Birthday Party

Birthday Party

By: TLR

Rated G: everyone can enjoy it.
Disclaimer: Enterprise is the property of UPN and Paramount Productions.
Summary: This story takes place several years after the Federation was formed. Trip and T’Pol had done their time aboard Enterprise and after Captain Archer was promoted to Admiral, they decided their exploring days were over. Enjoy:
March 10th 2005

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It was early morning as Trip walked out of the bathroom, his skin still damp from his shower. He rubbed it vigorously with a fluffy towel before donning his shirt. He ran a comb through his wet hair then checked himself one last time in the mirror. From the other room there were sounds of movement. Pots being rustled, and low level chatter. He could smell the distinct scent of griddle cakes cutting through the air and decided to investigate.

As he walked through the living area, Trip drew back the curtains to reveal a bright sunshiny day. Brilliant blue sky’s with only a few scant clouds to dot the scenery. The window was open, and he drew in a deep breath of smog free San Diego suburbia.

Moving toward the kitchen, Trip entered quietly and took in the view. There at the table sat Lorian, all of nine years of age. He was diligently working at his cereal, using a spoon with precision and skill. His 16 month old sister Elizabeth sat in her high chair, fingering small circles of oat based nourishment, most of which were hitting the floor. However the small squares of jam covered toast were meeting their mark every time, as was evident by the large smears of grape spread across her cherub face. She sniffed the air and turned to find her father.

With a big toothy grin, she let out a giggle and Trip’s quiet observation was discovered.
T’Pol looked around at her daughter, then at the object of the little one’s fascination.

“Tattle tale.” Trip chided joking at the little girl, then came into the room to greet his family. He walked over to Elizabeth, picking up a towel from the table and wiping at the sticky mess. Once noticeably cleaner, he bent down and gave her several bubbles on the cheek. This made the little child squeal and a rush of happy affection ran through the parent bond they shared. Dad’s heart melted every time his daughter looked at him, a feet that he had thought only T’Pol could cause.

Trip looked up at Lorian, still working hard on his cereal but flashing him the occasional knowing glance. He moved to rustle the nine year olds’ golden locks, but found the lad darted his head quickly out from under his hand, as he shot him a slightly disapproving glare.

(You’ve been hanging around your mother too much.) Trip thought and saw a queried look come back from his wife of now 14 years. (You’d think by now, I’d remember that she can hear every thing I think.) He reminded himself and felt a confirmation coming through their bond.

(Yes ..... You would think you would remember.)

Trip returned her a sarcastic smirk and moved over to where she stood cooking his breakfast. He looked around at his kids, who’s attentions had gone back to their food, then subtly snaked an arm about T’pol’s waist. Drawing in closer, he leaned into her neck and began planting soft warm kisses there.

A wave of sensation flowed through them,..... both became a bit distracted until.

“Giggle......Giggle”....came the chorus from the cheap seats. Trip and T’Pol knew their little shared moment would have to wait as they had been found out by the youngest members of the household.

T’Pol scooped up the last two griddle cakes from the pan and plated them. She handed Trip the pile and turned to the cabinet for some other items. Dad took his son’s plate and served him a small portion. He topped it with a sticky liquid that was supposed to be the equivalent of maple syrup, but was sugar free. In Trip’s opinion it really wasn’t the same. However, given Vulcan’s have very sensitive teeth, he didn’t want to cause his children to have cavities.

Trip then tore another cake into small bite sized pieces, left it plain and set them atop his daughter’s highchair server. He watched as she picked up each piece, sniffed it, looked back at him for approval then with a bit of hesitation, placed it gingerly in her mouth.

He leaned in close and whispered. “Yeah I feel the same way bout yer mom’s cookin.”

When would he learn.... as another strong glare came from the area of the stove top.

“Just kiddin......you know a joke...” Trip turned to his own plate and began stacking the cakes high. He really did appreciate T’Pol’s attempt at cooking, since the closest thing she knew to preparation, was the protein resequencer and the status storage unit in her mother’s kitchen on Vulcan. But Trip was from the south, and in that he enjoyed the old fashioned way of preparing meals. After they were first married, he would ask Chief to borrow the kitchen area so he could teach T’Pol some of his momma’s favorite recipes.

