Arella Logan watched her mother, the 34 year old Raven Roth, with concern in her eyes. Her mother caught this though "Arella, what's the matter?"

The sixteen year old started fidgeting with her long black hair "Nothing…"

Raven's purple eyes bored into her daughter's green orbs "Honey, you can talk to me about anything right?"

Arella nodded but said "It's just an idea."

Raven, an author, understood the value of an idea and the clarity of it "Well, think about it a bit more and if you need something I'm right here"

Her daughter nodded. She was very similar to her mother physically and personality-wise. Her father's aspects were deeper, around her friends she was a bit of a joker.

Arella picked up her backpack and looked at the clock "Mom, I'm gonna go back to Dad's"

Raven caught the time and sighed "Okay" but she stood and hugged her daughter tightly "Love you."

"Love you too" then they separated.

Raven didn't realize that her daughter wasn't going to Garfield Logan's house but to the hospital.

The estranged husband of Raven Roth and father of Arella Logan was the girl's primary caretaker. The daughter bounced between the two regularly and now that she could drive did it on her own but mainly stayed at Gar's.

As Arella walked into the room her Dad lifted a hand and croaked "Hey baby, I thought you'd spend the night at your mother's" his smile was as large as could be but it seemed a mockery of his usual cheer as it stretched across his emaciated frame.

She sat on the chair by his bed and grabbed his hand "I wanted to come see you. What did the doctor say?"

The owner of the local zoo looked down "Maybe six months if I'm lucky"

That wasn't what she wanted to hear, she could see him dwelling on it and squeezed his hand "Daddy, can you tell me what happened with mom? She doesn't talk about it and I've always felt bad about it…"

Sitting up slowly he patted the edge of the bed where she relocated as he wrapped his arms around her "Baby, you didn't do anything. You're mom and I made decisions that took us in opposite directions. That's all. You didn't do anything, if anyone's to blame it's me" she opened her mouth but he went on "Well, I guess nothing bad could happen considering the worst is already happening…"

Raven and I were fresh out of high school, 18 and ready to take on the world. We had been dating since freshman year and we thought we had a good platform where we could move on to marriage. Steve asked me to take over the zoo so I went to work as the manager and I was excited I could support Raven while she went to college to become a writer. It was always her dream.

I couldn't have been happier when I found out Raven was pregnant. Raven was happy but she was also scared, she didn't think she was going to be a good mother. When you were born I don't think I've ever seen her love anything or anyone quite so much.

Gar paused and watched his daughter look down at her hands "Then why did you break up?"

He sighed but it caught in his throat as his entire body clenched and it turned into a small yowl. The girl didn't pause but raced into the hall and called for help. Doctors and nurses raced into the room and crowded around him.

She was pushed off to the side and couldn't see anything over them. Minutes that seemed like years later they walked away and her dad was panting lightly but he reached out for her and she grabbed his hand as he lay on the bed. He started again, his voice weaker but no less determined.

Raven's first book got published when you were just a few months old. Steve had died a few weeks earlier and had left everything to Rita but the zoo, which he willed to me. Raven started to become more serious writer and was asked to go give talks, go to conferences, those sorts of things. Everything a writer of her caliber needed to do. But it took her away for a long time. I remember once she was gone for two months, you probably don't but I took you to work everyday. You played in the office with Jenny the secretary when I had to go do something.

Raven came back saying they wanted her to go on a tour to promote her book…I asked her if she could stay, she said that this was really important for her.

Garfield could feel the tears filling his eyes but tried to blink them away for his girl "We got into an argument. Something changed then, each time we started talking it started heading to that and finally we couldn't take it." sniffing he clenched his body to hold back the sobs "I-if I had just kept my mouth shut-" he bit his lip as his shoulders trembled and finally he broke down.

Things were turned around as his daughter now held him as he cried. "Daddy, everything's going to be okay. It will, just watch."

At some point her dad let go of her and leaned back against the pillows tiredly "Baby, do me a favor please."

She nodded "What do you need Dad?"

