TITLE: Perspectives

AUTHOR: DramaLexy

SUMMARY: TnT. There are many things in life that can change our perspectives. Some can be as small as a child, or as large as a hole in Florida. Please R&R

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I got inspired to do this story from reading phaserlady's "Tough Little Boys" (check it out if you get a chance; it's really good) and then after I finished part one, my muse decided to come to work for once, and this thing took on a life of its own. PLEASE let me know what you think; this is my first Enterprise fic, and the first Star Trek fic I've done since a Voyager abomination I made when I was eleven.

A baby. A tiny little girl child, futilely trying to move her little newborn limbs. Trip took pity on his daughter and loosened the blanket that confined her.

"That better?" he whispered as he stood over the little cradle that held his child. Evidently, it was not, for the baby now began to whimper. Trip instinctively picked her up. "Hey, hey, darlin', shh. Yer mama's sleepin', and I think she's earned it, don't you?" Trip spared a glance in his wife's direction. She was still fast asleep on a biobed; even with her sensitive Vulcan hearing, she hadn't been alerted by her daughter's cries.

The baby was now calm in his arms, and a smile crossed Trip's face. "Ah, you just didn't want to be layin' there all by yourself, huh? You wanted somebody holdin' you? Do ya even know who's holdin you, little one? Your mama had a pretty good grip on ya 'till she fell asleep; I'm not sure if we've been introduced. I'm your daddy; you know, the guy your mama's been cursing at the past few months whenever you decided it was playtime. Sorry, bout that, by the way. Your mama...she loves both of us, in her own way, just sometimes its like pullin' teeth to get her to admit it out loud. But I think you're going to teach her a lot about love, darlin'. She just doesn't know it yet.

"Oh, we do have one order of business to go over. Yer mama's probably gonna call you Elizabeth all the time, and that's right and fine, but…sittin' here, lookin' in your eyes, I can't imagine calling you anythin' other than Lizzie. That gonna be okay with you?" All he got was a gurgle in response. "Good, then." He took a deep breath, trying to push back the dark emotions that came with the name. Today wasn't a day for thoughts like those.

Elizabeth's eyes were closing for longer and longer amounts of time, yet they still flickered open upon occasion. "Just like yer old man," Trip whispered to her. "Don't wanna miss a moment of anythin'. Don't worry, darlin', I'm not going anywhere. You go on and go to sleep; I'll be here when ya wake up." This time her eyes didn't reopen. Trip couldn't bring himself to put his daughter down, so he took a chair beside his wife, holding their daughter snugly in his arms. Charles Tucker III finally had a family.

"Daddy?" Trip looked up from the PADD he was reading when he heard his daughter's voice. She was standing in the doorway to her bedroom, a favorite blankie in one hand and a teddy bear in the other.

"Yeah, darlin'?"

"There's a monster under my bed." Trip put down the PADD.

"Come here, baby." Five-year-old Elizabeth Tucker ran for his arms. "Now," Trip said as Elizabeth laid her head on his chest and got comfortable, "I know you've been over this with yer mama before. What would she say if she was here?" Elizabeth sighed.

"Ko'Mehk would say that there couldn't be a monster under my bed because internal sensors would have picked it up. But I saw it, Daddy!" Trip smiled, tucking a lock of his daughter's hair behind her pointed ear. She'd rebelled a year earlier and told T'Pol to stop cutting it short, so her dark brown hair had grown out to about her shoulders. "Will you get Uncle Malcolm to do a security check?" Trip hid a grin.

"Uncle Malcolm and Aunt Hoshi were up with Aiko all last night 'cause she was sick. I think we need to let them sleep, so how 'bout yer old man does one instead?" Elizabeth looked at him skeptically.

"You're not a security officer, Daddy."

"No, but I know how to do a monster check." She wasn't convinced.

"Can I sleep with you and Ko'Mehk instead?"

"Yer mama's on the bridge tonight and ya can't sleep with me 'cause I've got work to do."

"Then I can stay out here while you work."

