then they announced Sonya's pregnancy to raucous applause and tears of joy. The newlyweds encouraged everyone to eat and drink their fill for the night before they took off for their honeymoon.

Connor and Abby happily took turns entertaining the younger ones in attendance while also having a little fun of their own. While Connor wasn't a fan at being the center of attention, he did exit his comfort zone long enough to indulge Sonya in a polite dance and of course allowed her to do the same with Henry. It seemed Henry adored all the attention and had no problem meeting new people in contrast to his father.

"You know," Abby rejoined Connor at their table and offered him some sparkling Thirium while she had her single glass of wine. "moments like this make me wish that me and Gavin had a big ceremony to celebrate when we got married."

"You could always renew your vows and have a big celebration later."

"Yeah, that's a good idea." Seeing Sonya smiling and getting such positive affection from Joel's friends and especially his family made Abby truly appreciate what it meant to find a new family in the form of trusted friends. "Maybe we'll do that for our twentieth anniversary. Think you'd be interested in helping us plan?"

"I don't see why not."

"Cool, it's a deal." Sipping her wine slowly Abby watched as Sonya finished her dance with Henry and watched Joel take the smiling baby to hang out with for a few minutes before handing him back over to Connor. "You know, they're both going to be great parents with an even better family. Sonya raised two kids solo until Joel showed up, and then he just took her kids in as her own without any hesitation. That's a true family right there."

"I agree. Joel's parents divorced when he was a child, and he was raised alone by his mother. I imagine he understands how Sonya's children feel to not have their biological father around." Connor observed and then momentarily silenced himself as he took Henry back from Joel's hands to ensure his young son wasn't getting too worked up. "Empathy is important to any strong, respectful relationship."

"That's definitely why you're such a great father on top of being a great detective and great person all around."

"Thank you." Connor blushed a little but didn't dismiss the compliment as he offered Henry a small sample of frosting from the slice of wedding cake on Abby's mostly cleared off plate. As expected, Henry loved the sweet treat and smiled up at his dad in response. "I imagine Joel and Sonya will be leaving for their honeymoon soon. Do you have a ride home?"

"I can drive, this is my one and only drink for the night." Abby promised as she gave Connor a coy wink and finished off her wine. With her drink polished off Abby focused on finishing the rest of her cake to ensure nothing went to waste that night. "But I could use a dance party for at least one song. What do you say?"

"I say... Okay." Standing up casually Connor offered Abby his arm again to escort her to the dance floor. "However, Henry gets to join us."

"Absolutely." Accepting Connor's arm Abby proudly walked out to the dance floor with her dear friend and the happy baby to enjoy the music before the night was over. It wasn't often that either of them could just have a night out with friends without needing to worry about being called to an emergency. "It's an honor to dance with two handsome gentlemen at one time."

---

Life With Henry: 7-9 Months Old

Carrying Henry in his arms with the supportive technical sling around his healing left shoulder making it a tad uncomfortable for the time being, Connor prepared to circle the block as Hank had instructed, although he still didn't understand why. It was Halloween night and the neighborhood was alive with laughing and screaming costumed children running around the neighborhood and ringing doorbells to go trick-or-treating before it became too late in the evening for such fun. Connor had witnessed Halloween a few times before while on patrol over the past five years, but he never once participated in the festivities until that night. There was no need for a deviant to celebrate Halloween, and even now Connor still didn't think he had a valid reason.

It had taken Hank almost a week to coax Connor into finally agreeing to go out on Halloween night. The older man wanted to celebrate every possible holiday with his grandson, and he wasn't going to take 'no' for an answer.

"Why are we doing this?" Connor asked as he walked with Hank at his side while they set outside the house together. The two detectives were dressed in crude 'Blues Brothers' costumes thanks to their abundance of dark suits and finding some hats and dark sunglasses while they were out looking for Henry's costume earlier that week. "We've never participated in Halloween before."

"That's because I'm too old," Hank quickly countered as he casually adjusted his sunglasses over his eyes. "you're too unfamiliar with the entire concept, and there's too much for me to try to explain to you in one night."

"What about Henry?" The little baby was dressed in a similar manner, a dark suit, hat and sunglasses for 'the sake of humor', as Hank put it. "He won't remember this night since he's so young."

"No, but you'll remember. And this is still his first big holiday, so he needs the chance to be a part of it."

"I see. I personally don't like the idea of walking up to strange houses and requesting candy."

"It's not about the candy. It's about kids having fun and getting to be whoever, or whatever, they want for one night of the year."

"You used to do this as a child as well?"

"Yeah, me and my buddies would stay out as long as we could until one of our parents wrangled us up and took us home for the night."

"And you wore a costume?"

"That was kind of the point, son." Hank reminded Connor of what he had just said about kids dressing up and gave him a stern glance through his dark tinted sunglasses. "Come on. Let's head out to the park, it always looks great during fall."

Connor was still trying to understand the unusual human holiday for Henry's sake. It didn't help that the deviant detective did cybernetic research on the topic the origins of the holiday and what he was currently witnessing wasn't adding up entirely. Adjusting Henry in his arms so he was a little more comfortable and resting against Connor's warm chest, the deviant father accompanied Hank to the park as requested.

"According to my data, Halloween is a Pagan holiday designed to honor the memory of the deceased, ward off evil spirits, and to encourage charitable donations from the neighborhood. Those who were not generous or refused to donate at all were subjected to cruel pranks or public humiliation."

"Yup."

"But now no one is expected to participate if they don't want to do so?"

"Yup."

"Interesting."

"Traditions change or just plain get forgotten over time, kid." Hank smirked as Henry made a few babbling noises and kicked out his legs in Connor's arms. The little baby was staring at the glowing Jack-O-Lanterns along the street with wide-eyed wonder. "Now Halloween is about children having fun with make-believe, hanging out with their friends, getting hyper on candy, and gaining a sense of independence when they go out with their friends instead of their parents. And adults use these evenings with their kids hanging out with friends to hang out with their own adult friends and have some fun. Some will still dress up, too."

"I'll remember that as Henry grows up."

Once they reached Riverside Park the duo sat down on the bench overlooking the river and looked out at the water as the autumn sunset glowed over the dark surface and colorful leaves swirled about them on the sidewalk. There were other kids in the park as Halloween Night slowly encroached over the city. The kids were all dressed up and playing together while their parents were sitting down on another bench to check through their collected candy for any sign of tampering before heading back home.

Connor looked down at Henry's face and smirked as his son continued to kick out his legs and make small noises at the new sights and sounds he was experiencing for the very first time. "I imagine once Henry is older he'll enjoy this holiday more."

"Yeah." Hank agreed with the sentiment as he looked over at Henry and nodded once. "Cole didn't really get into Halloween until he was four. It think that's a pretty average age with kids. He needed to be dinosaur every damn year, too."

Connor noted the mounting chill in the air and wrapped his suit jacket around Henry protectively to help him stay warm. As he did he winced a little as the motion slightly pulled on his sore shoulder.

"How's your arm, son?"

"The repairs should be completed in the next seven hours. The bullet tore through the main connecting joint between my left arm and my left shoulder, while also damaging the main Thirium line running down the limb." Tilting his head toward his bad shoulder, Connor offered up an intriguing suggestion. "Perhaps the Kevlar vests should be converted to Kevlar shirts and be given sleeves."

"I'll bring that up at the next I.A. meeting."

As the small family admired the beautiful natural scenery around them and listened to the kids laughing in the park Connor now understood why Hank loved to bring Cole to the park so often. It was as peaceful as it was gorgeous and brimming with positive energy.

"I love it out here." Hank reached his hand out and grabbed on to Henry's little hand where he sat. The way his grandson turned to look at him filled Hank's heart with love. "I bet he'll love all the glowing pumpkins when we walk back home. That's one of the best parts of Halloween; the decorations."

"Henry does seem to enjoy lights and bright colors." Connor agreed as he had observed Henry's reactions as they walked to the park. "He still enjoys the yellow and blue blankets over the brown blanket back home, and he seems to really enjoy the brightly colored animated movies you play for him at night."

"Maybe you can sort through some of his toys and see if he has a color preference yet."

"He already seems to favor the blue blanket and the blue blocks he plays with." Giving Hank an uncertain glance Connor thought about the family's future together and how Henry was going to continue to change and grow. "In time I'll make sure his bedroom walls are painted blue."

"Good idea. Come on," carefully Hank patted Connor's good shoulder he motioned back to the sidewalk. "it's getting pretty cold already. It's not a good idea to keep Henry out here without a coat for too long."

"I agree. Perhaps next Halloween we can do something more exciting for Henry and let him participate more than he is at the moment."

"Absolutely." Remembering all the good times he had as a kid with his friends during the holidays, Hank was eager to let Henry develop and become a happy, playful little boy. "Kids need to have fun while they're still innocent."

---

The late autumn air brought an uncomfortable chill over the city and Connor was absolutely exhausted as he held Henry against his chest as he sat on the couch in the livingroom. Despite everyone's best efforts Henry had managed to catch a little cold and Connor felt absolutely miserable on his ill son's behalf. Rubbing Henry's back gently Connor tried to soothe his sick son and help him fall asleep to get some more rest, but the baby was just as stubborn as Connor and didn't want to rest for longer than a few minutes at a time and stay still for too long. There was no denying that Henry was miserable and was growing impatient with his illness refusing to let up so that he could recover.

Opening up another colorful book Connor tried to keep reading to Henry to distract him from his discomfort, but the little baby wasn't interested in any bedtime stories and tried to squirm away from the book as if protesting the gesture. The last thing Henry needed was to get worked up and start crying while he was already ill.

Through the backdoor of the house Hank returned home from the store with a grocery bag with some children's medicine inside, and immediately asked about Henry's condition. "How's he doing?"

"His fever is holding at one-hundred degrees even. It's not too high but he is exhausted."

"Is his nose running?"

"No, he's all right at the moment."

"No vomiting or diarrhea, right?"

"No, thankfully." Connor confirmed the symptoms as he held Henry up against his chest to keep him comfortable and contained. "Just a mild fever and he's tired."

"I bought some children's ibuprofen. It's safe for him now that he's older than six months, but I used to use cool sponge baths to help Cole whenever he got sick to bring down his fever without taxing his body too much."

"That's a good idea. I'll also offer him some formula that I put in the refrigerator. Hopefully that'll be soothing and help him to feel better."

"Come here, Henry." Hank gingerly took Henry from Connor's hands and sat down on the couch while the deviant went into the kitchen to get the mentioned bottle from the fridge. Accepting the bottle from Connor's hand Hank tried to offer it to Henry as the baby continued to fuss a little in Hank's arms. "We'll help ya' feel better soon, bud."

After handing over the bottle Connor let Hank take over while he sorted through the items in the grocery bag on the kitchen table and put them away accordingly until they were needed. "I appreciate you postponing your shift to help us."

"It's not a problem, son."

Henry slowly took to the bottle and leaned heavily against Hank's shoulder. His small hand was wrapped around the bottle and he was looking around the livingroom curiously as he became more alert after his brief nap in Connor's arms before Hank returned home.

"Since he's getting his shots tomorrow," the experienced father continued as he watched Henry closely. "you can ask the pediatrician about his cold to make sure he didn't catch something a little worse."

"I will inquire accordingly."

"Well, Henry seems alert as usual and wanting to play on the floor. Maybe this isn't a cold after all." Hank watched as Henry pushed the bottle away and let out another pained grunt while pressing his fingers to his mouth. The little baby was looking to Hank as if silently pleading for help as he chewed on his hands. "Hold on, I think I know what's going on." With a gentle pressure Hank put his fingertip in Henry's mouth and lowered his tiny jaw. "Yup. He's teething."

"Teething? I remember Gavin mentioning that particular milestone with Aria and it being troublesome."

"It hurts and it can cause mild fevers when the baby gets stressed out enough." Hank let Henry chew on his finger a little bit as the pressure seemed to help with the relentless ache in his little gums. "It happens to all babies."

"At least it's not an infection."

Henry let out more babbling sounds as he waved his fist around as if annoyed at his own body.

Placing Henry down on the thick yellow blanket on the floor where the coffee table had once been, Hank watched as the baby resumed crawling about, free at last. Henry proceeded to make more sounds that were gradually becoming closer to actual words as he homed-in on the colorful foam blocks on the floor and began babbling to himself as he reached out for his toys.

"I'll bring back some teething rings after I clock out this evening." Hank volunteered as he knelt on the floor to give Henry a little goodbye kiss before he stood up again to head for the door. "He'll be fine, son."

"What do I do if he becomes too uncomfortable?"

"Give him a cold wet washcloth to chew on." The senior detective suggested casually as he took his leave of the house. "Works every time and it'll help him cool off while numbing his mouth. It's a win-win solution."

Joining Henry on the floor after Hank took his leave, Connor watched as the baby played with his squishy multicolored blocks and let out an occasional pained grunt.

"Well, Henry, it looks like I'm going to have to introduce you to brushing your teeth pretty soon. What do you think of that?"

The baby turned to look at Connor, his blue eyes focusing right on his dad's face, and babbled again.

"I had a feeling you'd say that."

---

While at the precinct, bored because he and Connor had taken up more rotating shifts so one of them could be with Henry at the house more often, Hank waited for the clock to countdown to the end of his shift. As he finished dealing with the tedious piles of reports and arbitrary updates from City Hall the senior detective couldn't stop wondering how well Henry was doing with his pain and how Connor was handling a new milestone in his son's life. Hank knew that his grandson wasn't feeling well and would need some additional T.L.C. once 'Papa' got home to make it better. The lack of activity in the precinct and abundance of activity at home seemed like a torturous contrast that Hank had to deal with for a few more hours.

The photograph of Connor and Henry covered in the strawberry and blueberry mess from a few months prior sat on the corner of his desk and always made him smile when he looked at it. It was sitting next to the photograph of Barbara holding Cole and a photograph of Luke proudly standing beside his little brother outside of Fenway Park in Boston. The sight of his family all together made Hank's heart swell with pride.

While overlooking a truly bizarre case of a drunk guy breaking into a repair shop and trying to ride a vacuum cleaner around the store on a dare, Hank got an alert on his phone from Connor. It was a request to 'face time' and that was something that Connor never did. Accepting the request Hank stared at the phone screen and caught sight of Henry standing in the middle of the floor with a big red foam block in his hands. His back was to Connor as the deviant filmed his son from where he sat and cybernetically connected his visual processors to Hank's phone.

"Connor, what's going on?"

'I thought you'd like to see this.' The deviant father replied casually before calling out to Henry. 'Henry, can you do that again? Come and see daddy.'

The baby turned around to face Connor and proceeded to awkwardly but surely toddle his way over to Connor's outstretched hands as he continued to chew on the soft red block. His steps were slow and seemed uncertain, but Henry made the journey and collapsed against Connor's chest with a small laugh as he proudly smiled up at his father's face.

"Ah man... He's walking." The sight made Hank's heart swell even more and suddenly that day didn't feel so boring or glum. "I'm so proud of him."

'His fever has disappeared as well. I think it's safe to say he's going to be just fine as you stated earlier.'

"That's great news, son." Feeling his worries ease entirely Hank sighed and made sure to save the recording on his phone for future views. "Thanks for showing me his first steps. That... That was something truly amazing."

'I'll see you tonight. I plan on trying new foods with Henry for dinner and I suspect that you might want to take more photos in the event that he tries to feed himself again.'

"Yeah," Hank laughed as he glanced at the photo on his desk again and replied with good humor. "you suspect right, son. See ya' in a few hours."

As the call ended Hank continued to chuckle to himself as he felt better now than he had in years. The sight of Henry walking and Connor proudly taking on the role of daddy was something that seemed to prove that the peaceful bonds between humans and androids was meant to last forever.

---

After a few weeks of teething and mild fevers Connor had figured out an effective routine and kept Henry quite content as the baby continued to grow. Connor was sitting on his bed with his legs stretched out before himself and with Henry on his lap while Sumo rested his chin over the deviant's ankles. Happily, the young and devoted father was strumming a tune on his guitar much to Henry's delight, and the curious baby smacked his hands over Connor's hands as he played the nameless tune as if he was trying to play along. Undeterred by the sound and very interested in new forms of music meant that Henry was the perfect audience for Connor's sporadic playing.

"I'll be sure to let you take music lessons when you're older, Henry. Whatever instrument you like you can play."

With a soft 'click' of the front door closing Hank returned home from the precinct a little earlier than normal and proceeded to make his way into the bathroom without speaking to Connor as he closed that door as well. Despite the relatively loud sound of the guitar, Connor had heard Hank come home and walk into the bathroom as discreetly as possible. Sensing that something was wrong Connor put aside his guitar much to Henry's dismay and placed the baby down in the nearby crib for a moment after climbing off of his bed.

"I'll be right back, Henry."

Connor promised as he placed the blue pacifier in Henry's mouth.

"I need to go check on your Papa."

While Henry babbled loudly around the pacifier and made his almost-words after Connor as he stepped out of the bedroom, Connor himself knocked on the closed bathroom door then opened it slowly. Peering inside the room Connor saw Hank sitting on the edge of the bathtub with his hand pressed against his sore lower back and a look of pain in his blue eyes.

"Are you sick?" Connor asked quickly as he pressed his hand to Hank's forehead and ran a biometric scan to check his vitals. "You aren't feverish."

"No, I'm not sick. My back's just killing me." Hank admitted with a weak voice. "I almost threw it out today when I helped restrain an unruly suspect."

"How bad's the pain?" Moving his hand from Hank's forehead to the senior detective's back Connor could feel the muscles tensing up under his palm. "There is a lot of muscle tension in your lumbar region."

"Pretty bad. I couldn't take sitting at my desk anymore and took off early."

"Is your range of mobility limited?"

"No, it just hurts."

"Use a hot bath to ease the tension in your muscles." The deviant prescribed basic remedies to ease the discomfort as he retracted his hand. "I'll bring you something for the pain."

"Don't worry about me, kid. I can-"

"I know you can take care of yourself." Connor interrupted now using the same 'dad voice' that Hank had always used on him. "But I want to help you. Please?"

Sighing with amused defeat Hank relented and agreed to the offered help. "All right, son. You win."

"I was bound to win at some point." The deviant smirked as he reached into the bathtub and turned on the faucet. As the tub began to fill with warm water Connor gave the senior detective a relieved an appreciative grin. "Try to soak in the water for at least an hour before getting out. I'll bring you a muscle relaxer and some clean clothes."

"Thanks, son. I appreciate it."

---

The hot bath did seem to help with Hank's pain, but it still wasn't enough to combat the negative effects of time against Hank's body. Trying to relax as much as possible to get his muscles to loosen up, Hank was laying on his bed on his stomach with a heating pad on his lower back. Laying with his head on his pillow and his eyes on an old book angled awkwardly to allow him to read, Hank felt old again for the first time in months and he hated that it felt like his body was betraying him at every chance it had. Annoyed and unable to focus on the story despite it being one of his favorites, Hank sighed despondently and put the book away on his nightstand to be taken care of later.

There was a knock on the partially closed bedroom door before Connor opened it up and let Henry toddle over to the bed. Henry had a child's book clutched in his little hands and wanted someone to read him the story. With moderate difficulty Henry managed to partially climb up the side of the bed to climb on top to cuddle with Hank, but Connor still gave him a helpful boost to make sure he made it all the way.

"Hey, Henry." Hank was more than happy to have his grandson join him while he was down for the count. "How you doing?"

Henry responded with his usual babbling; his sounds ready to become actual words at any minute.

"Yeah?" Laughing a little Hank looked at the book in Henry's hand and smirked at the happy baby. "Me too."

"I made some tomato soup in case you were hungry." Connor stated from the doorway as he watched Henry laying down next to Hank as if he was ready to put himself down for a nap and wanted someone to read to him in the process. "Would you like some?"

"Sure, thanks."

"Would you also like me to make a doctor's appointment to have your back examined?"

"No, don't worry about it. It's just old age and there's no cure for 'old'."

"You're not old." The deviant stated with a sly smirk on his face. "You're experienced."

"Yeah, no dice. I'm old."

Connor knew that Hank was hurting and showing his age a little more, but he didn't want to think about it too much. "Well, you look good for your age at least."

"Gee, thanks." Hank chuckled again as he looked at Henry lying beside him and smiled. "Do you hear the way your daddy treats your Papa?"

From where he was laying on his tummy Henry gave a happy smile to Hank as he babbled a few sounds then something coherent fell out. "Pa-pa."

Connor and Hank's eyes went wide with pride as Henry said his first word and made the old detective suddenly feel a lot better about his age.

"...That's right." Rolling slightly onto his side Hank pulled Henry in for a hug and held him close. "I'm your Papa."

"That was his first word." Walking over to the bed Connor put his own hand down on Henry's back and rubbed a little. "Glad I didn't have to 'face time' it for you to enjoy."

"I'll tell you one thing," the senior detective's smile was broad as he stared at his grandson who was smiling himself, even as he let out a yawn and started to drift off to sleep. Henry laid down again on his tummy next to Hank and closed his eyes. "that made me feel a lot better."

Connor was smiling warmly at the sight of Hank cuddling with Henry on the bed. "Still want that soup?"

"Yeah, sure. By the way, we're supposed to be going out to Rose's place for Thanksgiving in three weeks. I'm sure she has something planned already, but pack extra food for Henry just in case."

"Of course, I'm already prepared for the holidays this year." Connor's eyes were alight with genuine interest in celebrating the upcoming holidays with both his father and his son. "We have a good reason to celebrate again."

"I'm not surprised at all to hear that."

---

Life With Henry: 10-12 Months Old

A massive family gathering at Rose's house had brought together the unorthodox, but loving family, from Detroit to celebrate Thanksgiving Day. Rose only had Adam as her family, and since he spent most of his time at school, she was often alone with only her dog, Titan, as company. It was nice to have a full house of friendly faces and excited conversations taking place all around the welcoming house as everyone gathered together to celebrate the holiday. Hank and Connor arrived with Henry early enough to help Rose out in the kitchen; Connor was still unsurprisingly a very good cook, and they were shortly joined by Adam after he returned home from his girlfriend's house to celebrate the holiday with his mom.

An hour or so later Gavin, Abby and Aria had all arrived as well since the small family, who had no extended family to speak of, didn't mind joining in on the holiday. Aria and Henry were playing together in the livingroom while everyone chatted together in the kitchen and helped prepare the very generous meal. Connor could keep tabs on the two babies from the other room very easily and it was safe to say that the evening was going to be peaceful.

When it came time for the meal itself Connor had prepared a special selection for Henry since he was still wasn't quite ready for larger portions of solid foods yet, as well as something special for Aria just in case. He had also stocked up on extra wipes in case Henry decided to shake around a spoon again or feed himself in a less-than-ideal manner at the table.

Fortunately, everything went off without any problems or messes and everyone just enjoyed each other's company without having to deal with interruptions. It didn't take long for Henry and Aria to wear out from the day's events and were left to nap on the blue soft blanket on the livingroom floor side by side. The evening came to an end, and everyone gathered in the livingroom together to chat a while longer before departing back to the city and to their homes.

Abby stared at Henry and shook her head with wonder as she compared the baby to his father. "Henry seriously looks just like you, Connor. It's incredible."

"You're the one who made it possible." Connor proudly quipped as he sat on the couch and watched his son napping peacefully next to his goddaughter. In a way, it was like Henry was napping next to his big sister. "Can I ask why Henry's eyes are blue while mine are brown and Skye's were hazel?"

"Because Hank's eyes are blue." Abby confirmed with a sly smirk. "I wanted to make sure that the grandfather had some resemblance his grandchild."

"I figured as much, but I wanted to be certain." Smiling at the confirmation Connor nodded appreciatively at the kind technician and friend across from him at the second couch over top of the coffee table. "I think that was a good decision."

"So, Henry's first word was 'Papa'?"

"Yeah, that's Hank's preferred nickname. We were both stunned and very proud." The deviant father confirmed with a happy grin. "What was Aria's first word?"

"She said 'da-da'." Abby replied with her own pride as Rose joined the two in the livingroom with two mugs of coffee and a mug of warm Thirium in her hands. "I made sure to dodge that bullet."

The comment made Connor's brow arch inquisitively. "Dodge the bullet? In what sense?"

Abby gave Connor a sly glance. "I'm going to hear 'mom' a lot when Aria grows up, so I wanted to make sure her first reaction was to call for 'dad', then me second. That way I won't go insane from hearing 'mom' all day long."

Rose laughed as she looked at the two sleeping babies and thought about raising Adam. "That's a smart move, I wish I thought of that. Adam said 'mama' and that's all I heard for hours on end for four years straight. I love him with all my heart but hearing that all day can drive you crazy." She sipped at her mug of coffee after handing the second mug to Abby and the Thirium over to Connor, and then sighed with loving memories on her mind. "There are times where I really miss it though. This big house is really empty without him."

Connor smirked to himself as he watched his son with true pride in his soulful brown eyes. "Henry's also taken his first steps. I wasn't expecting it and it took me by surprise."

"When Aria started walking the first thing she did was go after Lucky." Abby replied as she watched Aria sleeping beside Henry on the blanket. "Fortunately, the cat was smart enough to jump up onto the back of the couch and get her tail out of pulling range. Don't worry, we got Lucky some special shelves to climb on so that she doesn't resent Aria's playful nature."

"Sumo tolerates Henry grabbing his tail, but I make sure Henry doesn't accidentally hurt Sumo when he plays."

Rose smiled again as she remembered that she left Titan with a big bowl of food and water in the laundry room. "I don't think Titan would be so patient. He's never been around little kids, and I didn't want to take any chances."

"I don't think Henry is old enough to understand that not all dogs will behave in the exact same manner as Sumo."

"Hey," Abby perked up as she looked to Connor for a little confirmation. "did Joel and Sonya share pictures of the baby yet?"

"Yes, actually." Holding up his palm Connor happily showed Abby the holographic image of Joel wearing red scrubs as he held his newborn daughter in his arms with Sonya smiling in the background as she remained in her hospital bed. "The baby was born two nights prior. Sage Miranda Forrest."

"Oh, she's beautiful! I hope she gets her mom's red hair and her dad's blue eyes, that'd be a killer combo."

Hank rejoined the others in the livingroom along with Gavin and Adam after the group finished politely cleaning up the kitchen and taking care of the garbage. The three had then decided to admire the cobalt blue Corvette up close and personal before coming back inside.

"Anything happen while we were gone?" Hank asked as he sat beside Rose and discreetly wrapped his hand around hers. "At least anything we want to know about?"

"Nothing more exciting than showing everyone the picture of Sage the babies napping."

"Sounds plenty exciting for me right now."

Connor knew that Hank's back was still hurting him but didn't want to complain. "It might be best to return home. I don't want to risk Henry's sleep cycle becoming disturbed when I have a shift tomorrow."

"Yeah..." Hank knew what Connor was doing and appreciated it. Squeezing Rose's hand as he prepared to say 'goodbye' Hank agreed entirely with what Connor had just said. "Nothing throws off your morning routine more than a cranky baby."

After saying their 'goodbyes' and packing up Henry's things, the two detectives set out back to the city with Henry still peacefully asleep even after he was picked up and placed his baby-seat in the back of the car. With Connor driving Hank leaned back in his own seat and closed his eyes to try to ease the lingering pain in his lower back as much as possible during the drive.

Glancing at Henry's reflection in the rearview mirror Connor gave Hank a logical opinion while whispering to not disturb his son's rest. "I still think it's more practical to use the Oldsmobile for Henry's baby-seat."

"Yeah, you're right. We'll switch them back out tomorrow morning."

"How's your back?"

"Sore, but at least I can move again."

"Perhaps a new mattress will help your back."

"Maybe, but I'm pretty sure no matter how new a mattress is I'll stay old."

Connor shook his head a little in response as he stared at the rearview mirror and looked at Henry's peaceful, napping face. The reality of Hank's dwindling mortality was making Connor wary at home and extra careful at the precinct. Ever since Henry had been born Connor's first thought had always been to his son and how Henry still needed him, which made it easier for the deviant to put his life above entering a hostile environment or risking his own life in favor of trying to keep a dangerous suspect from hurting themself.

"What're you thinking about, son?" Hank didn't even open his eyes; he could feel Connor thinking again. "The future?"

"I think I know what I'm getting you for Christmas." He lied quickly but believably as he wanted to keep Hank from worrying too much about anything else for a while longer. "Maybe a little sooner than that."

"Focus on Henry this year." The man was more invested in Henry having a fun Christmas than anything else. "Don't go out of your way for me."

"I'm won't, I'm merely looking out for my father just as you would for me and Henry."

---

After a peacefully quiet month in the city, it was now Christmas Eve, and the house was covered in colorful lights and other decorations that made Henry very happy to look at. Connor was holding up Henry to let him (clumsily) hang large plastic ornaments on the higher branches of the Christmas tree in the corner of the livingroom while Sumo watched curiously from his pillow in the opposite corner. Hank had gone out to do some last minute shopping, which Connor knew was a lie to cover up some other secret endeavor and had just returned home through the backdoor with a massive brown shopping bag tucked under his arm in an attempt to conceal the contents of the package.

"The tree looks great, Henry." Hank called out as he passed through the livingroom and made his way toward the hallway. "Keep it up, I'll be right back."

Connor knew Hank was up to something but he also knew better than to call him out on it.

As Henry babbled random words Connor handed him another plastic ornament and watched as the baby awkwardly managed to hook it onto the branch. With the final ornaments in place, some branches more decorated than others, Connor took a step back from the tree with Henry still in his arms and gently shook the baby's now empty hand between his finger and thumb.

"Papa's right, it looks great."

Hank returned to the livingroom and put his hand on Connor's shoulder as he stood beside him and admired the tree. "Looks like everything's ready for tomorrow morning. Think Henry knows what's in store for him?"

"I don't know. I wish I knew what he was thinking, it'd make it much easier to communicate with him."

"He says 'Papa' all the time."

Henry looked over at Hank and repeated the word as if being requested. "Pa-pa."

"See?"

Connor's jaw squared a little as he turned to face his father just behind him. "He can also say 'doggy', 'yes', 'no' and 'toy'."

"But not 'dad', huh?"

"No, not yet."

"He will. Give him time." Reaching over to take Henry for himself Hank held the baby up to his chest and let Henry rest his little head against his broad shoulder. He felt Henry yawn and his little tummy rumble and knew it was time for a diaper change and then bed. "I'll go change him and put him down for the night. You have the presents ready to go, right?"

"Yeah. I stored them in the laundry room out of sight and to keep Sumo from nosing around too much."

"Perfect."

While Hank took Henry down the hallway to sleep for the night Connor walked into the laundry room and picked up the various boxes wrapped in brightly colored paper to place under the tree for Christmas morning. Carrying the boxes in neat stacks in his arms Connor put each one beneath the thick green branches of the artificial tree and looked down at the tree skirt where Henry's name had been embroidered right above his own name and below Skye's name. The name 'Lucas' stuck out to him and he smiled to himself as he thought about his big brother out in Boston.

"Hopefully, Luke doesn't have any trouble making it in from the airport tonight."

"I had to read him a story first, but he went down easy." Hank returned to the livingroom after ten minutes and saw the modest pile of gifts ready to go for Christmas Day. "Wow, you went all out this year."

"It is Henry's first Christmas, and I didn't know what to get him since he can't communicate just yet. Do you think this is too much?"

"Not really. Whatever toys he doesn't respond to we can always donate to charity."

"I did purchase a few additional toys for the 'Toys for Tots' charity before I left the store, and I dropped off the gifts for Aria and Joel's three kids after I clocked-out last night." He motioned to a bright purple box sitting atop the smaller pile. "That's the gift for Henry from Abby and Gavin."

"Sounds like you know exactly how to enjoy and appreciate the holidays, son."

"Can I ask what you were shopping for this evening?"

Giving his son a coy glance Hank made stood at the end of the hallway and remained secretive. "You'll see tomorrow."

"More gifts for Henry?"

"Something like that." The man replied cryptically as he folded his arms across his chest. "Anyway, you know the drill. As soon as Henry's awake we open gifts and then we start making Christmas dinner. I know Henry still isn't ready for a lot of solid foods just yet, but that doesn't mean he still can't enjoy something special for the occasion."

"Right."

"I'm going to crash for the night. That new mattress does seem to help my back a bit, so thanks for the early gift, kid."

"And it helps with your snoring."

"What?"

"I said 'You're welcome'." Connor quickly covered his comment as he patted the side of his leg to get Sumo's attention. "Goodnight, I'll see you in the morning. I'll go into rest mode shortly; I just want to make sure everything is ready to go for tomorrow."

"Yeah, goodnight, son."

"Goodnight, dad."

The following morning loud babbling awoke Connor, and he turned his head to see Henry standing up in his crib watching him as he slept. Sumo was sprawled out on the foot on Connor's bed, and as soon as Henry woke up so did the loyal dog. Sitting upright in the bed Connor noted the time of the morning and decided to go ahead and get Henry ready for his very first Christmas. There was no reason to try to go back to sleep or to expect his son to understand that on holidays people typically slept in as they enjoyed their day off before they celebrated with their friends and family.

"Good morning, Henry. Merry Christmas."

Henry held out his hands toward Connor as if saying 'pick me up' and Connor of course obliged. As he held Henry in his arms Connor decided that first thing's first; the little baby would need to be changed before he started opening up his gifts.

"Hopefully Papa is awake, too."

With Henry changed into a fresh diaper and a clean 'onesie' he carried the baby down the hallway into the livingroom. Sumo was right at Connor's leg, but soon the dog trotted quickly forward into the livingroom and sat down at another person's feet. Connor stopped just behind the couch and was almost startled to see 'Santa Claus' himself standing in front of the Christmas tree waiting for them to arrive.

"Uh... Hello." Connor immediately recognized the face behind the fake white beard as Hank, but all Henry saw was Santa Claus. Henry of course let out excited babbles and his eyes lit up at the sight of Santa standing in his own home. "...Merry Christmas?"

"Merry Christmas." Holding out a small box wrapped in blue paper toward Henry, 'Santa' continued to speak in a slightly deeper and theatrical voice to keep up the charade for Henry's amusement. "This is Henry's first Christmas, so I wanted to give him this gift myself. It's special!"

"O-Okay." Unsure of what was happening Connor took the box and opened it up on Henry's behalf while 'Santa' took Henry from Connor's arms. Inside the box was a golden pocketwatch with Henry's full name engraved over the gilded finish and had a long gold chain attached. "Wow."

Taking the watch from the box Connor held it in his palm for Henry to see. Opening the cover of the watch Connor saw a second engraving on the inside and read the inscription out loud to his son.

"There's an inscription inside just for you, Henry. 'Time is fleeting, but memories last forever. Love Papa'."

"Pa-pa." Henry repeated as he heard the name and looked into 'Santa's' blue eyes. "Pa-pa!"

Connor closed the watch up and held it in a protective fist as Henry's little hand reached out and took hold of Connor's hand with his tiny fingers. "...Thank you for this. This is an amazing gift."

"It's my pleasure. Now, 'Santa' needs to go and see other children in the city. Have a Merry Christmas, Connor and Henry."

"Y-Yeah, you too."

Connor took back Henry and watched as 'Santa' made a discreet exit through the backdoor with Sumo following after him.

"Henry, this is truly an amazing gift." Clutching the watch tightly in his hand Connor knew how much the gift would mean to Henry when he grew up. "As much as I want you to have it with you always, I know it'd be best to keep it somewhere safe until you're a little bit older. Okay?"

In less than a minute Hank walked through the backdoor in normal clothing as casually as possible and rejoined his family in the livingroom. Sitting down on the couch he held out his hands to take Henry away from Connor to hold for himself for 'the first time' that morning. As Connor passed the baby over Hank 'noticed' the pocketwatch in Connor's grip and asked about it.

"So, where'd that come from?"

Connor gave Hank a knowing glance but played along. "From 'Santa'. It's a gift for Henry, but it looks like you did all the work and Santa just played the messenger."

"It was worth it for him."

Happy on his young son's behalf, Connor just smirked as a knock on the front door drew his attention elsewhere and he handed the pocketwatch over to Hank to hold protectively. Without even needing to check the deviant pulled open the door and let the guest inside.

"I'm glad you made it in time."

"I may be missing Henry's first birthday, but I'm not missing his first Christmas." Luke promised as he stepped inside the house with three wrapped gifts tucked under his arms. "Merry Christmas."

"Luke?!" Hank's eyes went wide with surprised shock. "How in the fu-" he stopped short and quickly censored himself on Henry's behalf. "heck, did you get here?"

"I flew in last night and stayed at New Jericho Tower so I could visit you today. Connor said that having the whole family together would be the ideal Christmas present for you, and I agree."

"Man, you both got that right." Hank rose from the couch with Henry in his arms and promptly gave Luke a hug while also passing Henry over to his Uncle to hold for a while. "Best gift I could ever ask for."

The gathered family sat together in the livingroom exchanging gifts, chatting and watching Henry play with the empty boxes more than he did any of his new toys, and just enjoyed one another's company. Sumo was laying atop the torn up wrapping paper chewing on his new rawhide bone watching Henry fuss with the boxes and make odd, excited noises as he played in the controlled mess.

"I wish I knew you were coming, Luke." Hank stated as he stared at the blue eyed deviant sitting in the recliner and watching Henry playing. "I would've got ya' something more than that Gears cap I mailed you last week."

"It's okay. Besides, I don't like the idea of trying to fly back to Boston with a lot of personal items. Being able to spend time with my family is all I wanted."

"Yeah, I don't blame you."

"Being here and getting the chance to play with Henry before I have to leave tomorrow is enough of gift in itself." Luke tagged only humbly. "You know, when Connor's done."

Truly happy on that Christmas Day Connor was laying on his side on the floor watching his son toddling about with great intrigue through the empty boxes and wrapping paper. Everything that Henry did was always fascinating to Connor and his paternal instinct was incredibly strong toward his only son. The little wooden box that Gavin had hand carved and gifted to Henry was sitting on the coffee table and now contained the special pocketwatch to keep it safe for years to come. The box itself had a two koi fished carved into the lid and was reminiscent in design to the music box that Connor had gifted to Aria on her birthday.

Distracted by the colorful mess all around his feet Henry was still walking about some boxes and briefly lost his balance causing Connor to reach out his hand and catch Henry before he fell over.

"It's okay. Daddy's got you."

Henry grabbed onto Connor's forearm with both of his hands and made some new babbling noises. "Dad-dy."

Both Hank and Luke had heard the word and were staring at Henry with proud smiles on their faces.

"That's right." Sitting upright on the floor entirely Connor smiled broadly himself and pulled Henry onto his lap. "I'm daddy."

Hank smirked as he used his phone to take another photo of Connor holding Henry. It was one of the rare times when Connor was smiling a full smile, not just an amused smirk. "I told you he'd get around to calling you 'daddy'."

"I guess that was Henry's Christmas gift to me." Connor was righteously proud and smiling at the baby sitting on his lap. "And I love it."

"Merry Christmas, sons." Hank stated in an equally proud voice to Connor, Luke and Henry as he snapped the photo for safekeeping on his phone. "Let's hope this is the first of many family Christmases we share together."

---

It had been three weeks since Christmas passed and the small family trio was ready to start a new celebration.

Happy and surprisingly full of energy Hank carried Henry into the kitchen and placed him down in the highchair as if sitting a king on his throne. There were brightly colored balloons all over the kitchen walls and the kitchen itself smelled of freshly baked birthday cake. Henry babbled loudly as the bright colors amused him to no end despite having no idea why they were there. A massive, colorful banner was stretched over the kitchen doorway that spelled out 'Happy Birthday' and a small round cake was sitting on the kitchen table just waiting for the birthday boy to enjoy. The cake had white frosting with blue icing to spell out Henry's name and signify his very first birthday.

"Happy birthday, Henry." Hank stated as he gave the baby a kiss on top of his head. "I can't believe it's already been a full year since you came into our lives."

Connor agreed as he carried in a large rectangular box wrapped up in blue paper into the kitchen. "It's very strange to have so many changes take place in such a limited time frame. Henry's grown and changed so much already."

"I'm glad it's all been for the better."

Henry smiled and kicked his feet at the sight of the blue paper as Connor placed the gift on the table behind the cake.

"Happy birthday." Connor parroted as he placed the cake on the highchair tray in front of him. It was a small personal cake just for Henry to enjoy. "This is a special occasion where you're allowed to make as much of a mess as you want."

Sensing the impending celebration Sumo casually strolled into the kitchen and laid down under the table beside the highchair and wagged his tail as he watched Henry happily squirming about above him.

Hank held up his phone and watched as Henry made a reach for the cake with a curious hand. "Connor, take a step back unless you want cake all over your shirt and... well... everything else."

Learning his lesson from the fruit puree incident a few months back Connor did take a step back and watched as Henry's little hand made a huge dent in the white frosting on the cake. Grabbing a fistful of the cake Henry brought the sugary treat to his mouth and grinned at the sweetness. Bits of cake fell all over the floor around him and Sumo readily cleaned up the mess on Henry's behalf.

"Uh, good boy, Sumo." Connor didn't want to yell at the dog, especially since he was just eating what fell on the floor, but he didn't want to encourage him to eat human food either. "I guess since this is a special occasion you get some cake, too."

Laughing as Henry made a bigger mess and smeared cake all over his hands, his face and the highchair, Hank seemed at peace with the world and with himself. It always did his heart good to see the same milestones he had witnessed with Cole being repeated by Henry. It was like he was given the chance to watch his own firstborn son grow up all over again and relive those wonderful moments for a second time.

"Maybe I should've given him the gift before the cake." Connor rubbed his hand over the back of his neck anxiously as he looked at the frosting all over Henry's tiny hands and dreaded the mess he'd have to clean up. "It'd be easier for him to play with his gift without cake stuck to his hands."

"There was going to be a mess either way, son. What did you buy him?"

"You'll see." Placing the gift box a little closer to Henry for him to reach Connor pulled away the ruins of the smashed cake once Henry started paying attention to the blue box that was presented to him. "All right, Henry. Here's your gift."

Still lacking the coordination to tear open paper or peel up the flaps by himself, Henry grabbed all over the smooth surface leaving frosting covered handprints in his wake while Hank and Connor discreetly loosened the paper on the baby's behalf.

"Come on, Henry. Open it up." Connor encouraged as the baby pulled down some of the paper and worked to reveal the gift. "You can do it!"

