Author's Notes: I know I should be working on my other WIPs but...this just came to me. You'll need to be patient though-their relationship is complicated, and it'll be a while before we see the light. I'm a hard core Trip/T'Pol person so have no fear! Let me know what you think!

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Trip Tucker slowly came to wakefulness and took a deep breath. It was Sunday morning, he had nowhere to go and nothing to do. He looked to his left and noted that the sun was well into the sky, so it must be late morning. The weather in San Diego was perfect this time of year, neither too warm or too cold. He may go for a run down by the beach later today, depending on where the day took him.

"Penny for your thoughts," the woman laying in the crook of his arm asked.

"Not worth a penny," Trip chuckled as he leaned down and kissed the top of her head.

"I beg to differ," she said as a hand moved up to stroke his pectoral muscle.

"Well now, those thoughts are changing moment to moment when you do things like that," Trip smirked down at her.

"What are your thoughts, right. Now?" She asked as she snaked a naked leg around his under the thin sheet that lay over top of them.

"That I'm not quite feeling the need to get up, just yet," Trip said as he rolled on top of her and took her mouth with his.

"I was thinking the exact same thing," she said with a smile as their lips parted.

"Were you now?" Trip asked with a quirked eyebrow.

"I was," she smirked back at him.

"Don't you have projects to grade?" Trip asked as he kissed down her neck and onto her shoulder.

"They can wait," she huffed as he started to lower even further under the blankets.

"Ms. Woods," Trip said as he nuzzled a nipple. "I don't know if you are as committed to your students as you say you are."

"They get much better grades if I'm in a good mood when I mark their work," Marlie said as she arched her back.

"Then let me see what I can do about getting your class a bunch of A's," Trip said before he sucked her nipple into his mouth.

XXX

Captain T'Pol rose from her meditation pose and stretched her arms above her head. She needed to leave for Earth today to get the schematics for the new transporter beam that was going to be installed on her ship. She probably should have made arrangements to meet up with one of her colleagues from Enterprise while she was there, but had forgotten about the Earth custom of informing friends when you were in town. She had spent so much time on the Mars colony overseeing the construction of multiple ships that being on Earth after all this time would seem quite foreign.

"Maybe one day's notice is enough?" T'Pol asked herself as she eyed the comm in the corner.

Deciding that short notice was better than seeing no one and being called a recluse again, T'Pol walked toward the comm unit. It was almost 11 am Earth time in San Diego, not too early to contact anyone. She placed the call and waited for the screen to light up when answered.

"T'Pol!" Jonathan Archer's voice called out loudly as he appeared on her screen.

"Commodore," T'Pol addressed him formally.

"I thought we agreed?" Jon teased.

T'Pol sighed. "Jon."

"Thank you," Jonathan Archer smiled back at her. "Is this a social call or about Starfleet business?"

"It is a social call, although I am returning to Earth on Starfleet business," T'Pol clarified.

"Meetings for NX-8?" Jon inquired.

"No, schematics for the new transporter that will be installed on all Ursula Ships," T'Pol clarified.

"Ahhh, I heard they were working out some bugs with the beam still," Jon nodded.

"Apparently, all the 'bugs' are gone," T'Pol said stiffly. "But I need to pick up the schematics personally as the information is classified and with the recent…"

"Yeah, that was a hell of a breach," Jon interrupted. "When will you be in town?"

"Tomorrow," T'Pol answered. "But if you already have plans, I completely understand."

"I'd cancel them if I did," Jon smiled back at her. "Fortunately, I have nothing on the books."

"How fortunate," T'Pol agreed.

"How many years has it been?" Jon asked.

"Two years five months and four days," T'Pol said clearly. She had been back to Earth once since then, but Jon had not been aware of that trip and T'Pol felt that now was not the time to share that information with him.

"Well, I think that calls for a get together!" Jon said happily. "Trip lives in town, and Malcolm, I think is here for some Security Briefings…"

"Captain, it's not necessary," T'Pol started.

