Disclaimer: I don't own Enterprise or it's characters. I don't make money from this, either.

"If my [work] makes one more person miserable, I will feel I have done my job." Woody Allen

Chapter 4: The Rules

I'm surprised to find Daddy gone when I wake up… Daddy insists that he is a morning person – provided that he's approaching it from the other end. I'm almost at the kitchen when I hear them talking.

"Ivy doesn't lie to me, Jon. If she says…"

"I'm not saying that, Trip." Jon sounds like he's been through this a million times and that he's tired of it. "All I'm saying is that there are some discrepancies between T'Pol's version of events, and the one you related to me."

"In other words, she's been playing fast and loose with the truth again." Daddy still sounds upset, but it's not with Jon anymore. There's a brief silence, then Daddy clarifies. "Ivy I mean… not T'Pol."

"Apparently the boy was commenting on her temper – not her mutism. And she apparently broke his nose." Jon's tone becomes dry.

Daddy takes a deep breath; he's trying to control his temper. "We're going to have to have another word about that. But…"

"It's not easy for any mother to give up her child, Trip. T'Pol is no exception."

"I know…"

I don't stay to hear any more… I make an instant, logical decision. I cannot go back. However, I appear to have no choice in the matter. But, if I'm not here, it becomes impossible to send me back. This time I don't waste time preparing or packing… I simply head out the door and down the street. The sidewalk is hard and rough against my bare feet, but I'm running as fast as I can, so they don't spend much time on the ground, anyway.

"Ivy!" I hear Daddy's voice behind me, all panicky and sharp. I cut to the right and into the street, not caring about traffic.

"Ivy!" Daddy screams it this time, and the footsteps behind me get even faster.

I'm picked up from behind and carried to the sidewalk. As soon as Jon puts me down – it has to be Jon, because I can see Daddy catching up – I try to get away again, but he holds on too tight. "It's okay, Ivy."

I shake my head, still trying to get away. It's not okay… Jon can't understand. I try to stomp on his instep, but he's wearing shoes and I'm not, so he feels nothing.

"Ivy!" Daddy reaches us, and despite the running, he's pale. "Ivy, honey, what happened?" He looks at me and then at Jon. "Let go of her arms, Jon."

Jon lets me go, and I move away from him, in case I need to run again. "I won't go back, Daddy… I won't. You can't make me go back there, Daddy…" I'm crying now, and so is he.

"No, honey, why do you think that? You're staying here…"

"But Jon said…"

Daddy goes stern, even though he's still scared. "Ivy… were you eavesdropping again?"

I shake my head. I hadn't been eavesdropping… this time it had been an accident. But I know what Jon said.

"Honey, Jon talked to your mother this morning, and she agreed that you could stay here with me. We're not going to send you back, punk…"

I throw my arms around him and start crying even harder. I can't believe it… but Daddy wouldn't lie to me about something like that. And I'm scared and upset because he's scared and upset.

He picks me up and carries me inside without saying anything else. He puts me down in a chair at the table and Jon drops a box of tissues in my lap.

"Calm down and then we'll talk." He doesn't say it soothingly like Daddy would, or even calmly like Mother would. He says it like a command, expecting obedience.

Jon waits until I stop crying. "Do you have any idea how stupid that was? You could have easily been killed and you had no clue what you were running from, anyway."

I look over to Daddy for support, but he says nothing. He seems to be letting Jon handle this, when usually he has something to say as well.

"Now, frankly, I don't care why you did it. I don't accept excuses for that kind of irresponsible behaviour. Not only could you have gotten yourself killed, you could have gotten your father killed, and me as well. Now, if you want to stay here… you're going to have to abide by some ground rules, do you understand?"

I nod, knowing that it's probably not a good idea to argue with him, or even to try to explain.

"Number one… I don't ever want to see anything like that again. I don't care if you were eavesdropping intentionally, or just happened to overhear the conversation, but when it comes to things like that, you ask, you don't just start running. You would have saved us all a hell of a lot of effort and risk, if you had taken the time to think.

"Number two… you will be going to school. I've made arrangements with the school: you'll be going in for an assessment test tomorrow. Now I expect that you will have difficulty adjusting… and that's fine… but I do not want to be getting any calls, or your father to be getting any calls saying that you've been in a fight. You've got a problem with somebody, you do not solve it with your fists."

I nod again, feeling frustration tears burning at my eyes. I don't like getting in fights, but sometimes they just happen. It's like this pressure builds inside me, and then it just blows. And the more I try to control it… the more I try to suppress my emotion… the more intense it is when it finally breaks free. Daddy says he understands… that's why he swears so much. He says it's like a lot of little earthquakes to prevent a big one… but Mother always said that was just an excuse… that I just didn't wish to work at my exercises. And I don't… because I don't like what happens.

"Number three… you are eight years old. I know your father uses certain language, but it is not language appropriate for a person your age. You will not use it in this household, am I clear?"

"Yes."

Jon looks to Daddy for clarification. "She understands, Jon."

"Number four… it is quite obvious that you have some serious temper issues. Now I'm not going to buy the excuse that you're half-human… no matter what they believed on Vulcan. I'm human… I know human behaviour, and more importantly, I know your father. He's not perfect… but if he can learn to control himself, so can you."

I'm beginning to wonder what Daddy sees in Jon… how Jon is any different than Mother in some ways. Except… Jon isn't being logical… he's simply stating his expectations, and I am to obey. However, if it means we can stay here… if it means I don't have to go back to Vulcan… "I'll try."