The learning was hard. Getting T’Pol to even touch the food without gloves was the big challenge. He never knew that as Vulcans matured, they could sense vibrations from the items themselves. Even vegetables, resonated a certain distressed harmonics long after they had been picked, that Vulcan’s could sense. T’Pol said it was like a mental picture of what the item was feeling as its’ life was ending. Trip then understood why Vulcan’s didn’t eat meat. If vegetables disturbed them, then the dieing impressions of an animal would be too much to handle. For that reason, he resolved himself to being a vegetarian. And with only the occasional slip when dining out with his friends from Enterprise, Trip had kept to that promise.

T’Pol sat sipping her Plomik broth from a spoon. She searched through the communication palm pad for any new messages. There addressed to Lorian was a personal communiqué’.

“Lorian.... you have a message from Stevie Miller.” she opened the file and reviewed the data first.

“Hey isn’t that the little kid who lives down the block.” Trip asked stuffing another bite of pancake into his mouth.

“Yes.....I see him at the park sometimes.” Lorian put down his spoon while addressing his father. “He and I play on occasion.”

“Well that’s great son. So he’s your friend?” Trip encouraged the slightly formal little boy to speak.

Lorian studied his father’s face, then looked at his mother. Through their bond, Trip could tell that he was searching her mind for a reference in which to answer the last question. T’Pol hearing his inquiry, paused a moment to think.

(This ’ll take forever.) Trip thought and shook his head watching the two most obvious Vulcans in the room, trying to determine a definition for friendship.

Finally he spoke....”What I meant son, was do you like playing with him?”

“Yes.... he is quite pleasant to be around... however he does like to touch a lot.” Lorian returned to his cereal.

(Oh.... this home schooling has gotta go.....He’s spending way too much time as Vulcan.)
Again another startled look from his spouse, Trip just chuckled and shook his head.

“What’s it say?” he asked taking a sip of his coffee.

“It would appear that Lorian has been invited to a Bowling Birthday Party. It is to be Stevie’s 8th birthday.” T’Pol looked up at her husband questioningly. Lorian as well.

“What’s bowling....” he asked his father, feeling the same amount of confusion from the bond with his mom.

“It’s a game.... you’ll love it.” Trip’s excitement grew in that he was really a kid at heart. He always liked the old fashion things. Bowling, although not totally a dead sport, had lost much of its popularity to laser and computer generated games. There were only a few alleys left. Being invited to something like this was making Trip’s morning.

“I do not think this an appropriate event for Lorian to go to.” T’Pol shot down the invitation and turned to look at other messages.

“Why the heck not....” Trip questioned her verbally rather than through the privacy of their bond. This again drew a look of correction.

“Come on.... let the kid go.” Trip softened his approach.

“Lorian will not know anyone there other than Stevie. He may not be comfortable being around so many Humans at one time... His control is not that strong yet.” T’Pol made her best logical explanation, but what she really meant was he may be called names by the other children.

Lorian looked back at his food, now less appealing. His mother’s refusal only reinforced the fears he already knew she had for him. It was true that his early years aboard Enterprise sheltered him from the reality that he didn’t fit in with Humans. Now though, he felt the stares of others when they were out as a family, could hear the rude comments that were made about their unique appearance. But what puzzled him most was his mother’s defensive behavior. From what she taught him about controlling emotions, she didn’t seem to be controlling hers all that well.

Dad shot Lorian a soft smile and with a nod indicated that he wanted to speak to his mom in private. Lorian excused himself from the table, taking his dishes to the sink, then went to his room to review his studies.

“T’Pol.....I know it’s hard to watch people disapprove of our marriage. It’s even harder when their disapproval falls to our children. But you can’t keep sheltering him forever. Lorian must learn to deal with the interactions of others.”

He reached up and brushed a soft touch on her cheek. Elizabeth sat in her chair watching them earnestly. Trip shot a smile to the little light of his life.

“Our kids are unique and people are gonna stare. But if we teach them that staring is hurtful, then they will be hurt by it. I know if someone tried to physically harm one of them, you’d be all over them like a viper.... But you can’t control what people think. They have gotta learn to deal with it, the sooner the better.”

T’Pol looked away and released a defeated sigh. All that was motherhood warred within her. She knew Trip was right, but her instincts were to shield her young ones from the harshness of the outside world.

“Remember when you first came aboard Enterprise.” Trip started trying to get her to relate using her own experiences.

