Disclaimer: I do not own many of these characters.
Author's Note: Thank you for the reviews, even the criticisms. I leave them here, because I do believe in freedom of speech. However, that freedom also givesmethe right to respond or ignore as I see fit. In response to some attacks on my having watchedEnterprise: as a matter of fact, I have. And while I hate to throw a limb in the spoke of the 'Vulcans are Saints' bandwagon... two episodes (not the only two I have watched, but the two that several people seem to be choosing to ignore) 'Fusion' and 'Stigma' both address the issue of Vulcan prejudice... and yes it does exist – especially to displays of emotion. They are not perfect. As to T'Pol's Panar Syndrome... there are two points to be made here: One, she may be acting somewhat irrationally (or overcompensating with logic) due to the fact that her condition is worsening. Two, belonging to a minority group or suffering from a handicap does not automatically engender sympathy for others. I'm sorry, but I'm not here to make people happy, I'm here to tell a story. And if you think it's that bad... why are you still here?
We've come to Earth... which makes sense because Daddy's from here. But we don't go to Florida where Daddy was brought up... instead we're in San Francisco. Now that we're here, Daddy's nervous again.
"This is stupid," he mutters. "There's no way..."
"Why is it stupid, Daddy?" I look again at the house we've come to... it's one of those tall narrow ones that you see around here. We're sitting on the step... mostly because Daddy won't ring the bell and stops me every time I try to do it.
"It's... it's... it's complicated, sweetheart." He's vocalising, mainly because he's keeping a tight grip on my left hand, reducing me to spelling things out. Suddenly he gets up and we begin to leave.
"Trip?" Daddy stops suddenly at the sound of a voice behind us. He turns slowly, and he begins to tremble. I squeeze his hand, knowing that he's scared. A tall man comes down the sidewalk towards us, there's streaks of grey in his dark hair. His gaze flicks down to me for a moment, then back to Daddy with a question.
"Hey, Jon." Daddy smiles the smile he has for when he's uncomfortable. "You weren't home... we were just... long time, no see."
Jon – I have no other name for him, just the one Daddy used – looks uncomfortable too. "Eight years... and now..."
"Um... yeah. Um... Jon, I'd like you to meet Ivy. Ivy, this is Jon."
I nod to him, unsure that he'll be able to understand me.
"So is this a social call?" His eyes take in our bags, and he seems to realise that it's not.
"I couldn't think of anywhere else, Jon. I'm sorry, I'm an idiot..." Daddy turns to go again.
"Yes, you are. You've made it all the way here... you might as well come the rest of the way." He looks at me again, and one of his eyebrows quirks. "Ivy? That seems a little out of the Tucker..."
"Four, Jon. Her first name's Charley."
Jon is obviously familiar with the Tucker family tradition, because he chuckles. "Okay. That makes sense. What doesn't..." He closes the door behind us and waits while we take off our shoes.
"It's over, Jon. T'Pol and I. It was stupid to begin with..." Daddy lets me go and pulls in on himself, wrapping his arms around his chest like he does when he's upset. "Can we discuss..."
Jon nods. "Hey, Ivy. Do you want to go sit in the living room? You can watch some movies if you'd like." I know what he's really saying... that he and Daddy want to have a private conversation. I nod back, and follow him into the next room. He shows me how the movies work, then he and Daddy go off to another room. I put a movie on so he thinks I'm watching, then creep over to the door.
"...and I know, I'm probably being insane here... but I couldn't think of anywhere else to go. I'm no good at being alone, Jon... I know I have no right..."
"It's been eight years, Trip." Jon's voice is flat... like he's trying not to say too much of anything.
"I know... I know. But... I'm crazy. You've got..." Daddy's crying. I want to tell him it'll be okay, but I know I can't go in there, or they'll know I was listening. I shouldn't... but I'm still worried about Daddy.
"Eight years is a long time, Trip. It's almost as long as..."
"I know. But you gotta understand, Jon... Lorien... Ivy... you know I've..."
"I know. It was always one of those things... it was an issue we never got around to dealing with." Jon sounds sad now, too. "Look. You can stay here tonight... we'll talk tomorrow, okay?"
I don't hear an answer from Daddy, but I decide it's time to do something. I push open the door, pretending that I just got there.
"Can I have a glass of water, Daddy? I'm thirsty."
Jon looks at me in surprise – he looks more surprised when Daddy answers me back the same way.
"Of course, punkin. How's the movie?"
I shrug, because I have no idea.
