Author's Note: Please look at the notes in Chapter 1.
XXX
"Why didn't you tell me about the mover when I came home?" Trip asked T'Pol as they prepared for bed in their semi-furnished bedroom.
"He was removed, the problem was dealt with, I received an apology, there was nothing to report," T'Pol said clearly.
"I realize all that is true," Trip said as he removed his shirt and watched her pull on a small, fitted mint green cotton nightgown. "But, if someone says or does something threatening to my family I'd like to know."
T'Pol just looked at him and said nothing. He had found out about the hostile mover through their bond.
"T'Pol?" Trip asked, with his hands on his hips waiting for her answer. They stood on either side of their bed; Elizabeth fast asleep in her crib down the hallway with the monitor telling them if she stirred.
"I agree," T'Pol said as she pulled back the fresh sheets she'd just washed earlier today. "But, may I remind you, that you failed to inform me of Mr. Hughes at work who had some insulting words about your family?"
"That was…Kevin was…" Trip stammered.
"It was no different then my situation and, actually, you still work with the man, so it's something you should have shared with me immediately," T'Pol explained.
Trip sighed and looked at the floor.
"You're right," Trip conceded. "I'm sorry. It's just the idea of that idiot being in our home with you and Elizabeth…"
T'Pol and Trip climbed into the bed and lay down on their pillows.
"It is understandable," T'Pol said softly in the dark.
Trip turned onto his side and braced his head with his hand. "I'm upping our security system."
T'Pol turned to face him.
"I just want to be sure that no one, that idiot included, can get to either of you," Trip said quietly. The worry in his voice apparent.
"We're on the base, we have a security system on our home, and might I remind you, that Vulcans have superior strength and…"
"I know you could defend…"
"I was going to say, that if anyone seriously threatened our daughter, I don't doubt I would maim them," T'Pol said seriously.
Trip chuckled. "I don't doubt that either darlin'"
He lay back and felt her move toward him and place her head on his chest. Hughes still worked under the Warp Seven project but no longer directly with him. Trip wouldn't be able to look at the man who called his wife a slut and his daughter an abomination, never mind work with him. If Starfleet hadn't been so in need of electricians, he didn't doubt the man would have been fired on the spot.
Trip sighed and closed his eyes.
"Slut?" T'Pol asked, hearing his thoughts.
Trip's eyes opened and he wiped at them with his one hand.
"A derogatory term for a woman who has sex with many people with little regard for commitment, emotions or her…reputation," Trip explained.
"Irony," T'Pol said succinctly.
"I don't think he meant it ironically," Trip explained.
"I agree," T'Pol said. He felt her warm breath against his chest. "But, by definition, I'm the opposite of that derogatory term as I've only had sex with you, we are bonded, emotionally involved, and we are married."
"Yes, T'Pol," Trip chuckled deep and low within his belly. "I don't doubt that for a moment."
All was quiet for a few moments before T'Pol broke the silence.
"You are quite worried about us," T'Pol said as she touched his chest gently.
Trip covered her hand with his and patted it.
"I am," Trip agreed.
They fell into silence for several minutes.
"Did you mean what you said on the phone earlier about trying for another baby?" Trip asked her, worried she'd reconsidered.
There was a long pause before she spoke.
"I find the process of 'trying' fascinating and would like to partake in this whimsical practice," T'Pol said softly.
Trip's brows furrowed and he shifted his head so he could look at her face a little more in the dark of their room.
"Why do you find it fascinating?"
He felt her shift slightly against him and clear her throat.
"All Vulcan children are planned," T'Pol explained. "Parents and doctors will even medically delay pon farr to sync with work schedule commitments. No child on Vulcan ever just…happens. As surprising as Elizabeth was, and overwhelming at first…I have come to enjoy the element of the unknown. I would like to have the same with our next child."
"How incredibly sentimental," Trip said with a smirk as he felt her stiffen. "Ahh T'Pol, it's a compliment, please take it as one."
She relaxed against him and he pulled her just a little closer.
"And without pon farr, and my breast-feeding Elizabeth, conception is unpredictable," T'Pol explained. "Technically, we may not be able to plan our next child."
"But doctors will need to be involved once you're pregnant, right?" Trip asked.
"With our differences in physiology and body chemistry…I will need medical assistance to sustain the pregnancy," T'Pol explained. "Injections, medications, regular monitoring of the pregnancy."
"Sounds pretty risky," Trip said softly, the worry tinging the edges of his voice.
"There will probably be miscarriages, so we cannot invest fully in the pregnancy until we are sure it will continue," T'Pol said as she moved her hand over his rapidly beating heart. She was worried that his human emotions would be pushed to their limits with the possibility of losing several babies.
He nodded slightly and kissed the top of his head.
