Shadows

FIX the FINALE CHALLENGE

Shadows

By: Energy4TripnT’Pol

Rating: PG
Disclaimer: ~ an episode of “ST: Enterprise”: $ on Paramount’s budget. Getting Trip and T’Pol together: priceless for us desperate fanfic writers. So no, despite the series finale that broke many hearts, I’m not making money and Paramount owns the series and all the characters involved. ~
Genre: Of course romance, slight angst, some mystery, just a hint of everything else . . .
Archiving: No archiving, please.
Summary: It’s been a year after Trip’s “death” and T’Pol, preparing to return to Vulcan, stops at Trip’s grave.

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T’Pol almost felt foolish as she walked along the white beach in Florida, looking for a shadowy location set back from the waters’ edge. Her hands kept wringing each other, a clear indication that she was nervous.

But over what?

Vulcans aren’t nervous. Vulcans aren’t foolish. Vulcans aren’t illogical.

And Vulcans don’t fall in love.

So now, why was she walking a beach, reflecting on why she shouldn’t be nervous when she was defying everything that her heritage was built on?

She approached the shadows with apprehension. The writing on a stone marker gave clear reason why she was uneasy.

Charles “Trip” Tucker III. 2119-2161. Son, brother, dear friend.

T’Pol stood for five seconds in front of it, letting her mind decide whether to turn around and walk away or to do something that, in the mind of any other Vulcan, was complete foolishness.

But she wasn’t any other Vulcan.

She knelt down onto both her knees. Softly, she began, “It’s hard to believe that a year has passed since I lost you.”

It had been a year, and an eventful one at that. During the first year of the United Federation of Planets, so many more worlds had joined that the need for ambassadors was great. Jonathan Archer had been promoted to admiral and was now in San Francisco, despite trying to get another command. Dr. Phlox was back at the Interspecies Medical Exchange, experimenting with any creature he could get his hands on. Malcolm Reed was, to the amazement of some, now a director at Starfleet Security while a new ship assignment was pending. Hoshi Sato was where anyone would have thought to look: teaching at the university in Brazil. Travis Mayweather had been enticed into the pilot’s position on the newest Starfleet vessel.

And T’Pol was being assigned back to Vulcan on a Starfleet posting. She was still as stubborn as ever. And she was still in love with Trip as much as she had ever been.

She constantly chastised herself for holding onto his memory for so long. Yet, after the person dies your memories of that one are the only possession of theirs that you have. And she couldn’t let go of Trip’s memories; they were the only ones that made her feel right, even when the ship might be blowing up around her.

She cleared her voice slightly and then began on a different subject. “Admiral Archer has asked if I would return to Vulcan for a few months. I believe he is attempting to have me assigned as an ambassador, but I doubt Soval would be willing to relinquish that position.”

She paused; what else had happened that she wanted to say?

Something personal. “I visited with your parents four days ago. They invited me to stay with them when I visit Earth. They remind me of you very much. Sometimes, too much,” she said, lowering her voice.

Desperation gave in. “Trip. Do you know what I would give to see you again? To talk to you again?” A pause, and then, “To touch you again? To be able to know that circumstances would correct themselves, just by you saying so?”

She shrank down, maintaining her composure while she crumpled for a moment. “I can never let go of you, Trip. I believe I love you more than is generally needed.” Slowly, she leaned forward and let her finger caress the lettering on the stone. “I miss you.”

The world suddenly came back to her. She stood up quickly, whispered, “Good-bye,” and slowly began to walk away.

*****

Only four feet from where T’Pol had knelt, a rustling in the palm trees and sand revealed a tired looking but still attractive man, early 40s. His blue eyes followed T’Pol as she walked back to the beach, and he sighed.

“I still love ya too, darlin’. I just wish you knew.”

And in that instant, he remembered how acute a Vulcan’s hearing was.

T’Pol whipped around as though she had been slapped. She saw him, standing back by the gravesite, wearing a slight smile that almost made him look guilty. His blue eyes twinkled, but had lost their luster. A few scars ran across the right side of his face, and as he slowly emerged from the bushes a slight limp was apparent.

T’Pol almost ran back to meet him. Her eyes were wide with wonder, shock, and amazement. She stopped three feet from him, whispering, “Trip . . .”

Trip Tucker smiled. “Yeah, it’s me.”

“How?”

“When I lit that plasma a year ago, I didn’t die in the hyperbaric chamber like everyone thought. Phlox put me in a coma. Partly for my health and partly because of the guys that kidnapped Shran’s daughter. Seems they feel pretty strongly about revenge. Especially if their family or friends had just gotten vaporized.

“So I was in there for nine weeks, letting my body heal and to make sure that I wouldn’t get killed as soon as I got out. After I came out of it, I took an assumed identity and I’ve been here in Florida for the last ten months.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” she asked, almost angrily.

“You have no idea how much I wanted to tell you, honestly. I’m not really supposed to be here, just came here to laugh at my grave and drink a beer. I must have started hundreds of letters to tell you, but when it came down to it, only one got sent.”

Her eyebrows rose up. “I never received it.”

“I know. Starfleet Security refused to send it, saying it would give me away.” He waved a hand in the air. “I wished every minute of every day that I could tell you. But when it came down to it, my guardians interfered.” He looked down at her hand, hanging limply at her side, and took it in his. It was barely scarred to his amazement, but even if it had been he wouldn’t have cared. He just wanted to feel her. To let her know he was here.

“But I don’t have to worry about that anymore.”

“What do you mean?”

He smiled at her, the same disarming smile that she had seen before many times. “You’re here. And I can tell you. Well, I already did, but there’s something else I want you to know.”

She stood quietly, already knowing what he would say.

“I love you. Always have and always will. And nothing will ever happen to keep us away anymore. I promise.”

T’Pol knew that promising such a thing was illogical. But she didn’t care; it came from Trip’s mouth, and it was true.

Quietly, with their heads bent, she whispered the words that Trip had been dying to hear for years.

“I love you too. And it will never end.”

Trip smiled at her, leaned his head forward and gently kissed her. T’Pol kissed back with everything she could muster, given the shocked state that she was still in. When he leaned back, she looked at him with a yearning look that he couldn’t ignore.

He gathered her up in his arms and softly whispered, “I’m here. It’s okay. I’ll always be here.”

And that was the way the sun set on a beach in Florida, shadowing two lovers who had once been separated but never would be again.

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A whole mess of folks have made comments

Awww... this is SO sweet! (But it got posted twice for some reason.) It's simple and straightforward, and I like it very much.

I love it. So touching, why couldn't it happen this way.. so sad.

Sweet. Very pretty, well done! :) (Yeah, double posting's weird, doesn't change a thing, though.)

Loved it , very touching

Good job. Enjoyed it a lot...

Nice TATV finale fix...it's been months since the finale and it's still haunting me. Thank goodness for fanfic writers like you!

hehehehe, nice fix, and a wash of wonderfully GUILTY pleasure!

That was very sweet. Thank you so much for sharing.

very beautiful. Nice way to fix that trash the writers put forth as the final episode. Nioe job. T.

Beautiful,, an sweet.,, So good I didnt mind readin it twice. ;)

OK, Why not be ruled by me. Stop making stupid touch up jobs of that damn finale and try just denying it's existence. That way you can make a happily ever after, or atleast half of one, that isn't ridiculous and plausible even by that finale's standards.

Liked it very much. Has great potential for elaboration back at the time of the injury.........from Phlox's angle/the BIG deception.........???????????