"Lizzie…" She stuck her bottom lip out, and Trip was determined not to cave. On top of the mountain of reports he had to go though, the last thing he needed was a scolding from his wife about the fact that he was helping their daughter form bad habits. "I'm not falling for that anymore, ya hear me? I'm building up immunity to that fat lip o' yers." Trip quickly melted when he looked back down at her. "All right, all right." Elizabeth smiled and snuggled up beside him. "Ya comfortable?" She nodded, and Trip went back to his PADD.

"I love you, Daddy," Elizabeth's little voice whispered a few moments later. He kissed her forehead.

"Love you, too, baby-girl."

He was still on the couch with her when T'Pol returned in the morning. "I decided to save us some time and I already gave myself the lecture I knew I had coming when you got here," he whispered to his wife. She raised an elegant eyebrow at him.

"If you knew what my reaction would be, why did you not put her to sleep in her own room?"

"Ain't my fault she's got the Tucker puppy-dog face."

"Her genetics would not agree." Trip had to admit she had him there. "Why did you not put her to bed once she had fallen asleep?"

"Darlin', I've had a hard time putting her down since the day she was born, and I don't think that's gonna change any time soon." If Charles Tucker had married anyone else, he would have gotten at least a smile for that comment. But he hadn't, and he didn't. It was only because of years of experience that he noticed the slight change in expression as T'Pol bent to pick her still-sleeping daughter up off of the couch.

"Ko'Mehk?" the child whispered.

"Go back to sleep," she told her, and Elizabeth obeyed, having barely awoken in the first place. Trip just smiled as he watched his two girls leave the room. My girls…

"Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas!" Elizabeth exclaimed as she rode on her father's shoulders into the Enterprise's holiday party a couple weeks later. Jonathan Archer smiled when he saw her.

"Boy, Lizzie, you sure grew fast. You're taller than me now." The little girl giggled.

"You're silly, Uncle Jon." Trip set his daughter on the ground, and she instantly ran off to see her best friend, Aiko Reed, who was getting something to eat.

"You sure you wanna sugar her up any worse?" Jonathan asked Trip. He laughed, shaking his head.

"Whatever makes her happy. T'Pol's got her tonight; I'm on duty."

"Speaking of…" Jonathan looked around for his First Officer.

"She's coming. Lizzie'd never forgive her if she didn't."

Sure enough, five minutes later, T'Pol entered the mess hall. Elizabeth ran over to her mother. "Ko'Mehk, Ko'Mehk, I got you cookies and punch!"

"Thank you, Elizabeth, but it would not be logical to eat now if we are to have dinner with the Reeds at 1700 hours." Elizabeth frowned.

"I know we're gonna have dinner, but I wanted cookies, too."

"She's not gonna spoil her appetite," Trip interrupted. "Just have a couple, okay, darlin'?" he told Elizabeth. She nodded, and went to rejoin Aiko. "Let her have some fun," he told his wife. "It's Christmas Eve. I know it means more to us than it does to you, but…just try to pretend?" T'Pol finally nodded. "I got ya a present."

"I do not have yours with me."

"That's okay. I just couldn't wait. Here." He handed her a small box.

She'd learned a lot in the years they spent together. Christmas was something that had evolved beyond just being a religious event, and marked a time of year when people came together. Elizabeth had fallen in love with the holiday early, and not just because she got presents. She loved surprising her parents by decorating their quarters, or making cards for the crew with Aiko. T'Pol still didn't understand the full story of the holiday, but she could appreciate the sentiments behind it. And an undeniable part of Christmas was giving to others.

According to Trip, the best way to open a present was to simply rip it open. It had seemed illogical to her – the paper could be reused if care was taken – but Trip had insisted, and she indulged him if for no other reason than to see the full blown, southern charm grin on his face.

"D'ya like it?" Trip asked, his face lit up like the makeshift tree in the corner.

"Jewelry?" T'Pol asked him. He smiled.

"Yeah. It's a necklace. I got the stone on an away mission a little while back. Set it myself."

"It is lovely."

"I know yer not big on jewelry, but I thought…I don't know. I thought ya deserved somethin' special for…big occasions or something."