Daddy translates, and Jon shakes his head. "'Try' isn't good enough, Ivy. You will start taking responsibility for your actions. I'm not saying you can't have feelings… but you can't keep letting them be your pretext for getting away with bad behaviour. Yes, you get upset. Your Dad gets upset. I'm upset right now. There is part of me that would like to turn you over my knee and give you a good spanking… but I know that won't solve anything."

My stomach twists when he says that… I've never been hit like that in my life. Daddy says he was brought up with corporal punishment, and it didn't do him a damn bit of good… so he's never used it, no matter how mad Lorien or I have made him. I have a feeling if I make Jon mad enough, though, he will. I nod again, slowly.

"All right. Now go get dressed, and come back here for breakfast."

I slide down off my chair, realising that Daddy isn't going to defend me this time. I'm not sure if he's afraid of Jon, or agrees with him… all I know is that it's been a long time since I've truly faced a two against one. Even when I've been in fights, Daddy's always had something comforting to say, even if it's just that he understands. Maybe it's because we're guests here, and Daddy doesn't want to upset Jon… but it seems like more than that.

Breakfast is quiet… Jon and Daddy don't say much to each other, and Daddy only talks to me to remind me to drink my orange juice. It's the first time I've ever had orange juice… it tastes strange, but good, sweet and sharp at the same time. Vulcan tradition doesn't allow for talking during meals… but I know that humans do it all the time, so I know I'm still in trouble.

After breakfast, Jon drives Daddy and I out to a tall building in the middle of town. Daddy gets out of the car, and leaves me with Jon.

"We'll be back in a couple of hours," Jon says, and Daddy nods. I'm a bit scared now… aside from school, this is the first time Daddy's ever left me alone with a stranger. Daddy seems to trust him, but I don't know how mad Jon still is at me.

Daddy goes inside the building and Jon twists around in his seat to look at me. "Your Dad's just going to see a doctor, Ivy. Since you don't eat meat, I thought we'd do a little bit of grocery shopping while we wait."

"Is Daddy sick?" I forget that Jon can't understand me… Daddy has to be sick… Daddy doesn't like to go to the doctor.

Jon blinks, then leans over and opens a small compartment in front of the seat that Daddy was sitting in. He takes out a pad and stylus and hands them to me. "This will have to do until I get a little more fluent."

I write out the question and hand it back to him.

"Your Dad has been under a lot of stress, Ivy. This is a doctor that can help him with that."

Now I'm really confused. Daddy really doesn't go to a doctor for things like that… Mother used to ask him to, but she gave up when he wouldn't go. Jon seems to know this, though, because he explains. "One of the rules for your Dad is that he goes and sees Dr. Lewis." Jon smiles very slightly. "I told him that there were two ways. He could go on his own… or I'd knock him out and drag him down here. Your Dad's not as stupid as he likes to think he is."

I have to admit that Mother never tried that one. She used to argue and explain… she never said she'd make him go against his will.

I'm fascinated by the grocery store… there's so many different colours and shapes: everything is bright and designed to attract the eye. There's strange smells too… some of them good, some of them annoying. And everybody's all talking at once… on Vulcan you almost never find this. Vulcans aren't much for casual conversations… there's usually a point to any conversation they have. People here seem to talk about anything… I realise now why Daddy would talk so much with me, or even have conversations with himself. He must have missed just talking, not necessarily with a purpose, but just to talk.

There's people offering food, too… but Jon says I shouldn't take any until we have a better idea what my sensitivities are – that some things might make me sick. A lot of it has meat in it anyway, so it's easy for me to say no.

I've also never seen a lot of the other things… Jon spends a lot of time with the fruits and vegetables, asking me if I've had any of them, and letting me smell some of them to see if I like it. He says that since most of taste is smell, anyway, it'll give me some idea. There's so many people in here, and suddenly I'm glad that Daddy braided my hair in a way that covers my ears. It would look suspicious, I realise, for a little Vulcan girl to be shopping with a human man.

He picks up some other things, too: then in one of the aisles, he stops and grins. "I never thought I'd be buying these again." He picks up a bag full of white squishy things… they look like little pillows.

What are they? I write it on the pad and hand it to him.

"Marshmallows. Pure sugar… your Dad loves them. Which reminds me… I should pick up some Rocky Road, too."

It sounds horrible… but I have to ask Rocky Road?

"It's your Dad's favourite ice cream. Chocolate and nuts and marshmallows… personally I've always preferred a good gelato – it's a little less sweet – but I've never accused your Dad of having taste." He looks down at me. "And from the sounds of things, it's probably been a while since he's had any."

It must be, because I never even knew such things existed. On the way back to get Daddy, Jon lets me try a marshmallow. It's very sweet, but I like it.

"Yeah, I can see you becoming a cotton candy nut, too." Jon laughs. He doesn't sound like he's mad at me anymore… but about the only really emotional person I've known – besides myself – has been Daddy… so I don't know how to read him very well.

I look at him, questioningly.

"Cotton candy. It's sugar… spun sugar. Very sweet. And sticky, too."

I decide I'm going to have to try cotton candy sometime.

When Daddy gets in the car, I scramble into the back-seat behind Jon, then I hand Daddy a marshmallow.

"Thanks, punk." He looks at me and then at Jon.

"There's Rocky Road, too," I tell him.

Daddy smiles, the first real smile I've seen from him in a long time, his entire face lighting up. "Rocky Road. Thanks Jon… thanks for remembering that." He puts the entire marshmallow in his mouth. "Mmmm. I think I've needed this."

Jon laughs as we pull away from the curb, and Daddy just smiles more. He looks happy, really happy, and I'm happy too. I decide then and there that marshmallows must be magic.