Day Six

Malcolm sighed and looked up at the sky. Only a few wisps of clouds floated across the blue. It was a lighter blue than Earth's sky, but the scene reminded him of country vacations when he was younger.

On vacations, he had books and toys. Now all he had was a nearly-completed mission report. T'Pol had finished more meditation and was compiling a report on the island's ecosystem.

He decided to go out on the proverbial limb. "May I ask you a personal question?"

"I may choose not to answer."

"Fair enough," he nodded. "Both of us decided not to do what was expected of us in life. You chose not to follow the expectations of your society. Do you ever wonder what your life would be like if you made a different choice?"

"I attempt to avoid considering what might have been, as I cannot change the past, but on occasion I am reminded of these alternatives. With T'Pau leading the government, I am no longer considered as harshly as I was by the High Command. However, the opinions of many people will take a generation or more to change, and I will always be outside of mainstream Vulcan society. With Trip, I cannot be considered otherwise. Despite this, I do not regret my choices. I am content with my life. Do you regret the choices you have made?"

"I don't regret them," he said after a moment. "I know that I made the best choice for myself when I joined Starfleet, despite my father's insistence that I join the Royal Navy. Sometimes, though, I wonder what my life would be like. I'd have married a good British girl and raised proper children, a son to continue the Reed naval tradition, and never left Earth. Probably would've been miserable my entire life, too."

"Then you are correct. You made the right decision. I do not see the need to reflect on alternatives."

"It's hard to explain. Part of it is having so much time here."

"Our situation allows time for introspection." T'Pol paused, and added her personal thoughts. "I am pleased that you chose Starfleet."

Malcolm was trying to figure out how to respond to that when the need to respond was eliminated. "Enterprise to T'Pol," came Trip's voice suddenly.

She pulled out her communicator. "T'Pol."

"I can't talk too long. How're you an' Malcolm?"

"We are doing well, although both of us would like to return to Enterprise."

"We're workin' on that. These guys've practically built a religion around comets, and this one's their favorite. Are there any systems in the shuttle that didn't get fried?"

"We repaired the maneuvering thrusters yesterday. Short-range communications and most of the science station's analytical capabilities were undamaged, and Lieutenant Reed managed to repair life support, although not strictly in an approved manner."

"Thrusters – that's got potential. Okay, the other thing is that Hoshi convinced them to let us beam a care package down."

"Please thank her for us."

"I'll do that. Tell Malcolm that they didn't bring any weapons over here." Trip paused. "I can't wait ta get you back."

"A feeling that I reciprocate," she said warmly. Well, warmly if you knew T'Pol. Malcolm was pretty sure that some Vulcans, hearing that tone, would've had a heart attack. He was trying not to listen in on what was clearly a more personal conversation, but it was rather difficult.

"You take care of yourselves down there, and we'll see ya soon. Enterprise out."

Almost as soon as Trip closed the channel, a small storage bin materialized a couple of meters away from them. Both Malcolm and T'Pol walked towards it.

"We should scan it first, in case they're being forced," he suggested.

"There is no deception involved," stated T'Pol. Malcolm knew that she took security seriously (often more seriously than Captain Archer), so he watched as she opened the cover. It had to be something to do with the marriage bond. Was it easier to share information when they were physically closer? He wondered, but refrained from asking.

Two trays and two padds were in the storage bin. T'Pol lifted the first tray out and pulled back the lid. "Tomato soup and pineapple upside-down cake." She looked at the other one. "Both trays have the same contents." Each also contained a spoon and a fork. "This tray has a larger piece of cake. I believe it is yours."

"I see they made a meal of our favorite dishes," Malcolm commented, eyeing the cake appreciatively. His piece was twice a big, but T'Pol wasn't much for sweets. "How thoughtful." He preferred a good beef stew over tomato soup, but he wasn't opposed to tomato soup. Besides, there was that wonderful-smelling cake for dessert. "Should we eat before looking at the padds?"

"The food is at optimal temperature now, and it's nearly time for our midday meal."

"Well, that's settled." He stirred his soup and lifted a spoonful to his mouth. "Chef is a talented man."

"Yes," agreed T'Pol after tasting her soup. "His culinary skills are admirable."

She was just starting her cake when Malcolm finished his and took out the padds. The first had a novel that had just come out and the text of Anatole France's classic The Gods Will Have Blood. Putting that down, he pulled out the other one. Vulcan characters jumped out at him. "This one's obviously for you." He handed it to her.

"It is the latest scholarship on the Kir'Shara," T'Pol observed. "I am interested to see how others interpret the writings. Trip must have put this together."

Malcolm read the summary of the novel that would've been found on the back of a book. "I think Travis had a hand in picking out this novel, but historical novels aren't his style. Hoshi probably included France."

"You got your wish, then."

"Yes, I did. Better late than never, right?"

"The Gods Will Have Blood is an evocative title among human literature," she noted. "What is the book about?"

"I've never actually read it, but I've heard of it. The action takes place during the French Revolution."

"I have heard this revolution mentioned. Perhaps you can explain to me why it is considered significant."

Malcolm tried to come up with the best way to answer. He enjoyed history, but it was more of a hobby than anything else. "The French revolted against a monarchy that was unable to provide for the common people, and they tried to form a republic. Things got out of hand, though – mass paranoia came up, and thousands of innocent people were killed for treason they didn't commit."

"This does not seem like an episode of history that humans would want to study."

"At the time most people in Europe lived with few political freedoms. What they tried to do was admirable."

T'Pol considered this. "I often find the intricacies of human history to be somewhat difficult to understand."

"If it's anything like trying to understand these aliens, I can see why. Not that I mind the care package, by why can't we just leave?"

"Learning about other cultures is an integral part of Starfleet."

"My job is to protect the rest of you while you learn about other cultures."

"Did you join Starfleet to protect others?" She asked the question in such a way that he could answer in depth or brush it off.

"My mum thought I joined Starfleet because it was the opposite of the Royal Navy," he admitted. "That was just an added benefit, though. I joined because I wanted to know what else is out here in the universe. I just didn't expect it to be so hard to understand sometimes."

"You heard of the Forge, did you not?" He nodded, and T'Pol continued. "Early followers of Surak said that walking through it was a humbling experience. I believe that the same could be said of our mission."

"I agree. The universe is so vast that you'd have to have a tremendous ego not to be humbled by it."

"Yet there are still many who do not understand that. Both of our worlds have recently proved that fear and pride are powerful, even among those who will not concede their motivations."

Malcolm let a small smile curve his lips. "There are people on Earth who have said that, if you want to be wise, you have to first admit that you know almost nothing. Until I came out here, I never understood that."

"Those individuals had great insight."

"Yes," he agreed, "They did."

After that, both of them turned to their new padds and began reading. He would still rather be on Enterprise, but at least he had something to read. Shortly into the first novel, he was unable to keep a laugh from bursting out.

T'Pol looked up. "I did not expect a book on a revolution to be amusing."

"This is the other book. I'm pretty sure Travis picked it out. The jokes are just the kind he likes: bad, but funny."

"It is a humorous book?"

"Very humorous."

"Trip is fond of humorous books. I rarely understand them, however, he is attempting to instill an appreciation in me."

"How's that going?"

"He has given up on jokes that "play on words," but I find spontaneous remarks to be more amusing."

"You appreciate the higher forms of humor."

"There are levels to humor?"

He shrugged. "Some kinds are more mature than others."

"I did not find "knock-knock" jokes to be amusing."

Malcolm could imagine that she would not.