"Would you like something to eat, Ivy?" Jon speaks slowly and clearly, making sure he faces me directly. I can't help it -- I giggle.
"She's not deaf, Jon." At the same time Daddy tells me that it's not nice for me to giggle at someone else's mistake.
"Oh."
I look around for something to write on, there's an old-fashioned white-board and pen on the fridge. As Daddy gets me a glass of water, I take it down and tug on Jon's sleeve.
"Um..." Jon looks over at Daddy then down at me.
I roll my eyes and tug on his sleeve again.
"Okay, punkin. We'll come and watch with you." Daddy starts towards the living room.
I shake my head. "You stay here. He and I need to talk."
Daddy looks panicked, but he can see I'm not in a mood to argue. Instead he goes and sits down at the kitchen table and begins to play with the place mat.
I pull on Jon's sleeve again, until he follows me into the living room. We sit on the couch, and I hold the whiteboard in my lap.
Who are you?I write.
"Jonathan Archer." He speaks softly, because he realises I want a private conversation too. "I was your Daddy's captain on board Enterprise. That's where your Daddy met your Mommy."
Where did Daddy meet you?I erase the first question, and put this one in its place.
"At Starfleet Academy. We were involved with the same research project."
Time to take a wild guess.Do you love my Daddy?
His head jerks up as he reads that one. "What do you mean?"
I underline the question, so he knows I'm asking it again.
He takes a deep breath. "Why do you ask..."
Daddy said he loved someone other than Mother. Then we came here. Is it you?
Jon swallows nervously. "Did he say..."
I shake my head.He wouldn't tell me. I think he was afraid that the person wouldn't like me. He didn't want me to be disappointed.I take my time with the last word, spelling it with my hand as I write it down.
"I don't think that's the case, Ivy. It's a lot more complicated..."
Grown-ups always say that. I make one of the faces that Daddy says will become permanent if I don't watch it.
"That's because it is. Your Daddy and I were very close for a long time..."
Then me and Lorien came along.I can do math... I know that it's been eight years since they've seen each other, and Lorien and I are eight years old. And if there's one thing Daddy would give up anything for, it's us kids.
"Yes... your Daddy has always wanted a family... and..." He swallows again, and looks away.
Do you still love him?I know he must have once... or why would he be so upset now? It's another thing I can take the blame for: if I hadn't been born then Daddy would still be happy, and probably Jon too. Mother would probably have been better off as well.
Jon must sense or see what I'm thinking, because he takes hold of my chin like my Daddy does and looks me straight in the eye. "It's not your fault that things happened, Ivy. You can't blame..."
I underline the question, twice. It is my fault, which is why I have to fix it. I'm not letting him get away with avoiding the question... as Daddy says, some things need to be met head on.
Jon sighs. "Yes, Ivy... I never stopped. But it's been a long time... people change..."
Daddy loves you. I know that Jon must be who Daddy was talking about... but I don't know why Daddy wouldn't tell me. Jon seems nice... and he isn't scared of me at all.
"It's not that simple."
I roll my eyes, because grown-ups always say that, too.But we can try, right? If it doesn't work, I can always go...I pause for a moment, and decide I might be able to lie to Jon.I can always go back and live with Mother.
Jon sighs and stares at the ceiling. "I don't think you understand, Ivy..."
If you love Daddy, and Daddy loves you... what's wrong with it?Admittedly it's not a Vulcan arrangement, for it isn't logical. Clearly Daddy and Jon can't create children... but they don't need to, either.
"I can see you've got the family Stubborn." He shakes his head, but he's smiling. "We'll have to see."
I smile back, knowing he's hooked. There's one more thing I want to make sure of, though. I put down the whiteboard and free up my hands. I point to myself, and sign my name. I.V. Jon watches me carefully.
I repeat the gesture, then nod at him. Slowly he raises his right hand, and signs it himself.
I give him a hug – Daddy's not the only impulsive one in the family – then sit back again. Pointing at him, I sign his name. It takes a couple of tries, but he gets it. Then he asks me for one more thing.
I pull him back into the kitchen, where Daddy is shredding some paper. I show him Jon's name, then tell him that we're staying.
"Thanks, Jon. I appreciate it."
"You're welcome." Jon doesn't vocalise it, merely uses the gesture I taught him.
Daddy stands up, and he's crying again. He gives Jon a hug, holding him tighter than I've ever seen him hug anybody, including Mother. I know it's not just because he loves Jon, but that Jon has made more effort in five minutes to accept me, than Mother has in my lifetime. Watching them, I can't help but hope.