If you worked for Starfleet and identified as a member of the LGBT community, you would never feel out of place or not accepted. Starfleet prided itself on being a welcoming and accepting place. Some places in the universe however, still had issues. Starfleet, in an attempt to help, sponsored Pride Festivals. They would usually be based on common shore-leave planets and Star Ships in that part of Space were instructed to grant leave to crew-members wanting to go, unless it was unavoidable. Captain Saru had recently received one of these instructions in his latest correspondence with Starfleet.
Saru had never felt it his business to know the sexualities of his officers, it wasn't needed as part of work. So, Saru went to a member of the crew he did know identified as gay, the husband of Spore Drive creator, Dr Culber as Paul, his husband was collecting samples on a planet for his research. "Dr Culber, a word if I may?" Hugh and Saru stepped into his office.
"Everything OK, Captain?"
"I am quite well, thank you, I have received instructions from Starfleet about the next Federation sponsored Pride Festival. Other than you or Commander Stamets I do not really know who else to inform and wondered if you could be of assistance?"
Hugh thought, "you could bring it to the next GSA meeting. Some of the younger ensigns started up a Gay Straight Alliance, which is actually not bad. They mainly want to talk about helping get Gay Rights on planets where there are none. Not all LGBT crew members go but the majority do. Myself and Paul started attending recently. There's a meeting tomorrow, you could put the message out then."
"Thank you, please send me a message letting me know the time and place." Saru nodded. Hugh agreed and returned to his patients. After his shift he picked up Tilly from the rec-room with some of her old friends from the bridge crew who were teaching her Kadis-Kot, a game they used to play together. It wasn't really his game, and he wasn't sure of the rules, but from what he'd gathered, Tilly was pretty good at it. Since Paul and his team were sleeping on the moon, Hugh and Tilly ate together, sharing about their days. Tilly was just 7 years old, but thanks to her dreams which acted as a window to her past self, she was quite mature.
After he started the shower for her to wash her hair, he dried and styled it based on an archived YouTube tutorial she'd found, while she read to him. Hugh tucked her into bed at the start of the sleep cycle before updating his Log and corresponding with Paul, who had finished setting up camp.
"Captain said Pride got announced and it's in our vicinity."
"Oh, that's great, our first one since before you died."
"You didn't go to one after I died?"
"I mean, no, we were in a war still and I was really not in the mood to be surrounded by happy couples."
"Understandable," Hugh replied, "though you do know it's not exclusively for couples, right?"
"I know, still, I wasn't really in the mood. I hope it's a suitable planet, I mean there've been some and I wouldn't dream of taking Tilly to."
"Tell me about it. There was one when I was a cadet, my first posting, definitely not for kids."
"Well, fingers crossed. See you tomorrow night?"
"Looking forward to it. Goodnight Paul. I love you."
"I love you too."
Paul returned to Discovery near the end of what would normally be his shift. Signing the equipment and samples into the system, Paul went to Sick-Bay for his physical – required after time planet-side and was reunited with Tilly. Due to timing issues Tilly hadn't been able to speak with Paul often while he was on the planet. He'd been gone for eight days and Tilly had missed him. Reluctantly, he left her with Michael to go to the GSA meeting with Hugh.
Saru made his announcements about the upcoming Pride and remained for the meeting, having been intrigued by the content. Once Paul and Hugh knew which planet Pride would be held they made the decision they would be going and would be taking Tilly with them. In this part of the Galaxy, Pride was a celebration, not a fight, so they deemed it safe to take her. It was decided, to further their research, they would remain in orbit until the evening before Pride, when Paul would jump Discovery to the nearest Station.
Saru, with the help of senior members of the GSA composed a ship-wide e-mail to announce the event to the rest of the crew. Paul and Hugh returned to their quarters and Michael brought Tilly to them after their jog around the ship. They told her to change quickly because they needed to talk before dinner.
"Am I in trouble?" She asked.
"Should you be?"
"No."
"Then why would you be in trouble?" Paul quizzed.
Tilly shrugged, "I don't know, the universe does stupid and crazy things," she said gesturing to herself.
"Fair point, no, you aren't in trouble, now go change," Hugh told her. Hugh and Paul updated their Logs while they waited for Tilly to change back into her clothes.
"What's up?" Tilly asked, climbing into the chair across from Paul, beside Hugh.
Tilly watched as her dads put down their PADDs and turned their attention to her. Paul began: "So, we've been granted some… extra shore-leave of sorts, coming up in a couple of weeks and we wanted to talk to you about it. Starfleet is hosting a Pride Festival on a near-by planet and because we're close to it, we're allowed to go."
"What's a Pride Festival?"
"Well, first question, do you remember the word used to describe two people of the same gender who love each other like me and Hugh?" Tilly thought hard, but she couldn't remember the word, she shook her head. "The word is gay. We're gay, because we are men who are attracted to other men. Which is OK, but hundreds of years ago, people like me and Hugh weren't allowed to love each other, because it was thought of as bad."
"That's not nice."