Slowly but surely, Henry managed to tear down enough of the paper to open up the gift (mostly) by himself.

"Wow," Hank was impressed by the revealed item and titled his head at the offered item. "good gift, son."

The box contained a small plastic blue guitar that was designed to help infants experience and learn about music. It was a lightweight toy and made of strong plastic to ensure it wasn't broken by rough play, and it was the very color that Henry seemed to admire the most at the moment. Opening up the cardboard box keeping the oy safe Connor pulled out the guitar, removed it from its plastic packaging and turned it on for Henry to see.

"Fortunately, it doesn't require battery replacement, only a charge time of ten minutes so he can play for approximately six hours."

With cake still on his hands Henry smacked his palms all over the new toy excitedly.

Hank chuckled at the reaction while Sumo readily licked up more cake crumbs from the floor. "I think he likes it, kid."

"I'm glad. I just hope he doesn't favor this toy over any of the other potential gifts from his guests when the show up this evening."

"We'll have to wait and see, but I think he'll be happy with everything that everyone gives him. It was also a good call to let him destroy a cake before the guests arrived. It'll make things a little less chaotic with a kitchen full of people."

"I believe that's what would be referred to as 'controlled chaos'." Using his thumb Connor wiped a smear of cake from Henry's cheek as he gave his son a kiss. "Happy birthday, Henry. Hopefully it's the first of a thousand."

---

Life With Henry: Fifteen Months Old

With a keen eye Connor watched as Henry roamed the livingroom with a plastic blue colored sippy cup in his hand while Hank laid stretched out on his back over the length of the couch. The senior detective's aging back had been slowly getting worse over the past year due to Hank spending more time sitting behind his desk at the precinct, and Connor knew that Hank helping to take care of Henry after work was exhausting him quickly each day. Hank of course would never complain about how tired he felt since he loved Henry and Connor, but Connor refused to let Hank exhaust himself to the brink of sickness. The protective deviant was willing to bring up a delicate subject as a means of helping Hank even if it was something he didn't want to admit to needing help with.

"You know, Henry is going to need to have a bedroom of his own in a few months." Connor stated as Henry roamed around and kicked over some squishy blocks that he had partially stacked up earlier that morning. The mess was as commonplace as Sumo's fur on the furniture. "And it's going to be harder to keep him contained without putting up barricades everywhere."

Hank sighed a little as he turned to look at Connor over the back of the couch as the deviant headed Henry off at the kitchen. "Yeah, I know."

"I recently learned that the Brilsteins next door are moving and that their house is now up for sale."

"Yeah?" Of course Hank already had an idea of what Connor was hinting at and just wanted Connor to cut right to the chase. "What about it?"

"I've already made them an offer and I think they'll accept it."

"Ah, I see." Smirking a little Hank forced himself to sit up on the couch and watched as Connor next kept Henry from trying to climb on the bookshelves in the livingroom and put him back on the floor to resume playing elsewhere. "So you're going to move out into your own house, but just go right next door?"

"If my offer gets accepted, yes."

"Cool."

Glancing at Hank as Henry went about his next task Connor made sure that the idea of moving out wouldn't hurt Hank's feelings. "...You won't be lonely?"

"You're going to be living right next door, son. It's not like you're moving out of state or even across town. And I know that you'll be stopping by all the time anyway, so it's not a big deal. Besides, you'll be taking Henry and I'll be keeping Sumo here so that you don't have to worry about Henry trying to sample dog food when your back is turned." Holding up a 'shushing' hand Hank followed up on his previous comment. "Trust me, a toddler who takes a bite of dog food is going to spit-up and it won't be pretty... Especially when they try it a second time."

The positive reaction and support made Connor relax where he stood and feel more at ease. "I'm glad you're okay with us moving."

"You're free to do your own thing and Henry's your son. You know what's best for him, and if you think moving into your own house to give Henry a safer environment to explore is the best choice, then do it. I'll help you as much as I can, and I'll always be there to watch over Henry whenever you need me to. I promise."

"I know that." Picking up Henry, eliciting a grumpy 'no' from the toddler for his efforts as Henry tried to climb onto Sumo's back to ride him like a pony, Connor gave Hank an appreciative nod. "Thanks, dad. Once the deal is set, I'll begin packing things up a little bit at a time and make the progress slow to keep Henry from getting too upset."

"I get the feeling you'll be more upset than Henry at this point, but thanks anyway."

---

Life With Henry: Two Years Old

As much as Connor loved Henry and enjoyed every day he spent with his son, he had to admit that he wasn't a fan of the dreaded 'terrible twos', and he was worried that he'd lose his patience fast with Henry's new habit of screaming out his emotions. It wasn't a daily occurrence, but Henry would sporadically have temper tantrums and would sometimes throw toys in anger or frustration when he couldn't get his way. Hank helped Connor understand that it was all a part of the process of growing up, emotions developing, and the toddler learning to communicate while testing boundaries, and how to just stay patient with his son until the horrible phase was finally over.

Fortunately, Henry didn't have any problems while at daycare, so Connor didn't have to worry about that. Even so, it didn't make it any easier to deal with an emotionally exhausting toddler having a meltdown at home. Sitting on the black leather couch in his livingroom Connor listened to Henry screaming from his bedroom after being put in 'time-out' for throwing a glass bowl on the floor and shattering it because it was too cold to go outside and play.

The deviant father was tired and trying to wait the tantrum out, but he was on the verge of turning off his audio processors to ignore the screaming. A knock on the front door was very welcome as Connor quickly rose from the couch and checked to see who it was.

"You don't have to knock, dad. You're welcome here all the time."

"I'll keep that in mind for next time. I, uh, I can hear Henry from next door." Hank saw Connor's coin anxiously dancing over his knuckles as he was beginning to stress a little. "He sounds pissed!"

"Oh... Sorry."

"It's not your fault." Hank crossed his arms over his chest and gave his exhausted son an amused look. "What did he do?"

"Intentionally broke a glass bowl because I won't let him play outside in the cold weather or let him try to eat rocks when he finds them in the driveway. No, he didn't cut himself on the broken glass, he's just mad at me for putting him in time-out."

"At least he isn't hurt." The man chuckled a little when he saw the dark circles forming under Connor's increasingly human eyes. "Just wait until he starts getting mad at you for keeping inedible stuff out of his mouth. All. Day. Long."

The coin faltered a little and Connor stepped back a little. "...I don't think that'll be preferable to the temper tantrums."

"How long has Henry been screaming?"

"Fifty-two minutes, nine seconds."

"Yeah, he'll tire himself out soon."

"How in the world did you put up with temper tantrums without feeling completely drained?"

"The truth is, I didn't. It's just something you have to deal with as Henry learns boundaries and manners."

"When will it stop?"

"Another two years, tops."

That time frame made Connor's eyes widen with mild fear. "Two... years?"

"Connor," Hank put his hand on his son's shoulder empathetically as Henry's high-pitched scream made him flinch in response. "when this is all over you won't remember the tantrums or sleepless nights, you'll only remember him growing up and making you happy. I promise!"

"I hope so. I don't want to simply delete these negative memories, but as long as they aren't more prevalent than the positive memories, then I think it'll be worth keeping them."

"What about the potty-training?" Trying to keep Connor's mind off the tantrum and on to a more progressive subject Hank kept Connor talking and prevented him from stressing out. Hank flinched slightly as a particularly loud screech caught him off guard. "How's that going for ya'?"

"Not as bad as I initially feared, he's actually taken to it very well." The patient father continued to ignore the angry wails from upstairs as he conversed with his father in the livingroom. "He still wears a diaper at night, but he hasn't had an accident in four days."

"That's good to know." Hank listened as Henry let out one last pitiful whine before he finally quieted down and fell asleep down the hallway. "And he's finally out. See? Gotta' be patient."

Connor held up his palm and looked at the holographic display of the video baby monitor set up in the crib. Henry was laying on his back completely asleep and calm for the first time in almost an hour. It was an utter relief for everyone.

"...Do you want to stay for a while?" Connor asked as he lowered his hand and spoke in a whisper. "I need someone to talk to who won't scream at me in return."

"Yeah, son." Laughing at the all too empathetic remark Hank was happy to have a chat with Connor. Hank motioned for Connor join him on the couch and relax for a moment and enjoy the quiet. "Let me give you a few tips on temper tantrums and not going insane in the process."

"Thank you." The relief was thick in Connor's voice as he sought his father's invaluable advice. "Please tell me everything you know."

---

Life With Henry: Three Years Old

From the backyard of his small but loving household Hank tossed a plastic white colored wiffle ball to Henry and watched as Henry managed to successfully swing his giant orange colored plastic bat and strike the tossed ball with surprisingly ease and accuracy. As the batted wiffle ball rolled along the grass back toward Hank's feet Sumo trotted over to the ball and picked it up for himself as if playing fetch and circled around at Hank's feet excitedly. The large dog was proving himself to be an expert ball retriever and helped make it a tad easier for Hank to play with his grandson without it physically exhausting him or wearing out his already tired, aging back even quicker.

"Great hit, Henry!" Hank complimented as the little boy smiled at Hank. Pulling the drool covered ball from Sumo's mouth he prepared to give it another toss to his grandson. "Ready?"

"Yeah, Papa!" Henry shouted excitedly where he stood. "Again!"

"Head's up!"

Once more Hank threw the wiffle ball and Henry managed another successful swing. The ball went a little higher in the air before falling to the grass and rolling over to Hank's feet and next to Sumo's paws.

"You're doing great, bud. One more?"

"Yeah! More!"

As Hank tossed the wiffle ball yet again Sumo let out a bark as soon Connor set foot in the backyard and watched Henry make another successful swing. The ball flew a few feet through the hair before bouncing off the grass and rolling past Hank up toward the back deck. Connor scooped up the ball and tossed it back to Hank with perfect accuracy.

"Hi, Henry." Connor called out to his son proudly as he nodded at his father. "Dad's home."

"Hi, daddy!"

After catching the ball from Connor's hand Hank tossed the ball a little into the air and caught it again himself. "Hey, son. Anything good happen on your shift?"

"Four drunk college students broke into a library to study and passed out in the 'self-help' section."

"Sounds like they found what they were looking for." Laughing at the absurdity of the case he looked to Henry and prepared another pitch. "Hey, Henry! See if you can hit this one to your dad!"

As the ball soared toward him Henry managed to swing the bat and hit the ball easily and while it didn't soar back through the air, it did in fact bounce and roll in Connor's direction.

"Perfect!"

Connor picked up the ball again and tilted his head. "Henry has remarkable hand-eye coordination already."

"He's a natural athlete." Boasting like the proud grandpa that he was Hank returned his attention to Henry and gave him a new idea. "How about tomorrow we play some basketball, Henry? Would you like that?"

"Yeah! Bas'betball!"

Tossing the wiffle ball back to Hank casually Connor walked over to Henry and picked up the little boy and put him over his shoulders much to Henry's delight causing him to laugh.

"I'll join you and play basketball with Papa, tomorrow." Walking back to the house with Hank at his side Connor made sure there weren't any rocks in the grass that could hurt Henry if he tripped or tried to put one in his mouth, he then let Henry down on the kitchen floor to run free. Once Sumo was through the backdoor Henry focused on playing fetch with the massive dog in the livingroom. "I have tomorrow off, and I'd like to join you two for a game."

"Sounds like a plan. I already got him something for dinner." Hank stated as he dropped the wiffle ball on the kitchen floor and opened up the freezer door to get a bag of ice for his back. "I hope you don't mind Henry having pizza."

"No, that's fine. He deserves a little treat for sleeping all through the night in his 'big boy' bed last night."

"Wow, already sleeping like a 'big boy'. Does he still need the nightlight?"

"Yeah, but it's not as bright as he used to keep it."

"A three-year-old working to overcome his fear of the dark." Hank gave Henry a proud nod. "That's really impressive."

Connor only hummed at the comment as he awkwardly shuffled on his feet and broke eye contact with Hank.

"Something on your mind, son?"

"...Maybe."

"Maybe?" Hank knew better than anyone else that 'maybe' from Connor meant 'definitely yes'. "Come on, what's bothering you?"

"There was an interesting rumor circulating through the bullpen today."

"Oh, that." Hank sighed and pressed the ice to his back as he turned to face his son. "A rumor about me."

"There's been talk that you're going to retire soon."

"Uh, yeah, but not for another year or so."

"Oh." Connor seemed genuinely disappointed by the confirmation. "May I ask why?"

"Well, again, I'm getting old, son. And in that time Henry will be in kindergarten. It'll be hard to keep a consistent babysitter in the house with our bizarre work schedules, so I figured that'd make it easier on everyone."

"I could hire a nanny."

"Yeah, right. I know you, son." Pressing the ice to his back even firmer Hank gave Connor a knowing glance and winced as his tight muscles finally began to relax a little under the chilling sensation. "You wouldn't trust a stranger with your son, and you won't hire an android to work for you because you'd feel guilty about it."

"I suppose you're correct about that. But you don't have to-"

"I know I don't HAVE to retire, but I want to." Hank interrupted quickly as he spoke with Connor about their futures. "But again, that's not going to be for a while, all right?"

"Right. I understand."

"Hey, come on." The sight of his son looking disappointed ached at Hank's heart and conscience. "You know I wasn't going to stay there forever."

"Yeah, but I don't like the idea of going to the precinct and not having you there to watch my back."

"I hate to break it to ya', kid, but you don't need me to watch your back anymore." Hank confirmed in a proud voice. "You're doing just fine and everyone else is there to watch your back, too."

"That's not the same." Connor looked at Hank and gave him a rather somber glance as he took the senior detective's words to heart. "You're my dad, I'll always need you to watch my back."

Always appreciative of Connor's kind words Hank patted Connor's shoulder as the two walked into the livingroom where Henry was laughing and rolling around on the floor with Sumo. "Trust me, son. You don't need me anymore."

"Yeah, I do."

As the two detectives sat on the couch together and watched Henry playing with Sumo the duo realized how long they've known each other and how much they've come to rely on each other. It felt like they've been father and son for decades not just a handful of years. Watching Henry grow up so fast only made the feeling that much stronger.

Doubling down on his previous statement Connor emphasized his feelings. "We both need you, dad."

"Good thing I'm not going anywhere any time soon." Ever appreciative of the positive reassurance Hank returned his hand to Connor's shoulder and gave him a gentle shake. "I'll be here for you two, son. Don't worry about that."

---

Life With Henry: Four Years Old

Feeling a tad awkward and very out of place given the brand new environment, Connor sat at the desk across from the preschool teacher who had accepted Henry's application for admission and was now having a parent-teacher conference with the deviant father. Sitting in a classroom full of small plastic chairs, tiny desks, educational toys and brightly colored walls adorned with the alphabet and numbers was all very new to Connor, and it showed in his uncomfortable demeanor. It also didn't help that Connor had no experience with going to school considering he didn't have a childhood, and he couldn't empathize with his son's new experiences just waiting for him in the next few months.

Henry himself was sitting in the corner of the classroom putting together a small puzzle with dinosaurs on it while his application was being discussed. Sharp and astute, the little boy managed to use his imagination to entertain himself while Connor spoke with the teacher.

"Henry is an exemplary student, Mr. Anderson. You should be proud!" The teacher, Mrs. Adler, proclaimed with sincerity her voice. "He's well spoken, already knows his numbers and letters, and he can even read at a second grade level. You must've read to him very frequently while he was a baby."

"I would try to read to him as often as possible," Connor confirmed as he felt a deserved sense of paternal pride fill his heart. "but I think his grandfather deserves more credit."

"Between you two reading to Henry, I know that Henry is growing up to be a bright, well-rounded young man. I just have one item of interest I'd like to ask about."

"Oh?" Certain he covered everything necessary for Henry's application Connor was a little confused by the comment. "What's that?"

"I noticed that when you filled out information on Henry's application you left the information on his mother blank. I take it she's not in the picture?"

"No. She..." Connor looked over at Henry and lowered his voice. He couldn't bring himself to tell Henry about Skye yet. "She's passed away."

"Oh, I'm so sorry. It's tough to be a single parent, but it seems like you're managing just fine."

"Yes... My own father has been helping immensely with taking care of Henry."

"No need to worry. Henry has already been accepted and can begin attending class on September fourteenth. He'll be placed in our gifted program along with the other students, and he'll be permitted to take part in more advanced assignments to ensure he doesn't get bored in class."

"That's a relief to know. Thank you." Looking over at Henry with a faint smile on his face Connor was already dreading having Henry in school all afternoon long and not at home with Hank. The little boy was seemingly fearless as he played with his toys in the corner of the room. "I'm sure Henry will be happy here."

"I know it's hard to send your child off to school for the first time, but I assure you Henry will receive the best education and will be treated very well here."

"I know." Standing up from the chair Connor shook hands with Mrs. Adler and smiled kindly at her. "Is there anything special that I'll need to prepare for Henry before he comes to class?"

"Well, we do offer snacks throughout the day, but if you want to pack Henry his own meals that's understandable. But really all he'll need is to show up at nine in the morning and be picked up at two in the afternoon."

"That's manageable. I'm certain his grandfather will be available to take care of him while I'm working."

"I'll see you in two weeks."

"Of course. I'll see you then." Holding out his hand Connor walked over to the corner and called to his son. "Come on, Henry. Let's go."

Putting the dinosaurs aside Henry sprung to his feet and quickly held his dad's hand. "Coming, daddy!"

---

After leaving the preschool hand in hand Connor took Henry out to Riverside Park where Hank used to take Cole all those years prior, and let his young son know about his admission to preschool as well as how Connor would be the one to drop him off in the morning while Hank would be the one to pick him up. Henry didn't seem to mind going to school and he loved the idea of spending afternoons at Papa's house since Sumo was over there, then going back home to sleep after his dad finished his shift at work. To Henry, it was a new day and a new game, whereas to Connor it was a whole new chapter in Henry's young life. In just four years Connor's son was no longer an infant, he was now a preschooler.

However, it eased Connor's own worries to see Henry so confident and unafraid of the impending changes. As long as his son wasn't afraid, then he wouldn't be afraid either.

"You'll be able to make friends and play games with other kids while you're in preschool learning about new things." Connor stated as he pushed Henry on the swing set at the park. "You might even find new books to read."

"Will I make friends like Markus?"

"Maybe." Connor knew that Henry enjoyed spending time with Markus and taking music lessons from the deviant leader every weekend. The little boy seemed to enjoy the piano and was curious about the guitar as well. "I don't think you'll make friends with too many adults, Henry."

"Can I bring Sumo?"

"No, sorry. Preschool is for children only." The deviant father confirmed as he gave Henry's swing another gentle push. "Dogs have obedience school instead."

"What's 'obeunce'?" Henry had a hard time with the more advanced word, but Connor knew what he meant. "Is it good?"

"'Obedience' means someone listens to what they were told to do, and they don't argue."

"Like when Papa tells Sumo to sit?"

"Exactly."

"Can we go see Papa right now?"

"Of course." Gently bringing the swing to a stop Connor helped Henry out of the seat and held his hand again as they began walking home. It was too nice of a day to drive, and the welcoming weather could disappear far too soon. "I think he'd be thrilled to know that you're starting preschool in two of weeks."

"How long do I go to school?"

"You'll go to preschool on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from nine o'clock in the morning until two o'clock in the afternoon. You'll do this every week for eight and half months. Then you get three months during the summer to play before starting kindergarten."

"What's 'kinnergardun'?"

"Kindergarten continues to teach you new things after you finish preschool. It's like starting a new chapter in a story."

"Oh." Henry happily skipped about as he held Connor's hand on their way back from the park and to Hank's house. "Is it fun?"

"Yeah." Connor still had no idea how anything in preschool worked since he was never a kid, but he did know to make sure Henry felt confident. "You'll like it, and you'll have fun. I can feel it."

---

After being told the good news Hank was indeed proud to know that Henry had been accepted into preschool and was being placed in the gifted program. Treating the bright young man to a bowl of vanilla ice cream with an extra helping of chocolate syrup, Hank and Connor watched as Henry laid on his belly on the livingroom floor with an alphabet book under his nose as he ate his delicious treat. The soon-to-be preschooler happily read his book without needing anyone's help, confirming that he was indeed a worthy admission to the gifted program. Sumo was watching from afar, ready to clean up any possible messes left behind by Cole, but kept his distance so he didn't get scolded for begging.

Connor noticed that Hank seemed to be transfixed on the sight before him, his eyes glazing over, and quietly asked if he was okay. It was as if Hank was in a trance as he watched Cole enjoying his evening with his treat and his book.

"You seem upset about something." Whispering discreetly Connor addressed his father in a low voice without Henry hearing him. "Are you all right, dad?"

"I'm fine, it's just... Hold on." Standing up from the couch slowly he motioned for Connor to follow after him. The two walked down the hallway where the senior detective opened up his bedroom door and then his closet. Pulling down an old cardboard box of photographs from the top shelf he sat on the edge of the bed and sifted through the images until he found one of interest. "Look at this."

Connor held the offered photo in his hand and ran a scan over it. "This is Cole. He looks..."

"Like Henry."

The photo showed Cole laying on the floor working on a coloring book with the original Sumo when he was about the same age as Henry is now. The resemblance was uncanny. The dark hair, the blue eyes, the innocent smile... It was all the same.

Hank took the photo from Connor's fingers and turned it over. "Read the back."

"Cole Anderson, age four... first day of preschool."

"It's like looking into the past." The older man admitted with a heavy sigh. "It catches me off guard sometimes and I have to take a few minutes to get my head back together, you know?"

"I can't imagine how this must feel." Giving his father a worried glance Connor made sure Hank wasn't going to have a breakdown. "Will you be okay?"

"Yeah, I'm good. And I'm more than happy to pick up Henry from preschool and take care of him in the afternoons, so don't worry about that."

"I take it you still mean to retire soon, too."

Sighing Hank continued to sort through the photos with a heavy heart and sat down on the edge of his bed. "I put in the request six months ago. This coming Friday is my last day."

"This Friday? Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"Because I knew that you'd be upset. Like I said, even though we won't be working together anymore we will still be hanging out in the afternoons, and I'll be there to help take care of Henry." Sensing Connor's anxiety Hank wanted to make sure his son was going to be able to handle the changes. "Now it's my turn to ask. Are YOU going to be okay?"

"It'll be a strange adjustment at the precinct, but I'll be okay."

"That's good to hear. Come on." Putting the box of photographs aside for a moment Hank stood up from the bed and motioned for his son accompany him back out to the livingroom. "Let's get back to Henry and away from the past for a while. I don't want to think about everything and everyone I lost when I still have a loving family to guide and protect."

"Good idea. I'm sure he's finished reading by now and might want to play a game."

"Hopefully not another game of basketball." Hank looked exhausted just at the idea of playing the physical game. "My jump-shot isn't what it used to be thanks to my damn back acting up on me."

---

When Hank's final Friday rolled around, the entire bullpen was blessed with a quiet day and there were no belligerent drunks yelling slurs from the nearby holding cells. Despite his best efforts to keep it from happening out of a sense of modesty and wanting a quiet departure, a retirement party was being thrown on Hank's behalf in the conference room by his fellow officers. Being a good sport despite not wanting anything to do with the sentimental goodbyes, Hank went along with the party, which was respectfully kept small upon Hank's request, and he was greeted un turn by his fellow officers to bid him the best of the luck in the future now that his illustrious career had come to an end on his own terms.

Ben Collins, who had been an understanding and patient investigator with Hank during so many cases in the past, made sure to stop by and give Hank a hearty handshake. Ben himself had retired three years prior but he was still in the city. Jeffrey Fowler had also arrived to see Hank off, the two old friends had seemingly been able to patch things up when Jeffrey himself retired and were still on good terms as they spoke to one another in the conference room.

Soon other officers filed into the room one at a time from the bullpen to say their goodbyes and shake Hank's hand. Tina was first and managed to slip in a large sheet cake to be shared throughout the bullpen later on. Almost tearful Tina made sure Hank knew how much she respected him before she had to go out on patrol and perform her responsibilities to the city.

Chris and Jack followed after her and expressed their utmost respect toward their retiring Captain. With a strong handshake Chris bid Hank farewell as he and Jack were assigned a new case to handle. And Jack of course managed to respond appropriately as his deviancy had finally full set in and subsequently he now understood how to behave more humanly.

Always a master of his emotions Hank kept his resolve as he was given a respectful sendoff by his officers.

Joel entered the room next and knocked on the door to get the senior detective's attention. Despite only being the precinct technician and not an actual officer in the bullpen, Joel felt it was necessary to pay his respects as well. It was during his goodbye that Gavin stepped inside the room and waited for Joel to take his leave so he could speak with Hank in private.

"So... You're really outta' here?" Gavin asked in a somewhat nervous manner as he contemplated the bullpen's future without him. "Permanently?"

"Yeah." The senior detective confirmed with a faint grimace. "Between my back going out on me more and more, and Henry starting school, it's just easier this way."

"Hard to believe eight years ago I was convinced you would've... you know."

"Drank myself to death?"

"Yeah. That."

"You're not the only one." Hank admitted in a breathy sigh. "For what it's worth, you were right to give me shit for being a pathetic drunk."

"No. Now that I have my own kid, I know I was wrong to be such an asshole to you. I shouldn't have been such a prick to you or to Connor." Being a father had truly softened Gavin's abrasive edges. "We all have our own shit we need to deal with, and it's no one else's business."

"Well, for the record I'm pretty sure you got what you deserved when Connor punched you."

"Yeah. Twice." Noticing that the deviant was curiously absent Gavin dared to ask about Connor's location. "Where is the 'Tinman' anyway?"

"He'll be by soon. Henry had a check-up today."

"Let me guess, you're going to retire from here so you can be a full-time grandpa out there."

"Pretty much, yeah." There was no denying or shame in his plans for the future. "It's a hell of a lot better gig than dealing with sorry drunks, drug-dealers and bigots pulling guns on me all damn day."

"Yeah, not going to argue on that one. I'd give anything to have the money I needed so I could stay home with Aria all day long."

From the opened conference door Connor entered with Henry at his side and let the four-year-old run over to Hank excitedly.

"Hi, Papa!"

"Hey, Henry!" As much as his back hated it whenever he picked up Henry to hold in his arms, Hank did it anyway. Proudly Hank sat Henry down in the chair beside him and gave his grandson a big hug. "Good to see ya'!"

Gavin just stared at the little boy's face for a moment before looking over at Connor. "Jeez... He looks exactly like you."

Connor's brow arched a little as he gave Gavin an odd look. "I believe that was the point."

"No, I mean... It's like there was no, uh, 'steps' taken for him to be here. It's like he's all your blood." Gavin couldn't get over everything that had happened nearly five years ago just to help Henry come into the world. "It's pretty awesome."

Smirking a little Connor understood what Gavin was saying and merely nodded. "I know what you're saying. And thank you."

"Right. Uh, I have to handle another case, so..."

"I understand. Go." Connor turned to see Hank offering Henry a small piece of the cake much to the future preschooler's delight before sitting him down in one of the chairs at the table. "It's official, dad. You're retired."

"Well, not until I clock-out anyway."

"Do you regret doing it?"

"Not at all." Hank replied confidently as he sat next to Henry. "It'll be a strange adjustment to not have an entire precinct to take care of, but I'll be able to handle it soon enough."

"Do you know who is taking over the precinct on your behalf?"

"Yeah, she just got promoted and is moving in from Ann Arbor. Her name is Captain Rebecca Foxworth. She's younger than the average Captain but she's got a ton of experience and an impressive arrest record. She's also an advocate for deviant rights and had been one long before the Revolution."

"Good to know I'll have another ally."

Henry finished off his cake and turned to look at Hank. "Papa, can we play basketball at home?"

"Sure. We can play for a little while when I get home from work."

Connor nodded as he agreed to the game and extended his hand to ask Henry to come over to him. "Papa will be home in a couple of hours. Come on, let's get back to the house and take care of Sumo and make dinner."

"Okay!"

Hank smiled as the upbeat little boy grabbed onto Connor's hand and held tightly. "Bye, guys."

Connor turned to acknowledge Hank before he got too far away. "See you at home, dad."

"See ya', son. See ya' later, Henry!"

"Bye!" The little boy shouted back excitedly as he followed after his dad to take their leave of the precinct. "Love you, Papa!"

"Love you too."

Leaning back in the chair Hank let out a tired sigh and discreetly pressed his hand to his aching back. The pain was getting worse and it was definitely time to retire. Even if Hank didn't have a grandson to take care of, he would've retired all the same thanks to age alone.

"All these years of medical and technological breakthroughs and no one can figure out how to stop the human body from giving up on itself. Damn quacks..."

---

Another week had passed by, and it was time for Henry's first day of preschool. Arriving in front of the busy school building at eight-fifty in the morning Connor looked at Henry sitting in the backseat of the Corvette in his booster seat with a big smile on his face and his brand new dinosaur backpack on his lap. It seemed as if Henry sat preschool as type of playdate all afternoon long, and didn't mind being away from his family for a couple of hours. The little boy was fearless, and he was very excited to begin his first day of preschool, whereas Connor and Hank weren't quite so ready to have an afternoon without Henry to make it fun, interesting and memorable from start to finish.

"Are you ready, Henry?" Connor asked as he turned off the engine and opened up the driver's side door. "It's your first day of preschool."

"Yup!"

Pushing forward the driver's seat Connor unfastened the safety restraints on the booster seat and lifted Henry up and out of the vehicle. "Are you nervous?"

"Nope!"

Putting Henry down on his feet outside the car Connor picked up Henry's backpack and handed it over to Henry to take. "Are you going to be good?"

"Yup!"

"Do you know what time Papa is going to come and pick you up?"

"At two."

"Very good." Taking Henry by the hand again Connor led the little boy up to the front doors of the preschool and showed him to his new classroom. "I'll see you and Papa after I get out of work today. Okay?"

"Okay!"

Kneeling down in front of Henry with a proud smile Connor wrapped his arms around his son and gave him a hug. "I love you, Henry. I'll see you later, okay?"

"Okay. Bye dad! Love you!"

As soon as Henry was free of the hug he excitedly ran into the classroom and disappeared among the other four-year-olds gathered in the play area of the room. Standing upright Connor looked to Henry's teacher and nodded before taking his leave of the preschool to head out to the precinct and begin his shift. As he returned to the car to take his leave Connor felt a mixture of joy and dread swim over his heart.

"I'll see you soon, Henry. Have a good day."

Driving to the Cental Precinct he sent a cybernetic text to Hank and watched the preschool shrinking away in the reflection on the rearview mirror behind him.

"Henry's at preschool. He seems excited." Connor sent a selected image from his visual memory to Hank's phone to show him how happy Henry looked. "And fearless."

There was a pause before Hank replied via text message. 'And how're you holding up?'

"I'm a little sad to know that Henry won't be spending the day with either of us, but I'm happy he isn't afraid to begin school."

'He'll be just fine, Connor. The first few days of school are always the hardest on the parents, not the kids.'

"I'm beginning to realize this."

'Go to work, son. Henry will be fine.'

---

Clocked out and finally free to return home after what felt like the longest shift of his career, Connor stopped by Hank's house next door to his own house and spotted Henry laying on the floor with a dinosaur coloring book spread out before himself and a massive box of multicolored crayons in arm's reach. As he stepped through the front door Connor was greeted by Henry's big smile as the preschooler ran over to him and hugged his legs excitedly. The moment Connor was reunited with his son all of his worries melted away and he knew that it was going to be all right to let Henry go to public school and have the opportunity to grow, learn and find his own path in the world.

"How was your first day of preschool?" Connor reciprocated the hug and noticed Hank in the kitchen cooking dinner for Henry. "Were you good?"

"I got a star sticker!"

"That's great, Henry. Did you have fun?"

"Yup! I like playing with the keyboard!"

"Keyboard?" Unsure of what Henry meant Connor needed a little more information. "A computer keyboard or an electronic piano keyboard?"

"Piano."

"That's good to know." Picking up Henry to carry into the kitchen Connor greeted Hank just as the now retired detective turned off the stove and finished stirring the tomato sauce in the pan. "How was your first day of retirement?"

"Quiet. Just as I like it!" Hank pointed to the refrigerator and smirked at the new art displayed under two large magnets. "It got even better when Henry gave me that drawing."

It was a crayon drawing of Sumo by a giant tree. It said 'For Papa' in the top left corner and it had Henry's name messily scrawled in the bottom right corner in blue crayon.

"That's a great drawing of Sumo, Henry." Connor complimented his son's work. "It looks good on the refrigerator, too."

"The teacher liked it too!"

"Are you ready to go back to school tomorrow?"

"Yup! I want to keep playing with the keyboard!"

Connor tilted his head a little. "Maybe Markus can give you extra piano lessons as well as your guitar lessons. Would you like that?"

"Uh-huh!"

"All right. Eat your dinner and I'll see what I can do about more music lessons."

"Okay!"

Hank patted Connor's shoulder after he put down a plate of freshly made spaghetti in front of Henry and motioned for his son to accompany him outside to the back deck. Sumo was already running around the backyard and immediately rushed over to Connor to greet him happily. The deviant rubbed his hand over Sumo's ears affectionately and stooped down to rub his chin.

"Connor, my back is really killin' me." Hank stated in a tense voice without speaking too loudly to alert Henry. "I'm going to go see a chiropractor tomorrow before I need to pick up Henry from preschool."

Standing back up Connor asked his father if he needed any assistance for the following day. "Do you want me to drive you to your appointment?"

"No, I can move just fine, it's just that everything I do hurts me."

"Maybe being retired will take the tension away from your back so you can finally heal entirely."

"Heal entirely? Are you talking about that psycho stabbing me seven years ago?"

"Yes. The core muscles in the human torso take much longer to heal because they are in constant use from breathing and balance." The deviant needlessly explained to his father. "Even after all this time you would still be healing, and the surgery from your double kidney transplant would only delay your recovery even further."

"I hope it's as simple as that. I don't want to be laid up all the time with ice and heating pads."

Empathetic to Hank's pain and frustrations Connor let out a weary sigh and stared at the setting sun in the distance. "As much as I dislike the idea of not being able to work with you, I dislike the idea of you being in pain even more. Do what you have to do to let your back heal."

"I'm trying, son. I really am." Motioning toward the backdoor Hank made his way back inside. "Come on, you better get Henry back home after he finishes dinner so he can have a bath and go to bed. He has school tomorrow."

"It's hard to believe, but you're right. My son is now old enough to start school and needs to be kept on a schedule."

"Hey, why don't you go ahead and let Henry play with the bubble-bath that I picked up for him today? It was on sale, and I figured maybe that'd make his bath times a little easier at night when he doesn't want to go down to bed."

"Bubble-bath?" Such a gimmick seemed a little odd in Connor's mind, especially for a preschooler. "Isn't that messy?"

"Nah, it's only a pain to clean up if you get that fancy stuff full of perfume." Motioning toward the backdoor of the house Hank kept grinning and was insistent that Henry get to play with the bubble-bath. "I used to give Cole bubble-baths so that he'd wear himself out while playing the tub and go to sleep easier. I'll show you to the trick to the perfect amount of soap to make sure Henry has a ton of fun in the bubbles..."

---

Life With Henry: Five Years Old

It was well into the fall and cold and flu season was hitting the city hard without any discrimination. Connor had received a call from Henry's elementary school nurse informing him that Henry was feeling sick that morning, and quickly clocked out of the precinct to go and pick his son up as soon as possible. Locating Henry laying down on his side on a small cot in the nurse's office, Connor pressed his hand to his son's forehead and felt him running a pretty uncomfortable fever. Seeing his son sick always ached at his heart. Despite how much it pained him to see Henry feeling miserable Connor always put on a brave face for his son's sake, and never let Henry see him upset.

"Hi, Henry." Kneeling down beside the cot Connor made himself eye-level with his son and kept his palm in place. "How do you feel?"

"...Bad."

"I'm sorry." Very gently Connor picked Henry up from the cot and Henry pressed his head down against Connor's shoulder in response. Looking to the school nurse who had been taking care of the sick little boy, Connor asked about his condition. "How long has he been feeling unwell?"

"His teacher noticed that he didn't eat much during snack time at eleven this morning, and he didn't want to play at all during recess at eleven fifteen." The nurse handed Connor the dark blue backpack and jacket that Henry had been wearing that morning so they could go straight home. "Henry didn't say anything to the teacher until he thought he was going to get sick and throw-up on the playground."

"Did he vomit?"

"No, fortunately. A lot of kids have colds right now so I wouldn't be surprised if Henry caught one this morning."

"I agree." Connor nodded and rubbed his hand along Henry's back. "Were you feeling bad this morning?"

"...A little."

"A little?" Connor repeated with an arched brow at the response. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"...I don't know."

"Okay, buddy." The comment was as innocent as it was eerily reminiscent of his own attitude toward feeling unwell or injured in the past. "We'll go home and you can get some sleep, and then you'll feel better."

"...I want Sumo."

"I'll take you to see Papa so you can cuddle with Sumo. I'm also going to let Markus know you won't be making your piano lesson this weekend so you can recover at home. But don't worry, he'll reschedule, and you'll be able to keep up with your progress. Okay?"

"...'kay."

As soon as Connor cybernetically texted Hank that Henry was sick and wanted to visit Sumo, the retired detective was quick to respond and made sure Sumo had already taken care of business outside so he could spend all afternoon with Henry, and Markus promised that he'd make the time to give Henry an extra lesson as soon as he was feeling better.

Moving slowly and carefully Connor carried Henry, who was very sleepy, out of the school and placed him in the booster seat in the backseat of the car to be driven home. Driving slowly and calmly Connor made sure the ill little boy didn't get motion sick on top of being taken down with a cold. As soon as the car was parked outside of Hank's house Connor turned off the engine and picked up Henry to carry him out of the car and into the house to lay down on the couch in the livingroom.

Sumo readily walked up to the couch and pressed his chin down on the cushion beside Henry as if he knew that his presence had been requested and wagged his tail slowly. Henry rolled over onto his and looked as miserable as any sick kid could ever look while trying to pet Sumo's head.

"Hey, Henry." Hank greeted his ill grandson from down the hallway and gave him a light kiss on the head. He could feel the fever radiating from Henry's forehead from the brief contact. "Not feeling good, huh?"

"...No."

"Well, Sumo will help." Hank looked over at Connor and sighed sympathetically for his ill grandson. "So, what's the prognosis, son?"

"Probably just a cold, but he's running a fever of one-hundred point six degrees." Connor stated and gave Hank a rather stern glance. "I don't want to take any chances since Henry's so young and small."

"Good decision. I'll grab him a pillow and a blanket." Reaching down Hank rubbed Henry's arm lightly. "You stay here as long as you want Henry, okay?"

"...Okay." Henry's voice was sad and sounded weak making both Connor and Hank's hearts break. "I'm tired."

"Then take a little nap and you'll feel better."

Connor hated it whenever Henry caught a cold, but something in his paternal instincts told him that whatever Henry had wasn't just a cold this time. Henry never let a cold slow him down before and he never admitted if he was feeling sick. For him to be so still and willing to admit he felt bad was something new to the deviant father.

While Hank went to get Henry the blanket and pillow from the hallway closet Connor sat down on the couch beside his son's legs and lightly ran his hand over Henry's thick brown hair. Henry's hair didn't have the light, natural looking curl to it like Connor's hair, Henry's was perfectly straight like Skye's hair had been. Henry did, however, have it styled in a manner similar to Connor's own hair simply because it was the default style Connor that knew whenever he helped Henry brush out his hair in the morning.

"Does your head hurt?" Connor asked in a low voice as he noticed that Henry was pale and very tired. "You look like you have a headache."

"...Yeah."

"What about your stomach? Do you feel sick in your stomach?"

"...Uh-huh."

Hank placed the thickest pillow in the house down on the couch for Henry to lay on while Connor draped the equally thick quilt over him softly. Sumo kept his head on the couch, letting his face get buried under the quilt, and Henry laughed a little at Sumo for being so laidback and silly.

"Your Papa's right. Try to nap for a while, Henry." Connor ran his hand through Henry's hair again in a comforting manner. "You should feel better soon."

Too tired to say anything Henry closed his eyes and fell asleep while Connor turned on the television and found an animated children's movie to play in low volume to help keep Henry lulled to sleep. Standing up slowly from the couch as to not disturb Henry in the process Connor walked into the kitchen and let out a worried sigh.

"You think he's sicker than just a cold," Hank deduced as he followed Connor into the kitchen. "don't you?"

"Usually whenever Henry catches a cold, he gets a very mild fever and a runny nose. But he's tired, feverish, nauseated and has a headache. This isn't the same as a routine cold. At least not for him."

"Not all colds behave the same way. If he isn't feeling better by morning or he gets worse tonight, then we'll both take him in to see his pediatrician or even Dr. Wilson if you want to bring in the big guns."

"Yeah, good idea." Looking about the kitchen Connor then asked about making something for Henry to eat. The family recipe of chicken soup always seemed to do the trick whenever Henry or Hank become ill. "Do you mind if I make Henry-"

"Like you need to ask." Motioning toward the entire room with outstretched arms Hank let his son have full access to everything. "The kitchen's all yours. I'll go sit with Henry and keep an eye on him."

"Thanks, dad."

A few hours passed and Henry was still out like a light. Connor had made Henry some soup to eat once he woke up while Hank put a cool washcloth over the little boy's feverish forehead. Fortunately, Henry was sleeping peacefully, and he wasn't getting any worse, but he wasn't getting any better either. Sumo had jumped up onto the couch to lay next to Henry, his massive fluffy body nearly concealing the small boy, and kept him company as he slept through his sickness.

"It's getting late." Connor stated in a low voice as he leaned over the back of the couch to look down at Henry. "But I don't want to disturb him."

"You're both welcome to stay here." Hank replied without missing a beat as he reached toward Henry to card his fingers through Henry's hair in the same manner he used to do for Cole whenever his late son had been ill. "Either crash in your old bedroom or sleep in the recliner. I kept your room the same just in case you two needed to stay over for whatever reason."

"I'm worried that if he does have a serious cold that it could be passed on to you."

"If I can survive a lunatic stabbing me in the kidney, gunshots, car accidents and maniacs with a vendetta against the city, I can handle a little cold."

"Yeah. I know."

"It's your turn to get some sleep now. Go." Hank rose from the recliner and motioned to the vacated space with his arm. "I'll be down the hall if you need anything."

