Dark Angel Fanfic: A Flash (4/17)
Title: A Flash
Author: poestheblackcat
Rating: PG-13
Characters/Pairings: Alec/Max, Alec/Rachel (memories of), Logan, Berrisford, Sarah (OFC)
Warning/Spoilers: Major spoilers for the episode “The Berrisford Agenda.”
Summary: A flash is all it takes for Alec to notice the young girl with the locket. Enter Alec’s sweet-yet-spunky daughter with Rachel, Sarah. Of course, she gets in trouble-like father like daughter. Takes place in 2028. Not as bad as it sounds.
Disclaimer: All recognizable characters not mine, yadda-yadda.
A Flash
Chapter 4
“Grandpa!” Sarah gasped.
Alec unconsciously moved in front of her, shielding her from the old man’s view. “You never asked for my side of it,” he countered, his voice still quiet, but everything about him, his gaze, the way he held himself, was snapping with tension.
Berrisford looked his age as he said harshly, walking forward, “I did ask you not to go to her grave again, however, and I assumed you understood not to come here as well, Simon, or Alec, or whatever your name is nowadays.”
“It’s Alec,” he snapped automatically. Damn, Max really was getting to him. “I just had to know…Why didn’t you tell me about Sarah back then, or after? I deserved to know that I have a daughter. I know I didn’t do right by Rachel, I didn’t understand then and I hurt her, but you had no right to keep Sarah from me,” Alec seethed. This time he wasn’t backing off without a fight. She was his daughter, after all, his flesh and blood. She needed him; she’d told him that she did.
Berrisford’s eyes blazed. He directed his gaze at the small pajama-clad figure. “Sarah, go to your room. I don’t want you to ever speak to him again, do you understand?”
“No,” Sarah stormed. “He’s my father, you can’t stop me from seeing him,” she burst out stubbornly, facing her grandfather.
He looked grim as he told her, “Do as I say, Sarah. He’s a Transgenic. There are people out there wanting to kill everyone like him and they won’t stop at killing you, too, if they found out. He’s too dangerous to be in your life.”
“No,” she cried again, rushing at Alec and wrapping her arms around his waist. “Please,” she begged.
Upon hearing Berrisford’s words, Alec had locked gazes with the older man, understanding dawning. He was trying to protect the only family he had left, in the only way that he could. And dammit, it hurt them all to do it.
He ran his hand through Sarah’s hair, so much like Rachel’s, and squatted down to her eye level, one arm around her back and the other still tangled in the smooth dark waves. He swallowed. “Sarah, I hate to say this, I really do, but he’s right. I am dangerous. My life right now, it’s too dangerous for you to get involved,” he said gently. “It doesn’t mean that I love you any less, it just means that the people close to me are likely to get hurt, and I don’t want that to happen to you. Okay?”
She still clung to him, recognizing the resignation, the pleading, in his voice, but not giving in yet. She saw the logic; all anyone had ever seemed to want to do in her short life was to protect her, but maybe she didn’t want to be so sheltered. Sarah sobbed into Alec’s shoulder, clutching at his jacket, refusing to let go. “But I just found you. I don’t wanna be an orphan anymore.” She sniffed. “Will I even see you again?”
Alec’s voice caught in his throat so that he couldn’t speak, but Berrisford answered for him. “No, Sarah. Not for a while, at least. I’m sending you away. To your cousins in New York.”
Sarah’s head shot up at this and she turned imploring eyes to the old man. “No. Don’t. Please don’t. I’ll be good. I promise. I promise. Don’t send me away, Grandpa.”
Robert Berrisford relented a little. He was not, after all, a hard man, and he disliked being made the enemy here. He sighed. “Sarah. Go to your room. We’ll talk later, all right, honey?” he said gently.
Alec swallowed and pried the shaking form away from him, his heart breaking once again as he did so. “You better listen to him, kiddo. Just….I’ll be here whenever you need me, okay? I’m just a phone call away,” he said, glancing over to Berrisford, challenging him to deny it. He didn’t. Alec pulled out a pen and wrote out the number to his cell phone on her slender hand. A hand made for playing piano. He shook that thought out of his head. “Here’s my number. You call me anytime you need anything, or if you just want to talk, okay?”
Sarah was still now, looking down at the numbers scrawled on her palm in black ink. She wished that they would never wash off. Not because they would remind her forever of what her father’s phone number was-she’d already memorized it with a glance-but because it was the one tangible thing that he was leaving her with. And he was leaving. She gulped. “Okay.” Looking up at Alec’s face, she asked, “Really anytime?”
Alec smiled, stroking her face gently, and kissed her forehead. “Really anytime.”
Sarah hugged him once more, savoring each moment, before heading slowly for the door, half walking backwards so that she could keep eye contact with him until she turned the corner. Alec watched her go with more than a little longing in his eyes. “I always fall for the ones I can’t have,” he mused.
Berrisford’s shoulders slumped a little and he looked older than he had before, as he said softly, “You really did care then and you really do care now, don’t you?”
Alec tore his gaze from the door his newly-found daughter had passed through, feeling as if a large part of himself had been torn from him. “Yeah. This time, I’m gonna do it right. I’m gonna keep Sarah safe, if it’s the last thing I do.” This was said with all the determination he could muster, and boy, was Alec McDowell, formerly known as X5-494, one tenacious guy when he put his mind to it.
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AN: I’m mean, and I know it. Keeping Alec away from his little girl. Cackles evilly. Anybody cry? I kinda teared up writing this.