"Hoshi is in Canada right now, but she may be able to pop in for the night," Jon continued, ignoring her. "Travis is on Jupiter Station training recruits, it may be a challenge for him to join us…"

"Captain, I am pleased to just join you for dinner," T'Pol started.

"Nonsense!" Jon said dismissively. "Now, Phlox has been off planet for a bit, working on some lung illness on Mensa One, so he won't be there, but it'd be nice to assemble some of the old crew for a night. I'll comm everyone and see who can show."

"All of this trouble is unnecessary…" T'Pol hedged.

"No trouble at all!" Jon said with a smile. "Send me your travel details and I'll send you the arrangements. I'm so glad you didn't sneak back and leave before I had a chance to see you."

T'Pol sighed and nodded before the comm link was dropped. This was exactly what she didn't want. She closed her eyes and cursed herself for giving in to human politeness.

XXX

Trip Tucker rolled out the large drawings and looked at the schematics he'd just had delivered. T'Pol was coming to pick them up this afternoon and he asked Sunarka in Design if he could be the one to give them to her. He hadn't seen her in almost a year and wanted to avoid any awkwardness that may be present tonight at the get together.

"Nice choices, Sunarka" he said under his breath as he eyed the altered materials list. He had always been impressed with his work, but this was…art.

Trip spent the better part of an hour looking at the designs and thinking of things he could talk with T'Pol about. The materials for sure. Possibly the beam refraction…

Truthfully, Trip was nervous about seeing her again. The last time he'd seen her had not went well, he was hoping that they could put it behind them and move forward this time. When Jon called yesterday to tell him about T'Pol's trip, part of him wanted to say he had plans. It would have been a lie, but it would have kept them from the awkwardness that would come along with the meeting. Then Jon mentioned that she was picking up schematics and Trip got the idea for them to pre-meet. If it went well, he'd go tonight. If it went ass-backwards he'd feign illness.

Rolling up the plans and placing them carefully in the tube, Trip returned to his desk and went over the new Warp testing parameters until she arrived.

Just after 2pm Trip got a comm from the central administrative assistant.

"Trip, I've got a Captain T'Pol here for you," Cathy said over the link.

"I'll come and pick her up," Trip said as he rose from his chair. "Tell her to hold tight."

Trip walked down the corridor toward the reception area, absently fixing his hair as he moved; he hadn't been this nervous around her in a long time and he chastised himself for these feelings.

"T'Pol!" Trip greeted her loudly as he walked into the reception area.

"Chief Commander Tucker," T'Pol said with a slight nod. She had been surprised about his interference with her schematics, thinking he probably wasn't even going to attend tonight's gathering.

"Follow me," Trip said with a smile as he led her down the corridor to his office. He was sweating profusely, yet she seemed to be unaffected. It was times like this that he wished they hadn't allowed their bond to die, then he would be able to know if she was as uncomfortable as he was.

Trip gestured for her to enter before him and then he shut the door behind them.

"How are you, T'Pol?" Trip asked as he walked past her to his desk and absently touched her waist.

She stiffened at his contact and tried to recover by taking a deep breath.

"I am doing well," T'Pol said as she watched him take a seat. "I won't take any more of your time…if I could just have the schematics?"

"Have a seat," Trip said softly as he met her eyes.

T'Pol took a deep breath and sat down in the chair opposite his desk.

Trip and she sat in silence for a long time before he spoke.

"I would like to talk about the last time we…the last time you were here," Trip amended.

"There's something to discuss?" T'Pol asked, trying to control her feelings.

"You don't think?" Trip asked with a raised eyebrow; now he was getting annoyed.

"I should apologize for leaving without saying goodbye," T'Pol began. "That was impolite."

"You left in the middle of the night," Trip said. "Refused my calls when I tried to contact you. Blocked my e-mails…you think we should talk about that?"

"It was a mistake," T'Pol said as she met his eyes. "We should have not allowed ourselves to become involved again."

"I feel like it's the same conversation we've been having for about 12 years," Trip said as he massaged his temple. "After Elizabeth…"

"It was for the best," T'Pol interrupted him.