"No, it wasn't. Sometimes, we could have gone to jail for it. But, in the 1900s people decided they were fed up with being treated unfairly because of who they loved. So they fought back and during the fighting, people decided to march and these marches got a lot of attention. And over the years, as rights for gay people got better, the marches were joined by festivals, which are like a huge party to celebrate."
"Celebrate what?"
"Celebrate love." Paul told her smiling. "Understand?"
"I think so," Tilly said. "How long will we be there?"
"I think it lasts a week," Hugh spoke, "but we don't have to go to the festival every day, we can go other places around where we're staying."
"And it's a couple of weeks away, they'll give us a program closer to the time, so we can see what's on." The conversation continued over dinner, Tilly asked questions she thought of about the extended LGBT community and Paul and Hugh answered them to the best of their ability. They also told her stories of passed Prides they had been too, including their first one together.
"It was about two months after we'd met," Hugh remembered fondly, "it was an M-Class planet, but Starfleet had put it away from some of the more populated areas, so there was no indoor accommodation."
"Where did you sleep?"
"We had to camp, in tents," Paul filled her in. "Not either of our finest moments," he chuckled, "Hugh's hay fever reacted in abundance to the plant-life and well, daddy isn't really a camping person."
"That's putting it lightly, Paul," Hugh teased. "And my hay-fever wasn't that bad the whole time."
"You're right, those brownies helped," Paul remembered. "Wonder if Gavin and Jerome will be there this year."
"Probably depends on the laws of the planet," Hugh shrugged.
"Do I get a brownie?" Tilly asked.
"Not one of these brownies," Paul told her, "they're for grown-ups."
"Aww." Paul and Hugh chuckled.
"We'll bake some Tilly only brownies before we go," Hugh assured her with a wink, brightening her smile.
Tilly told Lindsay about the upcoming trip in her next session, Tilly was very excited. Lindsay assured her that even though they wouldn't have a session during that week she would be waiting to hear all about it when Tilly returned. The night before the jump she and Hugh made 'Tilly Only' brownies for their trip. Once they were cool they labelled the tin and Hugh helped her pack. Paul, who had already packed was spending one last night on the planet gathering some last-minute data.
"Wait right here," he told her as they were choosing her outfits. "I have some surprises for you that you might want to wear while we're there." Hugh disappeared into his and Paul's room and brought back a box, "me and your dad ordered them the other night, what do you think?" Tilly and Hugh unpacked several t-shirts with different slogans on them. 'I love my daddies', 'Love is love is love is love is love', which changed each word to the next colour in the rainbow and others.
"I love them! Can we take them all with us?"
"Of course, baby-girl, let's get them packed." She and Hugh spent the evening looking through the program that had been sent to Hugh and Paul's PADDs deciding on things they wanted to do. They chose some of the concerts, exhibits and things they could do together as a family. There was a Family's Beach Party they planned on attending and some concerts. They also arranged child-care for some events Paul and Hugh would go to, but Tilly couldn't, either due to age or the late hour of the event.
Paul returned late into the sleep cycle. Changing in the bathroom to avoid disturbing Hugh he returned to the living space for a glass of water, seeing the program on the table. He gave it a quick glance, smiling at some of the activities they had chosen. He noticed the parade was circled, as a family they had the option to march in Starfleet's LGBT family section, per an e-mail he'd received while down on the moon. He'd talk it over with Hugh and Tilly in the morning, if they would rather watch it, he was more than happy with that, but it was only fair to give them the option. Climbing into bed beside Hugh, Paul pecked his husband's lips before allowing himself to drift off to sleep.
Paul made the jump the next morning and the Discovery docked at Star Base KL-9. The crew disembarked at pre-allocated times so not to create a conflict at the transporter and shuttles. In the Station, Tilly stuck tight to Paul and Hugh, refusing to not hold at least one of their hands. They boarded a shuttle headed to the planet Pride was being held on and settled in for the two-hour journey. Paul took a nap, still tired from his late return and Hugh read through a research paper Tracy had sent him about new treatments for Cancer patients. Tilly kept herself occupied with her PADD and the approaching planet in the window. Pride officially opened the next morning, but Fleet personnel and their families could sign in up to three days in advance.
Once on location the family took a transporter to their hotel where they checked in and unpacked. They had a small suite, similar in size to their quarters on Discovery, meaning Tilly had her own room. She placed her tin of brownies on the coffee table and unpacked her clothes, books and Bowie, who was sporting a rainbow bandana, Hugh had dug out of his old Pride gear. Tilly too was wearing one of her new t-shirts. It had a large heart across the front which was rainbow patterned.
After freshening up Hugh suggested they went and signed in, to avoid the lines the next morning. There was a short line, but three people working the desk, so they weren't waiting long. Hugh and Paul showed their Federation IDs and all three received wristbands. The attendant showed them how theirs were linked to Tilly's and could be used as comms between them and could track each other if they were separated. This put some of Tilly's nerves at ease, knowing Paul and Hugh could easily locate her. As these were reserved for families, they were also told that the bands were interchangeable between people, so when Tilly was with a baby-sitter they would give a band to them and keep one with them. Just in case.