Relenting to the request to take a moment to rest Connor walked over to the vacated recliner and sat down slowly. Powering down to a light rest mode to ensure if there was any change in Henry's condition, or if Henry asked for him, that he'd wake up immediately and be able to help out, Connor finally fell asleep. Within two hours of entering rest mode Connor snapped awake and was greeted by Henry standing in front of the recliner with tears in his blue eyes and Sumo standing at the small boy's side whimpering softly.

"Henry? What's the matter?" Connor pressed his palm over Henry's forehead and realized that his fever had slowly risen to another degree. "What's wrong?"

"I don't feel good." The frustrated boy stated as he began scratching at his forearm. He was paler than usual and seemed to be very uncomfortable where he stood. "My arm is itchy."

"Itchy?" Gently Connor took Henry's arm in his hands and saw two small red welts forming on his pale skin. Running a biometric scan on the small blemishes and relaying Henry's symptoms to an online medical program, Connor's cybernetic database gave him an answer and it made him feel as terrible as Henry looked. "Oh no. Henry, it looks like you have the chicken pox."

"What's that?"

"It means you're sick." Letting go of Henry's arm, Connor reached down and picked up the sick boy to hold in his own arms. He could feel that Henry was radiating a consistent heat and more pink blemishes courtesy of the chicken pox were beginning to slowly appear over his face and neck right under the keen-eyed deviant's watch. "I'm going to run you a cool bath."

Henry just let out a small whine as he buried his face against the crook of Connor's neck.

"It'll make you feel better. It worked for me when I was sick with-" Instead of saying the entirely accurate condition known as 'Pyrexia Impairment', a.k.a. android chicken pox, Connor replied more simply but just as honestly. "I had the chicken pox, too. A cool washcloth helped with the itching, so I know a cool bath will help you feel better quicker."

Opening the bathroom door Connor turned on the faucet in the bathtub and began drawing a cool bath for Henry. Sitting Henry down on the sink Connor helped the sick little boy remove his school clothes and then wrapped him up in a fluffy blue towel to keep warm for a while longer. As the tub filled up Connor pressed his hand over Henry's forehead again and noted the other blemishes beginning to form on Henry's skin all over his body.

"I know it's going to be hard to do," Connor empathized with his son's illness and wrapped his arms around him in a comforting hug. "but you can't scratch your chicken pox. If you do it'll make your skin feel worse and it can make you feel sicker."

"But it itches!"

"I know it does. I'll do everything I can to make the itching stop."

Glancing at the water level in the bathtub Connor carried Henry over and sat down on the edge of the tub with Henry on his lap. Turning off the faucet and checking the water's temperature Connor found it to be ideal and helped Henry to sit down in the tub slowly. Staying on the edge of the tub with the towel over his lap Connor saw additional blemishes now forming over Henry's back as his son sat in the cool water.

"You'll feel better in a few minutes." Slipping off his gray blazer and rolling up the sleeves of his white dress shirt, Connor prepared to take care of his ill son as best as he could. "Let me know if you feel too cold."

There was a knock on the opened bathroom door and Hank stepped inside looking sleepy yet somehow alert. "Hey, what's going on?"

Connor turned to look at Hank and gave him a pleading stare. "Henry has the chicken pox."

"Aw, man." Hank let out a tired sigh and stepped back out of the bathroom to get something to help his ill grandson. "Hold on, Henry. Papa knows what'll stop the itch."

Making a cup with his hand Connor scooped up some of the cool water and gently ran it through Henry's hair to try to ease his fever. As he did so Hank returned with a canister of oatmeal and proceeded to pour a generous helping into the water. Both Connor and Henry gave the retired detective the same confused look as the oats were poured into the tub and quickly expanded in the water all around the sick boy.

"I know it looks weird, but trust me, it'll help. The oatmeal will help stop the itching and keep Henry's skin from drying out while he's sick." Putting aside the canister Hank reached under the sink and found a bottle of bright pink Calamine lotion to ease the itching as well. "This will help, too." Grabbing Henry's school clothes Hank made his way back out of the bathroom. "I'll throw his clothes in the washer and get Henry his spare pajamas from the hall closet."

"Thanks." Connor continued to carefully run the now oatmeal littered cool water over Henry's hair and along his back. "How do you feel, Henry?"

"Sleepy."

"Just sit in there for a few more minutes and then you can go lay down in my old bed to sleep. Okay?"

Henry nodded quietly as he pulled his legs up to his chest and rested his forehead against his knees.

Connor took a washcloth and dipped it into the water then he began wiping the soothing water over Henry's back very gently. As the cool water began to ease Henry's fever, and the little boy let out another sad whimper as his skin was really beginning to itch. Knowing that Henry was trying to suffer in silence Connor's heart began to ache. Waiting for ten minutes to give the cool water enough to work on Henry's feverish itchy skin Connor gently picked Henry up from the water and placed him on his lap over the towel and used the towel to dry him off.

"I put your pajamas in the dryer for a few minutes so they're nice and soft for you." Hank placed the clean pajamas down on the floor at Connor's feet and picked a drying flake of oatmeal from Henry's hair. "I'll put some lotion on your skin, too. It'll stop the itching and you'll be able to sleep."

Henry was trying not to cry as he sat on Connor's lap. Instinctively Connor 'shushed' Henry to try to soothe him as he used the towel to dry him off without making his itching skin feel worse, and Hank began to apply the lotion to his raw skin at the back of his neck and shoulders.

"It's okay, Henry. I promise this will only happen one time." Connor stated calmly as he very carefully rubbed his hand over Henry's sore back. "Once you get the chicken pox, you'll never catch it again. You'll be immune forever. It's just a shame you caught the chicken pox to begin with."

"You get his legs." Hank stated as he passed the lotion over to Connor. "I'll help him get his shirt on and then get a Benadryl and a mild fever reducer. It'll stop the itching and let him sleep more comfortably tonight."

"Good idea. Thanks, dad."

Together Connor and Hank took care of Henry, soothing his skin and getting him into his clean pajamas, all the while holding Henry and easing his discomfort as much as possible.

"Come on, Henry." Connor carried his son into his old bedroom just across from the bathroom where his old bed was still set up and covered in clean sheets and a thick quilt. "You need to sleep. The more you sleep the better you'll feel, okay?"

"It's dark." Henry complained as he was laid down on the bed and tucked under the quilt. "I don't like it when it's too dark."

"We don't have a nightlight here." Connor thought of an alternate solution pretty quickly since the aquarium had been moved from his bedroom over to his new house's livingroom a few years back. There were no alternate light sources but there was an alternate way to make Henry feel safe and secure. "Would Sumo make you feel better?"

The little boy nodded as Connor ran his hand over Henry's damp hair.

Hank had overheard the conversation and coaxed Sumo into the bedroom by simply patting the side of his leg. As the massive dog clumsily leapt up and laid down on the foot of the bed to snuggle down for the night Henry made another sad whimper.

"What's wrong?" Connor ask as he sat down on the edge of the bed beside his son. "Is something else making you feel bad?"

"Everything hurts."

"Everything... hurts?" Needing some assistance Connor looked over to Hank for guidance, who quickly understood what was going on. "Everything?"

"Body aches." Hank replied casually as he knew what Henry meant. "Just like whenever I get the flu or something. It feels like your whole body is bruised."

"O-Oh." Connor was somewhat relieved to know it was normal for humans to experience body aches when sick. "I'm sorry, Henry. I'll try to make the pain stop."

"Here you go." As promised Hank brought in the small doses of the medication for Henry to take. "One will stop the itching," he stated as he showed Henry the tiny amount of pink liquid in a pre-measured plastic cup, then showed him a second plastic cup with a small amount of red liquid. "and the other will bring down your fever."

Reluctantly Henry sat up and looked at the medicine with a heavy grimace. Connor helped Henry to take the medicine one at a time and saw that the little boy hated the taste openly. "Something wrong?"

"...It's strawberry." Henry complained as he wiped his mouth on his sleeve. "I don't like strawberry."

"Don't worry, you don't have to take medicine everyday." Connor reminded him in a calm voice. "Want some juice or water?"

Henry nodded a little and Hank grinned immediately.

"Already gotcha' covered." Hank held out a small plastic drinking cup filled with apple juice and the little boy took a sip quickly to rid the taste of the medicine from his mouth. "Better?"

Henry nodded again and laid back down against the pillow, his face still miserable and sad as Hank took back the cup.

In an effort to help Henry feel better Connor pulled up the thick chocolate brown quilt to Henry's shoulders, and the corner of his mouth twitched as he offered up another suggestion to try to make Henry feel comfortable. "Do you want me to rub your back?"

Henry silently nodded still feeling lousy.

"Okay." Connor put his hand on Henry's shoulder and helped him to roll onto his side facing toward Connor as he laid down beside him and began to rub his back gently. "Try to sleep." The deviant father spoke softly as he urged Henry to get some rest. "You won't itch while you sleep."

Sumo let out a sympathetic whimper and rested his chin down on Henry's ankles as the little boy curled up on his side beside his father.

Hank nodded in agreement as he watched Connor's own eyes close while he continued to try to comfort his ill son. The retired detective, father and grandfather waited from the opened doorway for Henry to fall asleep before turning off the bedroom light, but he kept the light in the bathroom across the hallway on so it was shining into the room to act as a makeshift nightlight for his sick grandson.

"Goodnight, boys." The man smiled with a whisper as he walked down the hallway and back to his bedroom for the rest of the night. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Goodnight, dad." Connor whispered back as to not disturb Henry as his son drifted off to sleep alongside his own son. "Goodnight, Henry."

---

The following morning Connor called off of work without any hesitation to take care of Henry and he proceeded to cuddle with the sick boy on the couch. Hank had managed to coax Henry into eating a little of the chicken soup that Connor made the night before, as well as a small piece of toast with peanut butter on it. It wasn't much but at least Henry was still eating while he was sick and keeping his strength up. Connor was laying stretched out over the couch on his back with Henry laying over his chest. As the sick boy napped through his illness Hank draped a blanket over the duo and held up his phone to show Connor that he had been texting with Abby since last night.

Even though he was retired Hank wasn't afraid to use a few of his old contacts to find a way to help his family. It was most fortunate that Abby was also a good friend of the family in general.

"It turns out Henry is just one of a dozen kids at the school with chicken pox so far. Aria caught it too and got sick this morning. She's in the second kindergarten across the hall from Henry, right?"

"Correct."

"I guess recess is the most opportune place for germs to jump from one kid to another."

"It's best if children get sick with the chicken pox at a young age than at an older age, right?"

"Yup. I was ten when I got the chicken pox, and it sucked. I still have a few scars, but I never caught it again."

"How long did it last?"

"Well, I had a fever for almost a week and then it took almost another week after that for all the sores on my skin to clear up. The same happened to Cole when he was about three years old." Han recounted bitterly as he pocketed his phone. "His misery was my misery."

"Two weeks?" Connor sighed and rubbed his hand gently over Henry's back sympathetically. "Poor Henry."

"He'll be okay. Kids are tougher than they let on."

"That doesn't make it any easier to see him so miserable."

"I know, son. Trust me, I know."

Henry wasn't scratching and seemed to be resting comfortably as he slept with his ear pressed up against Connor's chest to listen to his heartbeat. Despite being five years old and a thriving kindergartner, the simple act of listening to Connor's heartbeat still soothed Henry to sleep.

Sighing a little Connor looked down at Henry's face as he slept and then looked up at Hank as he hung over the back of the furniture to watch his son and grandson laying on the couch. "Do you think Henry would like some ice cream when he wakes up?"

"I know I would." Hank nodded in agreement and put his hand to Henry's back lightly over top of the blanket. "Don't worry. Henry will be getting five-star treatment while he recovers at 'Chateau-Papa'."

"Thanks, dad." Relieved to have his father guiding him through his own adventures through fatherhood Connor felt confident in his decisions toward Henry's care and recovery. "I know we can always count on you. Let's just hope this is the last sick day of Henry's life."

"Here's to hoping, son."

---

Life With Henry: Six Years Old

A loud scream followed by high pitched crying from the backyard made Connor go running from the kitchen, the meal cooking on the stovetop completely forgotten about, and outside into the backyard in matter of seconds. Laying on the ground beside the fence that lined the rear of the property from the neighbors was Henry, who was crying loudly and holding onto his left arm as he laid curled up in a protective little ball around himself. Next to Henry was a mess of pulled green leaves, shredded twigs and large snapped sticks from the tree towering over the other side of the fence above the crying little boy indicating a nasty incident with the neighbor's tree.

The deviant detective only needed to scan over the area once and give Henry a biometric scan to piece together the incident. Even so, he needed to speak to his son and ask him directly what had happened.

"Henry!" Connor raced outside and knelt down on the grass beside his son. "Henry, what happened?"

Between sobs Henry managed to get out a few words that Connor understood. "Fell" and "tree" stood out the most, followed by the word "hurts".

"You were trying to climb the tree, and you fell?"

Henry nodded as Connor ran a biometric scan over Henry's small body and was relieved to see that he hadn't suffered any injury to his spine, neck or skull. However, there were two notable fractures in his left radius below his wrist. Scrapes and small cuts covered Henry's hands, arms, knees and his chin from when he fell out of the tree and hit the ground. Hard.

"Come on." Scooping Henry up into his arms Connor proceeded to carry his crying son from the backyard and back into the house. As he made his way to the backdoor Connor noticed that Hank was well on his way over as he too had heard Henry scream. "I'll take care of your arm, but you're going to need to see a doctor."

Hank managed to get through the backdoor right behind Connor and followed after the deviant just as Connor carried Henry into the bathroom to clean up his scrapes and cuts. The two properties had a connected gate built into the fence shortly after Henry began school for ease of access to one another's homes in the event of an emergency.

"Hey, Henry." Hank knelt on the floor beside Henry as Connor placed the crying little boy on the edge of the bathtub. "It looks like you took a pretty bad fall."

Henry only nodded as he cried and sniffled.

"Did you climb the tree?"

Henry nodded again as Connor proceeded to gently press a damp cool washcloth to the scrapes on his knees to clean them up.

"Didn't we say you shouldn't do that because the tree's too tall?"

Again Henry responded with a pitiful nod.

"And now do you know what we meant when we said it was too tall for you to climb?"

Sniffing hard Henry gave Hank a sympathetic glance that just made Hank press his palm to the side of Henry's cheek and hold it there for a minute.

"Lesson learned, huh, buddy?"

Connor proceeded to finish cleaning up the small wounds on Henry's knees and wrapped them up in gauze bandages. "Henry, does your arm still hurt?"

Henry sniffled again. "...Y-Yeah."

"We'll get you some ice for your arm, then we're going to have a doctor look at it."

"Why?"

"Because I think your arm is hurt bad enough that it'll need to be put into a cast until it's better." Connor had become very skilled at explaining things to Henry in a simplified but intelligent manner to his young son so that he could understand what was happening to him without getting too technical. "The cast will make sure your arm doesn't hurt you anymore, and it will keep it safe until it's all better."

Hank lightly patted the side of Henry's face as he stood up from the floor. "I'll go get him an ice pack. Want me to go ahead and let the hospital know that Henry's on his way in?"

"That'd be a good idea." The deviant confirmed as he continued to clean up Henry's cuts and made sure there weren't any small bits of gravel or twigs, or anything else in his injuries, as he cleaned them and bandaged them. Hank took his leave of the bathroom while Connor stayed with Henry. "How'd you even get up in the tree to begin with?"

"I... I grabbed a branch."

"The low branch hanging over the fence?"

"Uh-huh."

"The branch that both your Papa and I told you to not climb on?"

Henry looked away from Connor and down at his bandaged knees as guilt crept over his eyes. "...Uh-huh."

"I'm not mad at you." Connor promised as he could see that Henry felt bad enough and had clearly learned his lesson. It was just a shame that he had to learn it in such a hard way. I'm just worried because you're hurt, that's all."

"I won't do it again!"

"I know you won't." Casually Connor looked over his shoulder as Hank returned with a bag of ice wrapped up in a towel for Henry. As the ice was gently put on Henry's fractured arm Connor carefully picked Henry up and proceeded to carry him out of the bathroom and outside the house to the car. "We'll get your arm taken care of."

It was then Connor noticed there was a small amount of blood on Henry's bottom lip as well and wanted to check for another injury.

"Open your mouth for a moment."

Henry obeyed and opened his mouth revealing that he had lost one of his bottom front teeth.

"You lost your loose tooth when you fell."

"I did?!" Henry pressed his fingers to his mouth in shock as he felt the gap in his row of teeth where the missing tooth had once been. "It's gone!"

"Don't worry, the 'Tooth Fairy' will find it."

"You take care of Henry," Hank called out as the deviant carried Henry outside and opened the car door as the Corvette sat parked in the driveway. "I'll take care of the mess in the backyard."

"Thanks, dad. Don't worry, Henry." Securing Henry in his booster seat Connor made sure his son heard a confident voice speaking to him. "As soon as your arm is in a cast it'll feel much better."

---

Two hours after taking Henry to the hospital the doctor who saw to the little boy's care confirmed the two fractures in his arm and set the limb in a protective cast to heal for the next six to eight weeks. Sporting a dark blue cast on his left forearm and carrying a cherry red popsicle in his right hand, Henry walked back into the loving house alongside Connor without a single tear on his face. As the little boy walked back into the livingroom of the house he was greeted by Hank who was looking a little worn-out and was covered in green grass and dirt from his hands to his feet. It was clear that the man had busied himself with a chore in the backyard while his son and grandson were at the hospital.

"Hey, Henry." Hank called out as he wiped a cool cloth over the back of his sweaty neck. "Nice cast."

"I got to pick the color!" Henry beamed as he showed Hank his arm that had Connor's name (Dad) written on its side in a white paint pen and in perfect CyberLife sans. Pulling the paint pen from his pocket with his bad arm, the cast making it somewhat difficult, he presented it to Hank. "Wanna' sign it?"

"Of course I do."

Connor glanced out the window in the kitchen to the backyard and saw that Hank had actually sawed off the low hanging branch from the offensive tree and cleaned up the leaves that had collected by the fence when Henry fell. It was the neighbor's tree that Henry had fallen from and that of course made the act a little worrying.

"Hey, uh, dad... What happened to the tree branch?"

"I asked the neighbors first, son." Hank replied as he finished writing 'Papa' on Henry's cast. "They were cool with it since the branch grew over your property, and that by us getting rid of it they wouldn't have to worry about Henry getting hurt again."

"That's good."

"Wow, Henry." Hank capped the pen and admired all the autographs on Henry's arm. "You have a lot of names on here already."

"Dad took me to see everyone before we came home. And Markus got me this popsicle!"

Carefully Hank turned over the cast to read all the other names printed neatly over the blue wrapping. "Let's see, you have my name, your dad, Markus, North, Josh, Simon, Aria, Gavin, Abby... Jason. Who's Jason?"

"My best friend!"

"Oh, that makes sense." The man almost forgot that Henry had friends at school since he was already so popular everywhere else. "I bet you'll fill up your cast at school tomorrow."

"Can Sumo sign my cast?"

"Uh, he might have trouble holding the pen. How about I write it for him?"

"Okay!"

Connor returned to the livingroom and was relieved to see that Henry wasn't upset and wasn't in any pain after having his arm broken. "Henry suffered two hairline fractures to his radius. Fortunately, they are stable breaks and won't require any surgical intervention to support the bones with pins as they knit."

"That's good to know." Hank gave his grandson a knowing glance as he spoke. "And now Henry knows why we didn't want him climbing the tree, right?

"Right." There was a smear of cherry red all around Henry's lips as he ate the popsicle, not that he cared. "I won't climb the tree no more."

"Good boy."

"Tomorrow you can show your cast to the rest of your class and get more names." Connor stated confidently as he stared at his brave and very tough young son. It was hard to believe that the little boy had been bawling his eyes out only a few hours earlier. "Finish your popsicle so you can get a bath and go to bed, all right?"

"Can't I stay up a while longer?"

Knowing full well that Henry was going to fall asleep pretty quickly once he finally settled down Connor relented and allowed it. "Okay, but only a half hour."

"Thanks, dad!"

Henry rushed off to his bedroom to play for a while and Connor ran his hand over his tired face.

Noticing Connor's demeanor Hank put his hand to Connor's shoulder and held his palm in place. "He scared the shit of ya', didn't he?"

"I've never heard him scream that loud in his entire life." The admission made Connor's voice shake a little as he spoke. "That was a whole new level of fear I felt."

"Well, you kept your cool and that kept him calm, too. You did everything perfectly."

"Is it strange that I wished he had inherited my initial fear of heights?"

"I don't think phobias are genetic, son. You had your fear instilled from what those CyberLife creeps did to you." Crossing his arms over his chest Hank craned his neck to make sure Henry wasn't in hearing range. "If Henry does become afraid of heights then he'll know exactly why it started and can overcome it a lot easier than you did."

"I get the feeling Henry's going to be able to overcome A LOT of things much easier than I did."

"Sure, why not?" Sitting down on the couch Hank rested his back and let out a weary sigh. "He had you to raise him and you're the most empathetic person I've ever met. Hell, you actually felt bad for criminals who tried to kill you."

"I haven't been singled out for being an android in nearly six years. That makes it much easier to do my job."

"Yup. By the way, I finished taking care of the little dinner you were making before Henry got hurt."

"O-Oh..." Connor hadn't thought about the pasta he had been making before Henry had fallen. "I must've forgotten to turn off the stove."

"Yeah, you're a dad all right." Chuckling softly Hank gave Connor's reaction his stamp of approval. "You put your son above everything else."

"I suppose I should also thank you for not allowing the kitchen to catch on fire during my abrupt departure."

"No problem, son. You can replace a few burned pans and even entire kitchen, but you can't replace you own kid. Also," Hank reached into his front pocket and presented Connor with Henry's missing tooth. "I don't know how I actually found it, but I did."

"Thanks." Connor took the small tooth and held it between his finger and thumb to inspect the tooth. It had fallen out after Henry hit the ground and wasn't damaged during the impact. "I imagine Henry getting a visit from the 'Tooth Fairy' tonight will make him feel better tomorrow morning."

"Yeah? Is that tooth worth a whole dollar still?"

"More like five dollars since he was so brave at the doctor's office. It might be an odd way of going about it, but I think this would be an effective way to reward his positive behavior and reactions."

"Damn right. If you fall out of a tree and break your arm AND lose a tooth without crying all day long afterward, you definitely earned at least five bucks."

---

Life With Henry: Seven Years Old

A gorgeous summer had resulted in a long overdue family vacation to the cabin just outside the city. Hank, Connor, Henry and even Sumo all went to the cabin to spend a week together and to get away from the business of Detroit for a while. It was Henry's first time at the cabin and it had been almost seven years since Connor was able to join Hank at the cabin because he was still working at the precinct and needed to tend to Henry at home. Though he spent most his weekends alone over the past few years, Hank still loved going out to the cabin and had kept the place in pristine condition by himself while Connor stayed with Henry to ensure the little boy didn't miss out on any school or music lessons.

Having the chance to spend time with his family at the cabin was something Hank had been looking forward to for a long time. The second Connor finally agreed to the arrangement he began packing his bags and made sure the Oldsmobile was in optimal condition for the drive through the forest.

"Here we are." Hank proudly announced as the car pulled up to the cabin and the family piled out of the vehicle together. "What do you think, Henry?"

Henry's blue eyes lit up at the sight of the cabin and property right beside the driveway. "This place is yours, Papa?"

"Yup."

"That's so cool!"

The slightly taller and more well spoken child shouted excitedly as he opened up the rear door of the car, released his safety belt from his booster seat, and jumped out of the car onto the dark green grass. Henry stretched out his legs and began running through the grass to get to the backyard of the cabin with a new sense of excitement. Sumo, now older and moving slower, trudged after Henry protectively as he too jumped down from the backseat of the car.

Connor shouted after the energetic child while he helped Hank with the luggage from the trunk. "Henry, don't go near the lake!"

"Did you bring his life vest?"

"Yeah, it's packed with the rest of the fishing gear." Pausing for a moment Connor looked over to his father with a single request. "I don't mind you taking Henry fishing, but-"

"I'll practice catch and release again, I swear, son."

"Thanks."

"Come on." The sun was out, the air was still and it was warm without being too hot. "It's the perfect day to take him out on the lake for a while."

"Good idea. I'll take everything inside the cabin, and you can get Henry ready to go out."

---

It only took Hank a few minutes to get Henry secured in his life vest and to get the fishing gear set up in the small boat. The boat had been docked that same morning after Hank requested the rental to be delivered for a week's worth of fun. After filing the gas tank and checking the engine, Hank released the rope securing the boat to the side of the dock and pushed the boat a few inches away from the dock with his foot. Connor was watching from the shoreline with Sumo plopped down in the cool grass beside him as he watched his father and his son set out on their personal venture on the lake. It was important for Hank and Henry to have some bonding time alone as grandfather and grandson.

"Stay in the boat, Henry." Connor called out as the boat drifted a little further away from the dock and into the water. "Listen to Papa. He knows best!"

"I will! Bye dad!" Henry was waving excitedly as Hank pulled the starter on the engine and it roared to life. "See ya' later!"

Connor watched as the boat sped away from the dock and out into the middle of the lake at a steady clip. Kneeling down on the ground Connor pet Sumo's side and received a happy wag of the tail for his efforts from the lethargic, elderly dog.

"Good boy, Sumo. I hope this isn't your last summer with us, but if it is, we'll make it the best for you."

Sumo lifted up his head and licked at the side of Connor's arm affectionately as the two stayed at the cabin waiting for Hank and Henry to return from their private fishing trip together.

"Might as well take care of the cabin. Wanna' help?"

Sumo grumbled and laid back down in the shade to take an afternoon nap.

"I didn't think so. It's your vacation, too."

---

The sun was just beginning to set over the water when Connor heard the fishing boat's engine coming closer to the dock and he caught sight of the watercraft returning to the property. Stepping outside of the cabin Connor walked through the backyard to greet the returning duo and helped guide the boat back over to the dock to be secured by the restraining rope once more until it was to be used again. Hank looked a little pale, and Henry seemed a little quieter than normal upon their return, and Connor sensed that something was amiss just by the tension now in the air.

"Are you two all right?" Connor wasn't going to let their behavior go unnoticed and asked about it as he held the boat next to the dock and resecured the rope from the dock and to the boat itself. "You seem upset."

"Fine. Just tired." Hank responded quickly as he helped Henry to climb out of the boat. "What'd you do while we were out on the lake?"

"I finished unpacking and I proceeded to make a bonfire. I thought you and Henry would enjoy hamburgers tonight."

"Sounds great. Uh, I'm going to go lay down before my back acts up. Do you mind taking care of the fishing gear?"

"No, I got this. Go inside."

Standing up warily in the boat Hank set foot on the dock and slowly trudged toward the cabin without his hand pressed to his back as he walked. Though he seemed to be in pain it certainly wasn't in his back, and Connor had a hunch that whatever was bothering Hank was more emotional than physical.

"Henry," Connor spoke to his son in a low voice as they worked together to carry the tacklebox and fishing rods back to the cabin. "did something happen while you were fishing?"

"I dunno'." The little boy replied honestly and with confusion evident in his words. "Maybe."

"Maybe?"

"Well, when I was setting up my hook Papa told me to be careful, but..."

"But what?"

"He didn't call me 'Henry'." Henry answered with the same confusion in his voice. "He called me 'Cole'."

"Cole?" Connor repeated the name as his heart skipped a beat. "Interesting."

"And then he got really quiet for a while. We caught some fish though!"

"Oh." Connor was beginning to understand Hank's suddenly dour mood. "I see."

"I don't know why Papa got so weird after he called me by my middle name. It's not a big deal."

Keeping his voice hushed Connor asked for more information on their outing at the lake. "Did you talk about anything else before you came back?"

"Yeah. Mostly sports and how I want to try out for the basketball team next year. And Sumo." Henry recounted as he and Connor stepped off the dock together. "And what it's like to be a cop."

"Okay, good. I'm glad you two kept talking to one another." Placing the tacklebox and fishing poles on the small back porch and up against the cabin's exterior wall Connor turned to look his son in the eyes. "Henry, I think we need to talk."

"What about?" Still confused Henry didn't know what was happening. "Am I in trouble?"

"No, you didn't do anything wrong, son. It's just... complicated."

"Uh, doesn't 'complicated' mean weird?"

"Essentially, yes."

"Papa was being weird and now you're saying things are weird." Henry was rather astute and trying to figure things out for himself, but he didn't have any idea what was going on. "What's so weird? My middle name isn't weird, is it?"

"No. And like I said, you're not in trouble. Understand?"

"I guess so."

"All right. Come with me, we need to have a talk."

"Where are we going?"

"Just over to the bonfire." The protective father replied honestly. "We don't have to leave the cabin."

"Cool! I like it here!"

Connor just smiled as Henry raced over to the massive dead log that was sitting on the property just a few feet away from the roaring bonfire and sat down. Sumo was laying on the other side of the fire and promptly trotted over to Henry as soon as the boy called him with a simple pat of his hand on the side of his leg. Joining his son on the log Connor unsnapped the plastic supports around Henry's life vest and slipped it from around the boy's shoulders and placed it on the grass beside the log to dry off.

"Henry," Connor began in a calm voice as he prepared to explain things to his young son. "I want you to know you didn't do or say anything wrong, okay?"

"Okay. But, why did Papa get so weird and call me 'Cole'?"

"Because, Henry, you look a lot like Cole."

"I don't get it." Henry was more confused than ever. "Who's Cole?"

"Cole is your Papa's other son." Showing Henry the palm of his hand Connor revealed a holographic photograph of Cole for the boy to see. "This is Cole when he was about your age." A new detail popped into Connor's mind that made him feel a tad guilty. "In fact, it would be his birthday tomorrow."

Henry was quiet for a moment as he processed what Connor had just told him. "I thought you and Uncle Luke were Papa's kids."

"We are. But before either myself or your Uncle Luke had even met your Papa he had another son named Cole."

"I still don't get it. Where is Cole and how come you and Uncle Luke never talk about him?"

"Because," gently putting his hand to Henry's shoulder as the image faded away, Connor told him the sad story with a heavy heart. "about fourteen years ago your Papa and your Uncle Cole were in a very bad car accident, and they were both hurt. Your Papa hurt his ribs but he got better, but your Uncle Cole was hurt so badly that the doctors couldn't make him better. He passed away and your Papa was very, very sad for a long time. And he still gets sad sometimes when he thinks about Cole because he misses him so much."

"Uncle Cole went to Heaven?"

"Yes, he's with your Grandma Barbara and your-" It was still hard for Connor to talk about Skye and he didn't want to tell Henry that he'd never meet his mother. Not yet. Instead he quickly changed the subject. "...And because you look like Cole, your Papa accidentally called you by his name instead."

"Did I make him sad?"

"No, Henry. The memory of losing Cole made him sad."

"Is that why my middle name is Cole? Because of him?"

"Yes, that's right."

"Why'd you do that?"

"The same reason I picked your first name. Do you know why I chose your first name?"

"No."

"I picked the name 'Henry' because that's your Papa's first name. I named you after him to honor your Papa because he's a great father and a great man. And I picked the name 'Cole' to honor your Uncle Cole's memory."

"Oh. What was Uncle Cole like?"

"I... don't know. Your Papa told me a few things about him, but he'd get really sad after talking about him and didn't want to talk anymore. I do know your Papa loved him very much, just like he loves you."

"You said Uncle Cole died before you and Uncle Luke met Papa." Henry was picking up on other curious details he never thought about before. "How did you meet your own dad?"

"Your Uncle Luke and I were adopted by your Papa. We don't have the same blood as your Papa, but we're family all the same. He cares about us and we care about him. It's love that makes a family, not blood."

"Adopted?"

"Yes. That's when a person who needs a family is taken in by a family." Connor explained simply and coolly. "Papa took me in and gave me a family because he wanted to, and because I needed a father to guide me through my life. And your Uncle Luke and I had been... separated from each other for a long time." It wasn't a total lie and much easier to explain to a small child that way as opposed to everything Luke went through. "When we found each other your Papa took him in, too. If it wasn't for your Papa I don't know where I'd be right now, but I do know that I wouldn't have you in my life. And that thought makes me feel sad, too."

"Oh." Henry looked around the bonfire to see where Hank was, but he was still inside the cabin. "Everyone always say I look like you."

"That's right."

"And I look like Uncle Cole?"

"That's also right."

"So does that mean you look like Uncle Cole, too?"

That question was a little unexpected and Connor wasn't quite sure how to answer. "I suppose that's true as well. I hadn't thought about it like that before, but it makes sense."

Henry kept looking around trying to see where Hank was, but the emotionally distressed man was nowhere to be seen. "Where is Papa?"

"His back was hurting him a little." The white lie wasn't entirely untrue either. "He went to lay down for a while. He'll be back outside in a few hours."

"Okay."

"Want to help me with dinner? I'm making hamburgers."

"Can Sumo come with us?"

"Of course." Connor stood up from the log and walked toward the cabin with Henry right beside him. Sumo slowly plodded after them with his long tail lightly wagging back and forth. "He can help clean up any messes we make after they drop on the floor."

---

The sun had almost set entirely and the bonfire was still as bright and warm as ever. Hank had finally returned to the bonfire after an hour of being alone and happily joined Henry for dinner. Sumo ate up some of the scraps dropped on the kitchen floor or in the grass, but for the most part enjoyed resting his aging bones near the warm fire and being close to his loving family. Connor was tending to the fire to keep the flame alive while Henry sat beside it petting Sumo much to the dog's delight. Hank himself was sitting with his back to the fire so that he could watch the sun set into the darkness over the lake as he became lost in melancholy thought about his late son and late wife.

"I'm going to get more wood for the fire." The deviant father stated as he eyed the pile of firewood stacked neatly behind the cabin by the cellar doors. "Don't get too close to the fire, Henry."

"Okay." The happy little boy looked up from Sumo to watch Connor walking toward the cabin then turned to look at Hank. Standing up from the ground he rushed over to the log and sat down beside Hank curiously. "Papa?"

"Yeah, Henry?" Hank's eyes never left the sunset as he answered his grandson's question. "What's up?"

"What was Uncle Cole like?"

Though the question caught Hank off guard the loving grandfather didn't flinch. Looking down at his grandson Hank could've sworn he was looking at Cole himself. With an appreciative grin on his face and tears in his blue eyes he wrapped his arm around Henry's shoulder and pulled him up against his side and Henry leaned up against him. As he hugged Henry and watched the last of the sunlight fade away into the night Hank let out a weary sigh and finally answered the question.

"Well, Cole was a lot like you, Henry." Talking about Cole seemed to be bringing Hank a much needed sense of peace as he spoke. "And your dad..."

---

Life With Henry: Eight Years Old

Still a little wary of his previous agreement to host a small slumber party for Henry and his closest friends, Connor managed to open up as much free space in the livingroom as possible as Henry and his best friend Jason, as well as two other good friends from his basketball team, Robby and Jordon - and of course Aria - spread out their sleeping bags on the floor. It was the first time that Connor had to entertain an entire group of children but he was up to the challenge and kept texting Hank for advice on the matter. Never before had the deviant felt so outnumbered by such innocence in regards to the kids all playing together, laughing and talking to each other in a nearly manic manner.

'They're eight, not eighteen.' Hank reminded Connor casually as he slowly texted his son from his own house next door. 'You don't have to worry so much.'

"I've sent Henry over to Jason's house four times in the past for a sleepover, but I've never had to host one."

'It's easy. Give the kids pizza, let them play some games and then let 'em watch a movie. They'll fall asleep really fast and by morning their parents will come by and pick them all up to head for home. They'll have a good time and in a few months you'll probably do it again.'

"I don't think it'll be that easy tonight since Aria is here."

'Why's that?'

"The boys are discussing basketball and Aria seems bored. She doesn't enjoy sports as they do."

'Well, if the boys are entertained by themselves then you should just focus on her. She's your goddaughter after all. Hell, she and Henry are kinda' half siblings. You know what I mean?'

"Yeah, I know. Even if Aria and Henry weren't so indirectly related I'd tend to her all the same."

'Good. Now, stop talking with me and take care of her.'

"Right. I'll make sure she's having fun."

Ending his cybernetic texting with his father Connor walked into the livingroom from the kitchen where the four boys were talking about basketball and Aria was sitting on the couch with her stuffed toy cat on her lap. Sitting down beside the little girl on the couch Connor spoke to her kindly and decided to see if she wanted to do something fun that didn't revolve around basketball.

"Hi, Aria."

"Hi." Aria was soft spoken and very polite. She had Abby's hair color but Gavin's eyes and she was very intelligent and kind like her mother. "I liked the pizza."

"That's good. Do you want to play a game?"

"What kind of game?"

"Any game you want to play. There are boardgames in the closet, there are videogames here in the livingroom or we can play anything else you can think of."

The invitation was very alluring, and Aria's eyes lit up quickly. "Can we play 'makeover'?"

"What's 'makeover'?"

"I can show you!" Excitedly Aria got off the couch and grabbed her purple backpack that was sitting on the floor by the television set and rushed into the neighboring kitchen. "Come with me!"

Obediently Connor walked into the kitchen and followed after Aria as she pulled out some small make-up kits and nail polishes that she had been given by her parents for her birthday last month. Completely unfamiliar with the concept of make-up Connor just sat and watched as Aria got everything set up in a meticulous manner and grabbed on to his hand.

"Lay your hand flat on the table. Move your fingers apart."

"All right." Doing as instructed Connor watched as Aria set up her small bottles of nail polish all in a neat row, then sat back in the chair. "Now what do we do?"

"And now you pick a color!"

---

Three hours after Connor initially texted Hank, he sent his father another text to confirm that everything went all right and that the five kids were all asleep on the livingroom floor tucked into their sleeping bags and they were all pretty happy. The boys were on the floor and Aria was sleeping on the couch since she was the last one to fall asleep and Connor put her there to rest after she started falling asleep at the kitchen table. Draping her sleeping bag over the small girl and tucking her stuffed kitty under her arm Connor was convinced she'd be warm and comfortable throughout the night.

After very quietly cleaning up the plates and empty cups from the floor without disturbing the kids Connor made sure they were all comfortable in their sleeping bags and all had pillows. The television was left on at a low volume to keep some form of light at all time for the little kids in case one or more were afraid of the dark or needed to see their way around the unfamiliar house to get to the bathroom just down the hallway.

A reply text appeared in Connor's visual processors as he went to his own bedroom and kept the door open to keep a close eye on the kids.

'Sounds like you made sure they all had fun. What'd you do with Aria?'

"I played a game with her while the boys talked." He confirmed as he looked down at his hands where a new color adorned his ten fingernails. "Then they all watched a movie and fell asleep."

'See? Not a big deal.'

"Thanks for your help. I'll see you tomorrow."

Connor stayed in a light rest mode to keep tabs on the five children and much to his relief they all stayed asleep throughout the entire night. Once morning came around Connor proceeded to make his way into the kitchen and prepared the five kids breakfast before helping them pack up their things and make sure they had everything they needed before leaving for home.

As the group of kids all sat around the livingroom with plates full of pancakes, eggs and juice Connor received texts from the other parents letting him know that they'd be stopping by within the hour to get their kids. Unsurprisingly Abby was the first to show up since she and Gavin were going to head out of the city for a weekend away and have a small family vacation with Aria, and was so happy to see her daughter having fun with her godfather.

As Connor answered the door the sweet little girl rushed over her mom with her backpack and stuffed kitty in her hands. "Hi, mom!"

"Hi, Aria!" Abby beamed proudly as she saw the smile on her daughter's face. "Did you have fun?"

"Yeah!" Aria continued to smile brightly as she told her mom about playing a game with Connor and pointed at the deviant. "I got to play 'makeover'."

Abby gave Connor a curious glance as she picked Abby up and held her on her right hip. "'Makeover', huh?"

Connor blushed a pale blue and held up his hand to show Abby that he allowed Aria to paint his fingernails emerald green. "...It'll wash off."

"Don't worry." Amused by Connor's willingness to indulge her daughter's idea of fun, Abby laughed discreetly at the nail polish on her friend's fingernails. "You're not the first guy she's talked into playing 'makeover' with." She leaned a little bit closer and whispered to the deviant to keep the four little boys from hearing her speak. "Gavin's toenails are purple with glitter and tiny pink hearts."

Connor smirked as Abby thanked him, took her leave of the house and carried Abby out to the car where Gavin was waiting behind the steering wheel.

"Bye, Abby." Connor called out as the duo left the house to head out for their next adventure. "Bye, Aria."

Aria waved happily to Connor from her mom's hip, and she shouted back to him before being placed in the backseat of the car by Abby. "Bye!"

Shortly thereafter the rest of the kids were collected by their parents and Henry helped his dad clean up the livingroom and put the furniture back in place. As the little boy picked up the plates and cups to put in the kitchen sink Hank walked in through the backdoor, and greeted Henry as Sumo walked in beside him.

"Good morning, Henry."

"Hi, Papa." Henry replied sharply as he saw his grandfather and the loyal Saint Bernard. "Hi, Sumo."

"Have fun last night?"

"Yeah!" Sumo trotted up to Henry and began licking sticky syrup from his fingertips making Henry laugh. "We're going to win all our basketball games this year and then we're going to win every game the year after."

"I wouldn't doubt it for a minute."

Connor joined Hank and Henry in the kitchen and promptly rubbed Sumo's ears with his hand as he offered Hank something to eat. "Want some breakfast? I believe I made too much even for five people."

"Yeah, sure. Then I want to-" Hank spotted the green on Connor's fingernails and grabbed his hand in a light grip. Admiring the shining color over Connor's fingernails he just gave the deviant an amused smirk. "Uh, son, are you trying a new look?"

"Aria." Connor blushed pale blue again as he took his hand back from Hank's grip. "It was her idea."

"Oh. That explains it."

"I'm apparently not the first male that Aria managed to play her 'makeover' game with though. However, I feel honored all the same."

"Gavin?"

Nodding his head Connor placed his hand behind his back still somewhat embarrassed. "Gavin."

Henry saw the green on his dad's fingernails and laughed a little. "It's okay dad, it's better than having purple toenails!"

"O-Oh." Connor smirked devilishly at the remark. "I suppose you're right."

"Uh..." Putting his hands to his hips Hank gave Henry and then Connor an odd look. "Purple toenails?"

As his blush faded Connor gave Hank some context for the comment. "I guess Abby didn't whisper as quietly as she thought she did."