"After Elizabeth you needed time," Trip nodded. "But then over the last ten years of our mission there were…what? Four other times?"

"Five," T'Pol corrected him.

Trip closed his eyes and nodded. "Five if you count our first night off ship."

"Yes," T'Pol said softly. "It wasn't until the next day that we were released from our duties on Enterprise."

"Regardless," Trip started. "We took them for what they were. Lonely nights spent together. There was no…no harsh feelings. No expectations. But, there wasn't this…this total…"

"I…it was different," T'Pol said softly.

"Different?" Trip asked.

"Different," T'Pol said, simply.

"How?" Trip asked, surprised.

"I'd stayed with you for three days," T'Pol said as she avoided his eyes.

"Yeah," Trip said confused.

"It was too much," T'Pol offered.

Trip looked at her confused and said nothing.

"After our last sexual encounter," T'Pol said as she shyly met his eyes. "I could feel you."

"You were laying practically on top of me, of course you could…" Trip started.

T'Pol's head snapped up quickly and suddenly Trip knew what she meant.

"Oh, you mean…?"

"Yes," T'Pol said quietly.

"Oh," Trip sighed. "Why…why didn't you say?"

"I was…upset…confused…" T'Pol offered. "I felt that we needed to stop all contact, so I could get my control back and you…you could go on with your life."

"Go on with my life?" Trip chuckled. "Do you have any idea how worried I was about you?"

"I'm sorry," T'Pol apologized.

"I contacted Commander Dalton to check in on you for god's sakes," Trip said, his voice loud. "Do you know how that looks?"

"I didn't realize…"

"He is one of the worst gossips in Starfleet, but he was the only one travelling to Mars that I knew," Trip said annoyed. "For months I was teased by everyone and their fucking brother about my Vulcan girlfriend."

"Trip, I'm…" T'Pol started.

"All I needed was to know I hadn't done something, hadn't said something to hurt you, hadn't harmed you in some way…because T'Pol, that's all I needed to know. I didn't need a relationship, a bond, a girlfriend…I just needed to know that everything was okay between us. And…and you took that away from me."

T'Pol closed her eyes and sighed.

"I am deeply sorry," T'Pol said honestly.

"Thank you for that," Trip sighed. "Thank you."

T'Pol met his eyes and felt she should say more.

"I was scared of you, of…us," T'Pol said softly. "You have always scared me. My feelings for you have always scared me. I have rarely been brave enough to face them."

Trip swallowed hard. She had said everything he had always felt about her.

"T'Pol, we…things have never been simple for us," Trip said softly. "There's something visceral…"

She nodded in agreement.

Trip sat back in his chair, unsure of what to say next.

"You'll be there tonight?" She asked.

Trip looked at her surprised.

"Uh, yeah, me, Malcolm, Jon and Hoshi," Trip said. "How longs it been since you've seen…?"

"Two years, five months, four days since I have seen Jonathan. Two years, five months and six days since I have seen Captain Reed and…"

"Gotta love that Vulcan memory," Trip chuckled.

"Trip I am sorry for how I left things," T'Pol said softly. "It was wrong, and I hope you can forgive me. I hope we can continue to be friends."

Trip huffed softly and nodded. "Of course. T'Pol, we'll always be friends. You're…you're too much a part of me."

Trip stood from his chair and reached for her schematics and handed them to her.

"Thank you," she said as she took them from him.

"You're really going to be taking Ursula One on a three-year mission?" Trip asked as he walked her from his office.

"We leave in two months," T'Pol said confidently.

"I look forward to hearing about it tonight, see you at seven?" Trip asked her as they approached the reception. He wanted to place his hand on the small of her back and kiss her on the cheek, but he knew that she would disapprove of this in public. Also, after their conversation, it was probably not a good idea.

"I will see you in a few hours," T'Pol nodded before she left. Trip stood and watched after her for a long time before he turned and went back to his office.

XXX

"And he said, 'no sir, not me!'" Malcolm exclaimed as everyone burst out laughing around him.