“It was clear that you felt like an outsider. You wanted to spend all your spare time in your quarters, away from Humans.” T’Pol nodded her memory of that.

“But Cap’n Archer wouldn’t have it and made you be around us..... Little by little you got more comfortable with us and we in turn, with you. Some of your most trusted friends are those same people you felt were judging you, remember?”

T’Pol thought back at his comments. It was true that Hoshi, Malcolm and even Travis were all very leery of her at first and she of them. But with time, they grew to become fast friends, more so than any of her acquaintances on Vulcan had ever become.

“Look he’ll go to this thing. He’ll get to playin’ with the other children and before you know it, he’ll have several new friends instead of just one.” Trip’s face warmed as he understood the difficulty of letting her child go out emotionally alone for the first time.

“And what if no one wants to play with him because he is different? What if instead they call him names and make him feel outcast?” Her words were a bit shaky and held a lot of love behind them.

“Then he’ll have his friend Stevie there. Believe me... if this kid Stevie is his friend, then he will stick up for him....” Trip tried his best to dissolve her fears even though he was worried about the same things himself.

T’Pol remembered the number of times Trip stood up for her when she was being teased or harassed by others. Trip had become a supportive friend to her in their early travels together, although why neither knew until much later. He even defended her to the Captain a few times during their initial mission, which was largely why she ended up staying aboard.

“He has never bowled before. Are you sure he will not offend anyone with his superiority?” Trip looked at her a bit puzzled.

“How can he be superior if he has never done it?” he asked.

“It is a simple matter of rudimentary geometry. He is past that in his studies. He may shame the other children there who are less knowledgeable in the sport.”

“I don’t think that’s gonna happen, but to be safe... I’ll take him bowling this weekend to practice.” Trip finished his breakfast and picked up his dishes. He breezed a soft kiss on T’Pol’s cheek and walked over to the sink. On his way back he took the face of his young daughter, all jellied up again, and began spreading playful kisses all over it. Again a squeal, followed by a sharp wave of excitement came through their bond for all three to share.

“When is Stevie’s birthday party anyway?” Trip asked drinking the last of his coffee.

“Two weeks from Saturday.” T’Pol brushed aside the remnants of food from Elizabeth’s hair. She cleared away the server top and picked up the now soiled child in her arms.

“Two weeks from Saturday........Two weeks from Satur.....Damn.... that’s the weekend of the Intrepid’s warp drive refit. I gotta be there to supervise it. It’s definitely gonna take all weekend.....” He kicked at the chair leg, as if it was his bowling party he was going to miss.

“I guess you’ll have to take em.” He said and placed his mug on the counter.

“Me....” she exclaimed.....

“Yeah.... why not.... It’ll do ya good to get to know some of the mothers of his friends.”

T’Pol stood there in quiet crisis. She had made a point of limiting her contact with unfamiliar Humans for the very reason she didn’t want her son to be involved with them. Unlike her Human friends from Enterprise, T’Pol was very sensitive to the disapproval their union received from the start. She fell quiet at gatherings Trip had to attend as part of his job, not knowing anyone well enough to start a conversation. She would suffer through these events as part of her wifely duties, but didn’t actively seek to make new Human friends outside obligatory commitments.

“I’ll have Elizabeth..... There will be no one to watch her.” She countered.

“Take her along... She is fascinated by everything.... She’ll love it. Besides nothings a bigger icebreaker that an adorable baby......” He returned kissing his wife and daughter on the cheek again.

“Gotta go..... See ya tonight.... Love ya....” With that Trip went to work and left a less than happy T’Pol to care for her home and children.

The thunder of the alley was lessened by ultrasonic buffers. Trip knew that his wife and kids would appreciate it, but couldn’t help but think how odd it was not to hear the pins fall in all their loud glory. To him it was like the old style plastic pins and balls parents would buy their little ones to play with in the basement. Instead of a crash, each pin merely made a clinking sound. Even the drop of the ball registered only a little above that of dropping a book unto a cushion. Trip led his family into the alley, one hand on Lorian’s shoulder and the other latched around his wife’s tiny waist.
T’Pol carried Elizabeth in her arms and looked back and forth as if watching for a predatory challenge.

“Will you relax...” Trip leaned in and whispered in her ear. “No one here is gonna bite ya.”