"I want you to spend the night at your Mom's" Arella started to refuse "Please Baby, I need to do some stuff that you shouldn't have to deal with."

Deflating she nodded "Alright. Can I get a good night kiss though?"

Smiling he snickered "Wouldn't let you leave without it. You could be a hundred an five and I'd still kiss my baby girl!" a quick peck to the forehead and she was walking out.

Raven was surprised when her daughter's white 2008 Honda Civic rolled up but it was far from unpleasant. She opened the door to find her daughter smiling weakly "Hey Mom…sorry but Dad's having to take care of some stuff and I'd rather wanted to talk a bit."

Raven stepped aside with a smile "You know my door's always open" her smile faded as she studied her daughter "Cup of tea?"

"Please" tea was always something they drank when something was happening.

The smell of the warm brew started to fill the air and they were both seated before Raven attempted "Arella what's the matter?"

She answered with a question of her own "Mom how do you feel about Dad?"

The question made her mother stop from pouring the touch of honey into her cup. "Well, um. What brought this up?" Arella, however, didn't rise to the bait and just stared at her mother. Crumbling her mother sighed "Well, I don't hate him if that's what you're thinking. I just felt…behind."

Running her finger along the rim of her cup the daughter asked "What do you mean?"

"Garfield's dream just happened straight out of high school and there I was struggling for years before I could even start. I admit I should have taken a break before I went touring but I didn't think the excitement over my book would last. I hated how he couldn't see that."

"Mom" Raven looked at her daughter before the girl grit her teeth and steeled herself "Dad told me what happened."

Raven rubbed her forehead in irritation "That man…"

"Mom…there's something else you should know…"

Raven rolled her eyes "What else did that man do this time?"

The sixteen year old swallowed the lump in her throat as her phone dinged with a text. There were only a few words but they sent her into a frenzy. As she dashed around trying to gather her things in a flurry Raven reached out "Baby, what's going on?!"

Arella whimpered but didn't say anything, but her hands were shaking so badly that she couldn't even hold her keys. Raven, having never seen her daughter like this dragged her to the writer's own car before pushing her into the passenger's seat. "Where are we going?"

"Hospital."

Daughter and mother quickly made their way through the halls, standing outside the door was someone the elder recognized "Richard? Is that you?"

The man that turned around was wearing an immaculate black suite with solid tie and his cobalt blue eyes were wide in shock "Rachel, it's been a long time"

Arella brushed past them, Raven though asked the man "So why are you here?"

Richard's fingers turned a pen over and over "Gar…asked me here to help him write his will."

Raven stopped everything "What?"

Richard opened the door and found Arella just staring at her dad as his eyes never moved from the ceiling, the only reassurance that he was still alive was the subtle movement of his chest. The lawyer quietly whispered "The medication causes temporary blindness" in a louder voice he said "Gar, your daughter's here" he gave a meaningful glance to Raven who nodded. He didn't need to know Raven was here.

The ex-wife found it amazingly hard to reconcile the man she married to the stick thin creature on the bed, his skin wasn't anything near the luxurious tan she remembered and looked almost like wax covering bones. His eyes were still the same amazing green and his smile was still as blinding as ever.

"Baby…" he reached out his hands and Arella darted into them and wrapped her Daddy in a hug. Raven felt her eyes brim with tears, his voice was no longer that same hale and hearty baritone she remembered but a frail imitation.

Raven stepped closer to Richard "How long has he been like this?"

The man shook his head "He hasn't been feeling well for months but he was admitted about a month. The doctors said he had six at most this afternoon but after his last attack they're thinking maybe two."

Raven was taken back. She hadn't known, granted she never talked to Gar or anything anymore and the only contact they ever had was through their daughter.

"Richard, can you please help me?" Raven was pulled back to the present as Gar weakly plucked at something on the other side of the bed. "Now, Baby, I want you to promise me you'll take good care of him okay?" both mother and daughter tilted their heads in confusion.