"Do you wish to start 'trying' tonight?" She asked, hoping she could distract him from the dark thoughts of future losses that were clouding his mind at the moment.
He sighed and kissed the top of her head again.
"No," he said quietly. "I just want to sleep with my arms around you tonight, is that alright?"
"I find this position quite…comforting," T'Pol said against his chest. She could feel his heart beating a little slower in his chest cavity.
T'Pol closed her eyes and could feel the uncertainty and worry about their family across the bond; she could also see he was trying to block those feelings from her. He had just started a new job, their entire lives had changed over the last few months and the future was uncertain in so many ways. He, rightfully, was scared.
T'Pol shifted and pulled herself up along his body so their faces were even. She bent over him and kissed him softly, gently.
"I love you," she whispered as she pulled back and met his eyes.
Trip looked at her and smiled broadly; she didn't say it often, but when she did…it had impact.
"God, I love you," he sighed as he reached up and cupped her cheek.
"Then we will be successful as a family," she said assuredly. "We are two capable adults who love each other and our daughter, with promising careers and futures. There is no need to worry about a small percentage of zealots, non-viable pregnancies in our future, or anything else that is plaguing your mind."
Trip closed his eyes and took a deep breath, feeling the warmth and certainty across their bond. She emanated a sureness of their future that he needed right now as everything changed and threatened them from all sides.
"Thank you," he said softly once his eyes opened.
She gave him a small, almost un-noticeable smile and lay her head back on his chest.
"We should sleep," she said as she played with the hairs on his chest. "I need to wake to feed Elizabeth in 5.3 hours and you…"
"Thank you," he said again, softly. She knew he was thanking her for more than her desire to afford them enough rest for tomorrow. He was thanking her for being a steady presence despite all the changes, some even more radical than his, her life had undergone.
She placed a small peck on his chest and they both settled in for sleep.
XXX
"Just today?" Dmitri asked Trip as they stood with two beers over the barbeque.
"T'Pol placed a video call to me right after she started and there she was! Crawling all over the dining room while T'Pol panicked about any debris that was on the floor that may end up in her mouth," Trip chuckled.
"Once they start moving…" Dmitri chuckled.
"I swear she's going to put those floors through the equivalent of DECON each day so Elizabeth is safe," Trip smirked.
"I hope Courtney has told her we don't treat our grass with anything," Dmitri said as he nodded with his head to T'Pol pulling hunks of grass out of Elizabeth's fist before it entered her mouth.
"T'Pol!" Trip called to her and she looked up immediately. "They don't use pesticides on their grass."
She nodded, but still pulled the grass from Elizabeth's clutches.
"This is going to be an interesting stage," Trip sighed. "Vulcans are almost fanatical about cleanliness."
Dmitri patted Trip on the back and chuckled.
"Courtney!" Dmitri called. "Sausages are ready if you've got the rest?"
"Yep! Good to go," Courtney called as she walked out onto the patio with a large salad. Their son Karl was happily jumping in some sort of baby play contraption.
"Okay, let's eat!" Dmitri said with a smile as he started to place all the sausages on a platter.
Trip left him and went to pick up Elizabeth off the grass so T'Pol could go wash her hands before they ate.
"You going to be a vegetarian like mummy?" Trip asked her as he watched her paw at a blade of grass still stuck to her arm.
"Grass is not a normal part of a vegetarian diet," T'Pol said as she brushed more grass off her daughter's legs.
"A little, pesticide-free, grass never hurt anyone," Trip smirked at her. "Go wash up and I'll get her started on some cereal."
T'Pol nodded and left for the washroom while Trip watched their daughter finally free the one blade of grass from her arm and place it in her mouth. The disgusted face she made caused him to laugh incredibly hard before he pulled the offensive object from her mouth and placed her in her high chair.
"Let's see if you like this better than grass, huh?" Trip asked as he pulled her cereal out of the portable stasis unit they had brought. Elizabeth immediately lit up at the sight of the bowl, knowing what was inside and started to clumsily clap her hands together.
"Wait until she starts to eat real food," Dmitri said as he placed the sausages on the table. "Carl has turned into a regular connoisseur."
Trip looked down the table at the other baby who was playing with mittfuls of mashed potatoes and giggling.
"He looks like he's having the most fun out of all of us," Trip snickered.
"We practically have to bring in a HAZ-MAT team after each meal," Courtney said laughing. "T'Pol might want to sit out of the launch zone."
Trip laughed with them and watched as T'Pol walked back to take in the scene of Karl with the potatoes.
"I see Karl is a fan on root vegetables," T'Pol said as she sat down next to Elizabeth and took the spoon for Trip to continue feeding her.
"Anything he can shove his hands in, at the moment," Courtney smiled warmly.
T'Pol nodded.
"I have some grilled vegetables for you T'Pol and two salads," Courtney said as she took her seat. "I assumed you're vegetarian like most Vulcans."
