Year One
Eight Years Old

The light from the hallway woke Phoenix as it filtered into his room through the slightly cracked open door to his bedroom. A small shadow was blocking a bit of the light, and he blinked as the shadow stepped into his room and swam into focus.

It was Trucy, standing there in her blue pyjamas, her stuffed rabbit clutched in her hands. Her hair was braided for bed, and Phoenix had finally managed to convince her that wearing her hat to bed wasn't a good idea.

"Trucy?" he said, lifting his head from his pillow. "Are you alright?"

She nodded and stepped into his room. He reached over to his nightstand to flick on the light there. Trucy stood just inside the door, staring at the floor.

"Did you have a bad dream?"

She only nodded once more. She looked surprisingly shy, much different than what he was used to. She was a performer even at the young age of eight, and she wasn't the type to get stage fright. But right now, for whatever reason, she looked embarrassed.

"Hey, come here," he said, sitting up and patting his bed. "You can tell me about it if that'll help." Was that what you said to a child who'd had a nightmare? He didn't know. He wasn't used to this 'dad' thing yet. She'd come into his life so quickly he hadn't had any time to even think about what it meant to be a father. Even expecting parents had at least nine months to prepare somewhat for their new arrival. He'd had a total of a few hours once he'd made his calls and had found out that Trucy's family was basically non-existent sans her now on-the-run biological father.

Trucy made her way over to the bed and crawled up onto it. She sat up, letting her legs dangle off the edge. She sat her stuffed bunny beside her.

"So?" Phoenix prodded. "Did you want to tell me about it?"

She shook her head. "I don't think talking about it will help, Daddy," she said, turning to look at him. "I just wanted to come and make sure you were still here…"

He smiled at her. "I'm here, and I'm not going anywhere," he reassured her.

"Okay…"

"Did you want me to bring you back to bed?"

She gripped the loose blankets in her hand and looked away from him again. "Um… I um… I don't know…"

"Trucy," he said. "Did you want to maybe sleep in here tonight?"

"With you?" she inquired.

"If you want. I'd probably feel a bit safer having you in here with me anyway," he said.

She sighed with relief, then nodded determinedly. "Okay, Daddy. If me staying in here with you tonight will make you feel better, then I will."

"It really would," he said, trying to hide his smile.

She smiled at him as he pulled the blankets back and gestured for her to get comfortable. She crawled underneath, fluffed her pillow some, set her bunny beside it near the headboard, and finally laid her head down. Phoenix pulled the blankets back up around her.

She'd already closed her eyes, and as he looked down at her he couldn't help swiping a piece of her bangs that had come loose from her braid away from her eyes. He leaned down to place a quick kiss against the top of her head.

"Night, Truce."

"Goodnight, Daddy."

He'd had no time to think about what it meant to be a father before adopting Trucy, but that didn't mean he would ever regret the decision.