From her room in the hotel, Tilly could see them constructing the stages and stalls for Pride, she watched, excited and intrigued, pointing things out to Bowie that she and her dads planned on doing. Leaving her room, she found Paul sitting at the table, muttering to a piece of tech he was working on. Kneeling on the chair across from him, she propped her elbows on the table. "Whatcha working on?" She asked, curiously.
"Noise cancelling ear-plugs," he told her, not looking up from his intent work.
"How come?"
Turning off the tool in his hand Paul looked up at her, "remember I mixed my DNA with an alien?" Tilly nodded, "it makes my ears sensitive to loud noises, I want to enjoy Pride as much as I can, and these should help."
"But won't they stop you being able to hear anything?"
"I can control how much they block out."
"What about me and papa?" She asked, sounding a little hurt by the idea.
"I can program them to pick up certain voice frequencies, so I can hear people I want to."
"Can you show me?" Tilly requested, eagerly. Paul grinned at her enthusiasm.
"Sure, come pull up a chair," he pulled the other chair closer to him and began explaining what he was doing, thankful Tilly was wearing her hair up today, and it was not straying into the way.
This was how Hugh found them when he returned. "All signed up," he announced, he'd been to the desk to put their names down to walk in the parade. "How're they coming along?"
"Getting there," Paul replied as his husband leaned in, to peck him on the lips. "There," he announced moments later, "just need to program in your voices. Tilly, you first, when you see the green light say anything you like, ready?" Thinking, Tilly nodded. The light turned green and Tilly spoke clearly into the device and Hugh after her. After a quick test Paul confirmed they were working and ready for the week ahead. They were his back-up pair from Engineering and had required some major tinkering before they could be used.
With plenty of hours left in the day the family decided to visit a near-by beach promenade. They wandered for a while, swinging Tilly between them as they walked on the sand, barefoot, shoes stashed in Paul's backpack. Tilly had changed into shorts to match her t-shirt, Paul and Hugh both wore khaki shorts and plain t-shirts. They stopped for dinner at a beach front diner, where the floor was just sand. "How're the ear-plugs?" Hugh asked, quietly.
"Working like a charm," Paul assured him. Hugh was glad, he'd been worried when Paul said he'd forgotten to pack his main set, luckily, the spares were always in his shore-leave bag. As day turned to evening they walked back along the beach, Tilly walking in and out of the small waves and the warm water. In their room, Tilly went into planning mode, deciding what she would wear on each day, dependant on their activities and how she would like her hair doing to match.
Hugh chuckled, teasing: "she's definitely your daughter," to Paul, who chuckled in response. Paul read to Tilly and tucked her into bed a little later than normal due to her excitement.
Hugh woke early the next morning, his body still tuned to his routine on the ship. Catching a glimpse of the rising sun through the blinds he moved to the living room, so he could enjoy it without disturbing Paul. Tilly was already up and watching the sight, the view being better than in her room. After watching the sunrise, a rare thing for people confined to Star Ships, Tilly asked if they could go for a jog, sensing there wouldn't be much opportunity the remainder of their trip to do so.
Tilly set the pace, jogging up the beach they had walked along the night before, passing other joggers on their way. Returning to their suite Hugh told her to take a shower and get dressed and he would do her hair. Slipping his shoes off, Hugh could hear the water running in his and Paul's bathroom. Undressing he slipped into the room to be met with a cloud of pleasant steam. "Room for one more?" He asked softly, so not to startle Paul.
Paul pushed the door open slightly, "For you? Always, my Dear Doctor. Where'd you run off to?"
"Me and Tilly went for a run on the beach, we're still working on ship time, so early morning."
Paul, Hugh and Tilly scanned their bands at the entrance to the Pride festival and made their way to the Parade meet-up which would lead into the opening ceremony. Hugh made sure Paul had his ear-plugs as the woman who signed them up had warned him there would be confetti canons and loud music along with the roar of the crowds. Tilly had chosen her 'Love is love is love is love is love' t-shirt and some beach shorts for their next activity. Standing with the other crew men and women from the Discovery and other ships they walked together, dancing to the music as Tilly grew in confidence around the crowds. Whatever she did, they made sure to do something she would consider more embarrassing, so she wasn't self-conscious about herself.
The festival was opened by the planet's Governor, who made a short speech before introducing the first music act. Paul, Hugh and Tilly went to their first planned event, the Family Welcome Beach Party. For Tilly, this would be the first time she would be interacting with other children. She was nervous, and it showed as she remained close to Paul and Hugh as they set up on the beach. There were Starfleet representatives present, likely cadets looking to make extra-credit, they were responsible for keeping this part of the party going and were known as 'leaders'. They initiated games with the children, Tilly watched from her towel, unsure whether to join in. She wasn't the only child that was nervous, so she didn't look too out of place, however, one by one the others gathered their courage and crept to the edge of the group of children, playing inside a large red circle drawn in the sand.
Paul and Hugh watched as she looked longingly to join the others. Paul was unsure what to say, he didn't want to push the issue, she was still unsure of crowds after the stunt her mother had pulled six months prior. Hugh put a reassuring hand on his husband's shoulder and smiled. Moving over beside Tilly he nudged her, "you want to go join them?" Tilly never took her eyes off the group.