"And you just let it go?" Trip asked before he took another swig from his beer.

"What could I do? He was covered in sludge and…"

"Was any of it toxic?" T'Pol asked, joining the conversation.

"Not toxic, per say," Malcolm said with a smirk as he called over the waitress. "But he did have an orange tinge to his skin for about a week."

"Malcolm, you didn't inform him of the counter-reaction?" Hoshi asked smiling.

"I felt the orange tinge was a nice reminder to follow orders next time," Malcolm chuckled.

"And that's why you are one of the best Captains in the fleet," Jon said as he clapped Malcolm on the back.

"Thank you," Malcolm smiled. "Soon to be joined in the galaxy by Captain T'Pol."

"Here, here!" Jon said as he raised his glass.

"How many Captaincy's have you turned down?" Malcolm asked Trip.

"Not many," Trip smirked.

"I heard the number was at seven," Hoshi said as she nudged Trip's shoulder.

"You've got to be joking," Trip sighed as he reached for the new drink that had been placed in front of him.

It was coming up on midnight and the friends had been talking, reminiscing, and laughing for hours.

"Officially, five," Jon said as he clinked glasses with Trip. "He's got the current record at Starfleet."

"Why do you keep turning them down?" Hoshi asked him.

"I just like living on Earth right now," Trip smirked.

"Does it have anything to do with Marlie?" Malcolm said as he bumped Trip with his shoulder.

"Marlie?" Hoshi and Jon asked at once.

Trip focused on his drink and refused to make eye contact with the one person at the table that may be bothered by this news.

"Just someone I've been seeing," Trip said softly.

"For how long?" Hoshi asked as her eyes darted toward T'Pol who seemed to be shifting in her seat and studying the table before her.

"A few months," Trip said. "Can we not talk about…"

"That's got to be the record, isn't it?" Malcolm continued, oblivious to Trip's level of discomfort.

"In the two years he's been on Earth there have been a few women, but none that lasted that long, to my knowledge," Jon said loudly.

"How about you Mal? Anyone on board that…?" Trip tried to shift the conversation away from himself.

"She's an elementary school teacher," Malcolm said. "Red hair."

He waggled his eyebrows at everyone knowingly.

"Okay, I think I need to settle up," Trip said as he rose from his seat and walked away from the group.

"He's awfully sensitive," Jon said with a furrowed brow.

"I think it's getting serious," Malcolm said quietly. "She's met his parents."

"Oh man," Hoshi said as he watched T'Pol look toward Trip as he paid for his bill at the bar.

"I think he wants kids," Jon said as he too looked toward Trip. "He's in his forties now…"

"How old is she?" Hoshi asked.

"Mid-thirties, I think," Malcolm said.

They all nodded.

"You ever think you want kids?" Hoshi asked everyone else at the table.

"God, no," Malcolm scoffed. "Commodore?"

"Missed that boat a long time ago," Jon said wistfully.

"I don't know, Jon," Hoshi said playfully. "Find yourself a young woman who…"

"Could be my daughter? No thank you. Just because Admiral Takamoto has a twenty-five-year-old wife doesn't mean the rest of us need to follow suit."

"T'Pol?" Hoshi asked, drawing her attention away from Trip.

"No, I…I think my career and lack of a mate dictates a childless future," T'Pol surmised as she met Hoshi's eyes.

"What about you Hosh?" Malcolm asked.

"Funny you should ask…" Hoshi said as she smiled from ear to ear.

"You're not?!" Jon yelled.

"Three months," Hoshi said as she bounced in her chair.

"I was wondering why you weren't drinking those stupid cocktails you used to like!" Malcolm said as he leaned in and hugged her. "Congratulations!"

"You are with child?" T'Pol clarified.

"Yes, a boy," Hoshi said.

"Congratulations are in order," T'Pol said kindly. "You will make an excellent mother. I had not realized you had married."

"We're not," Hoshi said. "Lloyd and I have been together for over a year and…well, we just didn't see the need to marry."