---

Life With Henry: Nine Years Old

It was the final junior league basketball game of the season and Henry's team had won the game handsomely. Connor and Hank had both been able to watch the game and were very proud of Henry for playing a great game, and for being a good sport throughout the entire tournament from start to finish. As the night came to an end and the attending family members all claimed their children from the elementary school gymnasium to head for home for a celebratory dinner, Connor met with Henry outside of the gym and walked with his son toward the parking lot where Hank was already waiting for them by the car. It was easier for Connor to stand around and wait for Henry than it was for Hank as of late.

"Great game, Henry."

"Thanks, dad."

Leading Henry through the parking lot Connor spoke with his son with a proud tone and enthusiastic energy. "I guess you'll have to settle for playing basketball at home with me and your Papa until the next season starts."

"That's cool. As long as I don't have to run sprints!"

"Only if you want to. Ready to head home?"

"Yeah. I'm ready."

Henry was walking with his basketball tucked under his arm and was unusually sluggish even though his team had just won. Connor just chalked it up to him being tired after a long game and didn't try to force a full conversation.

"When we get home you can shower off and I can drop you off at Jason's house so you can go have pizza with your friends."

"That's okay, I'm not hungry."

"Are you sure?" The response was completely unexpected, and it put Connor on edge as his paternal instincts kicked in. Connor knew that Henry wasn't the type to shy away from a night out with friends or from pizza. "You didn't eat much this morning."

"Yeah, I'm sure."

"Are you feeling all right?" Connor asked as he and Henry made it to the Corvette and pulled open the driver's side door. Pushing the driver's seat forward Connor let Henry climb into the backseat before replacing the seat climbing in himself. "You act like you don't feel well."

"I'm just tired." Henry replied firmly as he took his seat and fastened his seatbelt. "Can Jason come over tomorrow instead?"

"Yeah, tomorrow's Saturday so if it's okay with his mom he can come over." Adjusting the rearview mirror Connor looked at Henry's reflection and the corner of his mouth twitched a little as he turned over the engine. "Do you have a headache?"

"Not really." Henry was fairly pale but denied feeling sick despite all other symptoms saying otherwise. "I'm just tired, dad."

Already sitting in the front passenger seat Hank sensed there was something wrong with Henry, too. Just like Connor, he knew that Henry wouldn't admit it if he was feeling sick unless he was really suffering.

"Well, you'll feel better after you sit down for a while." Giving Connor a knowing glance Hank tagged on another thought. "Maybe you can hang out with Sumo on the couch again tonight."

Henry didn't respond to the offer which sent up red flags for both Connor and Hank within seconds.

"We'll be home in a few minutes, son." Connor had begun to speak more like Hank as Henry grew up, not that either of them were surprised. It just felt natural to refer to his son as 'son' just as Hank did for Connor and for Luke. "Then you can pass out in front of the television or with a book."

Once home with Henry having shown no interest in playing with Sumo next door practically confirmed that Henry was still acting as though he didn't feel well. After taking his shower he changed into a pair of black sweatpants and a dark blue t-shirt before laying down on his left side over the black leather couch in front of the television. As Henry's eyes drifted shut Connor very discreetly put his palm over Henry's forehead and ran a biometric scan over his son to ensure he was really okay.

Henry felt like he was running a mild fever, and his entire demeanor spoke volumes of illness.

Ever attentive Connor took the dark blue quilt from the back of the couch and draped it over Henry's sleeping form to make sure he was comfortable as he rested. Sitting down on the second smaller couch adjacent to where Henry was laying Connor continued to monitor him from where he sat as a precautionary measure. Henry was very pale and seemed exhausted beyond that of just playing in a basketball game that evening.

Connor knew something was wrong, something oddly familiar, but he couldn't quite place it.

As it neared ten in the evening Connor detected that Henry's fever was beginning to rise and knew that he was much sicker than he was going to admit. Before he had the chance stand up and walk over to his son laying on the couch Henry suddenly awoke and began to whimper in pain.

"Henry?"

"My stomach hurts." As Henry slowly sat upright on the couch, he wrapped both of his arms protectively around his stomach and began to cry in pain. "It really hurts!"

Connor's hand returned to Henry's forehead and noted his temperature at one-hundred and one point eight degrees and climbing. "I'm taking you to the hospital."

"No!" The scared, pained child called out loudly. "I don't wanna' go!"

"You have to go, you're very sick." Scooping Henry up and into his arms Connor made his way outside the house through the front door and next to door to where Hank still lived. Opening the front door of the second house Connor called out to Hank for some help. "Dad?"

"Connor?" Hank was still awake and reading in bed when his son walked inside. Making his way down the hallway as quickly as he could Hank saw Henry curled up around himself in Connor's arms and his blue eyes went wide. "What's going on?"

"I need to take Henry to the hospital; St. Vevila. He's burning up and in a lot of pain."

"All right, I'll drive." Hank grabbed the car keys from the bookshelf, slipped on his shoes and grabbed his dark overcoat by the door. Forcing himself to remain as calm as possible Hank took charge of the situation to ensure remained calm as well. "Come on, let's go."

While Hank drove the Oldsmobile to the hospital Connor sat in the backseat with Henry still being held in his arms and up against his chest. Henry was trying to curl around himself as much as possible as the pain in his stomach continued to escalate and he was getting paler by the second. Connor was very lightly running his hand over Henry's hair to comfort him while also keeping tabs on his fever in a discreet manner.

"Dad, I'm sick!"

"I know." Cybernetically Connor made contact with the hospital to inform the deviant receptionist of their impending arrival and of Henry's medical history for a more efficient examination. "You're going to be okay, Henry." The young father promised his sick son without any fear. "You just need to see a doctor."

"It hurts!"

"I know it does. We're going to get you to a doctor and the doctor will find out what's wrong and make the pain stop."

Pulling into the emergency entrance area of the parking lot Hank watched as Connor opened up the rear door to exit the vehicle and carried Henry inside the hospital for treatment. Hank hated to let them go inside without him, but he couldn't abandon the car out front. As a former first responder himself Hank knew the frustration of emergency crews having to deal with an abandoned vehicle in front of a hospital, and he forced himself to drive off to park elsewhere and then rejoin Connor inside the hospital.

Passing through the main lobby of the hospital Connor carried Henry up to the receptionist desk and was promptly greeted by Dr. Wilson who took Henry from Connor's arms and placed him down on a nearby gurney to be taken into an examination room. As soon as he found out a good friend's sick child was coming in to his E.R., Dr. Wilson personally took it upon himself to oversee Henry's treatment.

"It's okay, Connor." Dr. Wilson reassured the worrying father as took charge of Henry's diagnosis. "We'll take good care of Henry."

"I-I know. He's in good hands."

"Henry?" Dr. Wilson spoke to the frightened child as he pressed his palm over Henry's forehead for himself to gauge his fever. "My name is Dr. Wilson. I'm here to help you, don't be afraid. We'll take great care of you and get you back home before you know it."

The gurney was attended to by two orderlies who began wheeling Henry away from the receptionist area and toward the designated emergency exam room. Connor walked alongside his son and remained at his side while Dr. Wilson gave Henry a quick examination and determined that the most likely cause to Henry's sickness was appendicitis.

"Henry," Dr. Wilson carefully lifted up the boy's t-shirt after the gurney was taken into the exam room to reveal his abdomen before he lightly wrapped his fingertips around Henry's wrist to count his pulse. "I'm going to press my hand on your stomach now to check on something. If it hurts let me know and I'll stop."

Henry looked up at Connor as if needing reassurance.

"It's okay." Connor nodded and grabbed onto Henry's free hand to let him squeeze in case the pain made him wince or scream. "This is part of the exam to figure out why you're sick."

Lightly Dr. Wilson checked Henry's abdomen by palpating the lower right quadrant with his fingertips. As he neared the inevitable 'hotspot' Henry let out a yelp of pain and squeezed Connor's hand as he tried to roll onto his side away from Dr. Wilson.

"I'm sorry, I won't touch it again." Dr. Wilson promised as he put his hand on Henry's shoulder in a comforting manner. Glancing up at Connor the skilled and trusted doctor communicated the bleak news that Connor was already expecting. "He'll need an M.R.I. to confirm the diagnosis, but I'm already certain he'll need surgery."

Henry's pale face went even paler at the word 'surgery' and his hand tightened around Connor's even more. "I don't want surgery!"

Connor reciprocated the squeeze and ran his opposite hand through Henry's hair again. "I'm sorry, but it's the only way to help you feel better."

"No!"

"It won't take long." Dr. Wilson made a note in Henry's electronic chart and motioned for the nurse who had accompanied him to give the two a moment of privacy. "I know you'll be able to make sure Henry is ready for us, and we'll treat him like he's the star of the hospital."

"It's okay to be scared, Henry." Doing his best to reassure his sick son Connor tried to explain things as calmly as possible. "But you need-"

"No! Please!" Scared and in pain Henry begged to not have the surgery. "I don't want it! I want to go home!"

After parking the car in the lot outside Hank had made his way to the receptionist area to show his old badge to the deviant receptionist and informed her of his grandson being admitted. She happily directed him back to the examination room and allowed him to go about freely. Hank had bumped into Dr. Wilson just seconds prior to locating Connor and Henry and had already been informed of Henry's probable condition.

"Henry?" Hank saw that Henry was terrified and wanted to do everything he could to help him feel better. "What's wrong?"

"I don't want surgery!"

Connor silently mouthed the word 'appendix' to Hank, who quickly figured everything out and knew what Dr. Wilson told him had been completely true.

"You'll be okay." Hank encouraged as he stood on the opposite side of the gurney from Connor and pulled up his gray t-shirt a little. "See that scar? I had surgery to have my appendix taken out, and I'm okay. Felt a lot better afterward, too."

"A scar? I don't want a scar!"

Connor reacted quickly and mirrored Hank. "I had the same thing happen to me." Lifting up his own black t-shirt he pointed to where his analysis filter, his 'android-appendix' had been inside his abdomen, when it had failed. "I didn't end up with a scar because I was younger than your Papa when I had my surgery. You won't have a scar either, and you'll be okay just like we are."

Henry was still terrified, and no one could blame him. Being in a hospital as a child was scary enough, but needing surgery was even worse!

"Henry," Connor kept his voice low and calm as he knelt down beside the gurney and locked eyes with his son. "everything will be all right. Dr. Wilson is going to take you to get a test done and make sure it's really your appendix making you sick. And if that's the case, then you'll have to have surgery. But you'll be asleep the whole time and won't feel anything. No pain at all."

Drying his frightened tears Henry did his best to put on a brave face. "...Really?"

"Yes, really." Connor promised as he continued to run his hand through Henry's hair. "When you wake up both me and Papa will be right here waiting for you. As soon as you're given the clear we'll take you back home and let you spoil Sumo rotten while you eat all the ice cream you want."

Dr. Wilson and the nurse returned to the exam room and shook Hank's hand respectfully as he addressed Connor. "They're ready for Henry upstairs. If it is his appendix then he'll need to be taken into surgery A.S.A.P. to have it removed. Do we your consent?"

"Y-Yeah. Of course."

The nurse handed Connor the electronic tablet containing the official documents to be signed and immediately officiated. With a somewhat shaking hand Connor signed his name and handed the document back to the nurse.

"Henry," Connor planted a kiss on Henry's too warm forehead as he spoke. "you're going to be all right. I promise. It'll be over soon."

Henry only nodded as the safety rails on the sides of the gurney were lifted up and locked into place by Dr. Wilson and the nurse. As Henry was slowly wheeled out of the room and down the corridor to the elevator out of sight Connor let out a heavy sigh and pressed the heels of his palms to his face in worried frustration.

"Hey..." Hank planted his palm on Connor's shoulder in a grounding manner to lead him out of the exam room and back to the waiting room. "Come on, son."

Taking in a deep breath Connor fought to keep himself from having an emotional breakdown. "I hate this."

"That's exactly how I felt when you had to have your filter thingy removed all those years ago. And when you needed to have your heart repaired after you got stabbed by that psycho-bitch."

"Henry isn't an android, dad. He's a human, he's... fragile." Connor countered with righteous concern. "And he's still so small."

The fear in Connor's voice reflected Hank's own fear from the night Cole had died when he needed emergency surgery. Cole had suffered internal trauma, whereas Henry only had an inflamed appendix. An appendectomy was a rather routine procedure in the hospital and Dr. Wilson was a skilled doctor. He helped Connor when he was sick, so Hank was confident that he'd be able to help Henry, too.

"Son, Henry is one strong little boy. He's just like his father."

"That doesn't make it any easier to accept."

"Sit down with me for a minute. Breathe."

Hank guided Connor to one of the vacant seats in the waiting room and sat down next to him. Keeping his hand on Connor's shoulder Hank encouraged Connor to breathe slowly and to try to calm his mind. As the worried young father sat idle in the chair next to Hank he went for pocket and he pulled out his old coin.

"Huh." As Connor nervously danced the quarter over his knuckles Hank saw the quarter and just shook his head. "It's been years since I've seen you mess around with that thing."

"My hands had been rather full the past nine years."

"Yeah, I get that." Sitting back in his own chair Hank crossed his arms over his chest and sighed as he tried to stay strong on his son's behalf. "Henry will be fine, son. You just need to sit and wait."

"I dislike being unable to help him as much as I dislike waiting."

"You did help him. You knew he was sick, and you knew he needed to go to the hospital. A lot of parents would either 'wait and see' what happens or just panic. You did real good, son. You reacted right away, and you kept yourself calm so that Henry stayed calm."

Bowing his head a little Connor sighed and closed his eyes as the full gravity of the situation rested heavily in his heart. "I just hope it was good enough."

---

Three painfully slow hours passed by with Connor now pacing about the waiting room with his coin still dancing over his hand and Hank lightly dozing in the chair a few feet away. Very few people were left in the waiting room as the late night hours turned to early morning hours, and it seemed only Connor and Hank were still somewhat conscious as it neared one in the morning. Just as the pacing deviant father crossed the room for the fifty-second time Dr. Wilson returned to speak with him with a confident smile of relief on his face.

Connor stopped short and looked to Dr. Wilson without saying a word as he waited to hear about his son's condition.

"Henry's just fine, Connor." The good doctor replied with full honesty being conveyed in his words. "He's in his own recovery room and just waking up from the anesthesia."

Lowering his hand, his coin finally coming to a stop, Connor gave the doctor a pleading sigh. "...Can I see him?"

"Sure, but only for a few minutes. It's very late."

"Yes, of course." As he pocketed his coin Connor turned to look back at Hank where he was still sitting in the chair. "Did you want to see Henry, too?"

"I'll see him the morning, son." Hank knew Connor needed a moment alone with his son and found an ideal excuse to give him that moment. "He's going to be too drowsy from the anesthesia to really talk anyway."

"Right. I'll let him know you'll see him in the morning."

"Tell him I love him, and I'll even bring Sumo for a special visit, too."

"I will."

Walking at Dr. Wilson's side Connor was shown to Henry's private room where he was drifting in and out of awareness as a deviant nurse kept an eye on him. The small boy had a nasal cannula under his nose as the additional oxygen would help flush the remaining anesthetic from his system and help with his overall recovery. A small plastic clip was attached to his middle finger to keep tabs on his vitals on the muted cardiac monitor beside the bed. Henry's face wasn't as pale as it had been but he still looked miserably sick.

Very lightly Connor wrapped his hand around Henry's firearm and whispered to him. "Henry, it's dad."

Henry's blue eyes began to flutter a little as he recognized Connor's voice. "...Dad?"

"Right here. How do you feel?"

There was a slight delay as Henry regained his bearings and became more alert. "Kinda' ...numb."

"That'll fade in time. Do you remember what's going on and where you are?"

"I got sick." The little boy answered correctly. "...I'm in a hospital."

"That's right. You're going to stay the night here and I'll take you home tomorrow afternoon, okay?"

"Where's... Where's Papa?"

"He's going to go home for the night to take care of Sumo, then he and Sumo will come back to the hospital to see you in the morning."

"Are you gonna' go, too?"

"No, I'll be here all night." Giving Henry's forehead a kiss Connor made it known he wasn't going anywhere. "If you need me to do so I'll go buy a sleeping bag and sleep on the floor right next to you."

"Thanks, dad."

The nurse just looked at Connor and smiled as he stayed with Henry and proceeded to run his hand through Henry's hair again. Taking a chair from the far wall the nurse placed it beside the bed for Connor to use as he stayed beside Henry for the rest of the night to keep watch over his sick son.

"Get some more sleep." The loving father encouraged as he continued to use his fingers to come through Henry's hair in a comforting manner. "You'll feel much better in the morning, son."

"...Okay, dad." Groggy and still weak from being so sick Henry closed his eyes and fell asleep very quickly under his loving father's touch. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Henry. Sleep well."

---

True to his word Connor stayed beside his healing son's bedside well until dawn and never once left the room. As morning came Henry's incision was examined by Dr. Wilson and he was given the all-clear to go home to rest while taking antibiotics to stave off any potential post operative infection. Since his incision was still healing Henry was allowed to skip the following entire week of school, which of course meant that he got a little spoiled by both his dad and his grandpa, and he got to have Sumo all to himself while he healed. As far as Henry was concerned, his family had been right. After the surgery was over and he was brought home, he felt much better and was no longer afraid.

While Henry rested on the couch with Sumo visiting with him and sprawled out over the little boy's legs Markus stopped by the house to visit the recovering little boy and bring him a few things to help him feel better. A few 'Get Well Soon' cards came from New Jericho's leaders and Markus himself brought Henry a few spare canvases, various paintbrushes, oil paints and a wooden paint pallet for him to mess with while he healed.

"This is all for you, Henry." Markus smiled as he gave the little boy all the gifts after stepping through the front door of the house. "Enjoy!"

"Thanks, Markus!"

The deviant leader had essentially taken an honorary role as an additional Uncle since Luke still lived in Boston, and he loved every second of it. More than happy to give Henry piano and guitar lessons at his own house whenever he could spare the time, and Markus had become pretty attached to the little boy. Henry's taste in music was evolving and it didn't take long for Markus to notice.

"I'm glad that you're feeling better." Markus stated as he sat down on the neighboring couch to speak with Henry. "When you're ready I'll give you some extra piano lessons to help make up for while you're healing."

"Cool! Can you teach me how to play piano and play the guitar at the same time?"

"Uh... Maybe you can play the piano with one hand and strum with the other. But you're going to have to ask your dad about multitasking with a guitar. He's far better than I am and will start taking over your guitar lessons soon enough anyway."

"That'd be so cool. Then maybe I can learn to play the sax like Uncle Luke!"

"Sounds like you want to be your own entire band."

"Why not? That's be awesome! I bet I could learn to play the violin, too!"

Connor stepped into the livingroom from the kitchen to check in on Henry who was laying stretched out over the length of the leather couch. Having called off work to take care of Henry for the first forty-eight hours of his recovery with Hank taking over for the remainder of the recovery time, Connor was constantly checking in on his healing son as if Henry was a helpless newborn all over again.

"Hey, Henry. How do you feel?"

"Okay, I guess." Henry was getting used to being laid up instead of running around playing basketball or doing something beyond watching television all day. "I kinda' feel like I have a big bruise in my side, or like I ran too much during practice."

"That's how I felt after my 'surgery'." Connor sympathized as he stood behind the couch to look down at his son. "It'll stop soon."

"Look what Markus got for me!" Henry proudly held up the newly acquired art supplies and smiled. "What do you think?"

"I think that's perfect for you." The gracious Connor approved of the gift and was very appreciative of Markus's generosity. "Thank you, Markus."

"No problem, painting is a great way to keep him entertained without hurting his healing side." Markus's experience as a caretaker was proving to be invaluable when it was truly important. If he could keep someone has bullheaded as Carl from getting into trouble, then handling a fourth grader would be a piece of cake. "Do you need anything else, Connor? I don't mind doing a few errands."

"Thanks again, but we're good. Hank went out to grab a few things for Henry and he will back soon. You're free to hang out with us though."

"Sure! It'd be nice to get away from work for a while." Glancing down at Henry with a grin Markus asked for his approval and picked up one of the paintbrushes sitting on the couch cushion beside Henry. "Do you mind?"

"No!" Henry had seen Markus's work in person and was amazed by the deviant leader's artistic talent. "Show me how to paint!"

"All right, no problem."

As Markus sat down on the couch next to Henry to show him the proper method for using oil-based paints and the different types of brushes he had been given to use, Connor took the opportunity to make Henry a light lunch. "Think you can eat something?"

"Yeah, I think so."

"All right. I'll go make you some soup and then you can have a little ice cream after."

Henry smiled at the idea of being able to have ice cream for lunch, while Markus just grinned at the very human and compassionate mannerisms that Connor had developed after Henry had been born. It was strange to know Connor first as 'The Deviant Hunter', protect their people during the Raid, then an ally who infiltrated a high security tower to free their people, help lead the Revolution, help establish android rights and fight back against discrimination; now acting as one of the most attentive loving parents in all of the city.

"Here's a trick to oil-painting, Henry." Markus held up the tube of white paint and put a small portion on the first canvas to give the little boy a few pointers while Connor busied himself in the kitchen. "If you put a white base down and leave it wet the paint will blend much easier."

"That's kinda' cool. I didn't know you could paint like that."

Connor placed a serving tray with the warm soup down on the coffee table and discreetly stood behind the couch. Looking down at Henry as he watched Markus's skilled hands painting the canvas, Connor felt his heart swell knowing that his son was well on his way to a full recovery. Soon enough he'd be able to resume playing basketball with his friends, go back to school to resume learning and resume his music lessons over at Markus's mansion on a weekly basis.

It was then a strange idea popped into Connor's head that prompted him to consult with Markus for a minute on a silent, cybernetic link.

'Markus, I briefly heard Henry mention something about wanting to play the violin.' As he spoke Connor saw Markus's shoulders tense for a moment. 'That was the instrument that Skye played. Did you mention that to Henry by chance?'

'No, I never even thought to bring it up.' Markus confirmed as he understood Connor's reluctance to mention Henry's late mother and respected that decision. 'And I know that North didn't say anything to him either. Maybe he saw it at the mansion and that's what piqued his interest.'

'You have Skye's violin?'

'North kept it after we lost Skye. It's been safe in the mansion ever since, but it hasn't sung a single song since then.'

'In all the time Skye and spent together, I never asked to hear her play.' Connor lamented his missed opportunity with a heavy heart. 'I've regretted it ever since.'

'Do you wish to have it?' Keeping everything silent between Connor and himself Markus let Henry take the paintbrush and imitate the painting technique he had just demonstrated. 'I can bring it here, just ask.'

'...Not yet.' Despite having over a decade for his broken heart to heal, Connor still couldn't bring himself to speak of his lost bondmate with his son. 'In time, when I'm ready to talk to Henry about Skye, then I'll be ready to tell him everything about her and share her talents and dreams with him.'

Turning to look at Connor over his shoulder, Markus smiled and nodded once. 'She'd like that. Consider it a promise.'

---

Life With Henry: Ten Years Old

It was a cold winter morning and Hank was walking about slowly through the kitchen as he prepared a fresh pot of coffee for himself. Sumo was laying down on his side on the giant pillow in the corner of the livingroom with an old worn-out red and white plaid blanket wrapped all around his arthritic body. The sight of Sumo spending all day just laying still and bundled up reminded Hank so much of his own aging and limitations it genuinely hurt to look at the dog. It was about two weeks until Christmas, and Hank was trying to put together his 'to-do' list at the kitchen table to get everything taken care of before the holidays when his phone started 'buzzing' right beside his hand as he sat down at the kitchen table to continue sorting his thoughts.

Picking up the phone and recognizing the number instantly as Connor, Hank answered and continued on with his list.

"Hey, son. What's going on?"

'Papa?' It was Henry's voice on the line not Connor. 'It's me.'

"Henry!" Always happy to hear from his grandson Hank turned his full attention to the phone call and put aside his left. "Hey, bud. What's up?"

'I think something's wrong with dad.'

"What?" Standing up from the kitchen table quickly Hank turned off the coffee pot and made his way to the livingroom to grab his shoes and his thick coat from the hook beside the front door. "What's wrong with your dad?"

'I think he's sick.'

"Sick?" Such a word immediately put Hank on his guard. "What makes you think that?"

'He won't wake up.'

"Where is he?" Opening the front door Hank made his way over to the house next door and continued to talk to his grandson over the phone. "Keeping talking to me. Where's your dad?"

'Dad's in his bed.'

"Are you with him?"

'Uh-huh.'

"Good. Put your hand on his forehead for me. How does his skin feel?"

There was a brief pause before Henry answered. 'Hot. And he's sweating.'

"Okay, buddy, I'm outside the front door right now. I'll be inside in a few seconds." Unwilling to hang up the phone until he was by Connor and Henry's sides Hank entered the house by unlocking the front door with his own key and made his way down the hallway and into the master bedroom at the very end of the hallway where he knew Connor slept. "Henry? Connor?"

"Papa." Henry hung up the phone and stared as Hank entered the bedroom and hung up his own phone. "Is dad sick?"

"We're about to find out." Calmly Hank stood over the bed and looked down at Connor's alarmingly pale, sweaty face with a masked worry. Not only was Connor's complexion pale, but he had dark bags under his eyes, his cheeks were pale blue with flush and his sweaty hair was clinging to his forehead. Gently Hank placed his hand over Connor's forehead confirming the fever and used his thumb to lightly lift up Connor's eyelids to check his glassy pupils. "Yeah, Henry. It looks like your dad is sick."

"Does he need to go to the hospital like I did last year?"

"I hope not." Sitting down on the edge of the bed Hank pulled back the quilt from Connor's upper chest to try to help him cool off a little as he picked up Connor's wrist to count his pulse. "Looks he'll need us to help take care of him until he's better."

"Papa," Henry noticed that Hank was pressing his fingers around Connor's wrist and now pressing his opposite palm down against the deviant's chest. "why are you holding dad's hand?"

"I'm checking his pulse."

"Pulse?"

"It's a way for me to count his heartbeat."

"Why are you doing that?"

"Because I can figure out exactly how sick he is by counting his pulse. He's going to be all right though, understand?"

Henry didn't look convinced and remained worried where he stood. "...Okay."

"Connor?" Hank gently shook Connor by the shoulder as he spoke his name. "Come on, son. Wake up for me."

Slowly Connor's dark brown soulful, but glassy, eyes opened and focused on Hank's face as he leaned over him. "...Dad."

"Hey, son. How do you feel?"

Pausing to think for a moment Connor blinked once and then answered succinctly and honestly. "...Hot."

"Yeah, you're definitely running a fever." Hank confirmed as his son gained his bearings. "Looks like you got the flu again."

"...Where's Henry?"

"He's fine." Hank pointed at the scared little boy standing beside the bed. "He's right here."

Groggily Connor turned his head a little against the pillow and looked at Henry who was waiting for his dad to say something to him. "Hey, Henry."

"Hi, dad." Henry only looked mildly relieved when Connor finally acknowledged him. "Papa says you're sick."

"...Yeah. I guess I am."

"I didn't know androids could get sick."

"We can get sick like any other human." Reluctantly Connor confirmed the reality with a slightly amused lilt to his voice. "I've been sick before, so has Markus. It's not too different from when a human gets sick, which means I will get better, too."

"How did you get sick? Germs?"

"No." Connor was having a hard time keeping his eyes open. He was incredibly tired and fighting to remain conscious for Henry's sake. "Androids get sick from software glitches or viruses, but I've always been vulnerable to the cold. This time I got sick from the cold because I wasn't wearing a thick enough coat when I went out on a case yesterday afternoon in the rain." Letting out a weak and unexpected cough Connor looked and sounded as terrible as he felt. "...I just need to rest."

"Then lay back and sleep." Hank urged as he kept his hand on Connor's shoulder. Returning his free hand to Connor's forehead, brushing away the rogue lock of hair in the process, he tried to gauge his fever. "How's your temperature?"

"...One-hundred and two point four degrees."

"Yup. You're sick." Patting Connor's shoulder Hank encouraged his son to get some rest so he could recover. "You sleep and I'll take care of you AND Henry today."

"No, I'll be fine." As he tried to get up Connor was silenced and held down by Hank's strong hand. "I just need-"

"Connor. Sleep. You admitted it yourself that you need to rest." Glancing over to Henry, who was still a little scared but staying brave for his dad's sake, Hank nodded at him subtly. "Henry, could you go get some ice packs out of the freezer and bring them in here, please?"

"Okay. I'll be right back, dad!"

As Henry left the bedroom Connor let out a gasping sigh and winced as his chest already ached from coughing and even ached a little from breathing.

"Level with me, kid. How bad's your fever?" Hank challenged in a low voice. "I'll get the thermometer if I have to. Even the rectal one if you push me."

With a look of defeat in his glassy eyes Connor replied honestly. "...It's actually hovering at one-hundred and three point seven degrees."

"Shit, you might actually have to go to a facility for treatment."

"No, I don't want Henry to be worried about me or see me in a facility. I can recover here."

"How calm do you think he'd be if you got worse and became unresponsive? He already couldn't wake you up, that's why he called me."

"Please? I'll heal in a few hours. I don't want Henry to ever see me in a facility. It'd terrify him to see me in such a state."

Hank wanted to say something else, but Henry returned with the requested ice packs and handed them over to Hank. Placing one bag of ice over Connor's forehead and a second bag over top his chest, the retired detective just sighed and patted the deviant's shoulder lightly.

"All right, get some sleep." Relenting for the time being Hank decided to let Connor remain sick in bed. "I'll take care of Henry so you can rest, son. Stay here and don't try to get up for any reason."

"Thanks, dad." Connor's eyes drifted shut and he returned to rest mode to allow his self healing program to initiate at full power. "Henry, be good for Papa while I'm asleep. After I'm better we can go downtown to look at the Christmas lights."

"Come on, Henry." Hank kept his voice optimistic as he addressed his still worrying grandson. "Your dad needs to sleep."

"But he's still sick."

"Yeah, but he'll be fine in a few hours. Why don't we go sit in the livingroom so he can sleep without us accidentally bothering him? Hm?"

"What if he gets worse?"

"That's why we'll check in on him from time to time and make sure he's okay. He needs to sleep for now."

Begrudgingly Henry agreed to leave his dad alone and head out to the livingroom. "...Okay, Papa."

"Come on." Standing up from the bed Hank rubbed his hand along the back of Henry's hair and guided the scared boy out of the bedroom to head back down the hallway. "Before you called I was trying to put together a list of ideas for Christmas." Changing the subject to something cheery Hank tried to get Henry to finally feel better. "Think you could help me out?"

Connor partially opened his eyes as he watched as Hank escorted Henry out of his bedroom and was all too grateful to have Hank there to take care of Henry during his sickness. Closing his eyes once more Connor swallowed once out of discomfort and pain and breathed slowly.

"...Thanks for everything, dad."

---

It took Hank a few hours to get Henry to stop worrying so much about Connor, but in time Henry was a lot calmer and helping Hank take care of ideas for Christmas before it was too late to finish shopping. Sitting in the middle of the couch in the livingroom Henry was helping Hank to take care of his now heavily altered 'to-do' list, while Hank himself was sending a text to a good friend on his phone without drawing the young boy's attention. From the corner of his eye Hank noticed that Henry was slowly rolling a large fifty-cent piece coin along the back of his knuckles in a way that Connor would do when stressed out or nervous.

Withholding an amused chuckle Hank watched Henry fuss with the coin and didn't say a word about it being annoying. It seemed it was impossible for the man to ever get upset with or irritated by his beloved grandson.

"What do you think, Papa?" Henry showed his grandfather the small list he was writing for himself as he slipped his coin into his pocket. "Is that okay?"

"Let's see here. A new toy for Sumo, you wanna' get your dad another set of guitar strings and guitar picks, and you want to get me a shirt that doesn't have any 'weird patterns' on them..." Hank smirked and playfully nudged Henry's side with elbow. "You trying to say my shirts are ugly?"

"I didn't say 'ugly', I said 'weird'."

Hank laughed a little at the witty retort and gave him back the list. "Not bad at all. But what do you want for Christmas?"

"I don't know."

"Sure you do! You love that keyboard you got for Christmas about four years ago, why not ask for a newer one, or maybe a nice case so you can carry it around easier?"

"That's okay. The keyboard is still good, and I don't need something new."

The sweetness of Henry's demeanor was almost too much for Hank to bear. "Well, I'll get you something cool no matter what. And you're gonna' like it, ya' hear me?"

Laughing a little Henry nodded and agreed to his grandfather's plan. "Thanks, Papa."

There was a knock on the front door and Hank patted Henry's shoulder as he got up from the couch to answer it. He knew exactly who it was but tried to feign innocence as he met with the invited guest. "Hey, Abby. What brings you by?"

"Hi, Hank." Abby stepped inside the house and her eyes lit up when she saw Henry sitting on the couch. Seeing Henry at school every so often never fully prepared her to see the little boy growing up with his father and grandfather. "Hi, Henry!"

"Hi, Abby." The little boy replied politely as he turned to look at her over the back of the couch. "Dad's sleeping right now."

"That's good. I was told your dad is sick." She stated calmly as he walked toward the hallway with her technician's satchel prominently slung over her shoulder. "And I want to make sure he gets better as soon as possible. Okay?"

"Okay!" Henry excitedly jumped off the couch and ran down the hallway to check in on Connor. "He's asleep in here!"

Abby happily followed after Henry and Hank joined them shortly afterward. Moving aside the packs of partially melted ice Abby sat down on the edge of the bed and listened to the sound of Connor quietly coughing as he slept. With a very gentle touch Abby placed her hand over his forehead and noted he was still running a fever, but it wasn't as high as she had feared.

"Connor?" She whispered his name and pressed her palm against his chest. The deviant began to stir a little, his head lolling against his pillow, and then turned back to face Abby as his glassy eyes opened. "Hi, Connor."

"...Abby?" Connor coughed again and quieted quickly as she opened up her satchel and put it down on the floor beside the bed. "...What's going on?"

"Well, I got word you weren't feeling well," she subtly tilted her head in Henry's direction as he stood just behind her. "and I figured since I was in the area I'd stop by and see how you're doing."

"O-Oh. Thank you."

"Your fever is almost gone, so that's good." The kind technician confirmed as she checked over her star patient. "How long have you been sick?"

"...I was fine when I came home last night, but my internal chronometer failed to awaken me at eight-fifteen this morning." Replying honestly Connor clearly wanted to get better as soon as possible. "My internal log indicates a failure to initiate the alarm and other basic routine functions at 05:44am this morning."

"So about sixteen hours then."

"Sixteen hours?" Connor lifted his head and looked about his bedroom curiously. "I've been asleep for that long?"

From the doorway Hank called out to him calmly. "Easy, son. You were out for about eight hours and needed to sleep, and I already told you that I'd take care of Henry. Relax and cooperate."

Abby took out her audioscope from the satchel and after she put the earbuds into place she pressed the bell to Connor's chest over top his sweaty black t-shirt. "Take a deep breath for me." Obediently Connor breathed and waited for Abby to finish listening to his ventilation biocomponents before listening to his heartbeat. "It sounds like you're already making excellent progress in your recovery. Does it hurt to breathe?"

"Not anymore."

"Even better. You should be fine in the next two hours."

"See, Henry?" Connor flashed his son a sincere smirk before his eyes slipped shut and his words began to quiet down. He was too tired to remain awake for too much longer. "I told you that I'm going to be okay. Thanks, Abby."

"Dad?" Henry whispered almost inaudibly as he watched Connor fall asleep again. "Are you really okay?"

"He'll be fine." As Abby began packing up her satchel, she noticed Henry staring at Connor and could see he was still worried. It was then an interesting idea came to her mind. "Hey, Henry. Come here for a second."

Curious as to what Abby wanted Henry took a step forward and stood beside her.

"Here." Placing the earbuds of the audioscope in Henry's ears Abby then replaced the bell back over Connor's chest. "You hear that?"

The rhythmic sound was very easy to detect. "Uh-huh."

"That's your dad's heartbeat." She smiled as Henry began to smile in return. Connor's eyes opened again, and he noticed what Abby was doing in order to comfort Henry, causing him to smirk appreciatively. "He's going to be okay, I promise."

Henry nodded his head as he took the earbuds out of his ears and looked over at Connor. "When are you going to be better, dad?"

"...In a few more hours." Fighting to stay awake Connor spoke to Henry as clearly as possible. "Then I'll be able to get back up."

"Papa and me are making Christmas lists. Are you going to make one, too?"

"Of course. As soon as I'm better I'll join you in the livingroom."

Hank smiled too and gave Abby an appreciative nod from the opened doorway. "Hey, Henry. How about some pizza for dinner?"

"Yeah! With extra mushrooms!"

"All right, come on. Let's go place an order and finish those lists."

As the little boy ran out of the bedroom with Hank following after him Connor closed his eyes and let out a somewhat uncomfortable sigh. Connor's brow furrowed with the same audible discomfort he had waited to admit until after Henry had left.

"Are you hurting and putting on a brave face for Henry?" Abby asked despite already knowing the answer. She knew Connor for almost fourteen years now, and she could always tell when he was trying to deny when something was bothering him. "Or is this a new symptom?"

"...Something like that." Connor admitted in a soft tone. "Coughing hurts still, no matter how quietly I do it."

"Yeah, I get that."

"I take it Hank texted you to inform you that I had become ill."

"Yup, he said Henry was worried about you."

A faint grin appeared on Connor's pale face as he realized how sweetly empathetic his son was becoming. "I'm okay."

"I know that, and Hank knows that, and soon Henry will know that, too."

"Does Aria get worried whenever you or Gavin become ill?"

"Oh, jeez." Abby lamented a story as her eyes flashed with memories of taking care of a house full of sick people. "When Gavin got the flu three years ago Aria refused to leave his side when she got out of school. It was as cute as it was annoying since she got herself sick as a result of trying to be her daddy's doctor. Taking care of two people throwing up wasn't nearly as fun as it sounded in theory."

"Fortunately, Henry cannot catch the flu from me. That makes dealing with flu season more bearable."

"Lucky. Get a little more sleep." Abby grinned as she ran her hand over his sweaty hair and slung her satchel over her shoulder. Carefully she replaced the melting ice pack over Connor's forehead to ensure he didn't overheat as he slept. "Then go show your son that you're not going anywhere."

"What do you think of Henry?"

"I think he couldn't possibly have a better father, Connor." She admitted with a sincere grin. Even after so many years Abby looked like she hadn't aged beyond a few gray hairs and smile lines outlining her lips. "He's a wonderful little boy and I can't wait to see him grown up."

---

It took Connor only two and half more hours of necessary rest to awaken from his sleep fully healed and to find the strength sit upright in his bed. The sweaty black t-shirt he was wearing clung uncomfortably to his still somewhat pale artificial skin and the ice pack that had returned to his forehead had melted entirely. Moving carefully and quietly he swung his legs over the edge of his bed and stood up steadily to ensure he wasn't going to lose his balance and fall from unexpected weakness. Fortunately, his strength had returned and his core temperature was back to its optimal degree.

As he exited his bedroom Connor glanced down the hallway and saw that Hank was sitting on the couch with Henry at his side and that Hank had found an old movie for the two of them to watch together. Connor recognized the images on the screen and smirked at the selected movie; 'Who Framed Roger Rabbit?'. It was a movie that Connor himself had found enjoyable and was glad Hank was showing Henry the same film.

Walking into the bathroom Connor peeled off his sweaty t-shirt and his appropriately named gray sweatpants to have a quick shower to remove the pale blue sweat from his skin. As soon as the water was turned on Connor heard a soft knocking on the closed bathroom door and he listened carefully for the voice on the other side.

"Connor?"

"I'm okay, dad." Connor responded quickly as he stepped into the shower and adjusted the temperature of the water. "Just rinsing off."

"Do you need anything?"

"Maybe some clean clothes."

"All right, I gotcha' covered."

Connor could sense there was something else on Hank's mind by the tone of his voice and knew that he just wanted a moment to speak to him alone. The bathroom door partially opened and Hank placed a bundle of neatly folded clean clothes down on the sink.

"How do you feel?"

"Better. Just sweaty."

"That's good. Uh, there's something I want to tell you."

Connor made a reach to turn off the water but decided to keep it running to help mask their voices in case Henry could hear them talking. Peering around the dark blue and white shower curtain Connor ran his hand over his wet locks of hair to push them out of his face as he addressed Hank directly. "What's wrong?"

Stepping just inside the bathroom and closing the door behind himself Hank sighed and told Connor the truth. "...It's Sumo."

"Oh, no." Connor knew what was happening and it made him immediately start hurting. As much as he loved the dog he knew Henry loved Sumo twice as much. "He's going to be thirteen-years-old this coming spring."

"And I don't think he'll last much longer than that."

"Is he suffering?" Connor's eyes were filling with tears but he didn't shed them as he spoke. "I don't want him to suffer."

"No, he's not in any pain or sick. He is slowing down and now he only gets up to eat or go outside. Since it's been so damn cold as of late I've just been putting down newspapers so he doesn't have to go into the snow to go to the bathroom. Even a winter breed of dog can be hurt by the cold when they get as old as him."

"Thank you for taking such good care of him."

"Do you think you can handle what's going to happen with Henry when it's time to say 'goodbye'?"

"...Yeah. I know I'll think of something." Looking uneasy about the impending event Connor sighed and began preparing himself for the best way to explain things to Henry after everything happens. "Just don't say a word to Henry about it. It'll make him sad, and the holidays are just a few weeks away."

"Don't I know it." Sighing himself Hank rubbed his hand over the back of his neck and gave his son a reassuring glance. "All right, well, Henry's still watching the movie and waiting for you to join us to make those lists. My 'to-do' list took a change in theme, but, whatever."

With an appreciative grin Connor acknowledged Hank then resumed his shower. "I'll be out as soon as my shower is over."

"By the way, I'm buying Henry his own guitar for Christmas this year so he doesn't have to keep borrowing yours."

"Really? I was going to buy him one as a special gift for his eventual sixteenth birthday."

"Don't you worry about getting him special when he turns sixteen. I've already got something perfect in mind."

"All right." Connor smirked as he trusted Hank's judgement on the situation. "I'll leave that to you. And thank you for everything you've done for me today."

"Hey, no thanks are necessary. You're my son and Henry's my grandson. It's my honor to have a family to take care of all over again." Just as Hank was about to close the bathroom door, he called out to Connor again and gave him a stern look. "Oh, by the way... I see Henry has a coin of his own."