"I want to," she said, "but I'm worried. From my dreams I know I never fit in with other kids my age. Why would it be different now?"
"Well you're not the same you that you were back then. For all we know this Tilly can get on with kids her own age, she just has to try and let go of the past. That other Tilly, she isn't you anymore. You've lived different lives with different experiences. Now I can't promise you'll get on with every kid in that circle, but I'll bet somewhere, there's one that is into similar things to you. But you never know until you try." Tilly looked from Hugh and back to the circle. "And if you get worried you got your band, hit the 'worried' setting and one of us will come get you."
Taking a deep breath, she stood and brushed the sand from her knees. "OK," she said, mainly to herself, "here I go," slowly, Tilly crept forwards, passed the other families set up between them and the circle. The leaders were setting up a game, it looked like a game with running, this calmed her. She was good at running. As she approached a leader caught sight of her and smiled encouragingly. Tilly paused, took another deep breath and crossed the threshold into the circle. The leader knelt beside her and filled her in on how the game was played and the rules and told her to take a side.
Hugh leaned back against Paul as they watched her go, Paul took his hand, threading their fingers. They waited to see if she would hit the 'worry' button but thankfully it never came. They watched as she played and talked with her team mates. She returned to them an hour later, when most of the children began returning to their parents. Paul checked his watch, it was nearing lunchtime and the smell of burgers and hotdogs was beginning to reach their part of the beach. Thanks to the Tardigrade DNA, Paul didn't eat much meat, so when they came to their towels he asked for a veggie-burger instead of a meat one.
While it was sunny at the beach, Starfleet had erected a screen as a protective shield from the noise and goings on of the rest of the festival as well as the sun, it was warm and pleasant with a circulating breeze to keep people from getting too hot. They left the beach party shortly after four in the afternoon, because one of Paul's favourite bands was playing on the main stage. "Daddy I can't see," Tilly said, joining the crowd late left them stuck at the back.
"Going up," Hugh grinned, stepping behind Tilly he lifted her over his head to sit on his shoulders. "Better?"
"Much better, papa, thank you," she leaned down to say, over the crowd.
Hugh took Paul's hand as the noise level grew, he saw Paul messing with the app to his ear-plugs on his wrist-band. He shot a concerned look checking in with him. Paul smiled assuringly, pointing upward to indicate he was letting more volume from the concert in, rather than tuning more out. Hugh smiled, comforted and swayed with Paul and the crowd, taking care with Tilly on his shoulders. The group played for a little over an hour and Tilly slipped off his shoulders to walk with them to the hotel restaurant where they were meeting some of the Discovery crew for dinner. They told Tilly the group were doing a second later set and that Michael had agreed to watch her for that time. It would be a similar length of time to the one they had just watched, and she would still be awake when they returned to their room.
In her room Michael started the shower going and Tilly showered the sand from her, including her hair. After it was dry she and Michael read the next couple of chapters of 'The Hobbit', sitting in the window-bay of the hotel room, where they could see the concert. Tilly let Michael have one of her Tilly Only brownies while they watched the pyrotechnics of the finale. Tilly fell asleep, her eyes closing as the fireworks raged in the sky. Michael smiled, watched for a couple more seconds before carrying and tucking her into bed.
Michael busied herself, editing a research paper she was working on while she waited for Paul and Hugh to return.
The morning of day 2 found Paul, Hugh and Tilly rising later than planned. Tilly had woken early but opted to climb into bed with Hugh and Paul and sleep for an extra hour or two, the excitement of the event catching up with her. They spent the morning in their suite eating and introducing Tilly to the idea of brunch. Finally, ready to venture out, they headed to the info-stall market, picking up some freebies and catching up on the latest research within the community. While Tilly found it interesting, she couldn't really follow much of what was being said.
After visiting all the stalls they wanted to, the family made their way to the concert field and laid down a blanket for a late-picnic lunch while music played in the background. There was a large screen at the back of the stage, showing photos and messages from attendees. Taking a tablet from his bag Hugh told Paul and Tilly to scoot closer for a picture. Tilly had just finished making flower-crowns out of small flowers, similar to Earth Daisies and had placed one on each of their heads. They took a few pictures and made a small collage with pictures of pairs and a picture of all three of them in the middle, sending it to the people in charge of the screen they watched, waiting for it to show up on screen. Hugh also sent it to his PADD, so he could set it up as a holo in his office.
They spent the remainder of the day lounging in the sun, occasionally being joined by some passing members of their crew. That evening they watched another concert from the window in their room, opening a window to let the distant noise in as they ate pizzas.
The morning of day 3 was spent in the Hotel enjoying the facilities available to them there, as none of the programmed events held much appeal. Keyla collected Tilly to go with her old friends for a Kadis-Kot game they were holding, so Paul and Hugh took the opportunity to try out the Spa and booked a couple's massage. Rhys brought Tilly back to them a couple of hours later as they prepared to go in the pool. Paul took her into the slightly deeper water to practise swimming before he would confidently let her go off to play on her own. Once he decided he was satisfied Tilly noticed some of the children from the first day coming in with their own parents and they set up a game together while their parents got to know each other.