A small carrier was set on Gar's lap and the door opened. Arella cooed as a small kitten came out, she was the only person Gar knew that liked animals as much as he did. The feline was bright orange with three black stripes across his back "What's his name Daddy?"

Chuckling the man replied "Copyright infringement."

"Huh?"

"Look at him and tell me you can't see where this is going."

Arella rolled her eyes but chuckled "Oh hardy har-har. Nice one Dad."

Indeed the kitten looked much like the cat that shared her Dad's name. The cat was put back in the carrier and Gar suddenly looked a lot less sure of himself "Baby" he started hesitantly "I need you to give your mother something…"

Raven perked up but didn't move as her daughter nodded "Sure Dad, what is it?"

This time a large birdcage was set on his lap and the blanket over it removed. Raven gasped but the sound was covered by her daughter's. Two ravens looked around the room before settling on the elder woman. "These birds…Samuel and Samantha, Sam and Sam. They're a mated pair." his eyes fell even though he couldn't see, they were named after the married couple in Raven's very first book "These are for your mom. T-Tell her I'm sorry" his voice was breaking as he tried to hold himself back. Though tears started streaking down his face he gave the best smile he could "tell her I still love her. All these years later and I still can't get her out of my head"

It took all of Raven's control not to speak up, but she stepped out and grabbed the arm of a passing doctor "What's the matter with him?"

Looking at the woman and linking it to the girl he asked "You're the ex-wife?" she nodded as he ran his fingers through his hair "Mr. Logan has a rare condition where certain organs start to shut down. There's no way we know of to get them back up and running, transplants are an alternative but Mr. Logan has a very rare blood protein that we can't find in any of the donors."

Glancing inside the room to the girl talking to the birds she asked "Has Arella tried to donate?"

He nodded "But her father x-ed out that idea as soon as it was voiced."

"Thank you" he nodded again and walked away leaving Raven to think.

She walked back into the room before asking "Garfield. Did you mean that?"

The shocked man whipped his head around several times as if trying to find her, blinking rapidly he saw her form, the blurred woman was probably wearing her favorite combination judging from the colors, a pair of jeans and a dark sweater. Swallowing as hard as he could he looked to Raven "What was the first thing I ever promised you?"

Now it was the author's turn to swallow the lump in her throat "That you'd never lie."

Nodding he only said "And I haven't broken that."

Raven stepped out before grabbing the same doctor "Use me. I have the same proteins, found out when I got pregnant."

He tried reading her "You do know that even if we transplant you'll have to be on medication for a long time, maybe even life and there is a chance that he will still die."

Garfield Logan stepped out of his truck and hauled out his bag, his keys rang loudly as he shuffled through them. As he entered he rolled up his pants legs and toed his boots off, sighing in relief he hung his bag on the hook and scowled as he tripped over the cat "Copyright…c'mon man, can you just stay out from under my feet for a few minutes?"

Looking up at him with huge eyes the cat meowed before huffing as it waddled off. Rubbing his eyes he stepped into the living room where his daughter dashed over and hugged him tightly "Daddy! How was your day?"

One arm hugged her while the other ran through his hair "Okay, Monet-you know, that ring-tailed lemur? Yeah, she's pregnant and scared. How was your day?"

She followed him as he walked into his room and grabbed a change of clothes "Great, got invited to a party this weekend" he peeked out to look at her. Her smile reassured him "I turned them down, this weekend is really important!" she stepped back and sat in the desk chair.

A voice from the bed said "I told you I hate you right?"

Turning to Raven he nodded "Everyday." not discouraged he walked up to her and kissed her on the forehead. "I love you"

She sighed but replied "Love you too." he paused on his way to the shower and watched her.

This was happiness, screw a vacation, forget traveling, and don't even mention retiring early. Watching his daughter talk to his wife who was holding their two year old son was better than all three combined. Raven glowed with the near due twins growing inside her and Sam and Sam sat on their perch at the other end of the room, their own egg being guarded by the family, the cat curled up around the bottom watching for anything that would disrupt the peace. Turning on the spray of water he nodded. Everything up till now?

So worth it.