The place was moderately crowded for a Saturday. Lanes were available, but none that were isolated as T’Pol had expressly desired. Trip settled her fears and took two at the far end of the alley, so at least one side of them would be shielded.

“Need shoes?” An elderly lady with thick glasses asked from behind the counter.

“No, we have on shoes...” T’Pol quickly returned at the strange thought of buying shoes in this unclean place. Trip giggled and shook his head.

“Yes.... one pair of twelve’s.... a child’s two and a lady’s six.” Trip handed Lorian his shoes and picked up the other two pair. “Okay.... Lanes 67 & 68.” Trip looked around and found the direction they needed to go. T’Pol grabbed the less than sterile shoes from Lorian’s hand and held them out away from her body. Her nose crinkled from the offensive odor.

Once they found the lanes, Trip left T’Pol with Elizabeth and took Lorian to find a ball. He explained to the young boy what he needed to look for in a comfortable ball and picked through the racks until they found two that suit their needs. They moved back to the lanes and placed the balls on the return. Trip reached for Elizabeth...and took her into his arms.

“Okay.... Now you go pick out a ball.” He looked at T’Pol and couldn’t believe how big her eyes got.

“Why would I need to pick out a ball?”

“Aren’t you gonna try..?” Trip put on his best pout.

“I was not planning too.” She chirped unsure if she was hurting his feelings by her uncooperativeness.

“Aw come on T’Pol.... How ya gonna know what it’s like for Lorian if you haven’t done it yourself.... It’s really easy, I’ll help ya.” Again the lower lip came out and found a very sympathetic response from the young woman.

T’Pol went a short distance and retrieved a standard sized ball from the racks. Trip showed her where to put it and glanced at the weight indicated on the top of the ball.
“18”.. He commented...”Nice choice” (Must be those Vulcan muscles, I only throw a 14)

T’Pol picked up the child sized bowling shoes. “And what are we to do with these?” she asked cringing at the response.

“We wear them.... They are made special for the lanes.” Trip flipped off his deck shoes and started pulling on the two toned footwear balancing a very contented Elizabeth on one knee.

T’Pol simply sat there looking aghast at the thought of putting these unclean shoes on her or her child’s feet.

“I do not think Lorian should wear shoes someone else has worn before. His feet could become infected”

Trip sighed....”T’Pol, it’s okay... I brought some socks...” With that Trip reached into his pocket and handed a pair of women’s and children’s socked to the hesitant mother. She and Lorian wearily put them on and donned the footwear. Trip handed the little girl back to her mother.

T’Pol sat holding Elizabeth while Trip took Lorian onto the far lane. He explained to him the rules of the game and the different markings on the wooden surface. After that, he moved Lorian to one side and demonstrated throwing his first ball quite close to the strike zone and taking out 9 of the 10 pins there.

“Isn’t the intention of the game to get all ten pins down in a minimum amount of throws?” T’Pol questioned from the seating area. Trip felt her smirk, even though her words were not belying her amusement.

“Wait...... you haven’t tried it yet.”

He turned his attention back to Lorian and positioned the young boy at the center of the lane. He walked him through the first few steps, then allowed him to try it on his own. Through their bond, he could hear his mother instructing him in geometrical terms as to how to do the most damage with the least amount of effort.

Lorian walked the few steps, and released the ball. It hit the alley a bit to the right of center, leaving 2 pins standing.

“That was great Lorian.” His father came up and patted him gingerly on the back. He rubbed his shoulders exuberantly, and explained where he needed to aim to get the rest of the pins down.

Again, Lorian checked with his mother for the correct geometric calculations, and threw his second shot. One of the two pins was taken out, but the little boy seemed somewhat defeated. He looked hard at the pins to determine where his calculations were in error.

“Good try.....”Dad came up again and interrupted his calculations. “You’re doing great..”

The little boy looked at him inquisitively. “I failed to get all the pins down Father... How is that doing a good job?”

“Bowling is a game, just like hid and seek. It’s not how perfect you are, just that you do your best for the team...” Trip knelt down to look the boy directly in his eyes. “Getting 9 outta 10 pins on your very first frame is incredibly good.” Lorian’s posture straightened and he gave his father a contented smile. Trip returned that smile with a brief hug.