Deciding they had spent enough time in the pool the family showered and changed to head out for lunch with some of the other families, leaving the Festival area to find a local family diner. Tilly was surprising herself by getting on so well with the other children. She was making friends better than her previous self ever did. She enjoyed hearing about her new friend's lives and shared her own experiences living on Discovery. "Don't you get lonely?" Jaycov her new Orion friend asked her.
"Sometimes, but I'm good at being friends with grown-ups." Tilly shrugged. Jaycov and his mothers were stationed on a Starfleet Star Base, his birth mother was head of Security and his other mom a human female was a Paediatrician. He was currently here with his human mom; his birth mom was joining them the next day. There were lots of families on the base.
"If we ask your dads do you think they'd let us connect our PADDs, so we can talk after this week?"
"I think they might. Thanks Jaycov." Other children also extended this offer to Tilly as they shared more stories about their lives and experiences.
That night the children had a movie night in the hotel, supervised by a 'Leader' from the Pride activities team. They were able to facilitate activities for groups and look after groups of children. The parents invited Paul and Hugh to join them at a local gay bar, forgoing that evening's concerts. It was karaoke night and both Paul and Hugh took a chance to show off their vocal talents.
The first activity of Day 4 was a group breakfast with the children and families from the night before, making arrangements with the parents to meet up at various points during the remaining week and foreseeable future, provided Discovery remained in range and Saru was agreeable to it. After breakfast they took another walk around some of the other stalls while their food settled before meeting up with Keyla and Joann at the entrance to the fairground rides. Paul wasn't a fan of rides and Hugh was weary after watching an archived movie with some of his Sick-Bay buddies – Final Destination 3 – where the big 'accident' took place on a rollercoaster. So the girls took Tilly on most of the rides her dads weren't keen on indulging in themselves. Tilly didn't seem to mind, any ride she was tall enough for she was eager to go on and on some she tried stretching taller, determined to make the minimum height.
Taking a break for lunch the grown-ups discussed their plans for the rest of Pride, cross-referencing events the others intended to attend, while Tilly took a nap sandwiched between her dads, worn out from excitement. Tilly woke again in her bedroom, some time later. The window had been opened to let in some fresh air and she could hear the music from the main stage outside. Stretching she ventured out into the lounge where she found Hugh and Paul, both reading at opposite ends of the couch, legs overlapping. "Hey sleepyhead," Paul smiled, putting down his PADD and sitting up as she perched on the edge of the couch, cuddling into him. "You OK?" Tilly shook her head, snuggling closer to him. Hugh sat up, concerned. He and Paul shared a look and Paul nodded as Hugh went to get his tri-corder.
Tilly sat up, so she could be scanned. "It's nothing serious," Hugh confirmed, "just a reaction to the excitement and the heat most likely. I think a cool bath should help, I'll go run one, can you get her some water?" He asked, "so she doesn't get too dehydrated," Hugh left them, Tilly sank back into the couch and Paul got her some water to sip. Hugh told her it was ready and she went to her bathroom, laying back into the water to wet her hair, she could feel herself cooling down.
"Paul try not to worry, it's a perfectly natural reaction to a body that is normally kept in an artificial environment like a Star Ship, like Discovery, for so long." Hugh reassured Paul. When Tilly got out of the bath Hugh got her some ice, which she sucked on.
Snuggled in the window bay the family watched a concert Tilly had wanted to go to on the main stage. Paul excused himself as his COMM chirped, Tilly shifting closer to Hugh to keep watching the concert while Paul went into the other room. The concert ended while he was gone, when he came back Tilly was napping on the couch and Hugh was putting a cushion under her head. "Who was that?"
"It was Michael, she went to a rally for rights on outer-laying planets and ran into Po, Tilly's Queen friend from before. She asked if Tilly was around Michael pointed her in my direction. I just explained what happened, but that she does have some memories. She asked if she could see Tilly if she remembers her."
"I bet she'll like that."
"What will I like?" Tilly asked sleepily.
"One of your old friends is here, from before the accident. She said she'd like to see you if you still remember her."
"Who was it?"
"Po?" Paul said, seeing if it got any recognition.
"The Queen of Xahea?"
"The very same. You remember her?"
"A little, I've had dreams about when we met and a couple of times talking in video chats. She likes spumoni ice-cream."
"You wanna see her?" Tilly nodded enthusiastically.
Paul arranged for Po to come by later that afternoon, Tilly asked if they could go to get ice-cream together. "Just don't leave the hotel, the suns been getting to her," Paul advised, giving his permission, knowing Po's security team would be at a discrete distance. Tilly filled Po in on her accident, and her new life; she'd already known about Paul being Tilly's father, Tilly and Po shared pretty much everything.
"I'm so glad we ran into each other Tilly, sort of," Po told her as they ate their ice-cream.
"I'm glad to see you too. Our adventures feature in my dreams sometimes," Tilly said, followed by an explanation of how her dreams were windows to her past.
"That's so interesting," Po said, she'd listened deeply with interest, "and there's no seeming reason for what happened?"
"Not that anyone can work out. Just unlucky I guess. Or lucky, in a way."