Chapter 5
Author: poestheblackcat
Rating: PG-13
Characters/Pairings: Alec/Max, Alec/Rachel (memories of), Logan, Berrisford, Sarah (OFC)
Warning/Spoilers: Major spoilers for the episode “The Berrisford Agenda.”
Summary: A flash is all it takes for Alec to notice the young girl with the locket. Enter Alec’s sweet-yet-spunky daughter with Rachel, Sarah. Of course, she gets in trouble-like father like daughter. Takes place in 2028. Not as bad as it sounds.
Disclaimer: All recognizable characters not mine, yadda-yadda.
A Flash
Chapter 4
“Grandpa!” Sarah gasped.
Alec unconsciously moved in front of her, shielding her from the old man’s view. “You never asked for my side of it,” he countered, his voice still quiet, but everything about him, his gaze, the way he held himself, was snapping with tension.
Berrisford looked his age as he said harshly, walking forward, “I did ask you not to go to her grave again, however, and I assumed you understood not to come here as well, Simon, or Alec, or whatever your name is nowadays.”
“It’s Alec,” he snapped automatically. Damn, Max really was getting to him. “I just had to know…Why didn’t you tell me about Sarah back then, or after? I deserved to know that I have a daughter. I know I didn’t do right by Rachel, I didn’t understand then and I hurt her, but you had no right to keep Sarah from me,” Alec seethed. This time he wasn’t backing off without a fight. She was his daughter, after all, his flesh and blood. She needed him; she’d told him that she did.
Berrisford’s eyes blazed. He directed his gaze at the small pajama-clad figure. “Sarah, go to your room. I don’t want you to ever speak to him again, do you understand?”
“No,” Sarah stormed. “He’s my father, you can’t stop me from seeing him,” she burst out stubbornly, facing her grandfather.
He looked grim as he told her, “Do as I say, Sarah. He’s a Transgenic. There are people out there wanting to kill everyone like him and they won’t stop at killing you, too, if they found out. He’s too dangerous to be in your life.”
“No,” she cried again, rushing at Alec and wrapping her arms around his waist. “Please,” she begged.
Upon hearing Berrisford’s words, Alec had locked gazes with the older man, understanding dawning. He was trying to protect the only family he had left, in the only way that he could. And dammit, it hurt them all to do it.
He ran his hand through Sarah’s hair, so much like Rachel’s, and squatted down to her eye level, one arm around her back and the other still tangled in the smooth dark waves. He swallowed. “Sarah, I hate to say this, I really do, but he’s right. I am dangerous. My life right now, it’s too dangerous for you to get involved,” he said gently. “It doesn’t mean that I love you any less, it just means that the people close to me are likely to get hurt, and I don’t want that to happen to you. Okay?”
She still clung to him, recognizing the resignation, the pleading, in his voice, but not giving in yet. She saw the logic; all anyone had ever seemed to want to do in her short life was to protect her, but maybe she didn’t want to be so sheltered. Sarah sobbed into Alec’s shoulder, clutching at his jacket, refusing to let go. “But I just found you. I don’t wanna be an orphan anymore.” She sniffed. “Will I even see you again?”
Alec’s voice caught in his throat so that he couldn’t speak, but Berrisford answered for him. “No, Sarah. Not for a while, at least. I’m sending you away. To your cousins in New York.”
Sarah’s head shot up at this and she turned imploring eyes to the old man. “No. Don’t. Please don’t. I’ll be good. I promise. I promise. Don’t send me away, Grandpa.”
Robert Berrisford relented a little. He was not, after all, a hard man, and he disliked being made the enemy here. He sighed. “Sarah. Go to your room. We’ll talk later, all right, honey?” he said gently.
Alec swallowed and pried the shaking form away from him, his heart breaking once again as he did so. “You better listen to him, kiddo. Just….I’ll be here whenever you need me, okay? I’m just a phone call away,” he said, glancing over to Berrisford, challenging him to deny it. He didn’t. Alec pulled out a pen and wrote out the number to his cell phone on her slender hand. A hand made for playing piano. He shook that thought out of his head. “Here’s my number. You call me anytime you need anything, or if you just want to talk, okay?”
Sarah was still now, looking down at the numbers scrawled on her palm in black ink. She wished that they would never wash off. Not because they would remind her forever of what her father’s phone number was-she’d already memorized it with a glance-but because it was the one tangible thing that he was leaving her with. And he was leaving. She gulped. “Okay.” Looking up at Alec’s face, she asked, “Really anytime?”
Alec smiled, stroking her face gently, and kissed her forehead. “Really anytime.”
Sarah hugged him once more, savoring each moment, before heading slowly for the door, half walking backwards so that she could keep eye contact with him until she turned the corner. Alec watched her go with more than a little longing in his eyes. “I always fall for the ones I can’t have,” he mused.
Berrisford’s shoulders slumped a little and he looked older than he had before, as he said softly, “You really did care then and you really do care now, don’t you?”
Alec tore his gaze from the door his newly-found daughter had passed through, feeling as if a large part of himself had been torn from him. “Yeah. This time, I’m gonna do it right. I’m gonna keep Sarah safe, if it’s the last thing I do.” This was said with all the determination he could muster, and boy, was Alec McDowell, formerly known as X5-494, one tenacious guy when he put his mind to it.
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AN: I’m mean, and I know it. Keeping Alec away from his little girl. Cackles evilly. Anybody cry? I kinda teared up writing this.
Chapter 5