( there is a part of him that did believe she lied. that she obfuscated, avoided, kept it from him. his gaze is open, eyes stinging—because she is right. that is what anyone would do: anyone who knows him and his love. but he realized, after it all... not his daughter. not hope. who has only ever sought him out even at his worst.
his own fear, his rage, his loss of everything he has ever known and that iron fist of power that has comforted him in the unknown, blinded him. even her, his little girl, the same and yet different, older...
emotion chokes him. he finds words in a stilted outpouring. ) You're my daughter. And the thought of you, here... ( at the whims of this city. grown and independent and taking care of herself. he has tried to be understanding, and he will continue to do so, to accept this, for her. but this is honest, too: it weighs on him. )
I know there are things I do not know, and plenty more I do not wish to know... ( his hand lifts to his head. those pictures he cannot burn from his mind's eye are only the start. )
I reacted. Poorly. Because I understand. If you had kept it from me.
[ the thing is, as soon as he says it, as soon as he puts his hand to his head, hope knows what it is he doesn't want to be thinking about and the tiniest of smiles appears on her face. ]
I don't want to keep it from you. [ her hands drop again. ] Not like. Like, I don't want to share the nitty gritty, but I also don't want to have to lie. I don't want to have to worry if you're going to decapitate someone by ripping their entire spine out with their head.
I do trust you. ( the repeated words are soft. he wants — he needs — to trust himself. he needs an inner compass that he may follow, the one he had been attempting to build: after the loss of hayley, of elijah... of all who had guided him through the very worst of himself.
he has always been fierce, but rarely brave. looking at hope now, he feels the contradictory mixture of terror and courage that has always warred within him, when it comes to being worthy of being her father. he must ensure that bravery, that love, wins.
he licks his lips and worries them with his teeth. he promised her, and immediately gave her reason for concern. he means the words now as much as he did then, and yet. for all her has failed her, what are words? what are promises? )
I want to know. ( the lightest and most painful of smiles also flickers on his lips. ) Perhaps without photographic evidence.
But being with you here is the most important thing to me. I will not err.
[ she takes a hesitant step, then a stronger one, and then puts herself into his arms because this is her dad, and she's still his littlest wolf. that's all that matters — he's here, she's here, and they can make it work. ]
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his own fear, his rage, his loss of everything he has ever known and that iron fist of power that has comforted him in the unknown, blinded him. even her, his little girl, the same and yet different, older...
emotion chokes him. he finds words in a stilted outpouring. ) You're my daughter. And the thought of you, here... ( at the whims of this city. grown and independent and taking care of herself. he has tried to be understanding, and he will continue to do so, to accept this, for her. but this is honest, too: it weighs on him. )
I know there are things I do not know, and plenty more I do not wish to know... ( his hand lifts to his head. those pictures he cannot burn from his mind's eye are only the start. )
I reacted. Poorly. Because I understand. If you had kept it from me.
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I don't want to keep it from you. [ her hands drop again. ] Not like. Like, I don't want to share the nitty gritty, but I also don't want to have to lie. I don't want to have to worry if you're going to decapitate someone by ripping their entire spine out with their head.
[ she looks at him, her mouth set in a pout. ]
I want you to trust me.
no subject
he has always been fierce, but rarely brave. looking at hope now, he feels the contradictory mixture of terror and courage that has always warred within him, when it comes to being worthy of being her father. he must ensure that bravery, that love, wins.
he licks his lips and worries them with his teeth. he promised her, and immediately gave her reason for concern. he means the words now as much as he did then, and yet. for all her has failed her, what are words? what are promises? )
I want to know. ( the lightest and most painful of smiles also flickers on his lips. ) Perhaps without photographic evidence.
But being with you here is the most important thing to me. I will not err.
no subject
[ she takes a hesitant step, then a stronger one, and then puts herself into his arms because this is her dad, and she's still his littlest wolf. that's all that matters — he's here, she's here, and they can make it work. ]