"How so?"
"Well I never knew my real dad and now I get to live with him. There're no boarding schools. He and Hugh, love and look after me and they care what's happening to me, how I feel, and they take into consideration what I want to do in life. When Hugh and my daddy re-married, Hugh adopted me. My mom never did that, it's why her and Granna fought so often when I was living there, especially after I decided to join Starfleet." Tilly explained to her, "and I'm doing better in school now, I'm learning several languages and I'm enjoying it."
"You're really happy, I can see that in you," Po told her, smiling. "What about your mom, don't you miss her?" Tilly became quiet, the smile fading from her face. "Tilly?"
"She isn't allowed to come near me anymore."
"What? Why?"
"In the war she was undercover for Section 31, which is like Starfleet Black Ops or something. Afterwards I couldn't get in touch with her, then my accident happened. She came back about a year ago and found out about me, but she wanted to take me away. Even though I told her I was happy and wanted to live with my daddy, she wouldn't listen. She had Starfleet look into my dads, but they said I should stay with them, so she tried to take me. I think she saw it as a chance to turn me away from Starfleet and back to what she did. You saw me before, I wasn't exactly made to be a diplomat. She isn't one either anymore. She teaches Diplomacy on the Command Track back at the Academy now."
"I'm so sorry Tilly."
"It's OK, you didn't know." Tilly looked down at her bowl and took another spoon of ice-cream.
"You know," Po began, and Tilly looked up at her, "I used to see you as my big sister, you taught me so much when you helped me out. Now it's like it's my turn. And sisters share secrets, so you can tell me anything. Alright?" Tilly was grinning.
"Alright," she agreed.
Tilly and Po hung out for another hour before Po was informed she had an evening event to attend and she needed to get ready. She walked Tilly back upstairs, and hugged her goodbye, promising to make arrangements to see her and hang out again soon.
The next morning, after many scans, 'just to be on the safe side,' Hugh, Tilly and Paul prepared for the Pride Through the 20th Century day concert. The event was being held on an outer field and would work showing music and progression with key moments in the early years of LGBT rights showing on the screen as their musical time-line moved forward.
Many of the families of the children they had met, and Tilly had made friends with, had invited them to join their large group for the day. They were all planning on dressing up from the different time periods. Tilly wore a dress, loose and flowy with flowers on, to keep in the spirit of Pride the flower petals were rainbow patterned. Over this she wore a denim waistcoat style jacket, left open. Her hair was left natural, with a pair of braids acting as a headband with flowers woven in. On her feet she wore low-top yellow converse, a brighter yellow than her dress, with rainbow laces.
Paul was threading flowers into her hair, his outfit was inspired by ABBA, a popular group that found fame in the 1970s. He wore a sleeveless navy jumpsuit, with sequins and glitter bleeding into the fabric from the waist up. Around the waist there was a belt that morphed from dark to light blue, made from a poofy scarf-like material and on his feet, he wore silver boots.
Happy with their looks they entered the living space of the hotel room to find Hugh waiting for them. Paul took in Hugh's look for the first time. "Wow," he said, "very colourful." Hugh was wearing bright rainbow Wham! inspired shorts, a white shirt with 'Choose Life' written on where the colours alternated with the colours of the rainbow, sneakers similar to Tilly's and a light pink, high waisted jean jacket covered in various rainbow patterned and gay pride pins and badges.
Meeting the other families in the lobby, the large group headed towards the field were the event was taking place, scanning their wristbands when they reached the boundary. Like the beach this field had been equipped with an artificial barrier that acted as noise and sun prevention. Finding a large area, they set up blankets and sat together in small groups. The concerts were performed by holograms, they were of concerts from the 1960s through to the 90s, tape files had been scanned and a computer was producing a larger than life hologram of the events. The back screen, like the other day, was being used to host submitted pictures from visitors. The group submitted a group picture as well as some couple and parent and child images, that were used in rotation throughout the day.
The morning was pleasant and relaxing, the music sticking within the 1960s and 70s for the most part, unless bands crossed over decades. The ABBA concert, shortly after mid-day marked the main crossover into the 80s. During this time there was a re-created concert from London, 1984, during the Miners Strike a group called LGSM organised a fundraising concert in support of striking miners. The following year the Labour Party added Lesbian and Gay rights into their manifesto, due to the backing of the National Union of Mineworkers. This concert was re-created for the days main stage also, as it was seen as an important part of the decade's history.
Mid-afternoon, after a picnic lunch Hugh saw two people waving and making their way over to their group. "Paul, it's Gavin and Jerome," they stood to greet their friends. Gavin and Jerome were wearing full costumes, with large reflective rainbow wings and their beards were filled in with glitter. "Guys it's so good to see you again."
"And you both. We haven't seen either of you since before that war."
"Well duty called," Hugh told them, "and a lot has happened over the last few years. So we just finally made it to a Pride."
"Speaking of a lot that's happened, that picture of you guys with the little girl was adorable, is she your niece or something?"
"Actually," Paul spoke up, "Tilly's my daughter. I found out about her a couple of years ago. Now she lives with us."