A smug smile appeared on Connor's face as he gave Hank a knowing look. "That's correct. It turns out Henry likes my coin tricks and asked me to teach him."

"He just HAD to develop that particular tic of yours, didn't he?" Shaking his head in amusement Hank just sighed in defeat and stepped out of the bathroom. "I knew I should've stuck that coin in the vending machine when I had the chance."

---

Life With Henry: Eleven Years Old

Heartbroken and as sad as he had ever been, Henry was sobbing as he sat on the back deck of Hank's house with Sumo's old leather collar in his hands. The massive lovable dog had gotten old and had begun to act sickly over the past few weeks after spring set in. Old age had caught up to Sumo and had peacefully taken him as he slept the previous night. While Hank sat with Henry on the back deck with his arm wrapped around the sad little boy's shoulders Connor finished laying Sumo to rest next to his predecessor in the backyard of the property and respectfully covered the fresh grave.

After placing the last of the loose soil over the grave Connor put the shovel aside and placed a massive white stone over the head of the grave and used black paint to neatly write Sumo's name out in memory to the dog, just as he had done from the first Sumo years ago.

"...Good boy, Sumo. Both of you are still good boys."

As much as Hank tried to make Henry feel better the little boy was still in tears and nothing seemed to help. "Henry, it's okay to cry."

"Sumo was a good dog." Henry managed between sobs as he held onto Sumo's collar tightly. "Why'd he die?"

"Well, Sumo was really, really old for a dog of his breed." Hank tried to explain as easily as possible. "And he got really sick. It was just his time to go."

"So now he's just in the ground?"

"No, Henry. Sumo went to Heaven."

"Dogs can go to heaven?"

"That's right. All good people and all good animals get to go to Heaven when they die. He's playing with the Sumo who was here before him, and I know he's playing with your Uncle Cole and Grandma Barbara, so he's okay, son. He isn't sick anymore, doesn't feel old anymore and can run around forever. He's happy again."

"When I got sick the doctors made me better. Why couldn't Sumo get better?"

"Because Sumo was much, much sicker than you were, and because Sumo was also much older. He was thirteen by human math, but for a dog he was really eighty-two in age. That's about five years more than how long a human is supposed to live, so you know Sumo had a very good life. And he stayed with us for so long because he wanted to stay with YOU. You gave him lots of love and he wanted to stay with you forever. Sometimes forever is just too long even for the most loyal of dogs."

Connor replaced the shovel in the garage and wiped off his hands as he rejoined his son and father at the deck. Sitting on Henry's other side Connor pulled Henry up against his side for a supportive hug.

"Sumo knew you loved him. And he loved you, so it's okay to cry over him."

Staying with Henry until he finally began to quiet a little Hank sighed and gave Connor a shrugging glance. He knew that Henry was a sensitive little boy and was proud that Connor allowed Henry to embrace all of his emotions while growing up instead of trying to force the little boy repress them in an unhealthy manner. Such behavior had been a massive mistake regarding Hank's generation as he grew up, and he was glad to see the cycle breaking with each new generation that followed.

Connor understood what Hank was asking of him but decided that getting Henry another dog so soon wouldn't be the right course of action. When Connor had adopted Sumo as a puppy the day his predecessor died it was an unexpected and chance encounter. The odds of them being able to find 'another Sumo' was unlikely, and even so Henry still needed to grieve over the dog he had lost.

"Do you want to go inside or stay out here a while longer?" Connor asked in a low voice as he kept his arm wrapped around Henry's shoulders. "We'll do whatever you want to do."

"I don't want to go anywhere."

"You don't have to if you don't want to."

Henry was staring at Sumo's name on the white stone and wiped tears away from his eyes. "Dad?"

"Yeah?"

"Sumo's in Heaven, right?"

"That's right."

"Does that mean I'll see him again someday?"

"Yes, Henry." The thought was as comforting as it was sweet. "You will. We all will see him another day. He's waiting for us on the Other Side."

---

It took some coaxing and patience, but Connor and Hank were able to convince Henry to get up from the back deck and walk through the backdoor and into the kitchen. While Hank sat with Henry at the kitchen table Connor made Henry a light lunch of a sandwich and some potato chips, but Henry didn't eat much. He was still too upset to eat. The curse of being emotionally healthy resulted in a waning appetite after a particularly upsetting event.

"Come on, Henry." Connor put his hand to Henry's shoulder. "Let's go for a walk."

"I don't want to go anywhere."

"Well, I do." The deviant father looked over to Hank for a little back-up and Hank was quick to oblige. "It's a nice day out."

"I want to go out, too." The retired detective chimed in and knew that they needed to get Henry out of the house for a while. "How about the park?"

"Sounds perfect."

Despite Henry's reluctance Connor managed to get his son to finally leave the house and walk with him to the Riverside Park a few blocks away. Hank of course walked with them and studied Henry's sad face with a heavy heart. It was the first time Henry had to face death, and even though he was very mature for his age and very intelligent, it still didn't make it any easier for the innocent child to process.

"It's a beautiful day to go to the park." Hank stated in a calm voice as they neared their destination. "I'm very ready to kiss winter goodbye for another year."

The park itself was full of laughing kids and their parents or babysitters, but Henry wasn't in the mood to play. Henry was still holding on to Sumo's collar and kept staring at the ground beneath his feet. Just as it seemed like Henry was going to have another breakdown and start crying again, a group of kids gathered around a large cardboard box near the entrance to the park as a young couple placed it down on the ground. The sound of squeaking and mewing filled the air which caught Henry's ear. Connor stood behind Henry and looked at the box in the distance as he too caught the sound.

"It sounds like someone has a litter of kittens."

Hank turned to give Connor a strange glance as if he was trying to read the deviant's mind. "Yeah, you're right."

"They must be at least six weeks old. I guess that means the kittens are ready to find a new home." Putting his hand to the middle of Henry's back between his shoulder blades Connor tried to get him to take a closer look. "Do you want to go see?"

Henry looked up at Connor as if needing to confirm what his own dad had just told him.

"You don't have to play with them or anything, but I know I'd like to see them. I wonder if they have a fluffy maine-coon like Aria's cat."

"Oh." Henry had played with that cat a few times when he and Aria had play dates when they were smaller and knew what Connor was talking about. "You mean Lucky?"

"Yeah. Lucky."

Hank wasn't too thrilled with the idea, but he went along with it. "You know, when I was a kid, I had a cat named Smokey. He was solid gray and had long fur. I haven't seen another cat like him since."

"That'd be interesting if one of the kittens look like either Lucky or Smokey." Connor pressed as he gently coaxed Henry into taking a step forward to get closer to the cardboard box. "We should see them soon. It looks like the kittens are already being adopted."

Henry wiped his arm under his nose as he sniffled again but finally began walking toward the cardboard box. Connor and Hank walked right behind him and watched as he edged closer to the box and saw the four remaining kittens inside. As they jumped about, squeaked and playfully pawed at the hands of the other kids gently picking them up Henry began to laugh a little.

Connor stayed with Henry while Hank spoke to the tallest husband that was the couple who brought over the box. "These little guys are what six, seven weeks old?"

"Yeah," the nice man confirmed with a smile as the kids and their parents gathered around the box. "they hit their six-week mark two days ago."

"Hard to believe they were born just a month and half ago, and now they're ready for a new home..."

The kind man saw that Henry was upset about something then saw the dog collar still in Henry's hand. Catching on quick he helped with trying to make Henry feel better. "Yeah, these little guys had to be bottle-fed by me and my husband after their mama got out into the road. She's gone but her babies are still are here as a beautiful reminder that no matter how bleak life gets life itself still goes on."

Connor nodded appreciatively as he patted Henry's shoulder. Too hesitant to play with the kittens Henry just watched as the last of the litter were picked up and taken by their new owners to their new homes while his dad stayed beside him.

"Ready to go home, Henry?"

Nodding quietly Henry was ready to leave and go back to crying at home.

"Come on, then."

Taking a slightly more creative route back to the house from the park Connor intentionally took Henry past the humane society where he had adopted Sumo thirteen years prior with the intention of making a quick stop. Giving Hank a silent confirmation Connor patted Henry's shoulder again and directed him inside the building.

"What're we doing here?" Henry asked as soon as he realized where they were and looked up at his father with utter confusion in his blue eyes. "I want to go home."

"None of those kittens back in the park looked like Lucky or Smokey." The clever father replied. "I wanted to see if there were any other kittens here who do."

"I know what you're doing, dad."

Connor instinctively tried to feign innocence. "What am I doing?"

"You're trying to make me forget about Sumo!"

"Not at all. I'm trying to make you feel better." Putting both hands on Henry's shoulders as the boy crossed his arms defensively over his chest, Connor tried to ease his son's mind. "You'll never forget about Sumo, and you never should. It's okay to miss Sumo and be sad."

Hank spoke up and defended Connor's attempts to cheer Henry up. "He's right. And like I said, I had a cat named Smokey when I was kid. That was a long time ago, but I still remember him very fondly."

The volunteer behind the desk saw the small family and overheard the conversation as the trio entered the humane society together. As soon as she saw Henry holding on to Sumo's collar she smiled and motioned to the door leading to the kennels in the back. "If you're interested, we actually had a couple of litters of kittens dropped off this morning. They've been needing some attention all day long and I've been busy with inventory."

"...No." Henry stubbornly refused to go in the back and see the kittens. "I want to go home."

"Well, I want to see them before we leave." Connor took a step toward the door and Hank followed after him as he instinctively backed up his son's parenting decisions. "You can stay out here and look at the flea shampoo and pet food if you want, just don't go outside on the sidewalk."

Realizing that he was outnumbered Henry begrudgingly followed after his dad and grandfather and let them take him to see the other animals.

Inside the large room where the kittens and cats were kept in their protective cages the visiting trio were greeted by loud mews and a few stray purrs. At least twenty kittens were running about in the largest kennel at the far wall as they played and squeaked loudly. It didn't take long for Connor to spot a maine-coon kitten in the mix of fluff and pointed it out.

"See? There is a kitten that looks like Lucky. I knew we'd find one."

Hank pointed out three dark gray kittens and motioned for Henry to follow his direction. "And there's three that look like Smokey. Long gray fur and everything. Maybe they're all distantly related. Wouldn't that be cool?"

Out of the mix of various colored furs and squeaks a single kitten began climbing up the side of the kennel's padded fencing and stopped right in front of Henry's face. The little kitten had short mostly gray fur with white markings down its face and its paws and a bright pink nose. Its eyes were still blue but were beginning to turn gold. As it mewed at Henry it reached its paw out toward him and Henry lightly ran his fingertip over the soft paw in response.

"Hey," Henry noticed something else about the kitten and pointed it out. "this kitten has extra toes on its paw!"

Connor and Hank took a closer look and sure enough the little kitten had two extra toes on the sides of its front paws and one additional extra toe on its rear paws.

"That's interesting." Connor observed as he scanned the kitten's paws and saw the extra bones beneath its soft fur. "I've never seen a kitten like that."

The kitten kept mewing loudly at Henry and reaching for him through the opening of the kennel with its other paw and began to purr.

"It likes you, Henry."

"Why?"

"I think it knows you're sad because of Sumo, and I bet it's sad because it's stuck inside a kennel. It understands what it means to be sad."

The volunteer had been watching from the door and saw the little kitten of interest who was singling Henry out. "Oh, that kitten is special! We've been calling her 'Harley' because she's so silly like a harlequin and she makes a lot of noise like a motorcycle."

Hank laughed and gently ran his own fingertip over her outstretched paw himself. "That's a good name for a tiny kitten. Right, Henry?"

Henry just shook his head as he kept petting the kitten's paw. "She looks more like an 'Opal' to me."

"Opal, huh?" Encouraging Henry to keep showing interest in the kitten Hank asked about the name. "Where'd that come from?"

"The white in her fur looks like an opal. We learned about them in a geology lesson last week."

"That's a good name."

In response to the positive reaction Connor began rubbing his fingertip under the kitten's chin and got welcomed with a loud gentle purr for his efforts. "I hope someone gives her a good home."

Henry was still being stubborn about Sumo, but since the kitten chose him, he felt an instant connection to the small bundle of fur. "Can we give her that home?"

A sly smirk appeared on Connor's face as he gave the volunteer a confirming nod over his shoulder. "I suppose we could try. But only if you really want to."

Unable to stop himself Henry started rubbing the kitten's chin as well and got the same affectionate purr as Connor did. "...Only if we call her 'Opal'."

"All right." Connor was glad to see Henry's heart starting to heal after Sumo's passing and agreed to the name change. "I think that's acceptable. Opal she is."

---

A brand new blue collar with a small silver bell and a golden tag with the name 'Opal' now hung around the newly adopted kitten's neck, and she was promptly taken to her new home by her young new owner. The whole walk home Henry held the pet carrier in his hand and his eyes lit up for the first time since his dad had told him about Sumo passing away that morning darkened his faze. Finally home, Henry sat on the livingroom floor with Opal balancing on his knee as the little kitten batted her paws at a feathery toy on a string being controlled by Henry's hand and soon Henry began to smile. It was as if the little kitten had managed to heal Henry's heart just by being his new friend.

Connor had bought a scratching post cat-tree and placed it by the front window in the livingroom and also bought a modest selection of cat toys for Opal to play with. After placing her litter box inside the laundry room, now making it a habit to keep the door opened enough to let the kitten inside, Connor placed her new food and water bowls down on the kitchen floor and filled them up.

"Is that all I need for a kitten?" Connor asked as he and Hank watched Henry in the livingroom playing with Opal. They were standing side by side in the doorway of the kitchen and watching the duo bond from the distance. "I'll get her flea drops when she's a little bigger."

"Aside from getting her spayed; trust me, cats are much better are getting outside than dogs and you don't want to get attached to a whole new litter of kittens down the line, you got everything covered for her."

"I think this was the right thing to do. I mean, I just want Henry to feel better."

"Yeah, this was a good idea. You can never replace your first pet, but you can always lessen the pain by giving another animal a chance to be your next best friend."

"All this time I never asked..." Crossing his arms over his chest Connor asked Hank a very curious question. "Where'd you get the original Sumo?"

"Well, it wasn't planned but it was meant to be." Hank too crossed his arms over his chest and smiled as Opal batted at the toy energetically. "I was working on a bust regarding an illegal puppy mill downtown way too many years ago. There were over sixty pups locked into tiny cages in an old warehouse and it was a pathetic sight to see. When we kicked down the door and were greeted with frightened puppy whimpers, even the most hardened cop was temporarily weakened."

"You rescued Sumo from a puppy mill?"

"Yup. Jeffrey took one of the pups, too. A Pitbull he named 'Rex'. Pitbulls get a bad reputation, so he took that puppy to ensure it had a chance to have a good life in a decent home. I took Sumo because he was such a massive breed of dog when fully grown that it'd be hard for him to find a home that could put up with his size."

"What did Barbara say when you brought Sumo home?"

"She asked why I didn't bring home ALL the puppies instead of just one. As for Cole, he didn't stop giggling for days."

Connor smiled at the comment as he watched Henry as he too finally began smiling and laughing for the first time that day. The kitten wasn't meant to replace Sumo by any means, she was a reminder that life goes on and no matter how much someone thinks their heart is too broken to feel love for anyone or anything again, it's untrue.

Opal needed a home and Henry needed someone else to love; they were perfect for each other.

"Like I said," Hank continued in a light tone of voice. "Barbara would've really liked you, kid. You both have a weakness for animals and children in need."

"I'm just glad I could make Henry smile again. I don't ever want to see him unhappy."

"You and every other half-decent parent under the sun, Connor."

---

Later that night Henry was laying in bed with Opal cuddled up under his chin and purring loudly as they slept. The small kitten was a huge change from Sumo, but she was also Henry's kitten, his first pet. Sumo had been Connor's dog and living with Hank after he moved into the house next door with Henry, but even so Henry bonded quickly with the gentle giant and loved him as his own. It seemed like Connor's affection for animals had been passed on to Henry and the animals in turn loved Henry.

Holding on to Sumo's collar for himself Connor took Sumo's name tag from the leather band squeezed it in the center of his palm in a tight grip.

"Goodbye, Sumo. You made us all very happy. You were a very good boy."

With unshed tears in his soulful brown eyes Connor stood in Henry's opened bedroom doorway and watched as Henry slept peacefully with his newest friend right beside him. Just as Connor's adoption of Sumo had healed his own heart after the original Sumo had died, it seemed that Opal returned the favor with Henry.

"Goodnight, son."

Smirking as the kitten roused just enough to snuggle up closer to Henry and settle down once more Connor addressed her in a low whisper, too.

"Goodnight, Opal. Welcome home."

---

Life With Henry: Twelve Years Old

Scared out of his mind and unsure of what to do Henry sat in the front passenger seat of the Oldsmobile while Hank hastily drove him to St. Vevila Hospital to meet up with his dad. Connor had been injured in the line of duty and had been taken to the human-android hybrid hospital for emergency treatment. Despite wearing a Kevlar vest and having plenty of back-up, Connor had been injured and required emergency repairs to undo the damage. It was the first time since Henry had been born that Connor had been injured so severely that he couldn't get patched up at the precinct dispensary or a routine facility before heading home to Henry without any worries for his health.

The protective grandfather had been dreading such a phone call ever since Henry had been born. It was impossible to shield Connor from all the evils of working as a detective, but that didn't mean he wasn't going to try with every fiber of his being to protect his family regardless of the emotional sacrifices.

"He'll be just fine, Henry." Hank promised as he watched his grandson nervously fidgeting in his seat beside him. The middle school was fussing with the coin in his hands as he stared blankly at the dashboard before him. "Your dad's been through a lot worse and walked away just fine with his head held high."

"Was dad shot?"

"I don't know." Replying honestly Hank did his best to keep Henry calm. "I wasn't told what happened to him. I was just told he's at the hospital."

"Papa, when Sumo died last year you and dad said he went to Heaven and is playing with the other dogs and is happy. And Uncle Cole and Grandma Barbara are in Heaven, too."

"That's right."

"Do androids... go to Heaven?"

That was a question that Hank had never though he'd be asked. It was an instant reminder of the night he confronted Connor at Riverside Park as they looked out to the Ambassador Bridge stretching out over the Detroit River back during their initial partnership before the Revolution. It was the same night he had pulled his gun on Connor and threatened to shoot him while in a drunken rage. It was also the first night that Hank had finally begun to see androids as living beings and saw that Connor himself was actually becoming a deviant; becoming self-aware and could truly feel.

"Androids are alive which means they have souls. Your dad is NOT going to die, but androids can and do go to Heaven eventually."

"What if he does die?"

"He won't. I promise you that your dad is going to be okay."

Henry nodded a little as he sniffled in fear. As Hank wrapped his arm around the frightened boy's shoulders, he pulled him up against his side and Henry buried his face against Hank's chest as he forced himself to try not cry.

"It's okay to be afraid." Hank comforted his shaking grandson in a soothing tone. Even at the age of twelve Henry was still a very sensitive kid. "Just don't think the worst is going to happen, okay? Your dad is way too stubborn to go out like this. Trust me, I know from experience."

Henry nodded again while keeping his face buried against Hank's chest in the process.

As the car pulled into the parking lot of the hospital Hank turned off the engine and put his free hand to Henry's chin. "Hey, look at me."

Lifting his head up Henry stared at Hank and didn't flinch when Hank used his thumb to gently wipe away his tears. The look of Henry's face was hauntingly similar to Cole's, and yet his expressions were as deeply feeling as Connor. Henry had even developed a few stray freckles along his neck and a couple along his face that made him look even more like his father.

"He's going to be fine." With a smile on his face Hank did his best to help Henry feel confident. "Let's go inside and ask about your dad, okay?"

Nodding subtly Henry dragged his arm over his eyes and under his nose to wipe away his tears and clean himself up. "...Okay."

---

Scared and unsure of what was going on, Henry had no idea what was happening to his dad or who he could possibly talk to while Hank spoke to Dr. Wilson in the hallway. Standing close beside Hank, now tall enough to be eye level with Hank's sternum, Henry just looked around at the numerous nurses, doctors and technicians roaming the halls with various electronic charts in their hands. Beyond his own grandfather and the kind doctor Henry didn't recognize anyone in the hallways. It was all so surreal, and he had no idea what was going to happen.

"Henry?" Hank spoke softly to his grandson as he put his hand on his shoulder. The gesture was comforting but Henry could feel Hank's hand trembling on his shoulder despite Hank's best efforts to keep it still. "We can go see your dad for a few minutes, but he needs to be taken care of soon."

"...It's bad, isn't it?"

"Yeah." Lying wouldn't help the matter, and Hank wasn't going to coddle his grandson from reality. "It's bad, buddy."

Keeping a brave face Henry walked right alongside Hank as Dr. Wilson showed them to the small emergency repair room Connor had been taken to and had his condition stabilized. The door slid open slowly revealing the interior of the room where Connor had been taken to rest on a gurney until his critical repairs could be performed. The sight of his dad so pale, weak and still made Henry want to cry again, but he refused to do it until he knew one way or another if his dad was going to survive.

With a muted Thirial activity monitor recording his vital signs Connor was semi-conscious and had a massive bandage over his cheek under his left eye. Connor's left eye was also bruised a dark shade of blue and swollen shut. The wounded deviant had been wrapped up in white gauze to apply pressure the bleeding wounds in his upper right chest, middle right chest and his lower right abdomen. Blue blood had begun to seep through the bandages prompting Dr. Wilson to pull a sheet up over the bandages to hide the leaking Thirium from Henry's sight.

Lightly Hank put his hand on Connor's bicep and held it there for a moment. "Connor?"

Opening his right eye enough to recognize the faces standing behind him, Connor forced a smile to his own face as he acknowledged his family's presence. "...Dad. Henry."

"Hey, son." Hank forced a smile onto his face for Henry's sake. "We're here for you."

"...Thanks for stopping by." As Connor found his voice Henry was still trying to not cry as Connor spoke to him in a hoarse weak voice. "I wore Kevlar, but... the other guy was prepared for that. I couldn't... duck down in time."

"Easy, son." The protective father could see that the deviant was already losing his strength and needed to rest. "Try to take it easy, son."

"Henry..." Connor weakly reached out his hand toward his son and gave him a reassuring smile. "I'm going to be okay. It looks worse... than it is. That's why they're... letting me talk to you first. Dr. Wilson has... plenty of time... to get ready."

Henry nodded again as he took hold of Connor's hand and held on for a few minutes.

As he stood behind Henry with his hand resting on his grandson's shoulder again, Hank gave Connor a silent subtle nod of approval and watched as Dr. Wilson finished chronicling his patient's vital signs.

"Connor," Dr. Wilson addressed the deviant detective calmly and professionally. "we're going to take you up for your repairs now. You're stable and strong, so it won't be too long."

"...Okay." Connor gave Henry's hand a gentle squeeze and discreetly slipped something into his palm. "I'll see you... when I wake up."

It took him a moment, but Henry finally found his voice and responded as confidently as he could. "Okay, dad. I'll see you soon."

Reluctantly Connor let go of Henry's hand as Dr. Wilson placed his arm back down on the gurney at his side. "...I love you, son."

A team of technicians arrived in the room and proceeded to roll the gurney from the emergency repair room to the elevator. Just three floors up was the emergency repair ward where Connor would have the four bullets extracted from his body - two in his chest and two in his abdomen. In a matter of seconds Connor was gone from sight and rushed into the repair bay.

Opening the palm of his hand after stepping out of the room Henry looked down and saw Connor's coin. The very coin that Connor had held onto for the past sixteen years of his eventful, deviant life. Unable to hold back his tears anymore Henry began to cry, and Hank immediately wrapped his arms around the petrified child to hold him in a tight hug.

"It's okay to cry. Let it out."

Leading Henry to the waiting room Hank did his best to comfort Henry as much as possible as Henry began to calm down a little and stopped crying after finally let out his initial fearful tears.

"I know you're scared for your dad and that's okay too." Hank watched Henry as he stared quietly at the coin in his palm. "Your dad never goes anywhere without that damn coin, so for him to give it to you if proof he will wake up and come back down to see us again and to show you more tricks."

Nodding again Henry slumped back in his chair and pulled his legs up to his chest as he sighed and leaned his head against Hank's shoulder for support.

"Waiting sucks more than anything else. You and your dad are both impatient, but you'll make it through this moment and so will your dad. Trust me."

---

It had been almost four hours since Connor had been taken away for his emergency repairs and it was now almost seven in the evening. Henry hadn't eaten anything since noon and Hank knew he had to be getting hungry. Eager for any form of distraction for the young boy as he fussed with Connor's coin between his fingers, Hank tried to slip Henry a twenty-dollar bill and told him where the hospital cafeteria was located so that he could find something to eat, but the stubborn young boy refused to budge from his seat in case something happened to his dad.

Henry just shook his head sadly before politely declining the offer. "Thanks, but I'm not hungry."

"You have to be bored out of your mind though." The dullness of Henry's eyes spoke volumes as to how upset he truly was. "There's a bookstore just down the block, how about we go get you something new to read? Hm?"

"I don't want to go anywhere."

"Really? All right, but if you change your mind let me know. It's been a while since we went to a bookstore together."

From across the waiting room Gavin had just arrived at the hospital through the front doors to check in on Connor, and spotted Hank and Henry sitting against the far wall. Without any hesitation the seasoned detective walked over to the duo to speak with them.

"Hey, Henry. Hey, Cap."

"Not a Captain anymore, Gavin." Hank replied sharply as Gavin joined them in the waiting room. "But thanks for remembering."

Henry didn't reply to Gavin, who was now a Lieutenant thanks to a well earned promotion, as he sat down in a vacant chair across from him.

"Right, yeah." Clearing his throat nervously Gavin spoke to his former Captain calmly. "Do you know what happened yet?" His eyes drifted over to Henry briefly then back to Hank. "Or should I..."

"He knows that Connor was 'injured in the line of duty'." Hank reluctantly confirmed with a dreary tone. "What happened?"

"This morning a report came in revolving around some escaped convicts holding up in a shi- crappy," Gavin had been trying to swear less around Aria and gave Henry the same courtesy. "apartment down in the industrial district. Turns out the report was legit, and we went to investigate."

"Ambushed?"

"No, that's what's so weird. Captain Foxworth followed up on the source, knew it was legit, had everyone move in armed with back-up already on standby. But these guys were stockpiling illegal firearms and drugs. Their guns were no joke and their stash was massive."

"You got 'em, right?"

"Yeah. Uh, Connor and Chris were the first to arrive. They checked out the building and Connor picked up on the two convicts huddling inside. He gave the word to Chris and that's when everything just... went crazy." The way Gavin spoke confirmed how tense the stand-off had been. "As soon as the shots started both Connor and Chris got down and out of sight, but those guys were packing armor piercing rounds. Chris got his shoulder grazed, but Connor..."

Henry was trying to not cry again as he listened to the story. Hank's hand returned to Henry's shoulder and patted him gently.

"Chris called for back-up to move in. Me, Tina, Jack and Foxworth all showed up and pulled them back to safety. As soon as Connor was out of harm's way, an ambulance packed him up and got him here as fast as possible. It took us almost three hours to get the guys, but they won't be a problem anymore. Their weapons are slated to be destroyed along with their stash."

"That's good to know."

"I, uh, would've been here sooner, but..."

"I know. You needed to go see your family first."

"Yeah." Gavin admitted that he needed to give his wife and daughter a quick hug to reassure himself that they were both safe. "Something that uncomfortably close and violent really makes you prioritize family time."

"Do they know what happened to Connor?"

"I told Abby but asked her to keep it quiet from Aria for a while longer. She doesn't need to know if it's..." Trailing off for a moment Gavin didn't want to imagine Aria's reaction if she learned her godfather was hurt and might even die. "She just doesn't need to know just yet. You know Aria. She'd try to take over Connor's care and get him back on his feet by herself."

Hank understood entirely as he kept his hand on Henry's shoulder. "Thanks for telling us, Gavin."

"You need anything?" Wanting to be helpful Gavin volunteered to get Hank and Henry anything they might need. "Coffee or maybe a soda, or something?"

Hank motioned toward Henry discreetly as he rejected the coffee. "I'm good but playing the waiting game is getting boring."

"Right, got it." Gavin got up from the chair and made his way to the elevator and disappeared from sight for a moment. "I'll see what I can do about the boredom."

"...Dad was hurt for doing the right thing." Henry muttered somberly to himself as he caught the coin in his palm and held it tightly. "It's not fair."

"No, bud." Hank looked over at Henry as he felt the little boy's shoulder tense with emotional frustration as he tried to not cry again. "He was hurt because someone bad tried to stop him from doing the right thing. Those bad guys are gone, and your dad is still here. Remember that."

A few minutes passed and Gavin returned conveniently with a deck of cards, a can of soda for himself and a spare one for Henry. He also grabbed the scared kid a candy bar to try to get him to eat something.

"Here, Henry. I pressed the wrong button on the vending machine by mistake," the empathetic detective convincingly lied. "you can have my extra drink. And I didn't see this candy had peanuts in it until after I bought it. I don't like peanuts."

Slowly Henry accepted the offered drink and candy and just held them in his hands. "...Thanks."

"No problem." Gavin was happy that Henry at least took the snack even if he wasn't interested in actually eating it. It was just unfortunate that he was so scared and worried about his dad. "Found a deck of cards, too."

Placing the cards down on the small table between the chairs Gavin noticed Henry didn't want to play a game and then tried a new tactic.

"Hey, Henry?" Gavin made an effort to try to distract the young boy's thoughts for a little while. "did, uh, did your dad tell you about the time he punched me in the face?"

Henry looked up and gave Gavin the same furrowed brow stare of confusion that Connor would give whenever he was confused. "...He what?"

"Well, I deserved it." He quickly admitted with a twinge of embarrassment. "We're cool now, and it happened a long time ago."

"Why'd he punch you?"

"I was being a jerk. And I know that I was being a MAJOR jerk because no one in the precinct felt bad for me after he did it. Not even Tina."

Hank tightened his hand on Henry's shoulder and cleared his throat. "Your dad also saved Gavin's life a couple times, too."

"He did?" Henry's blue eyes were suddenly bright instead of dim as the comment gave his heart renewed faith. "When?"

"Uh... Let's see..." Gavin tried to think back to all those times so many years ago and remembered the first time Connor saved him. "Uh, there was a suspect who tried to pull a gun on me in interrogation. Your dad tackled her and pointed the gun away from me just in time before the trigger was pulled. Then there was the fire at the precinct. He got me out before it was too late."

"A fire?"

"Long story, I don't even remember the details at this point. Then there was the time a lunatic used an aerosolized weapon on the precinct, but it failed, and your dad kept me from breathing in any dangerous chemicals. He even helped me when I had issues with my diabetes and passed out in the parking lot. Your dad also got me home once when I got sick with the flu and even went out and bought me some medicine before taking off."

Henry was looking a lot more optimistic knowing that his dad had done so much good for people in the precinct.

"But the big one is when I had been the one with the useless Kevlar vest. I took a bullet, and Tina was with me when I went down. Your dad and your grandpa were close by when I got hurt, and they got to me before the ambulance did. I... lost so much blood that my heart stopped, and your dad got it going again. He literally saved my life that day. A few weeks later Abby gave birth to Aria, and if it wasn't for your dad I never would've lived long enough to meet my daughter."

"Yeah," Hank proudly shook Henry's shoulder where he sat. "and your dad was the one who helped deliver Aria when Abby went into labor."

"Wait..." Henry looked really confused but at the same time happy. "How did dad do that? Shouldn't Abby had been in the hospital when having a baby?"

"Things happened fast." Gavin explained almost casually as he told Henry the truth. "Connor was with her because they got to be good friends over time, and she needed the help."

"Dad helped with Aria being born. Is that why Abby was a surrogate for me?"

"Uh..." Neither Hank or Gavin knew how to answer that, but Hank tried his best for Henry's sake. "She was a surrogate because she wanted to help your dad finally have a child of his own. The laws weren't as advanced then as they are now. Only two years ago were deviants given the right to adopt; through private means rather than openly like everyone else, but at least it's progress."

"What do you mean, Papa?"

"Thirteen years ago, before you were even born, your dad tried and failed to file for adoption. He was turned down for being an android, but they said it was because he was single, had a dangerous job and all that other crap they liked to say to cover up their own discrimination. Hell, if he could've made it work, he would've carried a baby himself to get his family."

"Dad's a boy though." Henry countered as he thought about the logistics of biological reproduction as he knew it. "He can't do that."

"At the moment human boys can't do that, but androids can. Your dad's android model wouldn't let him though." Clearing his throat Hank continued with his story of the past. "Your dad was so heartbroken and disappointed for being turned down that Abby was willing to be the first person to carry a child that was a blend of android D.N.A. in a human body so he could finally have a family to take care of. It's weird, I know, but it's the truth."

"I was a gift for dad?"

"Yup. The best gift your dad ever got. It's a close tie with you saying 'daddy' for the first time on Christmas Day."

Gavin's eyes went wide with shock at how openly Hank was discussing some of the details about Henry's birth. "Whoa, so Henry already knows about 'the birds and the bees'?"

Henry blushed a little as Hank answered on his behalf.

"He wanted to know, and Connor is a very honest parent." Hank replied without any embarrassment or shame. "I, unfortunately, had to be the one to fill in some of the other details because of my experience as an actual human. Nothing I couldn't handle, though."

"Yeah, I'm definitely going to let Abby be the one to have the 'talk' with Aria. If I start talking to her about it, then I'm going to end up arming her with pepper spray and a taser. I might do that anyway..." His own eyes brightened with a genuine sense of a great idea as if he was already mentally going over a list of things he was going to give to his daughter. "You know, kinda' like an early 'sweet-sixteen' gift. Definitely going to make sure he keeps up with her tai kwon do lessons until she can throw my ass across the livingroom."

Hank just shook his head a little as he stayed focused on Henry. Henry himself was beginning to feel a little better but he was still worried for his dad. Nothing in the world was going to change that any time soon. Staring down at the floor under his feet Henry fussed with the coin in his hand a little and managed to slowly roll it over the back of his knuckles in the same manner that Connor would do whenever he was nervous. The behavior between father and son was uncanny.

Gavin's phone 'buzzed' in his leather jacket's pocket as he received a text message and update on the case at hand. Swearing internally, he read and replied to the message and stood up from the chair.

"Foxworth needs me to give another statement." The intrusion left a bad taste in Gavin's mouth. "I guess they have a new guy handling the paperwork whenever dealing with an officer down, and she's done holding his hand."

"Give 'em Hell, Gavin."

"I'll see you later, keep me posted." Making his way to the doors of the hospital Gavin took his leave. "Let the 'Tinman' know we're all pulling for him."

As the formerly gruff Lieutenant took his leave of the waiting room Hank took the offered can of soda from Henry's hand and popped it open before handing it back to Henry to get him to finally accept the snack.

"You should drink that and eat that candy bar so you don't starve."

"Papa, why did Gavin call dad 'Tinman'?"

"He's always called him that." Hank replied with indifference to the question. "But it's not an insult, it's a nickname."

"It is?"

"Yup. You've seen 'The Wizard of Oz', right?"

"Uh-huh."

"Remember how the Tinman wanted a heart but in the end it turned out he had a heart all along?"

"Yeah."

"Same with your dad. He's always had a heart, even when he didn't see it or believe it, it was always there." Pushing the soda a little closer to Henry the ever patient grandfather tried to coax him into drinking it again. "Humor me. At least one sip."

Giving Hank a weak smile Henry took the soda and took a drink at last. The sugary drink didn't feel great on his stomach since he was so worried and hadn't eaten in over seven hours, and he was admittedly beginning to feel hungry. Never one to complain or make either his dad or grandfather worry, Henry sat quietly and never said anything about being uncomfortable.

"Maybe if you try to sleep it'll make time pass a little faster." Hank suggested casually as he pulled Henry up closer to his side. "I'll wake you up the moment I hear anything about your dad."

Too tired and worried to resist Henry nodded as he put the can of soda and untouched candy bar down on the nearby table beside the deck of cards before he cuddled up against Hank's shoulder and closed his tired eyes. As sleep overtook his mind Henry just hoped that the next time he woke up that his dad would be okay.

As the fourth hour transitioned into its fifth hour Dr. Wilson returned to the waiting room at long last and sat down in the chair across from Hank and Henry. The kind doctor didn't seem distressed but he was clearly tired and holding an electronic chart in his hands. Sitting upright in the chair Dr. Wilson looked eyes with Hank and nodded at him once as a sign of recognition and respect.

"Doc?" Hank asked in a low voice causing Henry's eyes snap open and look over at the kind doctor now sitting before him. "How is he?"

"Connor's going to make a full recovery." Dr. Wilson stated with a firm and sincere voice. "Sorry it took so long. There was a lot of necessary repairs to get through and I wanted to make sure the technicians understood how prototypes react differently from finished models."

"Thank fuck." Hank let out a relieved sigh and Henry leaned up against his side again as the sleeping boy awoke at the sound of the two voices speaking. "When can we see him?"

"Right now if you want." The kind doctor promised as he gave Hank a hopeful smile. "He's still rebooting from stasis mode, but he should wake up soon."

Henry nearly leapt out of the chair while Hank stood up more slowly.

"Uh," the older man remembered how rough Connor often looked after extensive repairs. "is there anything we should be 'prepared to see'?"

"He's still attached to a Thirial activity monitor as a precaution and he's still receiving blue blood to replace what he's lost. It's going through the line in his arm rather than down his throat so he can talk to you."

"Thanks, doc." Returning his hand to Henry's shoulder Hank guided his still shaken grandson down the corridor to follow after Dr. Wilson to finally visit Connor after the lengthy repair process. "Like I said Henry, everything will be okay."

One elevator ride later Hank and Henry were shown to the private room where Connor was recovering with no sign of a complication.

"He's right in here." Dr. Wilson stated as he unlocked the sliding door and let it open. "It's okay, go on. Stay as long as you like."

Inside the quiet room Connor was resting in a bed while propped slightly upright with a muted Thirial activity monitor recording his vitals and a nasal canula under his nose. He was pale from the Thirium loss but he didn't look nearly as pale as he had been when Hank and Henry first arrived before his repairs. Wrapped up under thick bandages from his chest down to abdomen and wearing pale blue hospital scrubs, Connor looked so human it was frightening.

Entering the private room where Connor was resting Henry ran over to the bed and nearly threw himself onto Connor to try to hug him. The sudden weight and warmth against his arm made Connor's system fully reboot and he opened his undamaged eye to look at the source of the presence.

Glancing down at Henry resting against his uninjured side made Connor smile as he recognized his son instantly. "...Henry."

"Dad!"

"I'm okay." Blinking slowly Connor wrapped his arm around Henry and held him close to his side. "I told you I'd be okay."

"You were almost killed!" Henry shouted as he struggled to keep himself from breaking down again. "Don't say you're okay!"

Connor swallowed once; partially out of nervousness and partially because his throat was raw from being intubated for four and a half hours. "...I'm a detective. It comes with the territory."

Sensing that something delicate was about to be discussed, Hank walked in slowly to give Henry some time to speak to Connor alone but still caught the end of Henry's worrying comment.

"You were wearing a bullet proof vest, but you got shot anyway!"

"Henry, those men-"

"What if there's more bad guys like that?" Henry's voice was beginning to crack and shake with emotion. Raw tears were begging to stream down his face in heavy streaks that made him look all the more scared as he spoke with his dad. "What if next time you can't be saved?!"

The fear in Henry's voice made Connor's heart clench. It was the first time that Connor realized that Henry himself had a concept of life and death. Connor was Henry's dad, Henry's mom was already gone, Henry's Uncle Luke lived seven-hundred miles away and Hank was Henry's only grandparent. Gavin and Abby were his godparents, but it wouldn't be the same without Connor himself in Henry's life. In the same way that Connor realized that losing Hank would leave him without a family, Henry would feel the exact same way if he lost his dad. Hank would take care of him, and he knew both Luke and Markus would step up to help out, but it wouldn't be the same without his father to look after him.

"Henry," wrapping his arm around Henry as much as possible Connor pulled his son up on the bed and let him rest his head against his repaired chest. "I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?"

"For scaring you. I know I can't say anything that'll make you feel better about what happened to me, so I'll stop trying. But I can promise you that I'll take steps ensure that I won't be hurt anymore for as long as I'm still working at the precinct."

"How?"

"Captain Foxworth wants to return to Ann Arbor." Connor glanced over to Hank with a somber gaze as his father returned to the room and stood beside the bed to watch over his son and grandson. "Her family is there, and she wants to be closer to them after her mother suffered a stroke last month. And two weeks ago... I was offered a promotion to Captain."

Henry lifted up his head as Hank gave Connor an odd glance. "What does that mean?"

"It means if I accept the promotion that I won't be doing fieldwork anymore. It means I'll stay inside the precinct and give the orders from behind a desk and inside an office."

"No more bullets?"

"That's correct."

Hank put his hand on Henry's back as he looked down at Connor laying in the bed. "Son, you do know that means you won't be able to do anything in the field unless it's absolutely necessary, right? No real-time forensics, no direct investigation, not even an interrogation."

"I know. That's why I initially turned the promotion down." Connor admitted in a groggy voice. "If it'll make Henry feel better to know that I'm safer as a Captain than as a Lieutenant, then I will accept the promotion and stay behind a desk for as long as it takes."

Henry started to cry again causing Hank to instinctively rub his back while Connor tightened his arm around him even more. This time however the tears weren't of fear or of sadness, but of relief and joy.

"Everything will be okay, Henry." Connor winced a little as his pain receptors began to reboot as well and his ventilation program jostled his healing chest. "I'm okay. I won't make you worry about me ever again; I promise."

"I don't want to lose you, dad!"

"And I don't want to leave you." Moving just enough to bring Henry even closer Connor kissed the top of Henry's hair and just held him in a hug at his side. "I'll do what it takes to stay with you for as long as possible. You have my word."

---

It took a full day of recovering at the hospital and being meticulously examined before Connor was cleared for technical discharge. With Hank's help Connor was able to limp back into Hank's house slowly and was guided over to the couch while Henry proceeded to grab the blanket and pillow from the hallway closet for his dad to feel more comfortable. The house still felt like Connor's own home and Henry always felt like he had two homes to call his own. At the moment the house felt empty and sad since Sumo passed away from old age the previous year, but like his predecessor he was buried in the backyard and was still remembered fondly.

