Dark Side (Completed)

A Heart to Heart

"Oh," Blood's smile grew and excitement bloomed in his voice upon realization, "You haven't told her."

My eyes widened and my head swiveled between the two of them. Blood seemed to enjoy every second of our discomfort.

"Wait, what is he talking about?" I asked the man on the ground behind me. I had a feeling I knew exactly what they were talking about, but I needed to hear it out loud.

He hesitantly lifted his eyes to meet mine.

He tried to speak, but when nothing came out, he cleared his throat and tried again. "Johanna, I-" he stopped and took a calming breath. Sighing he continued, "Look, this is obviously not how I wanted you to find out..." he sighed again and looked directly into my eyes, "I- I'm your father."

I only stared at him in shock, my face going as nearly as pale as his.

"I can see you two have much to talk about," Blood said through a smirk. "We'll do this another time," with that, Blood grabbed his son's arm and they teleported out of the warehouse.

Once they were gone, Daniel and I continued to stare at each other, neither of us daring to speak.

Still in a trance, I blinked and moved around and untied his hands. He instinctively brought them around in front of himself and massaged his wrists.

"We should probably head back," I mumbled and moved towards and outlet.

Daniel grabbed my arm to stop me.

"Johanna," he pleaded, "Please say something."

I finally met his eyes, reluctant to reveal the water pooling in their depths.

"For years I've envisioned what I would say to my father if I ever had the chance to meet him," my voice was small, and I looked away to hide the tear slipping down my cheek, "But now that it's happening, I can't think of a single thing to say."

He didn't say anything but I knew the words struck something deep inside him. At least he had the common courtesy to give me the silence I needed.

I wiped the tear away with a swipe of my hand, "Let's not do this here. They could come back."

"Of course," he sighed, "Where did you want to go?"

I walked over to the outlet and held out my hand, still hiding my face behind my hair.

I felt his hand grab onto mine and I wasted no time in transporting us to my apartment.

"Wait here," I mumbled as I walked off to my bedroom. There was still a gaping hole in the wall from the bomb. The only difference was a few lines of police tape stretched across the gap. This part of town was too crummy for the police to actually do anything, something I often used to my advantage, but this just seemed sad.

Sighing, I picked out a few clothes and walked off to the bathroom to change. After I was out of my suit, I went back and stuffed it into a backpack before slinging it over my shoulder.

I walked back out to the living room to find Daniel with his back turned to me. He was holding a framed picture of my mother and I at my preschool graduation.

I cleared my throat and he immediately set down the photo, turning to look at me. I wordlessly held out my hand again. Daniel took it reluctantly and I zapped us up to the top of a skyscraper on the other side of town.

I walked over to the edge and sat, letting my legs dangle over the side. Daniel appeared beside me.

I stared wordlessly down at the traffic below, streaks of orange and red dancing back and forth across the highway.

Another tear slipped from my eye as the numbness began to wear off.

"You're so much like your mother," he finally broke the silence. I refused to look up at him. After a few more minutes of silence, he continued, "I'm sorry."

"What are you sorry for?" I managed to mutter. It wasn't a question. It was a challenge.

He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, "I'm sorry for leaving. I'm sorry for not being the father you deserve. I'm sorry that because of me, you can't have a normal life. I'm sorry that I dragged you, your mother, and your friends back into my old feuds. And I'm sorry for just about everything else," he sighed again and tried to look at me.

Finding himself unsuccessful, he pushed off the ledge and floated to the space directly in front of me. He gently placed his hands on my shoulders, causing me to finally look up at him again.

"But Johanna," he started again, "Just because you couldn't see me, doesn't mean I wasn't there."

Questions danced behind my eyes, but I couldn't put any of them to words.

"I never wanted to leave," he said, "I wanted to be with my family. I wanted to watch you grow up and become the young woman you are today," he said softly as he lifted my chin so my eyes would meet his. I definitely had his eyes, the same stunning hazel, "But I had to make a choice. Either I could disappear to keep you safe, or stick around to put you in even more danger."

He sighed and sat back on the ledge. He continued, "I couldn't stand the thought of leaving you two all alone. Fortunately, I was blessed with the power of invisibility, so I was able to be there for you, even if you didn't know I was there," I finally turned my head to look at him and was surprised to see a bit of water pooling in his own eyes. He had a weak smile on his lips, "I came to your preschool graduation, and that play you did in 5th grade..."

"You mean, the one about Paul Bunyan?" I asked through another tear.

"Yeah. That was the one," he smiled, "You made a great farmer."

I gave out a weak laugh as I wiped away some more tears.

He continued on, "I was there while you were developing your powers, and though your mother could never see what was happening, I could. I have to say, it was quite hilarious watching you shock everyone and everything you came in contact with."

We both laughed now, and I made a weak strand of electricity dance between my thumb and ring finger.

"You've grown so much since then," I looked back up to see him smiling proudly down at me, "I'm so proud of you Johanna," another tear slipped down my cheek and I looked away, "And I am so sorry for what I've put you through. I can only hope that you eventually find it in your heart to forgive me."

There was too large of a lump in my throat to even attempt to form words, so I responded by hugging him tightly. He seemed startled at first, but eventually wrapped his arms around me. The tears flowed freely now. I buried my face in Daniel's shoulder as I cried, and he only held me tighter, swaying us gently from side to side.

His chin rested on the top of my head, and I could feel the heavy drops of his tears falling down to my hair.

I pulled back and looked up at him. His face was blurry, but I blinked it away. "Don't think this means you're off the hook," I smiled weakly, "I'm not going to fully forgive you until we rescue mom. And don't think I won't use this for guilt trips and blackmail," I pointed an accusatory finger at him.

He only chuckled in response, "Deal."

I held out my hand and he grabbed it again. I effortlessly zapped us back to the Townley's.

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Hey all! Who saw this coming? Probably most of you, but I was wondering if I caught anyone by surprise. Did anyone see Gold as Blood's son coming? Let me know what you're thinking about the story right now! Vote and comment! Thanks! Happy Easter!