"Well she's the cutest and her hair is amazing."
"Thank you," Paul said as he felt small hands tug at his.
"Daddy look, we're on the screen again." He, Hugh Gavin and Jerome looked at their photo on the screen.
"Tilly, these are our friends, Gavin and Jerome, guys this is our daughter." Tilly greeted the two men, blushing when they complemented both her hair and appearance before excusing herself to go play some more.
After chatting a little longer, Gavin asked them if they wanted any brownies for their group. "Well we would love one, but you'd have to ask the others yourselves, we're with a big group of parents, so, you never know."
Most of the group accepted brownies, the only two who declined only did so because one was pregnant and the other breast-feeding. Gavin and Jerome bid the group farewell, sprinkling glitter over the children, the younger ones laughing and trying to catch as much as they could. Tilly took the opportunity to break out her tin of brownies and shared them with the other children and two moms. Paul and Hugh put one brownie aside for a later time and split the second. They sat facing each other, legs intertwined as they shared the treat, breaking bits off to feed to the other. Once they had finished, Hugh cupped Paul's face and brought their lips together, tasting the chocolate on each other's tongues.
Parting their lips, Paul rested his forehead against Hugh's, chuckling, "I think I can feel it working."
"That was fast," Hugh murmured, he knew it was too soon for any real affects.
"Probably the DNA."
"What's it feel like?"
"Remember when I first rewrote my DNA?" Hugh nodded, "kinda like that." They sat, tangled in each other for a while. An artificial breeze passed through the field, "you know what we never get to do?" Paul began, "we never get to just watch the clouds. Lay with me?" Laying back on one of the blankets, Paul put his arm under Hugh's shoulders as they watched the clouds in the atmosphere, above the protective field.
Sometime later, a shadow fell over their bodies, "what're you guys looking at?" Tilly asked.
"We're watching the clouds," Paul told her, his voice light and flowy, much like when he had first injected the tardigrade DNA into his system.
"Can I watch?"
"Of course!" Paul proclaimed, stretching out his other arm he invited Tilly to lay down with them.
After the festivities of the day were over, Tilly asked if they could move their blanket to the beach and watch the stars for a while, they hadn't looked at the stars in this system from this planet before. They agreed, but only for a short while, as they were expecting Jett with some supplementary spores for Paul, who had complained of a headache the previous evening. Jett hadn't much felt like Pride and said she would keep an eye on the Drive and the spores for Paul.
Returning to the hotel suite Paul escaped to his and Hugh's room where he dimmed the lights to accommodate his current sensitivity. Hugh helped Tilly take her hair out and started her shower for her. Checking his PADD he had a message from Jett saying she was leaving the ship and would be there soon. She arrived as Hugh was battling the tangles in Tilly's hair, "ow," she muttered as Jett knocked.
"It's open," Hugh called, defeating the latest tangle. He stood from his seat on the couch and around Tilly, who sat at his feet to greet Jett.
"Sup guys," Jett greeted them, putting the spore container on the table.
"Hey, how's your week been so far?"
"Peaceful, because all the idiots I normally have to deal with are down here on the planet."
"Well nice for some, I'm gonna take these in for him, help yourself to a drink or something. Tilly I won't be long."
"Hey kid," Jett said, sitting on the couch, coffee in her hands. "What's with your hair?"
"It got tangled when I dried it. Papa was helping me get them out, my hair brush got stuck when I tried."
"Want me to take a crack at it?" Tilly looked unsure, Jett took out her ID case and took out a photo, "see this lady here with me? She was my wife, when she was alive her hair was even bigger than yours. I might be a bit out of practise, but I used to be an expert on de-tangling hair." Tilly nodded and shuffled in front of Jett, whose hands worked through her tangles so gently, Tilly barely noticed.
Hugh re-joined them shortly, as Jett announce to Tilly that her hair was tangle free and she had put in a French braid, to keep it secure. Tilly ran her fingers over her work, thrilled, "thank you!" She said, sprinting into her room with Bowie to take a look in her mirror.
"Thank you, you didn't have to do that."
Jett shrugged, "it was nice, I miss being able to do that. Can't exactly do it to myself," she said, gesturing to her own short hair. "He OK?"
"Yeah, he'll be out once they've absorbed." Hugh picked up his own neglected coffee and sipped, it was still warm enough to not be considered lost. Tilly returned and thanked Jett again for her hair.
"You're welcome kid," she replied as the other door opened and Paul returned, wincing slightly at the lights, but his eyes quickly adjusted.
"How're you feeling?" Hugh asked, as Paul went and got himself a tea.
"Better, thank you for bringing me some spores," he said to Reno.
"Yeah, well no one on the crew would thank me if you got sick and couldn't jump us again," she shrugged, "needs of the many and all that."
"I'm sure." Paul said, and Hugh smirked. Paul and Reno were very alike.
"Are you sticking around the planet for some leave or beaming back up?" Hugh asked as they sat down to enjoy their drinks together.
"I booked into a room, I think it's time I gave shore leave a try again. She wouldn't have wanted me to wallow around missing her." They spoke for a while until Paul excused himself to check on Tilly as it was nearly her bedtime. "Before I forget," she said to Hugh, "brought a second canister, in case he needs a pick-me-up."