"Seems like old times, huh, kid?" Hank joked as he watched Connor struggling to lay comfortably on the couch. "You hurt, me fussin' over you..."

"Not old enough it seems."

Patting his lower back Hank gave the deviant a jovial smile. "Speak for yourself!"

Henry handed Connor the pillow and the blanket and watched as his dad used the offered items to get more comfortable. "Thanks, Henry."

"You're welcome." The little boy was now a young teenager, and he was showing impressive maturity for his age. "When do you go back to work?"

"Three days."

"And will you be working out in the field?"

"No." Connor replied honestly as he pressed his hand to his sore abdomen and chest. "I will remain behind my desk filing reports until my promotion is cleared and I can take over for Captain Foxworth."

"I'm glad. I don't want you to get hurt anymore."

"I don't want to get hurt, either. Believe me."

"Have you been hurt before?"

"Uh..." Connor gave Hank an awkward glance as his father stood behind the couch before he finally answered. "Yeah. But as you can see, I've recovered."

"Did you get hurt because you're an android?"

"Sometimes, yes. There were a lot more anti-android bigots in the city before you were born than there are now. Other times I got hurt because it's a hazardous job or I was unintentionally careless."

Hank cleared his throat awkwardly and sat down in his new recliner; one Connor insisted on him buying to replace the old worn out one to help ease the pain in his back even more. "I took my own share of bumps and bruises along the way, too. That's part of the reason my back keeps hurtin' me."

"I thought that was just because you're old."

Laughing at the comment Hank just shook his head and sighed. "You got a smart mouth like your dad. I'm not surprised."

Connor smirked as well as he let out a weary slow breath to ease his pain. "Henry, do you want to know about the time your Papa threw out his back and was stuck on the bathroom floor like a turtle on its shell, or do you want to see a photo of him with his long hair?"

A mischievous smile appeared on Henry's face as he sat on the couch next to his dad's legs and finally seem to be feeling better. "How about both?"

"Should've known." Leaning back in the recliner Hank propped his feet up on the coffee table and let out another sigh. "...Like father, like son. Not surprised by that either."

---

Life With Henry: Thirteen Years Old

The early effects of puberty had been kind to Henry save for his deepening voice cracking from time to time when he spoke, but other than the usual inconveniences of raging hormones affecting his speech the young boy was turning into a well adjusted and handsome young man. Taller than he was the previous year and very mature for his age, Henry was permitted to stay home alone after school until Connor returned home from work but Henry still preferred spending time with his Papa after school for a few hours after taking care of his chores and his homework.

Taking the time to feed Opal after school and give the gray and white cat some attention, Henry set about making himself a snack and taking care of his homework at the desk in his own bedroom. Between questions and answers Henry texted back and forth with his friends about their basketball game the next night, and let Hank know he'd be over as soon as he finished his biology homework. Just as the pre-teen finished his assignment his phone began to ring and saw that it was Hank calling him and answered quickly.

"Hey, Papa. I'll be over in a few minutes. I just finished my biology report."

'That's good, Henry, but I just wanted to let you know that I got a call from your dad and I need to go pick him up from the precinct.'

"Pick him up?" Too sharp to be fooled Henry knew that something was up and his cracking voice carried his worries perfectly. "What happened to dad?"

'To be honest with you,' Hank stated in a calm collected tone that always kept everyone else calm. 'he got banged up while helping to restrain an arrested suspect at the precinct this afternoon. He was already seen and treated by Joel, but he's too sore to drive himself home right now.'

Immediately on guard Henry knew his dad had been injured again and was worried it was a severe wound. "How bad was he hurt?"

'Not too bad. He took a bad blow to his abdomen and just needs a few days to get over the damage.'

"If it takes a few days to heal that's a little worse than 'not too bad', Papa."

There was a pause as Hank noted Henry's keen attention to detail and sighed. 'Yeah, you're right about that.'

"Tell me the truth, please."

'I am. Your dad got hit in the abdomen and now needs a few days to heal.'

"WHAT was dad hit WITH?"

Another pause followed the question before Hank answered. 'I don't know all the details but he was hit with a blunt instrument that damaged his abdomen and made him bleed. It also damaged his left sterilization filter-thingy. He saw Joel, got patched up, and now I'm going to bring him home to heal.'

"Did he need emergency repairs like when he got shot last year?"

'No, nothing like that. It took Joel not even an hour to patch him up, so yeah, it's not that bad. Absolutely zero bullets were involved.'

"...Okay, Papa." The worry of his dad being shot again had been haunting Henry for over a year now, and he was fighting hard to get over his fear. "I believe you."

'You better!' The man wisely replied in a joking manner to lighten the mood. 'When have I ever lied to you?'

"I hate to break it to you, but I know the 'Tooth Fairy' isn't real and that you were Santa on my first Christmas."

'Man... You're turning into a real smartass like your dad, and I couldn't be prouder.'

"Thanks." Feeling relieved Henry stood up from his desk and turned off his lamp as he walked toward his bedroom door. "When will you two be back?"

'Within the hour. Will you be cool without us?'

"I think I can live another sixty minutes by myself."

'All right, see ya' then ya' little smartass!' Laughing at Henry's developing wit Hank prepared to end the call and make his way to the precinct to pick up Connor to bring him back home. 'I really am proud of you, too.'

"Thanks, Papa. See you soon."

'See ya'.'

Ending the call Henry sighed and walked down the hallway to wait for his dad and grandfather to return home. Plopping down on the leather couch he pulled Opal from the back of the piece of furniture and held her against his chest where she snuggled in and purred loudly. The cat was as sweet and affectionate as she had been when she was a little kitten and had quickly bonded with Henry shortly after she was adopted.

"Dad's hurt, Opal. But he'll be okay."

Scratching the cat's ears gently Henry sighed and turned on the television to distract himself for a while. Opal busied herself with making biscuits against the soft material of Henry's shirt as he continued to pet her.

"I wonder what he got hit with while restraining an already arrested suspect. What in the precinct could make him bleed?"

Opal just purred loudly and pressed her chin down on Henry's chest as she settled in for a late afternoon nap with her favorite human.

"Maybe dad got hit with a chair like in a wrestling match. Or got kicked with some steel-toe boots."

Suddenly more curious than afraid of what could have happened to his dad Henry relaxed a little and just waited for his dad to return to the house to tell him in person.

"If he got hit with something like a stapler or a coffee mug I'm going to make fun of him forever!"

---

After about thirty minutes had passed Henry heard the Corvette pull into the driveway beside the house, heard the engine turn off, and then heard one door open and slam shut while the second door took a little longer to follow suit. Standing up from the couch Henry opened the front door and peered outside to check in on his father and grandfather only to freeze at the sight as he hadn't expected to see his dad looking so pale and weak as he limped toward the house with Hank supporting most of his weight at his right side.

"Dad?"

"I'm okay, Henry." Connor replied quickly as he pressed his hand to his left side to try to ease the ache. "Just a little banged up."

"What happened?" All of Henry's fears came flooding back in a single heartbeat. "You look like you're really sick or something."

"I'm just sore."

Joining his dad at his side Henry helped escort his wounded father inside the house to rest. "What happened to you today?"

"I was sitting in my office filing paperwork when two rookie cops brought in a suspect who was dangerously high on an illegal drug that caused him to suffer a huge adrenaline rush." Answering honestly Connor paused for a moment as Henry pushed open the front door before continuing on inside the house to rest. "The man fought back and the two rookies didn't have the experience necessary to handle the man, so myself and several other officers got involved with subduing him."

"What did he hit you with?"

Sitting down slowly on the couch with Henry and Hank to guide him Connor sighed weakly and pulled up his white dress shirt to show Henry the thick and numerous bandages wrapped around his abdomen to keep his left side covered as the injury heal. "...He used an axe."

"AN AXE?!

"One of the axes kept in the locked glass case to be used in the event of an emergency or during a fire." Connor specified in an impressively casual tone. "Apparently the lock wasn't strong enough to keep one drug-crazed man at bay and he began swinging."

"How did you get hit with an axe?" Sitting down beside his father on the couch Henry watched as Opal cuddled on Connor's lap and began to purr again. The cat was always aware of when someone needed a quick cuddle and happily obliged. "Why didn't you back off?"

"Because the man was swinging at Tina."

Hank interrupted with his own opinion on the matter. "Tina always wears Kevlar and she's always been able to move quickly. Why risk yourself when you know a competent officer is capable of taking care of herself?"

"Because during the commotion," Connor continued in a groggy tone as his hand rested on Opal's back to pet her soft fur. "I ran a biometric scan over the man to gauge his vitals and try to determine what drug he had taken. During my scan I picked up on a curious reading coming from Tina's person and I couldn't risk her suffering any injury whatsoever."

Worried for the officer Hank dared to ask a follow up question. "Is Tina sick?"

"No, dad. As of today she is approximately two weeks and four days pregnant."

"O-Oh!" That was far better news than he was expecting and was relieved to know that Tina wasn't in poor health. "Holy shit..."

"She didn't know, obviously, otherwise she wouldn't have taken the risk to begin with. In fact," Connor explained further as he leaned back in the couch cushion and tried to breathe through his pain. "she didn't know it herself until I explained to her why I put myself between her and a madman with an axe after she came up to see me in the dispensary."

Almost laughing Hank pressed the question a little further. "You told her about her own pregnancy?"

"I had to tell her, and she has the right to know as soon as possible for both her's and the fetus's health."

"Damn." Hank leaned against the back of the couch with his hands folded neatly together before him as an interesting question popped up in his head. "How'd she react to the news?"

"She proceeded to pass out from shock, but Joel caught her, and we asked Gavin to take her to the infirmary where an early pregnancy test confirmed my scanner's reading. As of this afternoon she is strictly on desk duty and is not permitted to assist with any arrests until after she gives birth. Gavin will ensure she remains on desk duty and doesn't do anything foolish. I think he's been looking forward to it since she used to hover over him all the time in the past whenever he was ill or needed to check his blood sugar."

"Is she happy about it?"

"Very!" The kindhearted deviant replied with a faint grin on her face. "She and her boyfriend had been trying to get pregnant for some time now, and as soon as she found out the good news she called to tell him that she had a surprise for him tonight after work and then proceeded to shop online for baby clothes."

"That's one way to keep her at her desk."

"I figured that as well and will allow her to do so if it'll keep her safe behind her desk."

"Good call."

Henry shook his head a little and gave his dad an odd glance. "What about the man who hit you?"

"He managed to swing the axe at my left side but he wasn't close enough to cause any significant damage. The blade of the axe itself was sharp enough to to slice through my artificial skin and plastimetal frame, and only nicked my left sterilization filter as it passed through. The wound looks worse than it is and will need two days for the damage to my frame to mend properly."

Pressing his palm over the bandages covering his lower left abdomen Connor winced a little but didn't yelp out in pain.

"As for the man himself," Connor continued on with a surprising ease. "he was tased by Chris and then sedated by a team of paramedics who were given special permission by the local hospital. He'll remain restrained at the hospital under close security surveillance until he comes down from his high and is coherent enough to be charged for his numerous acts of assault, as well as his purchase and use of an illegal substance."

"Do you need anything, dad?" Henry hated seeing his dad injured or sick and wanted to help him feel better. "Can I help you?"

"I just need a little help with getting down the hallway and into my own bed." The healing detective admitted as he gave Henry a small grin. "I'd rather lay down and enter rest mode instead of sitting upright on the couch."

"Yeah, sure." Pulling his father's arm around his shoulders Henry stood up from the couch and helped Connor to stand up from the couch. "Lean on me."

Connor allowed his son to escort him out of the livingroom and down the hallway to his bedroom, all the while he was smiling at his son's maturity and readiness to help someone in need. The pride in Henry was a mutual feeling as Hank stepped back and let his grandson take charge of helping his father without interfering.

Putting both of his hands to his lower back Hank let out a deep breath as he could feel his exhausted muscles struggling to just allow Hank to stand up, let alone walk around and carry his adult son around at his side. Age was truly mocking Hank at this point and sooner rather than later he'd have to admit his age and seek supportive measures for himself.

"Here." Henry opened the bedroom door with a quick turn of the doorknob and led Connor over to his bed to lay down. Keeping as much of Connor's weight on his own side as they walked, Henry moved slowly and was very careful not jostle his injured father as they walked. "Do androids need ice or anything for pain like this?"

"No, ice won't help with this type of damage." Connor explained smoothly as he laid back over the length of his bed and returned his palm to his wounded left side to test his pain threshold. "And I'm not overheating. It's okay."

"Let me help you get your shirt off."

Without waiting for a response Henry pulled on the knot of Connor's black tie to remove the garment from around the white dress shirt's collar, then pulled the buttons on the shirt open. As his father awkwardly slipped his arms from the sleeves of the shirt Henry noticed the tear in the lower left portion of the fabric thanks to the axe's sharp blade and felt sick as he paled quickly.

"...I'll see if there's any extra gauze in the bathroom."

"Henry." Connor grabbed his son's wrist to keep him from leaving the bedroom. "I'm okay, son. I really am."

"I know."

"You're pale, your vitals have all elevated, and I can feel you trembling." Connor stated quickly as he took in his son's appearance. "I promise you that I'm okay, but it's also okay to be shaken by this experience. I know that I was."

"Dad, I'm..." Turning to face his father directly Henry sighed a little and returned to his father's bedside. "I'm sorry."

"Sorry?" As his brow knit with confusion Connor studied his son's face and tried to understand his guilt. "Why are you sorry?"

"Last year when you got shot, I was mad and I yelled at you for getting hurt. A part of me thought you did it on purpose and I don't know why. You chose to take a position to keep you inside the precinct and out of the streets because I was scared and I didn't want you to get hurt again. But you got hurt anyway. You were right, being a detective is dangerous." Henry admitted with an impressive insight. "I'm sorry that I was mad at you for getting hurt last year."

"It's okay. You're allowed to feel whatever it is that you need to feel." Sitting upright slowly on the bed Connor put his free palm to the back of Henry's thick dark hair and held it there for a moment as he spoke to his son. It seemed each passing day Henry began looking more like his father, and that included his hair. "I had to learn that the hard way as I accepted my deviancy, and I had to learn to stop feeling guilty for expressing emotions or having an opinion on something."

"You're helping other people when you go to work but you're still making changes just for me. That makes me feel... selfish."

"Henry, you're FAR from selfish. I made those changes to my life because I love you and I want you to feel better about me going to work, not because you were angry at me and I wanted to make amends. Even if I hadn't been shot, I would've changed my role in the precinct if you had asked." Connor never wanted his son to feel guilty for asking to be comfortable and feel secured regardless of the situation. "You did nothing wrong last year when you were overwhelmed with emotions, just as I did nothing wrong when I had been injured. Okay?"

"Okay."

"You're a good kid, Henry. You make me and your Papa very proud, and you have no reason to feel ashamed of anything."

"Thanks, dad."

"I'm all right now. Go check in with your Papa and find something for dinner." Changing the subject like an expert Connor helped Henry think about something other than the incident at the precinct. "I'm not up for cooking tonight, so go ahead and order take-out if you want."

"Sure. I'll check on you later." Taking his leave of the bedroom Henry wandered back down the hallway and saw Hank sitting down on the couch with Opal happily sprawled out over his lap as she got her ears rubbed and her soft fur stroked. "Hey, Papa. What do you want to do for dinner?"

"I was planning on grillin' a couple of steaks tonight, but my back is aching too much. How about instead we split a pizza?"

"I could cook tonight."

"Really?" The offer was fairly impressive for a pre-teen. Never before had Henry shown interested in learning to cook beyond simple meals. "You want to cook?"

"I've never done it before, but I could still try."

"All right, how about you wheel the small barbecue from my garage over here and I'll show you the trick to grilling the perfect juicy steak?"

"Sure! I can do that."

"Cool. There's a bag of charcoal, some lighter fluid and a lighter already stored inside the barbecue, so just wheel that little red bastard over here and we'll get started."

"Okay, I'll be right back."

Hank watched as Henry walked out of the backdoor and made his way next door to get the small grill. Gently putting aside Opal for a moment Hank rose from the couch, his hand pressing against his back the entire time, and walked down the hallway to check on Connor for himself. Pushing open the partially closed bedroom door Hank looked down at his son as Connor laid on his back with his arm tucked under his head.

"Hey, son."

"Hi, dad."

"How do you feel?"

"Tired and sore."

"Can't say I blame ya'." Walking closer to the bed Hank saw the faint pool of Thirium leaking through the bandages wrapped around Connor's abdomen and grimaced a little. "You're bleeding."

"Oh..." Looking down at the pale blue blood staining the white bandages a faint sapphire hue Connor sighed and pressed his palm against the wound under a light pressure. "I must've aggravated my injury when I sat upright to talk to Henry."

"You still got that fancy android first aid kit somewhere around here?"

"It's under the bathroom sink."

"Stay put, I'll get ya' cleaned up."

"Where'd Henry go?"

"He's getting the barbecue next door." Shouting as he stepped out of the bedroom and into the neighboring bathroom to get the first aid kit Hank spoke to his son in a confident manner. "He wants to cook tonight and I'm going to teach him."

"He is? That's good to know."

"Has he never asked about cooking before?"

"No, not to me. He has no problem with handling the other chores around the house, and even seems to keep the house tidier than I do, but he's never shown any real interest in learning how to cook."

"Henry's growing up." Returning to the bedroom with the plastic first aid kit in his hand and a limp in his step Hank sat down on the edge of Connor's bed with the intention of helping him change his now dirty bandages. "He's ready for new challenges."

"Is it weird that I don't want Henry to grow up?"

"Not at all, son. That's how every parent feels."

"That's reassuring."

Putting his hand to Connor's shoulder Hank began pulling his injured son forward to sit upright on the bed again. It'd be easier to change the bandages if Connor was sitting upright as opposed to laying down.

"Sit up and I'll-" Stopping mid sentence Hank winced and pulled his hand back from Connor's shoulder to support his aching back. "...Fuck."

"You pulled the muscles in your back again, didn't you?"

"...Yeah." Hank let out a slow breath to ease his mounting discomfort. "It's getting harder and harder not to do it."

"Hold still." Pushing himself upright on the bed with both arms Connor stared at his father and ran a biometric scan over the retired detective's body. "Your lower back muscles are severely inflamed. It's putting pressure on your spinal column."

"Yup. I noticed."

"I hate to say it, but-"

"I know, I know. I'll go talk to my doctor soon about this. I just don't want to be leanin' on a cane or a walker for the rest of my life."

The corner of Connor's mouth ticked a little as a sheepish smile appeared on his face. "I could always modify Henry's old baby sling and carry you around on my chest instead."

"Oh, hell no!" That idea made Hank grimace and then laugh. "I maybe old but I'm not a piece of luggage to be hefted around."

"You wouldn't be luggage, you'd be carry-on."

"Smartass. You AND your son are the biggest smartasses I've ever met, and I love it."

From the opened doorway Henry addressed his father and grandfather in a level tone of voice. "Hey, Papa. I got the barbecue out back, but I don't know how to light it."

"All right, I'll show ya'. Just give me a minute to get up again and walk outside." There was no point in trying to deny that his back locked up again. "My back isn't very cooperative today."

"Okay." Noticing the first aid kit sitting on the bed beside Connor's leg Henry paled a little again and helped Hank to stand up from the bed. Daring to ask about the kit after Hank stepped out of the bedroom, Henry gave his father a worried glance. "What's wrong?"

Connor was a little confused by the question. "Hm?"

Pointing to the white plastic box Henry identified the source of his question. "The first aid kit."

"I accidentally caused a weakened Thirium line to leak again when I moved too much." The reply was entirely laidback as Connor explained what was going on. "I was just going to have the bandages changed, but your Papa's back was hurting him too much to help me."

"...I can do it."

"Henry, it's okay." The protective father knew that Henry was still uncomfortable with seeing him injured or suffering. Having an emotionally sensitive son was both a blessing and a curse at times. "I can see that you're uncomfortable about my injury."

"So what? You still need help." Opening up the kit Henry sat down where Hank had been and offered Connor his hand to take. "Let me help you."

Smirking a little Connor gave Henry his hand and let his son pull him up into a sitting position on the bed once more. "Okay."

"What do I do first?"

"These old bandages need to be removed. Inside the kit is a pair of scissors designed specifically for cutting through gauze."

"Got it." Finding the shiny metallic pair of scissors Henry carefully cut away the old bandages from his father's side and then bundled up the dirty gauze to be thrown away later. As the bandages revealed Connor's raw wound that was weeping blue blood Henry winced a little, but didn't dare back off. "...Now what?"

Connor looked down at his now exposed left side and ran a scan over the wound. There was a relatively deep gouge in his left side that was eight inches long running from the bottom of his 'rib cage' toward his left hip. The artificial skin around the wound and extended outward by a two-inch diameter failed to regenerate because of the open fracture in his plastimetal frame. Through the fracture it was fairly easy to see the repaired sterilization filter beneath.

"Dad, what do I do next?"

"Locate the orange bottle of liquid in the kit." Connor explained in a level tone. "That's called 'incrassation compound' and it stops Thirium lines from leaking."

"This?" Picking up the correct bottle Henry unscrewed the cap and gave his father a curious glance. "It says 'incrassation' on the label."

"That's it. Just pour it onto the damage, don't worry about making a mess."

With a steady hand Henry reached out and began pouring a small amount into the opened wound and tried to ignore his father physically flinching at the stinging sensation that made his breath hitch. As the orange liquid met the blue tinted Thirium, a thin flush of tea colored liquid washed out of the wound and Connor nodded to let Henry know it was okay to stop.

"Did that hurt you?"

"No, it's just an uncomfortable sensation."

"Okay." Returning the lid to the bottle Henry focused on his task at hand. "Then what do we do?"

"Put a large gauze pad over the wound and tape it into place. Afterward just wrap it up under the roll of gauze as it had been before when I returned home."

"That's it?"

"That's it."

"Seems kind of simple."

"Android anatomy isn't too dissimilar to human anatomy." The deviant father didn't mind explaining the layout of android anatomy to his son whenever the moment required it. "The difference is only the color of our blood and the fragility of our internal workings."

"Why didn't you ask for my help when Papa couldn't help you?" Applying the large gauze pad to his father's side Henry used his hand to hold it in place before using his other hand to apply the medical adhesive to hold the bandage in place over the wound. "I'm not a little kid anymore."

"I know. I just don't want you to do something that makes you feel uncomfortable."

"I'm pretty sure that's a part of growing up." Wrapping the gauze around his father's abdomen slowly Henry locked his blue eyes with Connor's brown eyes and gave him a coy stare. "If growing up wasn't meant to be uncomfortable my voice wouldn't be cracking every two sentences."

Laughing at his son's positive demeanor Connor stayed put as Henry finished wrapping up his abdomen and returned his hand to the back of Henry's hair in a supportive manner. "You're already so grown up. Soon you'll be driving yourself around and looking at colleges."

"If I maintain my grades and keep up my records on the basketball team, then I'll have a scholarship already lined up for me before I even have my diploma."

"See what I mean? And I don't think I'm ready for you to be an adult yet."

"Dad, it's not like after I hit eighteen that I'm going to pack my bags and move to another planet. Trust me," finishing up with the bandages Henry closed the first aid kit and gave his dad a kind smirk. "I looked into interplanetary travel. It still has some bugs to work out."

"Nothing's perfect, including people." Feeling much better and truly proud of his son Connor carefully laid back against his pillow to relax. "Why don't you go help your Papa with the barbecue? I'll be fine now."

"Okay. I'll put this back in the bathroom." Standing up from the bed with the cleaned up first aid kit in his hands Henry backed away from the bed and gave his father a nod of confidence. "I'm going to figure out how to grill without burning down the neighborhood."

"There's a fire extinguisher under the kitchen sink. Take it with you if you want."

"What about the garden hose?"

"That'll work, too. Just make sure it doesn't drip when you turn it off."

Truly proud of his son Connor watched as Henry took his leave of the bedroom and quickly found himself thinking about the past thirteen years that he had with Henry and how much he had really grown up. Pressing his palm to his freshly bandaged side Connor sighed, closed his eyes and let a few emotional tears roll down his face.

"You'd be so proud of our son, Skye."

It had become commonplace for Connor to speak to his departed bondmate even when he knew that Skye would never hear his words.

"I wish you could've met him."

---

Two hours passed before Hank returned to the bedroom to check in on his son and made sure that Connor was still comfortable. Seeing the wrapped up deviant laying comfortably on his bed and seemingly asleep with Opal curled up on his chest, Hank limped over to the bed to check on the bandages and was relieved to see that there wasn't any additional bleeding and that the bandages were still clean. As his hand brushed against the wound and then over to Connor's forehead for an instinctive fever check, Hank saw his son's eyes opening up and he waited for Connor to say something.

"Hey, dad."

"Hey, son."

"How was your cooking lesson with Henry?"

"It's safe to say he inherited your cooking skills." Hank was proud to talk about Henry's latest accomplishment. "That was easily a five-star steak and we had zero issues with the barbecue."

"That's good to hear."

"Henry's in bed already." Speaking with a mild fatigue to his own voice Hank confirmed that the day was long and tiring. "I think he's exhausted from going through puberty, dealing with school and you being a detective dealing with axe-wielding crackheads."

"He can handle it." Connor shook his head at Hank's comments as he truly believed that Henry could handle any challenges that came his way. "He's a very strong and confident kid."

"Damn right he is. He's also stubborn like his father." Hank gave Connor's knee a good humored shake as he spoke. "Need anything before I take off?"

"No, I'm okay." Rubbing Opal's ears Connor sighed a little and then changed his mind. "Well... Maybe one thing."

"What's that?"

Gently putting Opal aside on the bed so he could sit up again Connor sighed and gave Hank a pleading look. "I just realized how mature Henry has become and that soon he won't need me to guide him anymore. And... I don't know what to do about it."

"Not true, son. A father's work is never done."

"It's still a strangely grounding feeling to know that Henry won't need me to help him with every challenge that comes his way. It's like he's an adult already."

"Uh-huh." Sitting down on the edge of the bed Hank gave Connor a hug without waiting for an invitation and felt his son wrap his arms tightly around his shoulders in return. "Remember what I told you about Henry when he had just been born? How you'd always see him as your little boy?"

"Yes, I remember."

"This is the moment I was talking about."

"It's a strange moment." Conflicting emotions filled Connor's mind and his heart as he tried to process what he was going through. "I'm proud of him and of the person he is becoming, but at the same time a part of me is dreading him becoming an adult and being on his own."

"'Empty-nest syndrome' is definitely in your future, son. But it's okay, I'll still be there to help you through it."

"Thanks, dad."

"And for what it's worth, as proud as you are of Henry, I'm just as a proud of you." The retired detective couldn't believe how much Connor had changed since they first met in the historic November back in 2038. "You're a great father and Henry is a great kid. You have every right to be proud of him just as I'm proud of you."

"The same came be said about you, dad."

"How's that?"

"Fourteen years perfectly sober." Connor explained with a smile. "You never once slipped, and you've been taking care of yourself just as you promised. I'm very proud of you, too."

"You, Henry, Luke and Rose all gave me good reasons to stick around." Releasing the hug Hank gave Connor's shoulder a firm pat and made sure his son knew that everything would be okay. "And I'm going to be here for as long as I can for you and for Henry."

---

Life With Henry: Fourteen Years Old

A year had passed without any further incident at the precinct injuring Connor or scaring Henry, and such a reprieve had left the small family feeling more secure. Gavin took over Connor's previous position and was now second in command as the precinct's ranking Lieutenant - a position that no one thought he'd attain because of his previous attitude problems - but then again no one thought an android would be given such a high rank or position of power. Chris was on his way to being a Lieutenant as well, while Tina and Jack were both successfully promoted to Sergeants and had been given rookie partners to train. Ben had retired the previous summer and had passed on the mantle of lead investigator to his most promising protege, and all was well at the Central Precinct.

There was a whole new squadron of rookie officers that Connor was now in charge of. He wasn't afraid to lead, and his fellow officers weren't afraid to follow after him. Hank had never been prouder of son's work as a detective and made sure he knew about it as often as possible.

"Hey, dad?" Henry called out from the bathroom, his voice a few octaves deeper than it had been the previous year now that puberty was finally reaching its plateau and leaving him with a more consistent voice. "Can you help me out, please?"

Connor entered the bathroom and saw Henry running his fingertips over his chin where a noticeable dark stubble was beginning to grow. There were even a few dark hairs growing on his upper lip as well. The teenager was much taller and had a lean nimble build just like Connor. He was now eye level with Connor's upper chest and had just a few more freckles that adorned his complexion just like his father.

There were even times where people who saw Connor and Henry together mistook them as brothers, which made Hank laugh but made Henry feel a little weird when he had to explain that the immortally young looking android was actually his father.

"Help you with what, son?"

"I, uh," Henry turned away from the mirror and tapped his fingertip on his chin as he spoke. "I need to shave."

"Oh. I think that's going to have to be a problem for your Papa to solve today."

"Papa has a beard and I've never seen him without it." Henry quipped with a sly look. "Does he even remember how to shave?"

Connor smirked at the question as he decided that it was time for him to take Henry out to get a shaving kit, and maybe a few other personal hygiene products that he might want to try out. Growing up was an inevitability that needed to be taken care of as soon as possible.

"Come on." The deviant father motioned for the front door as he slipped on his shoes and grabbed the car keys from the massive bookshelf that lined the wall in the livingroom in a similar manner to the furnishings at Hank's house. "Get your shoes."

"Where we going?" Henry rubbed Opal's ears as he passed by the cat sleeping on the back of the couch to get his own shoes. "Next door?"

"Not yet. We're going to get you hooked up with some grooming products first. You choose, I buy."

"What if I want dark purple hair dye and a curling iron?"

"Then we'll pick up some green dye for your Papa and get a surge protector for the curling iron."

"Funny. Wait..." Henry sometimes had a hard time reading Connor's sarcasm but it was getting easier over time. "Can I dye my hair?"

"If you want to. It's your hair and the color will fade over time." Connor replied without blinking. "It's not like the color of your hair is going to affect your grades or inhibit your ability to study."

"How come you're so cool with that kind of stuff but when Jason put blond highlights in his hair he got grounded for a week?"

"Because I'm a cool parent," Connor proudly boasted as he pulled open the front door and waited Henry to follow after him. "and Jason's parents are not."

"Yeah, because nothing says 'I'm the cool dad' like announcing that you're the cool dad."

"You inherited my smart mouth, but you adopted your Papa's sarcasm. That could be a dangerous combination."

"For you or for me?"

Tossing the car keys up into the air once and catching them in his hand Connor gave his son a playful smirk and a shrug of his shoulders. "For society."

---

A stop at the local supermarket and a trip down the aisle with hygiene products had left Connor and Henry at a bit of pause. Connor had only needed to shower when he had gotten covered in dirt or grime at a crime scene or after he had gotten sick, as opposed to needing to shower daily/nightly to remove an accumulation of sweat and body oil like humans. He had begun showering more because of the update giving him more humanoid responses, but it wasn't entirely necessary since he didn't develop any form of body odor.

When Henry had been born Hank had already stocked up on baby shampoos and gentle body washes for convenience. As Henry grew up Connor had purchased other types of shampoos and soaps, but he hadn't considered anything else special for Henry beyond toothpaste and deodorant for his son.

"What do you think?" Henry asked as he looked at the numerous razor blades with utter loss in his blue eyes. "I think the more blades the better, but they're way more expensive than the other stuff."

"Get what you want to try." Connor encouraged as he watched his son making his decision. "I doubt you'll need to shave every day and even so, I'll pay for it."

"Really?"

"Yes. Get what you want."

"All right, uh..." Trying to decide between two different brands of razors, both the same type and both the same price, Henry was still at a loss. "Is there really any difference?"

"One moment." Connor ran a scan over the two packs of razors and the corner of his mouth twitched. "I can't see one. Flip a coin." Fishing out his quarter from his jean pocket he tossed it to Henry who caught it in his graceful hands. "Heads you take the razors in the blue package. Tails you take the razors in the red package."

"All right." Flipping the coin up in the air Henry caught it in his right hand and made his decision. "Heads, blue it is!"

Tossing Connor back his coin Henry put back the red razors on the shelf and dropped the blue pack in the shopping basket sitting on the floor beside his foot. Moving on to the next item Henry had less difficulty in his decision and went solely by the scent on the can of shaving cream and placed it in the basket next to the razors. The idea of aftershave seemed appealing, but Henry really didn't know what it was for.

"Put it in the basket." Connor saw Henry curiously eyeing the item and encouraged him to try it as well. "Also grab some extra deodorant so you don't have to worry about it for a while during the summer. You can keep extra deodorant in your school locker as well."

Feeling truly like a parent Connor watched as his teenage son set about taking care of his own hygiene and even took the time to add a new toothbrush, shampoo and soap to his basket just to make sure he had everything taken care of. It was a strange sense of pride and sadness as Henry started showing more independence, personal responsibility and overall maturity.

From down the aisle the sound a small noise caught Connor's ear, and he turned toward the sound in time to see Tina walking down the aisle with her own baby boy in a sling on her chest. "Tina."

"Connor, hi!" Walking up to her commanding officer Tina happily introduced her four-month-old son to the kind deviant. "You've seen pictures of Shawn since he's been born, but you've never been properly introduced."

"Hello, Shawn." Happy to see the small baby in person Connor noted that Shawn had inherited Tina's dark hair and her dark eyes, but had clearly inherited his father's nose, ears and chin. As Shawn let out a small yawn Connor smirked and remembered how Henry at one point used to be so small and easy to carry around as well. "I take it you're here for a diaper run."

"Spoken like an experienced parent." Smiling and looking past Connor toward Henry a few feet behind him Tina gave the teenager a surprised shake of her head. "I can't believe Henry's already fourteen. I swear it was only yesterday he came in to the precinct for a visit when he was just a few months old."

"I'm finding it difficult to believe as well."

"And he looks exactly like you! It's unreal..."

"I believe in a few more months you'll have the same reaction in comparing Shawn to his own father."

"I can see it now." Tina admitted as she gently ran her fingers over her son's hair. "It's kind of spooky. It's like a cloned his dad, like I had a photocopier somewhere in my uterus."

"Hey, dad?" Henry called out to Connor and drew his attention away from Tina, Shawn and her odd analogy for a moment. "Think this is all I'll need for shaving?"

Connor nodded at Tina as she gave Henry a little wave and went on her way to find Shawn his diapers, and then looked at the items in Henry's shopping basket. Unsure of what would be considered appropriate for a teenage boy to have as his first grooming kit, Connor just tilted his head and gave his son a sarcastic comment on the situation.

"I don't know. Want to throw in a box of band-aids in case your Papa is a bad teacher?"

"For me or for him?"

"Both." Smiling again Connor motioned for the front of the store to check-out. "Come on. Let's get back to the house and see what your Papa is doing right now. I'm sure it's interesting."

---

As Connor pulled the Corvette up to the house to visit with Hank, he saw that Hank was already outside in his driveway next door, and he seemed to have a new toy to play with. Being retired gave Hank so much more free time and with Henry no longer needing to be watched every day after school, Hank was getting a little restless with all of his freedom. Fortunately, it looked like he found himself a new project to keep his mind preoccupied and gave Connor and Henry yet another reason to check in on him on a daily basis.

"Looks like your Papa was out shopping, too." Connor noted as he and Henry exited the Corvette and walked side by side up the driveway at the neighboring house. "However, he found something much bigger than a grooming kit."

"Yeah." Henry noted the purchase and grinned at the sight. "And it looks like he had fun while he was at it."

Hank heard the two talking as he popped open the hood of the old car he had just purchased and was now seeking to restore. "What do you think, son?"

"I think it's a 1989 Chevrolet Camaro." Connor replied as literally as he could. "And it needs work." He ran a scan over the vehicle and noted its rough condition and grinned. "...A LOT of work."

"Yup. I needed something to do and since you keep the Corvette with you or at work, I wanted another classic beauty to work on."

"Where'd you find it?"

"An old contact from the precinct told me about it." Walking around the car to speak to the duo face to face Hank noticed the patch of facial hair growing on Henry's chin and smirked at the sight. "What's this?" Putting his hand under Henry's chin he gently turned his grandson's face so he could see the small dark goatee trying to form on his chin and over his upper lip. "You growing a beard, young man?"

"Not if I can help it." Holding up the paper shopping bag with his new items Henry gave his grandfather a pleading look. "But dad says this is something you'll need to coach me through."

"Yeah, sure. Let's go." Patting Henry's shoulder Hank motioned for the backdoor. "We'll do this, and Connor, you can take a quick scan of the Camaro for me so that I know what I need to repair, replace and get restored."

"No problem." Connor had no objections to giving the car a thorough once-over. "Thanks for your help, dad."

The idea of working on another vehicle made Connor think back and remember the hours he had spent with Hank working on the Corvette and how it was a total shock when Hank gave the restored car to Connor as a gift. It was then Connor remembered Hank making a remark four years ago about doing something special for Henry as a sixteenth birthday gift, and he had just figured out what that special something was.

It didn't take Connor too long to run a scan over the vehicle and chronicle all of the maintenance requirements and even less time to figure out what Hank was up to. Satisfied that the car was in decent enough condition to be restored within a respectable time frame and within a reasonable budget, Connor walked inside the house through the backdoor and made his way down the hallway in time to see Henry rinsing off his face and running his hand over his now smooth chin again through the opened bathroom door.

"You look good." Connor complimented as Henry looked at his reflection in the mirror over the sink. "Are you going to shave every day or let your goatee grow?"

"I don't think facial hair's for me. I was starting to look like one of the musicians on Papa's album covers."

"Well, you are a talented musician." Connor confirmed as he and Hank smirked at the comment. "That'd be considered a normal look and not at all weird."

"Yeah, but the really weird thing is in a while I think people might think I'm older than you."

Intrigued by the notion Connor pressed his right hand to his own chin and shook his head. "Sorry, Henry. It's not my fault androids aesthetically don't age."

Hank knew Connor had finished examining the Camaro and was eager to know how it was holding up and gave his son an anxious glance. "How's the car?"

"It'll need a new transmission, brakes pads, a battery, spark plugs, serpentine belt, timing belt, new shocks, new struts, brake drums, an alignment, new tie rods and an alternator - all the usual repairs. However, it's well within the realm of reality to do so with a practical budget and time frame."

"Cool. Think you can track the necessary parts and-"

"Already done."

"-send them to my phone." Sighing a little Hank gave his son an only mildly annoyed glance. "Connor, I can pay for the parts."

"I'm aware, but you already paid for the car itself and I know you'll be doing a majority of the work while I'm at the precinct."

"Joke's on you kid." Nudging Henry in the ribs lightly with his elbow Hank motioned with a thumb over the shoulder in the direction of the Camaro outside in the side driveway. "Henry, want to help me with the car?"

"You'll show me how to work on a car?"

"Yup."

"Cool!" Ever curious and eager to learn Henry was thrilled to have a side project to work on with his grandfather. "I'll have something to do this summer when we're not at the cabin."

"Which reminds me..." Hank looked at Connor and gave him a nod. "Two weeks from now I want to have a Fourth of July type of thing at the cabin. Get the time off and we'll have a barbecue or something."

"I will." Connor agreed without any problems. "I suppose that's one of the perks to being a Captain, I can set my own hours."

"Go on, Henry." Hank patted his grandson's shoulder lightly. "I'll show you what to look for in an engine; what's good and what's crap."

"Yeah, okay."

Once Henry was out of hearing range Connor addressed Hank discreetly and in a low voice.

"Did you speak to your doctor again?" The attentive deviant had been watching Hank's body language very closely and knew he wasn't feeling well without needing to perform an invasive biometric scan. "I know your pain isn't just your back this time. You had that taken care of last year."

"...Yeah, kid. It's uh, not great." Hank admitted in a whisper to ensure Henry didn't hear them. "But I know what's causing my pain this time."

Hesitating only for a moment Connor forced himself to ask about the prognosis despite sensing that the answer was bleak. "What's the cause?"

"My liver's beginning to breakdown on me." The look in Hank's blue eyes were full of frightened tears. "Stage one cancer."

That word left Connor stunned, almost speechless. Running a biometric scan over Hank's liver he noted the damaged and ill tissue, and he gave Hank a truly worried stare as he processed what he was being told. "Cancer?"

"I'm going to begin treatment to kill the tumor, but with my age and health history..."

"Please don't give up."

"I'm not, son. If I didn't have you, Henry or Luke I would throw in the towel right here, right now." The man admitted somberly. "But I'll put up a fight for as long as I can for you boys. Rose too, but I don't want her to know about this. She went through that once before with her late husband, and I don't want her to relive such a horrible experience a second time around, you know?"

"What should I tell Henry?"

"Nothing. I don't want him to see me as a sick old man, I want him to always see me as his Papa." Cleaning up the grooming kit on the bathroom sink Hank pleaded with his son to keep his secret for as long as possible. "Don't tell him I'm sick. Promise?"

"I promise." It felt wrong to keep such a secret from his son, but Connor respected Hank far too much to do anything less. "I won't say a word about you being ill."

"And like I said, I'm going to fight back. Just think of this as age making a fool of me, nothing more. One more obstacle to overcome."

"Yeah. It's just another challenge."

"Damn right it is. I'd tell you to not worry, but you will. So instead," Hank clapped his hand down on Connor's shoulder and held his palm there for a moment. "I'll ask that you focus on Henry and making sure he's focused on everything else with his future. School, getting his driver's license, maybe going to college... Got it?"

"Got it."

Henry rushed back into the bathroom and knocked on the door frame frantically. "Come on, Papa! Show me the car!"

"I'm coming, Henry." Putting the repacked kit down on the sink Hank walked out of the bathroom to follow his grandson. "Right behind ya'!"

While the grandfather and grandson duo left the bathroom to go check out the car outside Connor stayed behind and took in a deep calming breath. The last thing he wanted to hear was that Hank was sick with cancer. Even though it was stage one and it was ready to be treated, it was cancer nonetheless and Hank's body wasn't as strong as it used to be.

"Stay strong."

The deviant father and son told himself as he leaned against the bathroom sink.

"For Henry. Do it for Henry."