"I am, thank you for the consideration," T'Pol said warmly.
"You've never had meat?" Dmitri asked, conversationally.
"I have, under special circumstances," T'Pol said as everyone started to get their food.
"The Rigelian Prince," Trip said with a shake of his head.
Both Courtney and Dmitri looked at her intrigued.
"We were invited to dine with a Rigelian Prince on an away mission and it is a cultural insult to refuse food on a plate placed before you," T'Pol explained.
"Our communications officer had sent the specifics of our diet, including T'Pol being a vegetarian," Trip added. "But the Rigelian Prince's staff assumed vegetarian was a preference, not a requirement."
"Oh, crap," Courtney said astounded. "So, there was meat?"
"Red meat," T'Pol sighed.
"And you ate it?" Dmitri asked.
"I had to," T'Pol said softly. "It would have been an insult to their culture and I was representing Starfleet."
"How'd you do with it?" Courtney asked, already thinking of how hard the task must have been for her.
"I ate it quickly so as not to prolong the experience," T'Pol explained. "And ate two servings of vegetables to help with the…unease in my stomach."
"She spent the entire night sick," Trip explained as he placed a hand on her knee under the table. "I stayed with her in Sick Bay."
"Which was unnecessary," T'Pol added.
"You were sweating, grey, vomiting and shaking," Trip said as he turned to face her a little more fully. "You think I was just going to leave you like that?"
She nodded in agreement and said nothing else.
"I'm sorry you had to go through that," Courtney said kindly. "But I guess it's good it was just the once…"
"Well, there was the time with the fish…" Trip said as he looked back toward his audience as they filled their plates with food. "Now, to understand that story, you need to know that Vos is a planet with unpredictable weather patterns…"
Trip amazed and delighted their captive audience with stories well into the evening. T'Pol added information and clarification as necessary. Later that evening, she placed Elizabeth in her portable crib asleep and sat down next to Trip on an outdoor sofa.
"So how did you and Dmitri meet?" Trip asked the pair of them as he wrapped an arm around T'Pol's back. "As far as I know, he was in Czech until you married."
"I was in Prague on a teaching exchange," Courtney explained. "Dmitri's family lived next door to my host family. He and I became friends and then…more."
"I was never more grateful for my English lessons," Dmitri chuckled. "Most of my family only spoke Czech. If I hadn't spoken English, I would never had been able to take her for coffee."
"So, you romanced her over coffee?" Trip smirked.
"He was a smooth talker, especially for an ESL," Courtney said as she took Dmitri's hand in hers.
"ESL?" T'Pol inquired.
"English as a Second Language," Trip explained. "So how long until you were married?"
Courtney and Dmitri looked at each other and smiled.
"Two months," they said in unison.
"Everyone was shocked when I came back to the US with a husband," Courtney explained.
"So, you didn't inform your family?" T'Pol asked.
"No, I figured once they met him they'd love him," Courtney explained. "Hearing about him in advance would only create doubt. I didn't want to give them months to come up with reasons why we should annul the marriage."
"That seems like a logical course of action," T'Pol nodded.
"How'd you two get together?" Courtney asked. "I mean, if you don't want to say that's…"
"Same story really," Trip said with a soft smile as he eyed T'Pol. "We were friends and I romanced her over tea, not coffee."
T'Pol looked at him and raised an eyebrow. It was a very simplified explanation of their romantic past.
"And my family also didn't learn about T'Pol until after Elizabeth," Trip said as he reached for his beer. "Same sort of reason as you."
"Trip's family was quite welcoming," T'Pol added.
"So was Courtney's," Dmitri added. "They made me part of their family."
T'Pol nodded in agreement; she had felt the same about Trip's family.
"Are you able to visit your family often?" T'Pol inquired.
"About once every couple of years," Dmitri explained. "You?"
"My immediate family is dead," T'Pol explained without emotion. "My extended family I have not seen in 12.4 years."
"I'm so sorry," Courtney said kindly.
T'Pol looked at her confused.
"We're hoping to go back to Vulcan in a year or so," Trip said, knowing he needed to salvage the conversation. "I'm looking forward to meeting her extended family then."
"That will be nice," Courtney smiled at the pair. "The stories Dmitri has told me about Enterprise, and what I've seen on the news…well, you two lived a very exciting life. Are you sure you'll be alright in Houston?"
Trip chuckled. "We're just fine with some lack of excitement for a while."
"A starship is not a place to raise a child," T'Pol explained.
"It sounds incredibly dangerous," Courtney hedged. "I watched a news report about…"
"Courtney, please don't…"
"No, it's fine," Trip said.
"There was radiation and you all had to live in this small area of the ship…" Courtney continued.