“Now it’s mommy’s turn!” He stood and looked to T’Pol

“I cannot bowl, for I have Elizabeth...” she tried to get out of the act.

“Not to worry dear, I’ll take her” and with that Trip snatched the little wavy headed girl from her mother’s arms. With his free arm, he made a sweeping motion and stepped aside so she could pass.

T’Pol moved to the lane. At the ball return she tapped on each of the balls until she found the one she’d chosen. Picking it up, she looked once more briefly at her family standing just behind her. Trip had a huge grin on his face, kind of like the one he always wore when there was talk of T’Pol joining Star Fleet . Lorian stood intensely studying the placement of the pins, working calculations out for his mother’s review and Elizabeth now with her head resting lightly on her daddy’s shoulder. She peered at her mother in a side way’s glance.

T’Pol stepped up to the marks. She looked at the lane, measured it’s length, depth, width and started to run calculations over and over again in her mind. She handled the ball, sliding her fingers in and out of the holes trying to determine the right grip strength to use. She looked at her foot placement and the amount of space she had till the foul line.

Elizabeth yawned. “I agree little darlin.” Trip shifted her up higher in his arms.

“Some time today Hun..” He jibed, wanting to get through these 10 frames before the alley closed for the season.

T’Pol shot him a stern look over her shoulder, then began her approach. The ball hit the alley on a straight angle, then turned sharply two thirds the way down the lane and went into the gutter.

Puzzled, T’Pol reviewed her calculations in her mind at the foul line.

“It’s okay Hun..... Not everyone can bowl as good as Lorian, their first time out.”
Trip chuckled and tried to hide it lest he be scolded mentally again.

T’Pol moved back to the ball return. She lowered her head to gauge the levelness of the floor boards and determined them not to be the cause of her mis-throw. She lifted the ball and turned it over and over again in her hands. She found it heavier to one side.

“Is this a trick ball?” she asked defensively.

“No... It’s just the heavier the ball, the more chance it is weighted to curve. You can’t know that until you have thrown it a couple of times.”

With Trip’s explanation incorporated, T’Pol once more began her calculations using the new trajectory variables in the data. She began her approach, throwing it extremely towards the right. Trip thought she would again miss the zone, but was surprised to see her hit it dead on. All the pins fell in an explosive manner.

“Nice One...” Trip was truly proud of his wife’s ability.

T’Pol simply squared her shoulders and walked from the lane. “Simple Geometry.”

She took Elizabeth back into her arms and gave her husband a whimsical look of superiority. This made it Trip’s turn again, and he suddenly realized he would have to be pretty good to come close to beating his wife’s geometric approach.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The day of the party came. T’Pol, still wishing her husband could be with her, arrived at the appointed time with two children and a gift in tow. She felt awkward, as if she had stumbled outside of the Vulcan compound without an escort. She searched the lanes to find the familiar face of the little red haired boy.

Lorian reached to his mother through their bond. (Stevie....over there,) and he raised a finger to point.

T’Pol carrying Elizabeth and leading Lorian eased their way through the small crowd and stopped just short of the birthday boy.

“Happy Birthday Stevie.” Lorian spoke what his father told him to say.

“Yes Happy Birthday.” T’Pol added her best wishes.

Lorian held out the gift his mother had wrapped for him. “Here.... I have brought you a present as is custom.”

“Gee thanks...” the little boy’s face lit up. It was his first present of the day and he eagerly picked at the wrappings before his mother could stop him.

“Stevie...... it’s not polite to just rip presents open like that.” A young woman joined the group standing beside her son.

“Hi.... my name is Susan.... I am Stevie’s mom.” She held out a hand and offered a smile.

T’Pol cringed a bit inside, and took the hand she offered briefly. “My name is T’Pol, I am Lorian’s mother.”

‘Yes.... I’ve seen you in the park when Lorian and Stevie are playing.” Her attentions turned toward the little girl.

“Oh how adorable..... Is she yours as well?” Elizabeth returned an interested stare at the young woman.

“Yes she is our youngest Elizabeth..” T’Pol began to feel less awkward.

“I didn’t know Elizabeth was a Vulcan name?” T’Pol’s defenses snapped back up as the woman began to prod at areas that were of an intimate nature.

“It is not.... She was named after my husband’s sister who was lost in the great attack many years ago. Her name was Elizabeth as well.” T’Pol braced a bit at the next part.
“My husband is Human.”