Feeling lost and scared Connor looked at his own reflection in the mirror above the sink and compared his appearance to how Henry looked, then realized for the very first time that in the eighteen years that he had known Hank that the retired detective was aging quickly. Hank's face was more weather worn though his eyes stayed bright and alert. The chronic pain in Hank's back had ruined his posture making him look even older and more fragile whenever he walked. While Hank had full gray in his hair and his beard since the first day Connor met him, the keen-eyed deviant could see that he was looking whiter and paler than usual.

"Do what's best for Henry."

Putting his hand to the side of his face Connor examined his complexion curiously. Connor's eternally youthful aesthetic only made Hank seem twice as old as he truly was, and Connor didn't want Henry to remain self-conscious whenever he was out in public with his family.

"No matter what it takes, I have to do what's best for Henry"

---

Outside in the driveway beside the house Hank was showing Henry everything under the hood of the recently purchased car, explaining the mechanics of the engine and how to diagnose mechanical failure, when Connor eventually rejoined them outside. While the two were busy looking under the hood of the aged vehicle Connor stood just off to the side of the front of the car and silently observed as he watched the grandfather and grandson duo bonding even closer over the impending summer project. It was a common sight to see Hank and Henry hanging out all the time, but it never got old in Connor's eyes.

"Remember to never rush a project like this. Always take your time." Sensing Connor's presence a few feet away Hank briefly glanced up at his son, then did a sudden double-take. "What the... Connor? What the hell did you do to your hair?"

Henry looked up as well and almost laughed at his dad as he now boasted natural looking streaks of gray through his brunette hair and a few exaggerated frown lines on his face and lines around his eyes. "And your face?"

"I decided to alter my look to reflect my age more accurately in comparison to yours, Henry." Connor replied honestly as he rubbed his fingertips along his jaw and eyes. "I'm trying to look more like a person in their late thirties, if not their early forties."

"So you put gray in your hair and look like you haven't sleep in two years?"

"Thanks to your tantrums as a toddler, that metaphorical lack of sleep for two years is rather apt."

"I can accept that, but you can't blame the gray on me."

"No, that can be blamed on working at a precinct for eighteen years."

Hank just laughed and shook his head. "I get what you're doing but that look just isn't you. You're only eighteen years old, son. You don't need to look forty. Why go for a change like this out of the blue?"

"I was not meant to age, and I determined that this aesthetic would make it less socially awkward for the other parents whenever I tend to Henry's school activities or go anywhere with him in a social setting. People won't assume we are brothers and finally recognize us as father and son now that he isn't an infant anymore."

Henry looked a little embarrassed by the gesture but played it off coolly. "Only sport that particular look when we're dealing with school stuff or we're out shopping. I don't want to look at the gray in your hair all day. It's just not you."

"That's manageable." The aesthetic alterations to Connor's appearance faded away as easily as he had implemented them with a simple, silent cybernetic command that only took seconds to initiate. "Better?"

"Much."

Hank had enough of the weird conversation and changed the subject back to the car. "Now that Connor is back to normal, how about you two help me get this car back to normal, too?"

"Of course." Always happy to take part in an activity with his family Connor stood before the popped open hood and smirked at his father and his son as the trio prepared to begin some hard and worthwhile work together. "Where do we start?"

---

Life With Henry: Fifteen Years Old

Staying at the cabin for a summer vacation had been exactly what the small family needed as Henry adjusted to high school and Hank quietly dealt with his own health issues. Connor was spending more time at the precinct as he helped train new officers and continued to help cover shifts after the previous spring had brought a nasty bout of the flu through the bullpen, but now he had the time off he needed to destress and spend time with his family again. To make things better Luke had taken a week off from his facility in Boston and was happy to join his father, brother and nephew at the cabin as well.

The quartet gathered around the roaring bonfire in the backyard of the cabin and laughed as they all exchanged stories and reminisced about their pasts as they simply enjoyed one another's company at the seclusion of the cabin. It had been difficult for Luke to return to Detroit to be with his family during special occasions, and it was even harder for the trio to go out to Boston to visit Luke in return. Finally, being able to be together for the first time in almost three years had been perfect for helping the family to relax and enjoy the summer.

"Now that Boston has six additional android facilities functioning at full capacity, I will be able to have more time off and I can return to Detroit more often." The accomplishment was being righteously boasted as Luke adjusted the burning logs in the bonfire pit with a long stick. "It's nice being able to take a vacation every few weeks."

"That's great news, Luke." Connor was happy to hear about the progress in Boston and even happier to learn that his big brother finally had more free time on his hands. "Maybe we can do this again next summer now that you don't have to take care of an entire city of androids by yourself."

"That'd be nice, I'd really enjoy that."

Hank sipped at a bottle of water as he eyed his sons and grandson with a truly peaceful smile on his face and ignored the lingering ache in his back. "It sounds like everyone is moving forward and is finally finding the time for fun."

Sitting next to Hank on the old dead log beside the bonfire Henry sighed a little and ran his fingers through his dark hair in a messy manner. "Yeah, sure."

"Easy, buddy." Putting his hand to Henry's shoulder Hank sensed the teenager's stress and empathized with him. "High school sucks, but it'll be over soon enough."

"Yeah, and then there's college, tuition, student loans, debt, sleeplessness..."

"Come on, you'll do great! You've already aced every test you've ever had, you're at the top of your class in grades, you're a stellar athlete, you can play the piano, the guitar and the violin, and you have at least two scholarships lined up for ya'. It's normal to be nervous but I can tell you for certain that you'll be able to handle it and thrive under any circumstances." Hank had no doubts that his grandson was going to go far in life. "Just keep doing what you're doing and know you have all the support of your family behind ya'."

"Thanks, Papa. But that doesn't help much."

"Remember that I have faith in you and you'll do just fine. You'll never disappoint me or your dad, so no pressure. Just do what makes you happy."

"He's right, Henry. You'll do great." Connor nodded in agreement as he watched his son and his father speaking like good friends as they sat together by the bonfire while enjoying the warm summer evening. "It's almost five o'clock. Should Luke and I prepare dinner for you two?"

Henry looked up at his dad and his uncle as he nodded heavily. "Yeah, I'm starving."

"Then we'll go get everything ready."

"What're we having, dad?"

"Tofu and sushi rolls."

Giving his father an incredulous stare Henry shook his head and sighed loudly. "You're so weird. What're we having really?"

"Steaks, hamburgers and hotdogs." Grinning like an idiot Connor truly enjoyed it when Henry would call him out on strange things. "Everything your Papa suggested that we cook we made sure we brought."

Looking over at Hank beside him Henry gave his grandfather a coy stare. "How come you're so normal and he's so weird?"

"Because your dad is unique in every way and doesn't have a human stomach. Him and Luke get Thirium-based food to eat. Sure, it's flavored to taste like real food but it's all the same stuff under different labels. He has no appreciation for a perfectly cooked steak."

"That explains a lot."

Connor stood up from the small lawn chair beside Henry and patted his hand against his shoulder. "Don't forget, you take after me. Weird runs in your blood, too."

"Thanks for the warning!"

Laughing at the odd conversation Luke followed after his little brother into the cabin's backdoor and helped Connor prepare dinner in the kitchen. Sensing that Connor wanted to discuss something in private without the rudeness of cybernetic conversation to fill the air, Luke waited for Connor to speak up first and just set about gathering the necessary ingredients from the refrigerator to prepare and season the meal for Hank and Henry to enjoy.

"There's a special cast iron skillet that has four legs we can use to cook the food over the bonfire in the backyard. All we need to do is season the food and then cook it on the skillet over the actual fire and not have to use the stove."

"Sounds simple enough."

"Luke," changing the subject in a dour manner Connor asked his big brother an important question. "do you know of dad's poor health?"

"...Yes." Confirming the question Luke turned to face his little brother as Connor set about pulling spices from the cupboard just above the stove. "I know he is currently undergoing treatment for his stage one liver cancer, and I also know he is making great progress."

"Yeah. Dad is doing well with his treatments, and he's done an exemplary job at keeping his illness secret from Henry to keep him from becoming worried. I believe dad's nearing remission as I haven't detected any degeneration of his liver for the past three months."

"I'm glad to hear it. What of his back?"

"It's still hurting him. This winter I'm going to see if I can get him to finally seek the aid of a walking cane to assist his movement and take the strain from his back, but I don't think it'll be an easy battle to win."

"That is true." Placing the raw burger patties and steaks down on a large plate Luke stepped back and watched as Connor seasoned the meat with the same skill and patience of a true chef. Noting that his little brother still seemed worried, Luke put his hand on Connor's shoulder and held it there. "Dad will be okay. He's very strong and very stubborn."

"Yes, I know. However, even a gruff, hardened, former detective still has his limits."

"We all do, little brother. That doesn't mean Hank's going to give up on anything any time soon."

"You're right. I guess I'm just worried that when he's gone that I'll be at a loss of how to raise Henry."

"Not a chance. Henry is a fantastic kid, and you can't possibly do anything more to help him become a better person." Fearless as ever, Luke made sure Connor had the confidence he needed to keep facing the future head on. "Try not to worry."

"I am trying, but it's not easy." Seeing and hearing Hank and Henry talking and laughing through the kitchen window overlooking the backyard made Connor's heart swell and ache at the same time. "I just want them both to be happy."

"They are. Trust me, they're both very happy." Patting his little brother's shoulder once Luke gave Connor a kind smile. "And you should be, too."

"...You're right." Smiling again as his stress began to dwindle at last Connor agreed with his big brother and prepared to bring the serving tray of seasoned food outside to begin cooking over the bonfire. "Let's go rejoin them outside before dad tells Henry any embarrassing story from my past."

A second round of loud laughter filled the air and Luke gave Connor a somewhat sympathetic glance. "It might be too late for that."

"I guess I'll have to tell Henry about the time I slapped dad awake on the kitchen floor and how he had to rent multiple 'Tracis' at the 'Eden Club' so we could solve our investigation." Picking up the tray he walked to the backdoor and gave Luke a sly look over his shoulder. "His billing statement that month was less than flattering to say the least..."

---

Life With Henry: Sixteen Years Old

Another milestone in Henry's life meant another learning experience for Connor as a father. The duo were learning about growing up and developing at the same time, but it was up to Connor to be a rock to lean on for Henry as he endured the trials of his childhood one day at a time. Whereas school, music lessons and athletic activities were challenging enough to understand and contribute to, the final hurdles leading from childhood into adulthood were going to be very stressful for both father and son.

Nervously Henry sat behind the steering wheel of the Corvette with Connor beside him in the passenger seat as they set about their first day on the road together. The teenager was clutching his learner's permit in his shaking hand and took a deep breath as he stared at the road at the end of the driveway.

"You're going to be fine." Ever calm and patient Connor encouraged his son to take that first nervous step forward. "Take a deep breath and begin only when you're ready."

"Are you sure you want to let me drive the Corvette?" Henry was wary of accidentally damaging the classic car. "I mean, my high school has it's own driver's ed program and they provide the cars."

"You're more familiar with this car." Connor clarified logically as he fastened his seatbelt and gave Henry an encouraging grin. "And I trust you to not be reckless with the Corvette."

"I've never driven before."

"I know. That's literally why we're doing this."

Refusing to let Henry chicken-out Connor gave his son a confident grin as he realized their dilemma. Connor never needed to 'learn' how to drive since it was already programmed into his database. He could just drive, but Henry needed to learn. He couldn't just 'do it' as Connor had done so easily in the past and might need someone with a more empathetic experience to learn from.

"Would you like your Papa to teach you how to drive instead?"

"N-No." Henry didn't want a new teacher, he wanted to calm his nerves. "I just... It's very complicated."

"Nervous?"

"Extremely."

"It's okay. We're not going to drive across the country or even out of the neighborhood. Just circle the block once to get used to the car and how it handles."

"One lap?"

"One lap. Easy."

"I... Okay." Pocketing his driver's permit Henry took a deep breath. "I can do that." Pulling his seatbelt over his chest Henry secured it into place with an audible 'click' just as Connor had done moments before. As Henry's shaking hand turned the key in the ignition he took in another deep breath and let it out slowly. Pressing his foot down on the brake Henry shifted the car from park and into drive. "...I can do this."

"All you have to do is gently let up on the brake and let the car pull itself down the drive. It'll go slow automatically so don't worry about using the accelerator."

"...Right, yeah."

"When you reach the end of the drive gently reapply the brake and hold it."

Listening to Connor's instructions perfectly Henry made his way down the driveway very slowly and came to a stop again without the car jerking around or making any protesting sounds.

"Good." Connor approved of his son's instincts and encouraged him to continue using a gentle approach to learning his new skill. "Now turn on your signal to go right."

Henry found the controls for the turn signal and turned it on accordingly.

"Check to make sure the street is clear and then just as slowly pull out onto the road."

Again Henry followed the instructions perfectly and managed to get the car onto the road and stay in his designated lane.

"Perfect." Connor remained calm as he watched Henry nervously adjusting the wheel to straighten the tires. "Press down lightly on the accelerator, most people recommend using your big toe to add pressure, to get up to speed at a steady pace. Get the car up to thirty miles per hour before you come to a gentle stop at the sign at the end of the street."

Slowly but surely Henry managed to get the car up to speed, stop and wait for his next set of instructions. Patient and fearless Connor calmly directed his son step by step until Henry made a full circle of the block back to the house. Instead of pulling back into the driveway Henry decided to take one more lap and Connor didn't try to stop him. The longer Henry drove the more confident he'd become in his abilities and would no longer be nervous.

"Keep this up for two weeks and I think you'll be ready to start driving at night."

"Night?"

"The laws are the same at night." Connor replied coolly from where he sat. "Just turn on the headlights and let your eyes adjust to the dark before you go anywhere."

"...Right. Sure." Henry was taking everything in stride despite his anxious demeanor. "That makes sense."

"You're doing just fine, son. The more you drive the more your sense of timing and overall reflexes while driving will improve and then you won't need anyone to guide you on your way." The deviant father knew for certain that Henry was well on his way to mastering yet another life skill, and he couldn't believe how much his son had grown up in such a small frame of time. "You'll be free to drive all on your own and see the world."

---

The next day while Connor was taking care of his shift at the precinct Henry was next door working with Hank on the Camaro in the driveway beside the house and regaling his grandfather with the tale of his first time driving the previous day. The duo was talking mostly about the Camaro's repairs but when the topic of Henry's driver's education came up the teenager was proud to talk about how he had managed to ace driving during the day, was already doing great at night and was even ready to drive through rain without any worries.

"That's great!" Hank was leaning heavily against his wooden walking cane to support most of his weight. The cane was something Hank had to start using since the summer before, but he didn't let it slow him down even though he did put up with a fight with Connor about getting the damn thing to begin with. "When's the big test?"

"Next month."

"Think you can handle it?"

"I hope so. If I can get my license then next month I can drive Courtney to the prom."

"Oh..." Hank's blue eyes lit up and and he gave his grandson a coy smirk. "Who's Courtney?"

Henry blushed a bright red in the same manner that Connor would blush bright blue when embarrassed and his voice lowered a little. "Just a girl from my art class."

"Oh. Is she pretty?"

Henry somehow managed to blush even brighter and his voice cracked a little. "Y-Yeah. I guess."

"Have you gone on a date with her before?"

"N-No." Stammering a little Henry tried to talk about Courtney without sounding too emotional about their potential connection. "We, uh, we're just sort of friends."

"How are you 'sort of' friends?" Hank pressed watching Henry blush brighter and brighter. "In my experience you're either friends or you're not."

"Well, I like her but she doesn't talk very much except in art class. And I kinda' asked her in advance... to the prom. We barely know each other."

"Is she shy?"

"A little. I think she's just sheltered."

"Oh, I see." Hank watched with pride as Henry expertly moved his hands over the engine like he had been working on cars his whole life. "Shy girls usually make the best dates. Once they get to know you and feel comfortable, they're all kinds of fun and usually end up becoming your best friend if not someone closer. Don't expect her to swoon over you and fall head over heels though."

"I won't, I know she won't necessarily see me the same way I see her." Henry's emotional maturity was years ahead of his peers. It seemed having a deviant parent who was more open to emotional experiences allowed him to flourish throughout his childhood and adolescence. "I told her that we could go to the junior prom next month together if she wanted to go with a friend and not have the pressure of a date."

"She said 'Yes'?"

"Yeah."

"Cool. Good way to get to know her without her feeling overwhelmed."

Henry paused his motions and gave Hank a somewhat concern glanced. "Think I can pass my driver's test in time to drive to the prom?"

"Hell yeah! You've aced every test you've ever taken, straight A's from the first grade all the way to this day, you've always been a fast learner AND you're so damn attentive to details that you couldn't be fooled about your birthday and Christmas surprises since you were seven years old." Hank's faith in his grandson never once wavered throughour Henry's entire life. "Of course you can pass this test, too."

"Were you nervous when you took your own driver's test?"

"A little, but that was mostly because I only had my old man's worn-out pick-up truck to drive, and I was paranoid the bumper would fall off in the middle of the street or something. We worked every day on that truck but even his skilled hands weren't enough to reverse time." Giving his grandson a reassuring nod of his head Hank let Henry know that he was going to be just fine. "You get that pristine Corvette to drive so you don't have anything to worry about."

"Yeah, you're right." Motioning toward the engine under his hands Henry asked his grandfather a very enticing question. "Think I could drive this Camaro once it's finally painted?"

"Get in line, Henry." Hank wiped grease off his hands onto an old red rag and tossed it over to Henry to use on his own hands. "Me first!"

---

The day of the big driver's test was finally at hand.

Feeling much more confident than his first day behind the wheel Henry was sitting at the designated driver's school with the instructor in the passenger seat beside him and was ready to go. While Connor and Hank had both reassured Henry that he'd do great, the teenager was still nervous but hiding it well. The instructor introduced himself and told Henry the basic parameters of the test that he'd need to perform in order to pass the test: Parking, parallel parking, K-turn, signaling, all the basic procedures that any driver would need to master. Everything Henry already had handled perfectly well.

The real test was when they got out onto the street and then proceeded to prove Henry's skill as a competent driver. Connor had to remain behind at the school while Henry went off with the instructor, but gave his son words of support before he left the parking lot.

"You can do this, Henry." Connor encouraged before he walked away from the Corvette to sit inside the building with the other waiting parents. "I'll be here when it's over."

"Yeah, I'll do my best, dad."

The Corvette slowly pulled out of the driveway of the parking lot and pulled perfectly out on to the street to begin the test. With a confident nod Connor stepped out of the parking lot and into the school to wait for Henry's return. Another parent, a mother whose daughter was also taking her driver's test, saw Connor and smirked at him.

"You're Henry's father, aren't you?"

"Yes I am." Connor confirmed, grateful that his decision to alter his appearance when dealing with his son's education was paying off. "He's out on the road as we speak."

"He looks just like you! It's uncanny!"

"We get that a lot. Thank you."

"I think I've seen you at the basketball games, my daughter's a cheerleader." The woman noted without ever losing her smile. "Henry is very talented."

"He is, I'm very proud."

"Not that it's any of my business but I've never seen Henry's mother."

As his eyes dulled Connor gave the woman a kind response to the curious inquiry. "No, she has passed away."

"Oh, I'm so sorry." Blushing with mild embarrassment the kind woman quickly apologized for her comment. "I didn't know."

"It's okay. I know the question wasn't meant to be one of disrespect. There's no way you could possibly know that without my directly telling you."

"Well, for what it's worth, I know that she'd be proud of the way you raised Henry. He's such a sweet boy."

"Thank you." As his eyes brightened slightly Connor pulled his coin from his pocket and danced it over his knuckles nervously. "I'm very proud of my son and everything that he's accomplished."

It took only half an hour for Henry to return to the school and park out front to reunite with his father. Seeing the car return Connor went outside to meet his son and was greeted by the sight of Henry shaking the instructor's hand with a big smile on his face. Connor didn't need anyone to tell him that Henry had passed the test. As soon as the instructor stepped out of the Corvette he handed Connor the final slip confirming Henry's successful test and the subsequent legal document for him to get his driver's license.

"So..." Connor opened up the passenger side door and sat beside his son. "do you want to wait until tomor-"

"No way! Come on!" Energetic and excited Henry was eager to go and get his driver's license as soon as possible. "It's not even noon, there's plenty of time to go get my license at the Secretary of State!"

"You're correct." Connor just smirked and showed Henry that he had the other necessary documents required for Henry to get his license already tucked inside his leather jacket. "You know how to get there, right?"

"Yeah, I know the way."

"We'll go get you your license and you can show it to your Papa yourself."

"Gladly!" Henry watched his dad walk around the car to sit down beside him and never once lost his smile. "I can't wait for him to see it!"

---

As soon as Henry got back home after his successful road test he ran next door to show Hank his license and did so with the biggest grin on his face. As proud as Henry was about passing his test and getting his license on the first test Hank was even prouder. With his arm wrapped around his grandson's shoulders Hank showed him to the Camaro in the driveway and then handed Henry his phone with a vast array of custom colored paint options designated for the car and asked him to pick the final color.

"All right, since Connor and I had a hard time picking the color for the Corvette so many years ago, YOU and you alone, get to pick the color for the Camaro."

"Seriously?!" Henry accepted the phone and looked like he was about to burst with excitement as he looked over the colors on display. "I get to choose?"

"Yup. You helped me with this car and I think you've earned this for acing your driving test, just like I said you would, by the way. Go ahead! Pick!"

"Any color?"

"Yup."

"...Even pee-yellow?"

There was a slight pause in Hank's response as he tried to think of the best way to react to the question. "Uh..."

"I'm just messing with you, I know better than that."

"Damn right you do." Happy to have Henry sharing his and Connor's dry and sarcastic sense of humor, Hank patted Henry's shoulder and watched as his grandson's eyes carefully scanned over each color every carefully on the display. "Whatever color you like will go on the car."

Checking through the screen on the phone Henry scanned through the various colors and came to rest on deep, cherry red color. "That one. That's the color."

"Yeah?" Hank took the phone from Henry's hand and looked at his choice. "Cherrybomb red..." A mischievous grin appeared on his face as he remembered how that was the exact color he wanted on the Corvette before he and Connor compromised on cobalt blue. "Damn good choice."

"I think so, too."

"All right. I'm ordering the paint and when it arrives I'll show the secret to applying an even smooth coat."

"I take it painting metal is a lot different than painting on canvas. It's the size, right?"

Smirking at Henry's comment Hank patted his shoulder again with his hand while he continued to support his weight against the cane. "You and your dad just love to be smartasses, don't ya'?"

"Well, I am essentially dad's clone. So, yeah."

"You got your dad's looks, but you know where you got your smarts, right?"

"From grandma?"

Too amused by Henry's wit Hank just shook his head and kept his hand on his grandson's shoulder. "Such a smartass..."

---

It was the night of the junior prom and Connor was helping Henry with his black bowtie as his son stood tall and proud in his black tuxedo in the middle of the livingroom. Henry was a little nervous about having his first (sort of) date with Courtney, but he was still giving off an air of confidence that made Connor smirk. Checking the time on his phone and making sure he had Courtney's corsage, Henry let of a calming breath and nodded as Connor stepped back to check on his work with the tie.

"How do I look, dad?"

"Like my son wearing a nice tuxedo."

"Is that good or bad?"

"Henry, you look great." Connor just shook his head and wondered if he had always been so anxious when he was still developing as a deviant. "You always do, but this time it's 'fancy-great'. ...I think that's a good way to describe it."

"It's easier for you with your clothes." Henry countered as he gave his dad a knowing look. "You have seven of the same outfits for work, three dark suits, one tuxedo and a couple of spare jackets."

"It's a lot easier to do laundry, too."

"Dad, please." Nervously Henry fussed with his tie and smoothed out the front of his sharp tuxedo blazer. "I'm anxious."

"You look handsome." Picking up the pink flower corsage that Henry was clutching, Connor mentioned the beautiful gift that was waiting for Courtney's hand. "And this will make Courtney very happy. You look like a true gentleman."

"How long can I, you know," Henry was petting Opal's ears with his free hand as she jumped up on the arm of the couch and rubbed against his elbow to seek some attention. "stay out?"

"When is the prom over?"

"It starts at seven and is over at ten, and the after-prom start at eleven."

"How long is the after-prom?"

"We'll be in the school from eleven to seven. The entire building will be on lockdown until morning and half of the teachers are going to be up all night with us chaperoning the event."

"If the school is on lockdown then you can stay all night. BUT, I will meet you at the school to drive you home so you don't fall asleep behind the wheel."

"Cool, thanks dad."

Hank walked through the front door of the house and smirked as he looked over at Henry dressed sharply in his tuxedo. "Lookin' good, Henry. Ready for the prom?"

"Yeah." The teen admitted as he took in a deep breath. "I'm actually just about to leave."

"Corvette?"

"Yeah." Henry nodded proudly as he made sure his wallet was in his pocket. "I get the car for the night."

"Too bad."

The follow-up comment made Henry pause and caused his brow to furrow in the same way Connor's did when confused. "Why's that?"

Smiling devilishly as he stood beside Connor in the livingroom, Hank reached into his front jean pocket and tossed Henry a new set of car keys which he caught every easily with his free hand as he lifted his palm from Opal's ears. "The Camaro is ready to go. I was hoping you'd take your own car for the night."

"My... own car?" Henry looked at the keys and gave Hank a strange look that always rivaled the curious stares that Connor would give him. "Are you serious?!"

"Yup. You've earned it. It's your special sixteenth birthday gift, it's just a couple of months late because of my damn back."

"...The Camaro?!" Henry's eyes were as wide as saucers, and he paled a little in surprise. "The Camaro is MY car?"

"Yup."

Nearly stumbling over himself Henry rushed over to Hank and gave him a massive, appreciative hug that almost knocked him off his cane. "Thank you so much, Papa!"

"You're welcome, bud." Patting Henry's back with one hand so he could still balance on his cane Hank gave Henry a proud stare. "Now, go on. Go enjoy your prom and have some fun!"

"I will... Th-Thank you! See ya' later, dad, Papa!"

"Have fun, son." Connor smirked as Henry tossed him back the keys to the Corvette in favor of the Camaro and watched his son rushing through the front door to get to the red Camaro now parked out front and just waiting for its new owner. "I'll pick you up tomorrow morning at seven o'clock."

While Henry was at the prom Connor and Hank had spent time together at Hank's house watching the preseason try-outs for the upcoming baseball season on the television. It wasn't long before the father and son duo were also talking about how much Henry has grown up and how human Connor had become as Henry grew up alongside him. It was just after nine in the evening when one of the deviant chaperone's monitoring the prom sent Connor a cybernetic message, and with it a small live feed video.

"Dad, look." Connor held out his palm and showed the live holographic feed of Henry slow dancing with Courtney from the prom. Henry was smiling and Courtney seemed be enjoying herself, too. They were dancing with genuine smiles on their faces as they moved in perfect tandem with the romantic song being played throughout the heavily decorated gymnasium. "He looks so happy."

"Yeah. He really does..."

Hank was so proud of his small family. Connor was an incredible detective and an even better father. Luke was the most skilled technician on the east coast and like Connor, had helped to bring about deviant rights in Boston. And Henry was a well liked, popular, straight-A student with a promising basketball scholarship practically guaranteed under his belt with so many talents and future prospects that his life was guaranteed to be fulfilling and happy.

"Connor, you did an amazing job helping guide Henry into becoming the wonderful young man he is today."

"Without you to guide me on my own growth to humanity, I don't think I would've been able to take care of him in the way he needed."

"Don't sell yourself short, kid." Hank and Connor continued to watch Henry dancing with his date on the small live feed display be projected from Connor's palm. "You have a natural and deeply seated paternal instinct. Even if I hadn't been there throughout his life you would've been able to take care of Henry just fine on your own."

"I'd like to think so." Despite all his successes Connor still had many concerns about potential future failures. "But I'm still so worried that I'll do something to affect him negatively."

"Hey, Henry's a great kid and there's nothing you could ever say or do to him to change that. You have the right to be proud of yourself as a parent. I know that I'm proud of you."

The slow song came to an end and Henry stopped dancing with Courtney as the music changed its tempo. Walking her off the dance floor the two disappeared into the crowd of other students and the feed ceased from displaying the dance. Connor closed his hand and let his arm rest atop his lap as he sat on the edge of the couch next to Hank, who was sitting propped up in his recliner right beside his son.

"...Henry's grown-up."

"Not quite. He still has two more years to go until he's really grown-up. And even then, he'll never stop needing you as his dad. Look at the way you still come to me for guidance after all this time. Once a father, ALWAYS a father."

"Yeah." Glancing up at a framed photograph on the mantle of Henry at age two being held by Hank as the duo played outside in the backyard, Connor smirked a little and thought about all the good memories he had as a father and all the memories he had as being Hank's son. "Always. Fatherhood is a lifetime commitment."

---

Life With Henry: Seventeen Years Old

The sound of Henry's soft crying through his closed bedroom door made Connor's heart ache with a sympathetic pain that he had never experienced before. The teenager was heartbroken and struggling to deal with the hardship that comes from a bad break-up and losing a good friend at roughly the same time. As Henry isolated himself to process the emotional turmoil that he had just endured Connor stayed outside the door, sitting down on the floor opposite the door and waited for Henry to make the first move to opening the door to talk.

It had been almost an hour before Henry's crying began to soften and he calmed a little as he endured the worst of his heartbreak. The teenager had never lost his compassionate heart and nature, as as a result, when he hurt the pain was almost unbearable.

"Henry?" Connor called out in a gentle voice to his pained son on the other side of the door. "Do you need anything?"

There was a pause before Henry replied in a slightly muffled voice through the wooden barrier. "...No."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"...No."

"If you want, I can make you something to eat. You have to be hungry. I don't mind cooking anything that'll help you feel better."

There was a longer pause before Henry finally responded again. "...Dad?"

"Yeah?"

"Why does it hurt so much?"

"...Because hearts are fragile." The answer was simplistic but completely accurate. "I learned this a long time ago in the most painful way possible. I survived heartbreak, your Papa survived heartbreak, and I know you will too. You just need some time to let your heart heal."

"If Stacy wanted to break up with me, why couldn't she just tell me? Why'd she have to cheat on me?"

"She didn't have to cheat. She chose to do that." Connor explained as he tried to help his son overcome the pain of betrayal. "It was cruel and you didn't deserve it. No one does."

"I miss Courtney!"

"I know you do, but she moved to California three months ago, and that's a long trip just to visit her." The loving father knew that Henry had a crush on Courtney and that it hurt when she moved, but he didn't anticipate how much it'd hurt for him to be cheated on by his first serious girlfriend after Courtney left the city. "I also know calling her, texting her and 'face timing' her isn't the same, but until either of you can travel to see one another it'll have to do. I know Courtney misses you, too."

"...This sucks."

"Yeah, it does. And from what your Papa told me, it's going to suck for a long while."

"It feels like I'm going to be sad forever. Like I'm never going to find anyone like Courtney ever again, I'm only going to find people like Stacy. Tomorrow at school I'm going to see Stacy all day long, and I want nothing to do with her!" Henry admitted with a near sob. "Everyone knows what she did to me, but no one seems to care... It's not fair!"

Letting out a heavy sigh of his own Connor felt tears welling up in his soulful brown eyes, and his instincts to protect his son were quickly overriding his own instinct for self-preservation. In that moment his need to shield his own heart from pain wasn't anywhere near as important as it was to shield Henry.

"Henry... Do you want to know about your mom?"

There was a heavy and thick silence from the other side of the door as Henry contemplated the offer. Connor only told Henry a few details about Skye, always excluding the way she had died, but always telling him about how brave she was risking herself to help other deviants in need and how much they truly loved one another during their too-brief relationship.

Henry whispered through the door somewhat perplexed as he responded to his dad's offer. "...Mom?"

"Yeah. Your mom."

"How come... you never talk about her?"

"For the same reason that your Papa doesn't like to talk about your Uncle Cole or Grandma Barbara. It hurts too much."

"So I am going to be sad forever."

"No, Henry. The type of pain you're experiencing only seems like it'll last forever. The pain that your Papa and I went through is the kind that'll... Well, it leaves a scar on your heart. But even the deepest and most painful of scars won't stop your heart from beating."

Connor heard Henry move from his bed and slink down to the floor just on the other side of his still closed bedroom door to sit down. The teenager's back was pressed to the door as he leaned back and moved to be closer to his dad without opening his door. "...Tell me about her."

Taking a deep breath Connor steadied his voice and went into detail about how he and Skye met under dire life-threatening circumstances and how they escaped from captivity and torture into the forests in Canada. He told Henry about how Hank and North came to their rescue and of how Skye stayed at New Jericho Tower to aid the other deviant refugees and help escort others to safety. He even mentioned how Skye had plans to become a lawyer so she could help defend their people in a court of law.

"She was brave and self-sacrificing. Fearless." Connor was having a hard time keeping his emotions in check, but he maintained for Henry's benefit. "I think that's what began drawing me toward her. She overcame so much anger and darkness to find a way to be happy and live in the light. That's something I was struggling to do for myself."

Telling his son about his mother at long last Connor spoke of meeting Skye for the 'first time all over again' after she changed her appearance from the design she had been forced to take at the 'Eden Club' and finally became the deviant she wanted to be. Connor talked about Markus and North's bonding ceremony at the cabin and how he felt like there was something more to Skye than just being her friend.

"As beautiful as North looked on that day, I couldn't stop looking at Skye. I was too shy to say anything to her, but I think she knew I was... interested."

The next details regarding Connor's kidnapping and forced servitude in the illegal underground fight club in Chicago was a story Henry had never heard before. Escaping from the city and being escorted back home by Skye after she used her contacts to find him at the deviant refugee camp outside the city, and how she tended to his fever until he was strong enough to move again, were all bleak but hopeful memories. That was definitely the beginning of their closer relationship. The willingness to trust her when she developed the new security protocols at the tower cemented their bond and made it easier to get even closer to one another as they strived to improve their future side by side.

"Your mom was determined to keep everyone safe no matter what the cost." Connor continued on with pride thick in his voice. "She was attacked for her efforts when angry deviants were corrupted and turned against us, but she wasn't deterred in her mission to save our people from further torment."

Lifting the mood slightly Connor told Henry about his and Skye's first date, how they enjoyed spending time together while going to a movie and looking up at the stars, and of how Hank was genuinely happy for him. The details regarding Connor's promotion and Skye's pride in his accomplishments made them feel even closer on an emotional level and they knew their combined efforts would help protect the innocent deviants throughout the entire city. But with every step forward they took there was always someone determined to make them take two steps back.

"Shortly after I was promoted to Lieutenant and your Papa was promoted to Captain an... incident happened in the city. There was a riot." Connor's eyes closed as he dared to tell Henry about the final night of his mother's life. "Skye, your mom, was trying to stop it before it went out of control, but..." Trailing off briefly Connor forced himself to finish the story. "She was injured. I arrived at the scene with your Papa, and we took her to New Jericho Tower as fast as we could to save her. But... the damage was too severe. Before she passed away, she and I bonded with one another, promising to be together forever and to never stray away from one another. We did this just hours before she passed. Losing her hurt more than anything I could comprehend, and... I was so depressed that I almost killed myself in my own grief from self-neglect. Your Papa saved my life and gave me a shoulder to cry on. If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't be here right now. I never want to see you suffer such a pain as that."

It was silent for a moment as the father and son duo processed their heartache and tried to understand how life can in fact continue in spite of their emotional pain.

Opening his bedroom door slowly Henry walked outside the room with Opal in his arms and sat down on the floor next to Connor in the hallway. "...What does mom even look like? I don't know my own mother's face."

Connor sighed and held up his hand to reveal the photograph of them together from the day of his promotion at City Hall in the center of his palm. It was the photograph taken of the duo to highlight the story in the newspaper and was subsequently the only photo that Connor had of himself with Skye beyond the images in his memory.

Henry smirked a little as he finally saw his mother for the very first time. "...She really was beautiful."

"She truly was. And smart, kind, patient, caring... She and I had talked about having our own family the moment the laws changed, and we would be able to legally adopt. That's why when everything that happened with you coming into the world your mother's own model D.N.A. was used, too. She IS your mother, even if she wasn't here when you were born. You have her fighting spirit; I can feel it."

"I know. I can feel it, too." Henry sighed a little and rubbed his hand along Opal's chin causing the cat to purr in his arms and snuggle up against his chest affectionately. "Now I know why you'd disappear on your bonding anniversary every year and come back home in tears. You were visiting her and you're still in mourning, aren't you?"

Dragging his hand over his eyes Connor confirmed his son's suspicions and sighed. "...Yes. I'm in mourning and I'm still in love at the same time."

"Is that why you never remarried or even dated anyone else?" Henry had been paying closer attention to Connor's love-life than the father knew. "It's not a crime to date or even marry again. Papa has been dating Nana Rose for as long as I can remember, and they're both widowed."

"For deviants it's very different when we become widowed." Connor explained in a low voice as he explained his reasons for remaining single. "Your mother and I were bonded and she... shutdown shortly thereafter. Once the bond is forged between two deviants, it's permanent until we both agree to sever it. She is gone and therefore the bond is impossible to sever. I can't... move on because I am forever bonded to her. And I still love her with all my heart."

"Widowed deviants are destined to be alone forever?"

"I'm not alone." The devoted father countered without any hesitation. Wrapping his arm around Henry's shoulders, Connor held his son at his side and made sure the teen knew he'd always have his dad to watch over him. "I have you, I have your Papa, and I have your Uncle Luke in my life."

"But you still miss mom." Henry realized as he saw the tears welling up in his father's pained eyes. "And you miss her every day, don't you?"

"...Yeah. I do." Closing his hand to conceal the image Connor looked into his son's blue eyes and apologized. "I'm sorry it took so long for me to tell you about her. It just hurt too much to talk about."

Leaning against Connor's shoulder heavily Henry wrapped his arms around his dad's shoulders and held on tight. "I know that. At least I do now."

"You're so very much like her. You're just as smart, kind, patient and caring as she was." Connor stated as he reciprocated his son's hug with both of his arms, Opal being almost squished in between the duo as they hugged. "I'm glad you took after her so much even though she couldn't be here to help raise you. She'd be so damn proud of you."

"You did pretty good on your own." Henry managed to comment in a weak voice and tried to lighten the heavy mood. "Even if you are the 'weird dad'."

Laughing a little Connor pressed his palm to the back of his Henry's hair and held it there for a moment. "I've never even offered you the chance to visit your mom and I'm sorry for that." As Henry let go of the hug Connor sat back and made his son a very generous offer. "Would you like to go visit your mother?"

"...Yeah." Wiping his hand over his face Henry removed his own tears, his blue eyes were bloodshot and red from crying and made his blue irises very brightly. "I think I'd like to visit mom."

"Okay. Just give me the word and we'll go see her."

"Thanks, dad."

"I love you, son."

"Yeah. I love you, too, dad."

Letting himself cry a little more against his father's shoulder Henry knew he was beginning to heal, even if it was still hurting him to think about all the pain he was still going through. Between Connor's compassionate nature and Hank's thick-skinned demeanor regarding hardship, Henry knew he had all the emotional support he'd need to get over his heartbreak and he would in fact be okay.

"Also... Your mom played the violin." Connor stated as a casual afterthought and knew it was time to give Henry the violin that North had been protecting for almost twenty years. "I think your love of music came from both of us, but your skills on the violin came from her. Her actual violin's been kept safe with Markus and North, and I think it's time you kept it for yourself. Your mom would want you to have it, and I know she'd want to play the very instrument I regret never asking her to play for me when she was still in my life."

"That won't be a problem." Henry admitted as he settled in and felt the pain in his heart steadily lessening with each positive memory shared. "The least I can do for mom is keep her spirit alive in the form of music."

---

Life With Henry: Eighteen Years Old

The day that Connor had been excitedly waiting for but secretly dreading was finally at hand. It was time for Henry's high school graduation. While the young adult was proudly getting ready for the big day in his bedroom Connor was standing outside the house on the small back porch staring into the nothingness of the horizon beyond the property line. It felt like time had been a fleeting moment, an actual blink of an eye, and in that time Henry had grown from a tiny helpless newborn and into the confident self-sufficient young adult that he had become.

A calming presence joined Connor on the small porch, and he didn't even need to look to know it was Hank. The man had been a constant presence in Connor and Henry's life, and would be there until the bitter end.

"Hey, dad."

"Hey, son." Leaning on his cane Hank stood beside Connor on the back porch as he prepared for the big day as well. "Is Henry excited?"

"Yes. And very proud."

"He should be! Salutatorian with a full athletic scholarship to the University of Michigan is something to be very proud of."

"I just can't believe my son isn't... a kid anymore." The fact that Connor had fought for so long to have his own child, and now that child had grown up was something that seemed incomprehensible if not impossible. "He's an adult."

"Son, you will ALWAYS see Henry as a kid. Always."

Henry opened up the backdoor to look out at his dad and grandfather as he expertly tied his black tie and tightened the knot up around the collar of his pale blue dress shirt. Henry was now Connor's height right down to the centimeter, but his athletic prowess gave him slightly more muscle mass than the deviant. He had a few freckles like Connor, but not as many as his dad sported, but enough to give them an identical complexion. Henry's hair was also styled in a similar manner save for the rogue lock of hair that Connor refused to tame and was more Skye's dark auburn color than pure brunet. If Henry's eyes were brown and not blue, he'd be a near perfect clone of his father.

Eager to get going to his high school Henry looked at his dad and grandfather with a proud smile on his face. "Are you guys ready to go?"

"Yeah, son." Connor was very proud to see his son so grown up and happy. Unlike himself Henry always shown the full bright smile that Connor himself only showed once in a great while, but now Connor was trying to show that same smile in support of son's big day. "You head out to the school, and we'll meet up with you in an hour when the ceremony starts."

"Are you sure?" Disappointment was lingering in Henry's voice as he suggested that his father and grandfather joined him for the entire ceremony. "A lot of the parents accompany their kids to the school for photos and stuff."

"You don't mind us joining you?"

"Why would I mind? You're my dad." Henry turned to look at Hank as he spoke. "And you're welcome to be with us all the same, Papa."

Before Connor had the chance to try to dismiss the offer so that Henry could go alone Hank put his hand on Connor's shoulder to quiet him. "Absolutely. Pull the Camaro around front and I'll go put on my nicer shirt."

"It's not going to be the one with zebra stripes, is it?"

"No, I'll wear my solid navy blue shirt."

"Thank you."

"I'm saving the zebra shirt for your open house."