"Yes, that was…well, it put everyone's nerves to the test," Trip explained. "Cramped quarters, the temperature quite uncomfortable…"
"I didn't find it uncomfortable," T'Pol added.
"You're Vulcan darlin' you like the heat," Trip said with a smirk. "The rest of us were not so lucky. But we pulled together, got through and probably were better for the experience."
"Except the toilet facilities," T'Pol explained. "No one appreciated those."
"I only had a few hours to get my crew to set those up and…" Trip said, annoyed. It was the biggest complaint he'd heard about the experience from pretty much everyone.
"I'm not blaming you," T'Pol said nicely. "I'm merely pointing out that they were inadequate for the number of people in the catwalk."
"But no one was hurt by the radiation?" Dmitri asked.
"No, we were all fine," Trip sighed. "Despite the Princess' complaint."
"Princess? There was no princess aboard at the time," T'Pol noted.
"I meant you," Trip said with a smirk.
"Oh," T'Pol said.
"I remember reading that you encountered royalty from other worlds several times," Courtney said excitedly.
"Some were more close encounters than others," T'Pol said dryly as she eyed Trip.
Trip cleared his throat and looked toward the house. "Was that Elizabeth?"
"No," T'Pol said assuredly. "But it is almost time for her next feeding."
"I'm sorry, we better get going," Trip said as he stood and looked at their hosts. "We still have a crapload to unpack tomorrow and we should get Elizabeth in her crib."
"No worries," Dmitri said as everyone else stood as well. "This move is huge for you two."
"Are we on for the children's centre on Tuesday?" Courtney asked T'Pol.
"I will meet you there at 1:00," T'Pol nodded as she gathered her sweater from a nearby chair.
"Thank you so much for having us," Trip said as he shook Dmitri's hand and hugged Courtney. "It was a great evening."
"I look forward to more stories about space exploration," Courtney said excitedly.
"I think all your stories have created a bit of a space junkie," Dmitri said as he walked them to Elizabeth.
Twenty minutes later they were pushing Elizabeth home in her buggy.
"You seem to like Courtney," Trip said to T'Pol.
"She is very nice and I like her parenting style," T'Pol said as she did up her sweater, the night was cooler suddenly.
"Her parenting style?" Trip asked.
"Kind, attentive, not indulgent, but supportive," T'Pol explained.
"You got all that from a couple of meetings?" Trip asked.
"I'm highly observant," T'Pol said as she walked a little closer to him, hoping to get some of his body heat.
"Cold?" He asked stopping their forward motion.
She looked at him confused and then realized what he was doing as he shrugged off his jacket and handed it to her. She put it on without preamble and relished in the heat from his body that was still present in the cloth. They then continued to walk home.
"Why'd you bring up the princess? That was a long time ago," Trip noted as they turned onto their street.
"I apologize," she said softly. "I reacted emotionally to my remembrance of her."
Trip nodded and said nothing.
"You know it was just physical with her right? No emotions, no future?" Trip asked.
"I think that's what was most disturbing," T'Pol explained.
Trip looked at her confused.
"That you could separate your physical experience and the emotional one," T'Pol explained. "For a Vulcan, there are no casual relationships."
"I get that," Trip smirked at her. "It bothered you?"
"Not at the time," T'Pol explained. "But once we became involved…"
"You thought about it," Trip finished for her.
"I did," she admitted. "I wasn't sure you were as invested as I was."
"You did get married," Trip explained. "To another man."
"You know that was not…"
"I know," Trip said, stopping to look at her more closely. They were at the end of their driveway.
"I spent an illogical amount of time considering the possibility that I was also a casual relationship for you," T'Pol explained. "I concluded, eventually, that I was not."
"How did you conclude that?" Trip asked.
"When the bond was made..clear," T'Pol explained. "I could feel your commitment to me."
"So, you didn't trust what I said?" Trip asked, confused.
"I did," she admitted. "To a point. The bond solidified my belief."
Trip nodded and started to push the stroller up the driveway.
"When were you sure about me? About my commitment?" T'Pol asked.
Trip looked at her and smiled as he pulled out the keys to their home.
"When I came back on board after Columbia," Trip said with a grin. "You came to my quarters that night and followed me around like a lost puppy for days."
T'Pol looked affronted. "I did not."
"You didn't come to my quarters and have your way with me?" Trip asked.
T'Pol tilted her head slightly to the side, she couldn't argue with that.
"But I didn't follow you around like a canine," she said.
"T'Pol," he sighed as he unlocked the door and looked at her. "I couldn't stop short without you practically bumping into me."
She knitted her eyebrows together; logically she couldn't argue with the point he was making, but she also didn't want to concede the point.
"I'll get Elizabeth's crib ready," T'Pol said as she walked past him.
"You can't deny it," Trip whispered loudly after her as he maneuvered the stroller inside.