Instead of distain, T’Pol could sense nothing overly troubled coming from this woman.
“How nice..... Have you lived on Earth long?” she continued seeming genuinely interested in exchanging information.

“We moved back here about 5 years ago after serving aboard Enterprise for many years. I myself had been assigned to the Vulcan Embassy prior to my commission in Star Fleet.

“That right.... I remember.... You were standing on the podium with the other crew members after your ship destroyed the Xindi weapon and saved our planet. I was pregnant with Stevie’s older sister Laurie during that time. I was so scared that Earth wouldn’t be around for her to be born. ......Thank you....”

T’Pol seemed surprised with that last part. “Thanks is not required, I was merely doing my duty....” she trailed off remembering Human’s need to show gratitude. “However.... you are welcome.” That garnered a soft smile from the young woman.

Stevie tugged lightly at his mom’s pants. “Can I open Lorian’s present now....please...?”

His mom looked up at the young Vulcan and T’Pol gave her an approving nod.

“I guess so...” Both mother’s waited as the child tore away the wrappings.

“Wowww.!” an excited return. “It’s a hover craft.... Galaxy series... I really wanted one of these. Thanks..” The little boy began to move toward Lorian to give him a thank you hug. Lorian stepped back against his mother’s leg. Seeing this Stevie instead held out his hand to the older boy. Lorian remembered his mother’s earlier greeting and returned it precisely as she had.

“That is a nice gift.... My son has wanted one of those, but we could never seem to find them.”

“My husband has high connections in Star Fleet. When Lorian expressed a wish to give Stevie this toy, his father simply utilized his sources. In the future, if he can help you, I am sure he would be most happy too.” T’Pol shifted Elizabeth again in her arms. The little girl’s face had a growing smile, as her 3 ½ teeth began to show.

Susan returned the kind gesture with a soft smile of her own. A moment later more guests started to arrive and she had to leave to greet them. T’Pol sat over in the corner with Elizabeth and Lorian. Her fears of isolation were growing again, as Stevie was now busy playing co-host and getting more nifty gifts.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Trip left his job under the guise of taking a late lunch break. Instead he slipped across town and headed right for the lanes. He sneaked in and looked around for a group of small children with party hats. On the far end of the lanes, he saw them gathering. The children had all arrived and they were about to organize teams.

Stevie was one captain and another boy named Derrick was the other. Lorain stood next to his mother T’Pol just outside the circle of children. He seemed a bit isolated and wasn’t interacting except with his mother through their bond. Trip’s heart began to sink. He stood there out of smelling range of his daughter.

“Stevie.... you get first choice.” Susan said indicating the birthday boy could pick for his team first.

Stevie stepped through the crowd of boys and came up to Lorian.. “I pick Lorian...” he said with exuberance that included throwing his arm around the pointed ear child’s shoulder. This drew a cringe, but not noticeable to Humans. Lorian followed him back to where the two teams stood. Susan moved to fill the space that Lorian had left next to T’Pol.

(Seems to be going pretty well.) Trip thought as he inched closer to hear the rest of the team’s make up.

Once teams were picked, they began to play. Lorain bowled second after Stevie. He watched as the other boys simply stood at the foul line and chucked the ball. Ball after ball ended up in the gutter and he wondered if he could help them with their calculations.

Lorain’s turn again and he effortlessly threw a 8 pin ball. He noticed the cheers from his team mates and the groans from his competitors. From the other team a child with a rather rotund snout commented.

“Must be those ears, they’re like radar... No wonder he gets so many down.”

But before T’Pol, or Susan or any of the other adults could say anything, Stevie came marching up to the older boy.

”Hey that’s not nice.... He hasn’t said anything about your funny lookin nose...”

And with that the entire group stood in silence. Stevie went back over to Lorian and tried to ease the words the rude child said. “Don’t pay attention to him..... He is just jealous cause you’re such a good bowler.”

Lorian cocked his head and studied his friend’s features a moment. “Thanks” he replied as he had heard his father say many times.

T’Pol shifted Elizabeth yet again. She was getting heavy, but the Vulcan was not comfortable putting her down on this dirty surface.

“May I...” Susan asked extending her arms out toward the child. T’Pol stiffened a moment then exhaled. She searched her bond with the little girl and found no reservation about the move. Slowly she handed the young woman the baby.