"O-Oh... Great." Henry failed to hide his uncomfortable grimace at seeing his grandfather in such loud shirts in public. "Uh, I'll see you guys out front."

As Henry returned to the house to get his keys and grab his graduation cap and gown, Connor turned to look at Hank with utter confusion in his eyes. "Why'd you insist we go? This day is all about Henry not the parents."

"Right. And Henry WANTS us to be there. You're just having a hard time accepting that this day is really here and you want to postpone it."

Slumping his shoulders a little Connor looked to his father and lowered his voice. "...Does that make me selfish?"

"No, it just makes you a normal dad with the same normal response to time turning their kid into an adult."

"That's reassuring." Feeling better about his reactions Connor smirked with pride as tears formed in his soulful brown eyes. "...My son is all grown up. I remember every second of his life and all of his accomplishments, but it seems like time itself was a lie."

"Yup. That's usually how it goes, son. Come on." Hank encouraged Connor to finally leave the back porch and move on with the day. "Help me find that blue shirt or else I'll have to wear the maroon one with black streaks."

"I should do you a favor and toss that particular shirt in the city dump."

"No way." Grinning as he and Connor crossed the properties to get back Hank's own house, the retired detective gave his son a bemused grin. "The fact you hate it so much makes me like it that much more."

---

Boasting proud smiles Connor and Hank stood on other side of Henry as the school's photographer snapped photos of the families of all of the graduating students. Connor was sporting his 'aged' aesthetic for the sake of the 'normalcy' on Henry's behalf as the small family had their photo taken by to get the graduating class's yearbook finished by the end of the graduation ceremony. A few feet away, Aria herself was getting her photo taken along with Gavin and Abby, and they too were just as proud of Aria as Connor and Hank were of Henry.

Just as Henry was nearly a perfect copy of Connor in every way, Aria was nearly identical to Abby. Aria had Gavin's eyes and his same 'don't-take-shit-from-anyone' attitude, but she was just as compassionate and empathetic as Abby. It was uncanny to say the least.

Once the photos were finished Connor and Hank were instructed with the rest of the parents to go to the high school auditorium to watch the ceremony unfold. Sitting near the front row of the seats to better accommodate Hank's cane the duo were joined by Gavin and Abby along the same row of the chairs in the front row.

"You look so weird with gray in your hair." Abby teased, her own long brown hair now sporting a few extra gray streaks herself. "Please tell me that isn't permanent."

"It's not." Connor confirmed as he briefly returned his hair to its default color before reapplying his altered aesthetic. "This is only for when I'm participating in events revolving around Henry. Otherwise people mistake us for brothers."

Hank nudged Connor lightly in his side. "Speaking of which..."

Turning his head to where Hank was staring Connor saw that Luke, who had adopted Connor's aged aesthetic and removed his L.E.D., had just arrived to witness Henry's graduation. "Luke!"

"Hey, little brother." Luke smirked proudly as he joined his family in the row of seats. "I made it."

"I'm glad you found a way to get the time to be here for Henry." Connor smiled as Luke sat beside him on the other side of Hank. "How long can you stay?"

"Two weeks. I made sure to get enough time to participate in Henry's open house as well."

"Thank you." Having the whole family together would make the graduation ceremony all the more special. "He'll be very surprised to see you."

Hank put his hand on Luke's shoulder lightly. "You're rooming with me tonight, not in a hotel and not in the tower. Connor's old bedroom is still free."

"Thanks, I'll follow after you in my rental car when the ceremony concludes."

A few feet from behind Luke and the gathering group of additional parents, Markus made his way into the auditorium and quickly spotted Connor and Luke in the front seats. "Hey, Connor, Luke, and Hank. Hope I'm not intruding."

"Markus?" Connor was surprised once more as the deviant leader arrived to join in on the ceremony. Markus was always welcome to take part in activities in Henry's life, but it seemed that having him take the time to show up at a graduation ceremony was almost too much to hope for. "You're not intruding, I just wasn't expecting to see you."

"Hey, I'm not missing out on this." Sitting down beside Luke quickly Markus reached out and shook Connor and Luke's hands, before doing the same for Hank as a show of genuine respect. "I've never been to a high school graduation ceremony, and I want to see Henry graduate for myself. Everyone else at New Jericho will be at the open house this Friday."

"Thank you. I know Henry will appreciate all the support."

The ceremony began and the graduating students all began filing in the auditorium alphabetically two at a time. Walking down the center aisle in the auditorium leading to the stage up front, the students passed between the seats that were divided evenly into two sections where the families and friends were sitting. Starting with the last letters of the alphabet regarding student surnames allowed the students to reach the back rows of their elevated seats on the stage at the front of the auditorium, and all of the kids looked proud and nervous as their friends and family looked on proudly.

When Aria walked by the rows Gavin discreetly reached out and passed a pink rose into his daughter's hand causing her to blush as she passed by her dad and took her assigned seat on stage. A few minutes later Henry walked by with his head held high with his silver tinted tassel and sash resting around his neck and shoulders to mark his place as the class's salutatorian, and he took his seat near in the front row of the chairs on the stage.

Henry glanced out into the crowd and saw not only Connor and Hank, but his Uncle Luke and honorary 'Uncle Markus' as well. Seeing hos godparents Gavin and Abby there was also a treat, even though he knew they were there first and foremost for Aria. Of course he smiled before trying to look back out at the rest of the auditorium as his fellow classmates were already doing.

The principal began the ever cliche speech about how the students were the future and how every person in attendance should be proud of the accomplishments of the young students in her proud voice. In doing so the students were all asked to rise in recognition of the valedictorian and the salutatorian, as well as those who were awarded with scholarships and their awards as athletes, artists, musicians and other forms of extracurricular activities.

Once the principal was finished with her speech, she gave the floor to Henry and the young man approached the front podium fearlessly. The salutatorian was given the honor of opening the actual graduation ceremony and had a speech prepared and he had it perfectly memorized for the occasion.

"Thank you." Henry stood before the podium as he looked out to the gathered families and friends in attendance and smiled confidently as he began his speech. "It's been said that change can be painful," he stated in a level voice to perfectly convey the conflicting emotions of pride, fear, excitement and doubts of the people filling the auditorium. "but it's also been said that pain is weakness leaving the body. To quote our former president John F. Kennedy 'Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future'. And I firmly believe that he is still right. It's difficult to move on after spending so much time in one place with the same people, and it's also easy to forget about the world around us. In my time, I've met some incredibly unique people who've fought to change the world for the better, and it's those very people who've given me the confidence to face the world head on. And I'm proud to have them in my life to this day as they helped me to focus my future to be a better person and to help shape that future to make it better for everyone else."

Connor was beginning to tear up at his son's words, as was Hank. Having his father's hand plant down on his shoulder helped Connor to remain emotionally grounded for a moment longer.

"And as I stand here on behalf of my fellow classmates to say to those who have joined us here on this day to say, thank you. Thank you for believing in us, thank you for encouraging us, thank you for supporting us, and thank you for changing the world for the better so that we now have the chance to change the world to become its absolute best. It's an honor stand here before you and tell you with true sincerity from my heart that we're all going to be okay."

A thunderous round of applause as well as a few sniffles from the more emotional parents filled the air while Connor wiped away a tear from his eye. The way Henry had grown up with a great childhood, knew he was loved and knew that he had family always watching his back, helped Connor accept that his young son was now an adult and would truly be okay as he braved the new world on his own.

"You're welcome, son." Connor whispered to himself as he felt Hank shake his shoulder. "I know you're going to be okay, but I'll miss you all the same."

The principal resumed her place behind the podium and began announcing the graduating class one student as a time to receive their diplomas. With the name 'Anderson' giving him a lead on the ceremony, Henry was the third member of his class to receive his diploma and shake the principal's hand. The moment it happened Connor felt a mixture of pride and sadness in his heart as it was made official: Henry was a high school graduate.

Connor was in a daze until the valedictorian and the principal brought the ceremony to a close and announced the graduating class with utter support and pride. Everything was happening so fast and there was nothing he could do to stop it, change it or even postpone it.

As the graduating students turned their tassels on their caps the principal gave the final word with utter pride. "Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the class of 2060."

The dozens of graduating caps were thrown into the air with a raucous cheer from the students and as a result the caps rained back down over the attending crowd.

Unable to move Connor just watched with pride as Henry smiled and spoke with his friends up on the stage and proceeded to rejoin his classmates as they exited the auditorium for more photographs outside the school. Slow to get up from his own seat Connor found Henry's cap in the pile of hats on the floor and picked it up and held it in his hands.

The cap had been designed with Henry's name on top and blue L.E.D. lighting strips at the four edges. Small images of a basketball, guitar, violin and piano keys confirmed all of his interests as he prepared to enter the adult world of college far away from home.

"You'll be the one to help change this world to its absolute best, Henry."

The always proud father whispered to himself again as he watched Henry laughing and smiling with his best friends, including Aria, all gathered together for a photo in the middle of the auditorium.

"I know it. I can feel it."

---

After everything was said and done Connor returned to the back deck of Hank's house to sit down and think about what Henry said during his speech that morning. Change can be painful, but it can also be wonderful. Losing Skye was a horrible change that scarred Connor's heart forever, but the birth of Henry was a wonderful change that allowed his heart to finally heal despite the painful scar always being there. Henry was also right in that he couldn't stay in one place forever. He'd have to experience the world in order to understand it and change it for the better, as would Connor.

It was time for everyone to begin moving on with their lives in order to truly live.

"Dad?" Henry walked over to the back deck with his black graduation gown draped casually over his shoulder. He was still wearing his dress shirt, black pants and black tie making him look very mature and all the more grown up. "You okay?"

"Yeah, son." Connor flashed him a bright grin from where he sat. "I'm just thinking."

"Me too. Can I join you?"

"Of course, there's always room to overthink in the Anderson family. Where's your Papa?"

"He and Uncle Luke are inside talking. Something about getting more baseball tickets for some other game out in Boston."

"I'm not surprised." Connor just laughed a little and shook his head. As Henry sat beside him Connor gave his son a confident grin. "How does it feel to be a high school graduate?"

"Pretty strange, actually. I spent twelve years of my life studying just to get a fancy piece of paper and a party."

"That paper is going to open up so many doors of opportunity for you."

"Fortunately, I'm already dead set on a career in forensic science." The young man had grown to find Connor's career fascinating, and he wanted to understand Connor's desire to work as a detective a little better while also finding a way to help deviants get justice by specializing in the technical sciences. "As long as the paper can open up that particular door for me, I'll be content."

"I just can't believe you'll be living in a dorm forty-three point five miles away from me in less than three months."

"Hey, I'm going to college." Henry reminded his father of his temporary change of scenery. "I'm not running away from home."

"I know that. It's just... I still vividly remember the day you were born and holding you in my arms for the first time."

"You're an android. You should remember that."

Connor playfully shoved Henry's shoulder with his palm. "I also remember you screaming your head off when you were two-year-old because I wouldn't let you eat a rock you found in the backyard."

"Maybe that rock tasted real good," Henry sharply replied with a smirk. "did you even bother to taste it?"

"No, I threw it over the fence and made sure there were no other rocks in the backyard. Although I imagine tasting the rock would've been a preferable alternative to a toddler screaming at me for not letting him accidentally choke on a rock."

"I think if you used the word 'intentionally' instead of 'accidentally' it would've been a lot worse."

"That's not all I remember about you." Connor smirked again as he stared at his son and compared how much Henry had changed since he was a newborn baby to the young adult that he had become. "Like the infamous 'bubble-bath incident' when you were four."

"I swear I didn't dump the whole bottle in the tub on purpose!" Henry laughed while trying and failing to not look guilty or amused by the memory. "I'm not the one at fault either."

"I know, it was your Papa. He poured in the whole bottle because you asked him to do it."

"Wait, how do you know that?"

"Because he was the one who bought the bubble-bath, and he's the one who insisted that I let you play with it."

"Really?" Henry was starting to laugh a little harder but hid it behind his right hand. "Are you sure?"

"Henry, he was laughing the whole time I was cleaning up the mess. I know he's the one who did it when my back was turned."

"Oh. Sorry." Smirking at the odd memory Henry looked away from his dad to keep himself from bursting out into laughter. "I guess."

"It didn't help that Simon and Josh decided to send more bubble-bath to the house when Markus told them the story."

"That was a fun summer though. Me and Papa ate so many popsicles while playing basketball in the driveway."

"It was fun for you, not for me." Connor just gave his son an amused grin and patted his shoulder. "But it was better than the summer you fell out of the tree."

"I remember that, too. I broke my arm and lost my tooth. I haven't tried climbing a tree since." Henry pulled up his shirt a little to reveal his abdomen and where there was a very faint line of a scar on his torso. "But I'll take a broken bone over an emergency appendectomy."

"Same." It seemed the feeling of emergency surgery was mutual for everyone. Connor was thoroughly enjoying the trip down memory lane and smiled warmly at the fun moments they had together. "I remember every holiday and every trip to the cabin, and every Father's Day where we went to the movies, out to a restaurant or even an amusement park together, but I think my favorite memory of you is when you called me 'daddy' for the first time."

"On my first Christmas."

"That's right."

"I tripped over some boxes and you caught me with your hand." Henry stated confidently as he too managed to recall the memory. "You were laying on the floor on your side, caught me with one hand and said: 'Daddy's got you'."

"That's right. Did your Papa or Uncle Luke tell you that story?"

"I've been told that story a couple times before, but I actually just remember that moment myself."

Connor turned to face his son and flashed him a truly perplexed glance. "...What?"

"I can't explain it, but that's my absolute earliest memory. The next earliest memory I have is playing wiffle ball with Papa right over there," pointing to the middle of the backyard Henry pointed out the exact spot where he used to stand and bat the ball after it was pitched. "and then I have a memory of you taking me to the precinct to celebrate Papa's retirement. I had a piece of cake with him."

"You've retained a memory when you were only eleven and a half months old?"

"Yeah, I guess I did. Weird, huh?"

"That's incredible."

"I guess so. I never really thought that much about it."

"That definitely explains why you were such an exemplary student and only needed to study once to get an 'A' on your tests. You have a fantastic memory."

"I don't have your eidetic memory, but yeah, it is pretty good. I still remember all of my locker numbers from middle school to high school, too."

"Henry, I know you've been hearing this all day long, but I need to say it again." Wrapping his arm around his son's shoulders Connor pulled him up against his side in a half hug. "I'm so very proud of you."

"Thanks, dad."

"And as much as I'm dreading the day you leave for college; I'm also looking forward to seeing you continue to grow and become a better person. But if you ever need to come back home, for whatever reason, or need me to go to you, I'll be there. Just ask."

"I know. You've always been there for me."

"And I always will. Come on, we better go see how many tickets your Papa is trying to get out of Luke and make sure they remembered to plan for your open house this weekend. Feeding an entire party of people won't be easy or cheap, but we'll succeed."

"Yeah, because I'm not paying for it!"

"Damn right. It's your party and you've earned it."

---

The Friday of the open house came at last, and the two backyards of Hank and Connor's connected properties were filled with guests gathered around tables and under massive, rented tents to celebrate. The day Henry was old enough to be left home alone was the day Connor and Hank put up a gate in the fence between their properties to allow easier access back and forth between the houses. The gate was left wide open and there were guests walking back and forth to speak with Henry and socialize with the massive group of people who showed up to congratulate him on his successes as a young adult.

Connor was standing in front of the giant display of photographs of Henry showcasing the young man as he grew up, and of course the photo of his son taken on the day of his graduation. Photos of Henry growing up, his experiences with holidays, playing basketball, playing guitar and Skye's violin, fishing with Hank, hanging out at the cabin, the school plays, working on the car, spending time with his friends, his prom, painting with Markus, and dozens of discreetly snapped photos of Henry with Connor and Hank as they played games or just spoke lined the entire display in a colorful array of love and compassion.

Time really was a cruel illusion.

Markus had helped with the display and even brought the massive wooden easel to put the photographs on for the display from Carl's art studio. Below the photos was a long table holding Henry's many awards from his time as a student and athlete, as well as a basketball and his old stuffed dog that Hank had given to him as a baby. Above the basketball was a photo of Henry in his jersey with his name and nickname; "Henry 'Hank-the-Tank' Anderson" was printed over the photo. Next to it was Henry's acceptance letter to U of M as well as his scholarship details and newly acquired diploma.

"The photos turned out great." The deviant leader had spotted Connor by the display and readily joined him. Being able to celebrate his friend's son's big day was a huge honor and worth finding the time to get away from New Jericho Tower's responsibilities for an afternoon. "Good thing you started having physical copies of these memories printed out years ago. That saved us a lot of time."

"...Yeah." The photo of Henry as a newborn positioned next to his photo as a high school graduate brought emotional tears to Connor's eyes. "Time really is precious."

"You okay?" Markus stood beside his friend and could see that he was emotional about the entire the situation. "You seem depressed."

"Yeah. It's just a strange feeling to know that he'll be living on his own in three months. I'll miss him every day he's away."

"I still can't believe it's been eighteen years since he was born."

"Neither can I. I waited so long to meet him, now it feels like I have to say 'goodbye' before I'm ready."

"Then again, it's already been twenty years since North and I were bonded, so, I guess I shouldn't be THAT surprised about how time really does move so quickly against our will."

"And it's been fourteen years since Hank retired."

"How's Hank doing these days? I didn't get a chance to talk to him after the graduation ceremony and I haven't seen him here at the party yet."

Connor gave Markus a somber glance that spoke volumes on its own. "...He could be better."

"Oh, no." One of the few people who knew of Hank's waning health was Markus himself, and he knew by Connor's tone that the retired detective's health still wasn't great. "Is there anything I can do?"

"Just keep acting normal. Hank doesn't want Henry to know, and frankly, I'm glad."

"They're that close, huh?"

"Yeah. It's going to break Henry's heart, but Hank doesn't want Henry to know he's ill. Hank wants to stay as active and a part of Henry's life as much as possible, not be seen as a frail sickly man in his only grandson's eyes."

"I get that. Trust me, I really do." Markus lowered his voice and kept his body language casual as he stayed at Connor's side. "Can I ask what's wrong?"

"Liver cancer. He had been diagnosed four years ago, he had successfully undergone treatment and had been in remission for two years. However, it came back and it's now now stage two, and it's progressing quickly despite the active treatments Hank's undergoing. Once Henry is moved into his dorm in three months Hank's going to undergo a more aggressive treatment, but the prognosis doesn't look good."

"And a man of his age and history can't qualify for a transplant, right?"

"That's right. Also, CyberLife didn't patent an artificial liver since the organ is regenerative in humans."

"I'm so sorry."

"As am I." Connor decided a change of subject was sorely needed and tried to focus on his friends for the moment. "...Where are North and the others?"

"North still isn't a fan of human gatherings, but she did give me a card to give to Henry. She also included a letter to make it more personal. Josh and Simon will be here later after they pick up Natalie."

"Natalie..." As his brow knit together with confusion Connor looked to his friend for clarification. "Who is Natalie?"

Markus started grinning sheepishly as he was more than happy to answer the question. "Natalie is their daughter."

"What?" It was then Connor's eyes lit up with excitement on his friends' behalf as his mood lifted considerably. "They... adopted?"

"Yeah, they filed for adoption and FINALLY got approved. Natalie was born last week, and they just needed to finish a few more pieces of paperwork and now they're free and clear to have their daughter with them starting today."

"That's incredible." The deviant father was truly happy to hear the good news for his friends. "Why didn't they say anything sooner?"

"Because they weren't sure if they'd get approved or when it'd happen. It just so happens everything fell into place on this day."

"That's fantastic! I'm looking forward to meeting her."

Henry walked up to Connor with his best friend Jason at his side and asked about Hank. "Hey, I haven't seen Papa anywhere. Do you know where he is?"

"Luke said that he wasn't feeling well last night." Connor replied honestly as he turned to face his son. "He'll be out soon, though. He just needs to get some coffee and prepare to deal with a large group of people all day long."

"Should I do anything to help out?"

"No, it's fine Henry." Connor gave his son's shoulder an approving shake, another kind gesture that Connor had adopted from Hank's own examples. "Enjoy your party and I'll go check on him for you."

"Cool. Hey, Markus!" Henry acknowledged the deviant leader before he and Jason took off to rejoin the crowd of his friends and begin a game of basketball in the driveway beside the house. "Thanks for coming!"

"No problem!" As Henry got out of hearing range Markus addressed Connor again. "Want me to go with you? It won't be the first time that I've been around a fiery older human with a chronic illness."

"No, I can do this. Just keep this between us and remain as natural as possible for Henry's sake."

"Yeah, you got it. I'll go and help with the rest of the food and make sure everyone's having a good time."

With his held head high Connor made his way inside Hank's house through the backdoor and saw Hank standing in the kitchen leaning heavily against his cane while he looked absolutely exhausted. Luke was standing beside him helping him sort through his medication on the kitchen countertop while also keeping tabs on his condition. Offering Hank a glass of water Luke watched as the sick, retired detective took his required medication and did so with an annoyed grimace on his face the entire time.

"How're you holding up, dad?" Connor asked as he put his hand to Hank's shoulder in a supportive manner. "You seem a little weak."

"I've been better, but I'm still here."

"Need anything?"

"I'll be okay. I just need a little more time to get around these mornings, but I'm still me."

"Are you in pain?"

"No." Fussing with the top buttons of his zebra striped shirt, the very one he swore he'd wear that day, he smoothed out the front of the fabric and gave his son a simple nod of the head. "Stop worrying about me and go celebrate with your son."

"I will once he gets to see you. He was asking where you were."

"What did you tell him?"

"That you weren't feeling well last night, and that Luke was taking care of you."

"Well, you're not wrong." Downing the final few various pills with a gulp of water Hank shook his head and sighed. "It's ironic. Pills are supposed to rot your liver, but these pills are going to help sustain it. Medical science is fuckin' wild."

"Irony is rather prevalent in this family. You used to hate androids with a passion, now you're one of the biggest android advocates in the country."

"Yeah, and you used to be a cold heartless machine, now you're one of the warmest most empathetic people that I've ever met. And Luke," Hank turned and put his hand on his other son's shoulder. Ever since Luke had removed his L.E.D. a few years ago he now looked as human as Connor. "you were once dead. Now you're here with us all over again, and it's like nothing ever happened."

"I don't think that's irony," Luke smirked as he put his hand on Hank's supportive arm. "but I understand what you're saying."

Connor patted his hand on Hank's upper back and held open the backdoor for him. "Come on, Henry's waiting for us."

The backyard was filled with positive energy and almost fifty people as Henry's friends and relatives filled the area. Rose, Gavin, Abby, Aria, Chris, Tina, Joel and Sonya all showed up to wish Henry the best of luck, give him cards and money, and to visit with the entire family. Josh and Simon arrived soon after with Natalie to introduce her to the group, give Henry a strong handshake as well as a card, then politely excused themselves to take Natalie to her new home to get settled in after a few hours had passed. Markus stayed the entire day and helped keep charge of things while Henry's friends, including Aria, stayed in the backyard all day and crashed outside around a small bonfire as the busy, exhausting day gave way to night.

Having a Deja vu moment from Henry's first slumber party at the house when he was eight years old, Connor was watching the group of newly graduated teens talking and then sleeping around the campfire in sleeping bags through the kitchen window. He felt Luke walk up behind him and acknowledged his presence without taking his eyes off the group through the window.

"Hey, Luke."

"Hey, Connor. You do know that Henry is a great kid, little brother." Luke stated firmly as he tried to make his little brother feel better about Henry leaving home in a few months. "Don't worry about him. He'll be just fine on his own."

"I can't do that. He's still my son, my little boy. I'll always worry about him."

"This might be a weird question, but do you think that you'll adopt a baby now that it's legal to do?"

"...No." Shaking his head a little Connor sighed at the idea of the impending 'empty-nest syndrome' that Hank had warned him about five years ago. "Having another child wouldn't be a bad thing, and I had wanted to raise more than one child, but I think Henry's all I need. I have my family, and I couldn't ask for a better one."

"I guess you're right. And who knows? Maybe I'll be the one to adopt a kid someday." Luke suggested with a big smile. "Then you can be the uncle."

"I'd like that." Turning to face his big brother Connor smiled warmly at the thought. "Did you bring in all the cards from the display?"

"Yeah." Motioning to the stack of cards piled up in the middle of the kitchen table Luke confirmed that everything had been taken care of. "And I split up the extra food. Half is here for dad and the other half is at your house for Henry and his friends."

"Where is dad right now?"

"Right here." Using his cane Hank made his way into the kitchen and joined his two sons by the window. Despite his failing health Hank never once complained about it or showed any sign of slowing down once he was on his feet. "Sorry, I had to take a shower. I held Natalie for a few minutes, and she spit up on my shirt about nine hours ago."

"Maybe Henry's right, that shirt must be ugly."

"Ha, ha." Hank never got tired of Connor's sarcasm and appreciated his wit. "Since Natalie's a cute kid she gets a pass. But you are all out of free passes after putting up with your smartass for over twenty years."

Connor appreciatively grinned at the comment and kept the mood upbeat. "I saw Rose for a while and got to speak to her for a few minutes. She told me that Adam's wife is having their third baby this fall."

"Yeah, his wife and daughters are gorgeous." Hank was always happy to spend time with Rose and meet her grandchildren. "I think this time it's going to be a little boy, so that'll be something that'll really put Adam over the moon. There's nothing in the world as satisfying as being a father to a son."

"Will you be stopping by to visit again once the baby is born?"

"Yup. Any excuse I have to see Rose or those kids is a good one. And Rose already told me she understands if you can't make it because you might have something going on with Henry."

"I will do my best to attend, otherwise I will send a gift for the baby."

"Speaking of gifts..." Hank motioned to the pile of cards on the kitchen table that had been brought inside by Luke. "Looks like Henry got a good haul."

"Yes, but there is one envelope that I'm curious about."

"Which one is that?"

Connor sifted through the pile and picked up a far more elegantly designed envelope and held up for Hank to see. "It's from Kamski."

"Kamski? I haven't seen that smug bastard in over twenty years. What does he want?"

"I don't know." Connor held the card up in front of the light shining down the ceiling, but he couldn't see though the paper to the contents within. "That's why I'm curious. I'm not even sure how this card ended up at the party."

"Didn't he make some vow to ensure no one tried to mess with you or Henry?"

"Yeah, that's right."

"Think it's a bill?" Hank asked with a coy smirk on his face. "Some sort of convenience fee or some shit?"

"If it is, I'm NOT paying it." Putting the envelope back in the pile Connor sighed and resumed looking out the kitchen window at the group of young graduates sleeping around the warm bonfire in sleeping bags outside. Henry seemed so at ease that it was almost envious. "Whatever it is, it's Henry's business. He can handle it."

Hank knew that Connor was feeling riled up and protective and decided to put an end to it. "Tomorrow's Aria's open house, right?"

"That's right. Eleven in the morning until seven."

"Should we bring anything?"

"Just Aria." Connor pointed to her as she slept amongst her friends around the steadily dying bonfire. "I think Henry's going to be driving his friends over tomorrow, so it won't be a problem for us."

"Good. Come on, boys. There's a game on television and it's been too damn long since we had the chance to watch one as a family."

"Sounds good to me." Luke followed after Hank while Connor slowly took his eyes from the window to join his father and big brother in the livingroom. "Right, little brother?"

"...Yeah." Walking away from the window very slowly Connor turned off the light in the kitchen and made his way into the livingroom for the night to enjoy his family's company after such a hectic day. "I'm right behind you."

---

Life With Henry: Eighteen Years Old - Three Months Later:

It was move-in day for all of the new students at the University of Michigan. Connor and Henry had finished putting the final bolts in the wooden loft and had placed the mattress up onto the loft to finally finish getting Henry's dorm room all set up. The loft gave him and his roommate more space to share, and allowed Henry to tuck his desk under the loft with his laptop so he could work in semi privacy. A small dark blue couch was against the wall under the room's only window that was overlooking the campus grounds and a small table with a television was set up before the couch. Henry's roommate had already dropped off his stuff and finished taking care of his side of the room giving Connor and Henry more room to work before the day was over.

"Did you bring your guitar?" Connor asked as he placed the sheets on the mattress for Henry and watched as his son finished putting his clothes in his small closet next to the loft. To ensure no one asked a bunch of nosy questions Connor was donning his more aged aesthetic and appeared as any other parent helping their kid move into their dorm. "A guitar could help you destress after classes."

"No, I won't have time to play. Maybe I'll grab it and mom's violin after I visit home in a couple weeks."

"It's a shame your keyboard would be too big to have in here. Music is very relaxing, and it aids in concentration."

"Good thing I can play music on my laptop then."

"It's also too bad you can't bring Opal, too. A lap-cat would make studying much more enjoyable."

"I'm pretty sure a cat would get noticed fast." Henry laughed at the idea of the lovable cat roaming the halls of the university. "She wouldn't be paying tuition."

"Need anything else?" Chuckling at the comment Connor finished with the loft and turned his attention back to Henry. Connor helped Henry unpack the last of the boxes and place the rest his clothes in the closet. "You have all your textbooks, right?"

"Yeah, dad. I have everything I need. Notebooks, pens, pencils, extra batteries for my laptop, the back-up laptop, the back-up router and my back-up phone."

"What about groceries?"

"I have some money saved up so I can keep food in the dorm. Mini-fridges aren't the best, but it's better than a cooler in the corner."

"Is the saved money from your open house?"

"That, and that one card from that Kamski guy gave me had a check for fifteen-thousand dollars." Speaking so casually confirmed that Henry wasn't impressed by Kamski's well or intimidated by the man's reputation. "He said he 'owed' you for something and knew you wouldn't take his money yourself, so he made the check out to me on the condition that I use to pay off my education."

"Oh."

"It's okay, dad. I know that guy was kind of a creep and all that stuff, and I know you don't owe him anything. Any weird debt he thinks he has toward you is just him trying to cover up something he screwed up in the past. It's guilt money."

"I'm proud to hear you say that." Connor was relieved by Henry's mature comment on the situation. "You're too smart to be fooled by a snake like that."

"Yeah. Not going to lie though, the money was nice. Now I don't have to worry about paying for my tuition for a while."

"Want some extra money just in case?"

"No, I'm fine."

"Take it anyway." Connor reached into his pocket to pull out his wallet and handed another three one-hundred bills over to Henry. "Keep it as emergency money at least. Same with the debit card."

Henry just laughed as he accepted the money graciously and placed it in the top right drawer of his desk and locked it up. "I also have the extra phone charger you gave me AND the medical insurance card in my wallet."

"Good." Smiling at Henry's confidence Connor realized how far away his son was going to be from home and how confident he already was. "It's a shame that you can't keep the Camaro here while you're studying."

"It'd just draw unwanted attention. There's a frat house two blocks away and I don't feel like washing off dried up puke from the hood of my car every weekend."

"Valid point."

"AND I don't want to pay for parking when I won't be driving that much anyway."

"Smart budgeting."

Glancing about his furnished dorm room curiously Henry sighed and asked one very important question of his own. "...Is Papa still in the car?"

"Yeah. He won't leave without saying goodbye, don't worry."

Henry looked worried anyway and his blue eyes were getting glassy as he fought to keep himself emotionally composed.

"Henry," sensing his son's distress Connor wanted to know why Henry was getting upset. "what's wrong?"

"Dad..." Leveling with his father Henry told Connor what was on his mind. "I know Papa's sick."

"O-Oh."

"I'm not a child anymore, I can handle the truth."

"We know you can. It's just that he didn't want you to know so you wouldn't worry about him and focus on your education." The last thing Connor wanted was for Henry to feel as if he was intentionally excluded from important family business due to his age or still being seen as a helpless child. "And he didn't want you to see him as a sick man instead of your Papa."

"That's crazy!" Henry nearly blurted in an emotional upheaval. "I'll never see him as anyone else, no matter how sick he gets."

Now it was Connor's eyes that were welling up with tears. "I think he'd like to know that."

"Then that's what I'll tell him."

"Okay." Wrapping his arm around Henry's shoulders Connor escorted his son out of the dorm room and back outside to the campus grounds. "Let's go talk to him and tell him how much we care about him and respect him. He needs to hear it from you personally."

---

Resting his back as much as he could and enjoying the nice autumn day, Hank was standing outside the campus with his back leaning up against the side of the Corvette and his cane clutched in his hand. Observing all the families that were helping their kids move into the campus and all of the bright-eyed students who were roaming the grounds and becoming acclimated to their new environment made him smirk. As the students scattered about aimlessly Hank caught sight of Connor and Henry coming back his way and smiled at the duo.

"Hey, you two." Greeting his family with a smile Hank stood upright as much as he could and waved them over. "Finished already?"

"Yeah, his dorm is set." Connor confirmed as Henry slowly approached Hank and gave him a sad look. "We're almost done for the day."

The somber look immediately caught Hank's attention, and he was on guard. "What's wrong, Henry? Homesick already?"

"...Papa." Standing before him Henry gave Hank a tight hug and held him in a warm embrace that seemed unbreakable. "Don't worry about me. Please, worry about yourself. Get better!"

Hank quickly reciprocated the hug, his hand patting Henry's back as he could feel Henry trying to not cry as he hugged him. Looking over Henry's shoulder toward Connor the deviant father silently mouthed: 'He knew you were sick. I didn't say anything.' And in an instant Hank tightened his hug and tried to reassure his upset grandson.

"Ah, Henry. Don't do that, I'll be fine! I've been taking care of this problem for months and I'll begin a more aggressive treatment starting tomorrow. I'm not going down without a fight, I'm not ready to go yet."

"I wish you would've told me what was going on instead of me figuring it out."

"Hey, come on. You knowing would've only made you worry and worrying wouldn't have done anything to make me any better."

"No, but I want to know if there's anything wrong with you or dad." The mature college student declared boldly. "We're family."

Family.

The one word that always had a tendency to force the guard around Hank's heart down into nothingness.

"And we always will be." As Henry slowly released his hug Hank once again found himself wiping away his grandson's tears with his thumb before he reached into his jean pocket and pulled out a small gift to Henry. "Hey, come on. Don't worry about me, all right? And to make sure you aren't worrying and that you're studying like you should be, I'm going to call you every Friday night at seven o'clock to check on ya', got it?"

"...Yeah, Papa." It was a struggle, but Henry put on a brave face for Hank's sake. "I got it."

"To ensure that you don't forget about my weekly calls, you'll keep this somewhere safe at all times, too." Placing the item down in Henry's palm Hank gave him a playfully stern glance. "This is the first gift that I ever gave you on Christmas. You were too little keep hold of it yourself, so your dad kept it safe for you all this time."

Henry looked down at the gift and saw that it was the gilded pocketwatch with his name engraved on it. Opening the watch Henry smiled as he saw a picture of himself and Hank sitting together at the lake at the cabin back when Henry was seven years old. Connor had taken the picture when Henry sat beside Hank to ask about Cole and the two finished watching the sunset together over the lake.

"I remember that day..."

"And you keep remembering that day. It was a VERY good day."

"Just one of many."

"Henry," Hank slipped aside the photo and showed the inscription on the inside of the pocketwatch. "read the inscription."

Obediently Henry read the engraved words, and his voice became choked up in the process. "'Time is fleeting, but memories last forever. Love Papa'."

"And I mean it."

"I know you do. I love you, too."

"Come on." Hank was trying to keep Henry calm as he reassured him that everything would be okay even after he was long gone. "Why don't we go find something for lunch, huh? My treat. I'll tell you everything you want to know about what's going on so that you don't feel like you're being kept in the dark."

"Yeah." Replacing the photo inside the watch Henry closed the watch and hung it around his neck by the long chain and tucked it down the front of his dark blue t-shirt to keep it out of sight. "I'd like that."

Connor was relieved to see that Hank managed to ease Henry's worry to some degree and rejoined his family at the car. "Pick the place, Henry. Anywhere in the city you want to go."

"No," wanting the day to end on a more positive note Henry relented on the offer and handed over to his grandfather instead. "Papa should pick. I'll be living here for at least four years, so I'll have plenty of time to check out every restaurant while you guys will only be here to visit every few months."

"All right," Hank agreed and gave Henry a cheesy smile. "but since I'm picking the place AND since I'm paying, no complaining!"

"When have I ever complained?" Henry joked as he sat in the backseat of the Corvette so that Hank could have the front seat. "Name one time!"

"Yeah, good point. Learn to complain more, damn it!"

Henry couldn't help but laugh at the strange joke as Connor sat down behind the steering wheel, turned over the engine and pulled the car away from the street in front of the campus. "All right, I'll give my roommate a fair warning about your advice, Papa."

"Why warn him?" Flashing his grandson a Devilish grin Hank managed to get Henry to smile at long last. "That's not any fun."

---

As hard as it was Henry had no choice but to say goodbye to both his dad and his grandfather after returning to the campus well into the evening and going back to his dorm room for the night. A part of Henry was so worried that it'd be the last time that he'd ever see Hank and he wasn't ready to say his goodbyes to him. As the dread of time and immortality hung heavily over his head Henry turned to give his family a wary glance as he stood in the middle of his furnished dorm room that suddenly felt way too big for him.

"Maybe I can stop by the house next weekend, you know?" Henry suggested warmly to his departing family. "We can play some basketball or something."

"Of course." Connor sensed Henry's wariness and wanted to comfort him. "You're always welcome home whenever you want to come back. No matter why, when or for how long. We'll be there for you."

Hank took a step forward without using his cane to show his grandson his strength and gave Henry another strong hug. "Hey, you study, and you win your games. Or I'll come back here and kick your butt!"

"I'd like to see you try with that ugly cane in your hand!"

"Challenge accepted!" Laughing lightly Hank patted Henry's back again and rubbed his hand over the back of Henry's hair. "I'll call you this Friday at seven, you better answer your phone. Got it?"

"Got it. I promise."

Connor stepped in to hug Henry and held tightly on to his son and had to fight the urge to never let go. "Everything will be okay, Henry. When you stop by to visit us in a few weeks we'll head out to the cabin and have another family weekend, okay?"

"Yeah. Sounds great!"

Slowly, reluctantly, and with a heavy heart, Connor broke the hug and gave Henry a hesitant glance. "Remember, if you need anything for any reason, just call."

"I will."

"When will your roommate be back?"

"Soon. The campus will go on lockdown in an hour, so he kinda' has to be back soon or else he'll be stuck sleeping outside."

"Of course, that makes sense." Connor didn't like the idea of leaving Henry alone, even for a minute, while in a new city and beginning a new chapter in his life. "Will you be okay alone until then?"

"Yeah. It'll be weird but I can handle it."

"We know that. You can handle anything."

A campus security officer who was patrolling the dorms and informing visiting family and friends of the curfew begrudgingly informed Connor and Hank that they'd have to leave soon, too. It was the worst part of his job but it was painfully necessary. "Lockdown in forty-five minutes. Sorry, only students are permitted to stay overnight."

"We'll see you soon, Henry." Connor stated confidently as he accepted the fact that he'd have to leave his son behind. "I love you."

"I love you too, dad." Henry looked over to Hank and smiled. "I love you, Papa."

"I love ya', Henry." Hank reached out his hand and shook Henry's hand firmly. "Remember what I said."

"About kicking my butt?"

"Smartass. Friday at seven."

"I'll be waiting with my phone in my hand, Papa." Henry grinned as he vowed to remain in contact with his grandfather. "I promise."

---

It was a long slow walk away from the dorm and out to the campus parking lot for the two patriarchs of the Anderson family.

Feeling like he was forgetting something very important, his son, Connor walked out of the dorm with Hank right at his side. Walking slowly to accommodate Hank's waning health as they made their way back to the Corvette in the parking lot Connor glanced back at the building as if he could somehow see Henry still, but of course Henry's window overlooked the campus and not the parking lot. There were no other cars around which made the entire campus feel eerily empty and the moment all the more upsetting.

"Hey," Hank spoke up softly as he watched Connor's demeanor from the corner of his eye. "are you going to be okay, son?"

"...Yeah." Opening up the passenger side door of the car for Hank first to ensure the sick man could move about easier Connor walked around to the other side and opened his own door. "The house is just going to feel so empty without having Henry around. Opal is great company, but she is no substitute for my son."

"And that is called the much dreaded 'empty-nest syndrome'. It's the bane of all parents when it comes to their kids but it gets easier over time." Hank sat down slowly in the passenger seat and put his cane in the backseat behind him. Moving slowly for the sake of his back Hank did his best to appear as strong and confident as ever. "Just for the hell of it, want to stay over at my house tonight? We'll have a good ol' fashioned movie night, just the two of us."

"Yeah. I think I do. I could really use the company tonight." As Connor sat down in his own seat and wiped away more tears from his soulful brown eyes he let his 'aged' aesthetic fade away slowly. As he looked like his usual self Connor suddenly looked more like a sad kid than a proud father despite feeling otherwise. "It's strange because I just said goodbye, and yet I already miss him so much."

"Son, come here." Hank wrapped his arm around Connor and pulled his son up against his side for a much needed hug. Connor didn't resist and let Hank hug him as tight as possible as they sat in the car and looked up at Henry's campus building. "You did great with Henry. He's one hell of a great kid. He's intelligent, kind, funny, empathetic, and he's going to help shape this mess of a world into something recognizable. Be proud, not sad."

"I've always have been proud of him, dad. And I always will be." Connor admitted with tears rolling down his face. "My son is an incredible person, and I couldn't possibly be prouder of him."

"The feeling's mutual." Smiling with utter pride of his own Hank hugged his son even tighter as he thought about all their good years together. They were truly an unbreakable family unit. "It really is. I have two sons I'm proud to call my own, and I'm exceptionally proud of my grandson."

"Thanks, dad. We're proud of you too." The way Connor was speaking made it seem like he was preparing to say 'goodbye' to another important person in his life, but he was only speaking from his heart to his beloved and trusted father. "You've come a long way and never once faltered after you sobered up and stepped up to help me parent Henry to the best of my ability. Without you, I don't think I could've raised Henry."

"You would've found a way to do it. You always accomplish your missions, remember?"

Laughing a little Connor appreciated the comment and finally broke the hug. "I remember."

"Let's go on home, son." Wiping away his own tears Hank cleared his throat and sighed deeply at the thought of going back to Detroit without Henry with them. Like Connor he already deeply missed his grandson, and he couldn't wait to see him again. "It's going to be a very long and very quiet night without Henry with us."

-next chapter-