"Thank you, Trip."

"Yer welcome. You want me to put it on ya?"

"All right." Trip took the necklace back and stood behind her to fasten the clasp. He smiled as T'Pol turned back around.

"You look beautiful. Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas." Elizabeth had been watching them from her spot across the room with the other Enterprise children. Gift exchanges were taking place all around the room, but there was something about her parents that stood out…something was wrong.

Trip hated having to leave his family on Christmas Eve, but there was no getting around it. The warp drive had required an overhaul, and several members of his crew had volunteered to see the whole thing through, sacrificing their holiday so that other members of the engineering team could be with their families. Rank had its privileges, but Trip wasn't the kind of guy that wouldn't help out at all. It was his engineering, after all. He would put in a shift overnight, and possibly catch a couple hours of sleep before Elizabeth woke him and T'Pol up for presents in the morning.

After dinner in the Reed's quarters, both Aiko and Elizabeth were at the height of sugar shock and their parents knew they'd crash soon after. T'Pol took her daughter back to their quarters and gave her a bath and got her in her pajamas. After reading a story that Trip had given his daughter, a book titled "The Night before Christmas," Elizabeth fell asleep quickly and T'Pol expected to be able to catch up on the backlog of work that hadn't been accomplished during the week. However, at nearly 0200 hours, she was interrupted by a quiet,

"Ko'Mehk?" T'Pol looked up from the log entry she was making.

"Computer, pause recording," she said, and waited until she heard the acknowledging beep before turning her full attention to her daughter. "You should be in bed."

"I couldn't sleep."

"From what your father has told me, Elizabeth, Santa Claus will not visit you if you are awake."

"I know. I just couldn't sleep."

"Would you like me to put you back to bed?" She shook her head.

"I want Daddy to do a monster check."

"Your father is working."

"Then I want to wait for him."

"He will not be back until morning. You cannot wait for him all night."

"Can I wait for him for a little while? I want to stay with you."

"You should not be awake at this hour. I can put you back to bed and stay with you until you fall asleep." Elizabeth considered the offer and finally nodded. She crawled back into her bed, and let her mother tuck her in. T'Pol deactivated the lights and sat beside her daughter.

"Goodnight, Elizabeth."

"Goodnight, Ko'Mehk." Silence reigned for long moments, and T'Pol was almost certain her daughter was asleep when a little, "Ko'Mehk?" sounded.

"You are supposed to be sleeping." There was a pause.

"Why don't you ever smile, Ko'Mehk?" T'Pol looked down at the child, barely illuminated by the dim light from their living room.

"What?"

"You don't ever smile. Daddy does, and he laughs and makes jokes. But you don't. Not even on Christmas. Don't you like being with us?" T'Pol swallowed hard, suddenly wishing that her husband wasn't on duty that night.

"Your father and I are very different types of people."

"I know," Elizabeth told her. "You're Vulcan and Daddy's human."

"Yes. Vulcans do not show emotion."

"'I've seen you show emotion. You get mad at Daddy sometimes. Or you get sad."

"I suppose…it is easier to show some emotions than others sometimes. However, just because you cannot see them does not mean that they are not there." Elizabeth contemplated that, then raised her hands to her mother's face, and two little fingers gently pushed her lips into a smile. A similar expression crossed Elizabeth's face.

"Much better," she told her mother. "People are prettier when they smile, Ko'Mehk, don't you think?"

"I think that you are pretty no matter what."

"So you are happy here?" the little girl inquired.

"There's nowhere in the universe I'd rather be. Go to sleep, Elizabeth."

"Will you still stay with me?"

"Only if you give me your word that you will stop talking and fall asleep."

"I'll give you my word that I'll try." T'Pol nodded.

"Very well. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Ko'Mehk. I love you." T'Pol's lips curved slightly on their own.

"I love you, too."

Trip wasn't expecting to find his wife in the living room of their quarters when he returned at 0500 hours. "She awake already?" he asked.

"No."

"You still workin' then? Man, and I thought I procrastinated with reports. I'm gonna catch an hour or so of zzz's, all right?"