“Oh... you’re such a cutie, I could just eat you up.” That drew a worried stare from the Vulcan mother. T’Pol decided to watch this woman very closely. Elizabeth was studying her as well. She looked deep into her eyes as if trying to access a bond and finding none there. She gave her a few hesitant grins, then started looking around. She whiffed the air and realized her favorite man was just a few yards away.

Elizabeth twisted in Susan’s arms to get a glimpse of her father. (Damn her Vulcan whiffer..... Tattle Tale...) He sent back to her through their bond and she giggled. T’Pol noticed her excitement and turned to find Trip approaching them sheepishly.

“Hi...” Trip walked up wearing his best southern smile. “Hi Darlin” he went to T’Pol, put his hand on her waist and kissed her cheek. Elizabeth was practically trying to leap out of the Human’s arms. Trip showed a bashful smile and took the eager tot from Susan’s loosening grip.

“Hi there, little Darlin.” He kissed her face and nuzzled her nose.

“My she’s a daddy’s girl, isn’t she.” Susan noticed the closeness. T’Pol noticed her hidden meaning.

“Susan... this is my husband. Charles Tucker III,.... Trip this is Susan Miller, Stevie’s mother.” T’Pol made the introductions, but was still wondering how star struck this woman was with her husband.

“Pleasure to meet ya Ma’am” Trip held out a hand in greeting.

“I was under the impression you had to work all day on the refit?” T’Pol turned the conversation toward a less familiar line.

“I do...I just took a quick break to see how my boy was doing bowling.” Trip looked over at Lorian, now sitting beside his best friend Stevie. He shot him a wave and was surprised to get a return motion in kind. He watched as Stevie would lean into Lorian and talk bowling strategies or what ever they were talking together about. He was just glad to see that his son was talking.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When they finished their two games, it was time for pizza and cake. T’Pol had declined, but assisted feeding Elizabeth small bites of cheese from a slice. Lorian sat to the right of the birthday boy, and the other children on his team took seats next to him.

Susan had plated pieces of pizza and was handing them out to all the children. Stevie handed Lorian a plate with a slice of pepperoni on it. Lorian whiffed it and asked his mother mentally what he should do. Before T’Pol could instruct him to pick the pepperoni off, Stevie noticed his distressed look and asked.

“What’s the matter? It’s pepperoni.... It’s really good.” The little red head looked right into his friends face.

“It is meat....” Lorian stated.

“Yes... “Stevie answered

“We do not eat meat.” Lorian returned

“Why..?” Stevie asked intrigued.

“Because an animal had to be die to get it. It is not proper to harm any living thing. It is not logical.” Lorian’s tone wasn’t accusatory, but it made the young boy think.

Stevie reached over and removed the plate from Lorian. He then replaced it with one holding a plain cheese slice. More over he returned his own pepperoni and decided to eat plain as well. This feat was not lost on the impressionable mixed breed or his parents.

(Humans can learn logic.... they simply have to understand its importance first.t) He sent his impressions through their bond.

(Indeed.....) came the response from both parents.

Lorian watched as Stevie and all the rest of the children picked up their pizza and started eating. He looked for utensils and found none. He studied them a moment longer, then grabbed the slice up off the plate. Diving in, he found he could tolerate the sensation and even asked for a second slice.

Trip gleamed and T’Pol winced, but both were happy that their son had finally found acceptance and that the day hadn’t been the disaster they both thought it would be.

The End

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For more father and son action. Look for

“Goin Fishin’ “

due out soon.

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Nicely done, quite a bit of fun

That was a cute story! I really liked it!

That was so cute!!!!!!
I looooved it!!!!

thank you, I've enjoyed it very much, sweet story, i love happy endings !

Nicely done. Enjoyed reading this story.

A real treat at the home life, TLR... great story!!!! Can't wait for the sequel.

I loved it. I can't wait for more. :D

Wow! That was sooooo cute and soooooooo well written!

cute story, but i don't think that "plate" is a verb. i liked it though.

I loved the sory. I really enjoy the interaction, I find that T'pol and trip are adjusting over time. I really wish during T'pols pregnancy if trip did not have some unuasual reactions because of their Bonding. Like Trip going through morning sickness or craving of some kind it might be humous to see