"But you decided to have children?" T'Pol asked.

"It's not like we decided…it just kind of happened," Hoshi admitted. "But we couldn't be happier."

"Couldn't be happier about what?" Trip asked as he joined the group.

"Guess who is going to be a mum?" Malcolm asked as he eyed Hoshi.

"Oh Hosh, that's amazing," Trip said as he leaned down and hugged her tight. "When?"

"In autumn," Hoshi said as he released her.

"You're going to be an amazing mom," Trip said with an ear-to-ear smile. "That's…well, that's…"

Trip was a little choked up and he wiped at his eyes.

"Oh Trip," Hoshi said softly.

"I'm just real happy for you," Trip said as he straightened and stood up. "I want to know when that baby is born because I'm coming to visit."

"Deal," Hoshi said with a smile.

"I better get going everyone, I've got Warp testing in the morning and…"

"Boo!" Malcolm called.

"Unlike a cushy Captaincy, some of us have a six am call," Trip said as he clapped Malcolm on the back. "Jon, I'll see you at the gala. Mal, I'll leave the door open, so you can come inside without waking up my entire neighborhood. And T'Pol…"

"It was nice seeing you again Trip," T'Pol said as she stood and held out a hand for him to shake.

"Best of luck on Ursula…you're going to be a great Captain," Trip said with a warm smile as he clasped her one hand with both of his.

"Thank you," T'Pol said as they shook hands. "Best of luck with the Warp Trials and your school teacher."

Trip couldn't hide the shock on his face. She really was letting go and he needed to do the same.

"Thanks," Trip said before they dropped hands. He waved at everyone and was off.

XXX

Corporal Chang stared at the child sitting across from him at the conference table.

"It is illogical to not give your name," Chang said kindly to the young girl.

"Where are my parents?" the girl inquired.

"Your mother is being operated on and your father has been detained," Chang explained. "Now, your name?"

The child looked at him annoyed.

Chang knew that the two people she claimed were her parents weren't her parents. She was a half-Vulcan child with blonde hair and blue eyes. She looked incredibly familiar to him, but he couldn't place how. The people that were her 'parents' were not Vulcan, or blonde haired and blue-eyed. Her 'mother' was pale skinned with black hair and brown eyes. Her 'father' was Xindi humanoid.

"Nova," the child finally said.

"Thank you, Nova," Chang smiled at the young girl. "How old are you?"

Nova sighed. "Six."

"And have you always lived on the cargo ship with your parents?" Change asked. Her parents had been detained for smuggling arms in a far corner of the quadrant.

Nova looked at him annoyed.

"I'll take that as a 'yes'," Chang smiled at her.

"When can I see my father?" Nova asked.

"He's being questioned right now," Chang said. "Have you seen many planets?"

"More then you," Nova said as she sat back and crossed her arms.

"Probably," Chang chuckled.

"Have you been in school?" Chang asked her.

Nova said nothing.

"I'm just saying that you seem pretty sm…"

Just then a medical team walked into the office they were sitting in and stood at the door.

"Can I help you?" Chang asked the MACO MEDS.

"We need a blood sample from the girl," the lead MED said with authority.

"Uh, okay, Nova…"

"No!" Nova yelled as she pulled her legs up onto the chair and formed a small ball.

"Nova, they are doctors and…"

"No!" Nova screamed again.

"Nova…" Chang said gently.

"We don't have time for this," the lead MED said as the others walked around to either side of Nova and pulled her arms open from her chest. Nova screamed in horror.

"Hey, she's just a little girl!" Chang yelled at them.

They ignored him, and he watched Nova scream as a blood sampler punctured her skin for a few seconds and gathered the blood needed. One MED dropped a band-aid haphazardly on the conference table as they marched out and Chang was left looking at the young girl crying as she cowered in a ball on the chair.

"I'm sorry Nova," Chang said as he carefully approached the young girl. "They shouldn't have…"

Nova continued to cry.

"Nova…" Chang said softly as he patted her back.

"I want my mummy," Nova said as she hid her face and cried.

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