"I am…concerned for Elizabeth." Trip stopped short on the way to their bedroom. It took a lot for T'Pol to get 'concerned,' and even more for her to admit it.

"Somethin' happen?" T'Pol sighed.

"I am…uncertain…if I can…give her what she needs." Trip frowned.

"What'dya mean?"

"She is half human. It is in her nature to interact with others through emotion. I do not share this necessity."

"You've come a long way, T'Pol."

"But apparently not far enough…Elizabeth confronted me with the observation that I do not express happiness. She assumed it meant I did not want to be with her." Trip sat down, sleep forgotten.

"She's five years old, T'Pol, and she's half Vulcan, too. She's still young, but she'll understand with time."

"Can you be certain?"

"Yes. I learned, didn't I? Lizzie loves ya; that's all that matters."

"You have always put a great amount of confidence in the influence of love." Trip smiled.

"Must be my humanity."

Trip smiled when he came into his quarters and saw his six-year-old daughter sitting in the middle of the floor, surrounded by the art supplies that Hoshi had given her for her last birthday. "Whatcha workin' on, darlin'?" Elizabeth put a finger to her lips.

"Ko'Mehk's sleeping," she whispered. Her father frowned.

"She feeling okay?"

"She said that your son kept her up all night. But isn't Lorian going to be Ko'Mehk's son, too?" Trip grinned. T'Pol got a certain amount of gratification out of blaming him for the fact that she was pregnant. It takes two to tango…

"Yeah, baby," he told Elizabeth. "Yeah, he is." She nodded, and turned back to her art project. "What are you working on?" She held up a picture she'd made, and Trip thought he recognized the landscape.

"It's for Lorian," Elizabeth told her father. "So that he knows what Vulcan looks like."

"That's very thoughtful of you."

"I'm his big sister," she explained. "I've gotta take care of him." Trip was suddenly hit with the connotations of the moment. He buried the old memories that were threatening to surface before they could overwhelm him.

"You take care of each other," he told his daughter, working hard not to let his voice crack. If Elizabeth noticed, she didn't acknowledge it.

"Yes, Daddy," was all she said. Trip kissed her forehead, and then headed into the bedroom that he and T'Pol shared. His wife was sound asleep in their bed, and he dropped kisses on both her cheek and rounded stomach before sitting at his desk to get some work done.

The sight of the group of people waiting outside of sickbay put a grin on Trip's face as he stepped into the corridor. Hoshi was keeping both Aiko and Elizabeth occupied while Malcolm, Jonathan, and Travis talked among themselves. They all rose to their feet, however, at the sound of the doors opening.

"Well?" Jonathan asked his Chief Engineer. His grin widened.

"Lorian Tucker has made his appearance. And he's got his mama's stubborn streak."

"When do we get to see him?" Malcolm asked. Trip smiled, reaching for his daughter's hand.

"Ladies first," he told his friend as he took Elizabeth with him back into sickbay. Phlox had put a chair at T'Pol's bedside, and the little girl instantly climbed up on it in order to get a look at her new baby brother.

"He looks like you, Daddy," she announced. Trip laughed.

"Yeah, but he's got his mama's ears."

"Does he know who I am?" Elizabeth asked her mother.

"Would you like to introduce yourself?" She smiled and nodded.

"Hi, Lorian. I'm your ko'kai, Elizabeth. Ko'kai means sister in Vulcan. I'm half Vulcan, and you are, too. You're my sa'kai. That means brother. I don't know much Vulcan, but Ko'Mehk taught me some. She can teach you, too, when you're bigger. Ko'Mehk knows lots about lots of stuff."

"I guess I'm just the big dummy 'round here, huh?" Trip asked. Elizabeth grinned at him.

"No, you're not. That's Daddy," she told her brother. "He jokes around a lot. Sometimes he's not very funny, though."

"Hey!" T'Pol shot him a look that questioned whether or not he really wanted to argue.

"He's human," Elizabeth continued, "So we're half human, too. You're going to like living on Enterprise. It's the best place to live in the whole universe."