"Thank you, how thoughtful."
"Don't go sharing that 'round. I got a rep to protect on this ship."
"My lips are sealed." Hugh put the canister aside as Paul returned.
"She was already asleep, so I just tucked her in."
Jett made her excuses and left to settle into her room, leaving Paul and Hugh alone. Hugh locked their suite and felt Paul step behind him, Paul's lips found his neck, dipping his head lower to kiss where Hugh's scar had once been. Hugh moaned, leaning back against him. Hugh turned in his arms, pressing their lips firmly together. Paul held him around the middle, just standing together, kissing. Paul parted their lips and whispered to Hugh, "join me in the shower, my Dear Doctor?" In response Hugh pressed their lips together harder than before as Paul's hands slid lower over his body.
The next morning, after breakfast, Po arrived at their suite, having been invited by Paul and Hugh. They asked if she wanted to spend any more time with Tilly and suggested if she wanted to, she could take her on the rides again as neither of them were partial to them. Hugh gave her his wristband, to locate Tilly, just in case, and Paul kept his on. While they had time to themselves, Hugh and Paul took a day to spend outside of Pride, in the nearby city, on a 'grown-up day'.
First, they visited an art gallery, where Hugh told stories about the art to Paul, who listened attentively -mostly. "What's that smile for?" Hugh asked, pulling Paul out of a daze.
"I just- I never appreciated you and your love of art enough before. Sure, it attracted me to you, but sometimes I just didn't appreciate it enough. Didn't appreciate you enough." Squeezing Hugh's hand tighter in his, Paul leaned over and pressed their lips together in a chaste kiss. "What about this next one?" He asked, as they continued through the gallery.
Tilly and Po were having a blast at the fair, enjoying the rides and attractions. Having had enough of the rides they walked around the other attractions, spending time at the beach party and around the stalls where Po picked up information pamphlets, stashing them in her bag to read later.
When Po returned to the hotel with Tilly, her dads were waiting patiently for them. They thanked Po and handed Tilly her bags. "We're sorry sweetie, we have to go. Something's come up and Discovery is needed urgently." Tilly nodded, understanding.
"OK," she said, she'd had plenty of days at Pride and had enjoyed herself immensely with memories she would cherish forever. At the shuttle port they boarded a shuttle and Tilly watched as they flew away from the Pride and the planet. "Did you tell my friends and their parents?" She asked.
"We did, don't worry, they understand, and they said you and the other kids can talk over your PADDs, so we got those programmed in for you." Hugh explained to her, she nodded accepting his answer.
Finally back on Discovery, they dropped off their bags back in their quarters. Tilly was told to remain in quarters with her tutor until Hugh or Paul returned. Paul and Hugh went to a briefing for the mission. A medical crisis had outbroken on an outer planet in Federation territory, when an off-world virus had gotten passed their security screenings and the unvaccinated populations were suffering as a result. Also boarding were many Starfleet medical experts, being called in from the reserves. Discovery could get there quickest so they needed as many medical personnel as possible to get out to the planet.
Sick-Bay set about vaccinating all crew and passengers, Biological Sciences were working on reproducing a cure that could be administered and Paul had been tasked in getting them there. There was Amorié-Beta-III. A planet on the edge of Federation Space. The planet was not part of the Federation and its relationship was strained, but in desperation they had reached out.
Coming out of the Spore jump Saru made contact with the planet and began dispatching shuttles with vaccinated personnel and cures and vaccines. He told Paul he would need to make a few jumps to different Star-bases to pick up more personnel once people had disembarked. Paul set his team about preparing and harvesting more spores to cater for the jumps. Hugh and Tracy were remaining on board to vaccinate incoming medical officers and brief them, while the majority of Sick-Bay were dispatched to the planet. Within hours clinics were set up in densely populated areas and teams sent out to more rural places.
After vaccinating his last patient Hugh hurried to the Spore Drive to check on Paul. Jett was propping him up. Gathering a canister of spores, they transported him to Sick-Bay to set up an IV with some fluids and a sedative to help him rest. Doing so many jumps was taxing on Paul. Setting up a containment field Hugh released the spores to work their magic on Paul and left him to heal.
Hugh returned to Tilly where he briefed her on what was happening. "A lot of people on the planet were introduced to new germs and their bodies aren't prepared to fight them. That's why we're here, we have cures and vaccines to protect and heal them. I brought one for you, can I give it you?" Tilly nodded, rolling up her sleeve to let him inject her. "Good girl."
"Where's daddy?"
"He's resting up in Sick-Bay, he made a lot of jumps and he's very tired. He isn't sick, but we've given him fluids and some spores to help him feel better. He'll be back with us in the morning."
"OK. Where are we?" Hugh spent the evening telling Tilly about the planet they were here to save. That night he tucked her into bed before getting an update on Paul's condition from Tracy, who assured him Paul was stable. With one last glance over the planet below, Hugh changed the opaqueness on the windows and prepared to turn in for the evening. Knowing nothing could prepare him for what he was likely to face once he himself was sent down to the planet.