Star Trek Enterprise Bk. 04 - Family Ch. 07

When morning came, Danaë was feeling so much better and her mood only improved further when she noticed Archer putting on gray slacks with a leather belt and a white t-shirt. If he was putting on civilian clothes then it could only mean he wasn't going into work. It seemed he had convinced Admiral Gardner to give him the day off so he could spend time with Danaë and her family. Whether it was this, or having her family visit, or both, Dani looked as though she could almost burst with joy. For a moment he started to broach the subject of an upcoming diplomatic social event, but couldn't do it. He couldn't bring himself to ruin her mood.

As it was, his day off had added an extra spring to her step and as soon as she was done caring for the baby, she became a flurry of energy running back and forth from the kitchen to the dining room. She laid out a variety of fruit, fresh croissants from a local bakery, and an absolute array of culinary delights to ensure that no one left her home hungry or thirsty. Naturally she was also giving him orders about where to put things and then adjust them to make it as aesthetically pleasing as possible. He might be the captain of the Enterprise, but like every smart married man, he knew who was the captain of the house and followed orders without question.

The lieutenant commander eagerly welcomed Picard and Riker into her home and showed them to the table. She had tried hard to make it look like the breakfasts of her childhood, but she had gone overboard. There was something else different about this meal too from her childhood. Where as a child she had sat silently watching the adults talk, she was now swapping Enterprise stories with Picard, Riker and Archer. Archer told the infamous tale of his chief engineer Charles 'Trip' Tucker accidentally getting impregnated by a Xyrillian when he was supposed to be assisting them with repairs to their ship. Riker told the story of meeting Zefram Cochran. Mostly how the ship's counselor (and his future wife) couldn't get the man to so much as speak to her until she agreed to have a drink with him and then he didn't admit who he was until she had had three shots of tequila. By the time he had beamed down to the surface to see how much progress was being made, she was almost blind drunk and Zefram was just getting warmed up for the evening.

Picard could have told a million different stories and probably had more than anyone else at the table. Rather than a misadventure through outer space he decided to tell one much closer to home. He spoke of Danaë's first day of school on board the Enterprise-D. At the time he had been concerned, not for her academic ability, he knew she was more than capable, but she was smaller than most of the other children and he didn't want her to be picked on. The old man reached over and took his daughter's twenty-fourth century PADD and brought up a picture of Dani taken that day. She looked like a proper princess dressed in a crisp white sailor dress that was edged in dark navy blue. Every golden curl on her head was in place with a few strands pulled back into a bow. She looked like a child from a bygone era long forgotten about.

"Two hours after walking her to class I was called to come back and get her because there had been an altercation between her and a boy. I naturally assumed she was upset and crying because another child had teased her or bullied her. You can imagine my surprise when I arrived at the school room and found my daughter, hair all messed up, her dress torn, glaring daggers at a boy twice her size huddled in the corner crying with a bloodied nose and a black eye. I realized then that her getting bullied was not what I should be worrying about."

"It was my pencil." Danaë added before taking a sip of juice. "He shouldn't have taken it from me."

"You beat him bloody over a pencil." Picard leaned slightly forward, still dumbfounded over such a small thing.

"But it was mine," she asserted. Archer gave a wry smile as he brought his coffee cup to his lips.

"Remind me never to take her pencil," he said, then took a drink of his hot beverage. Somehow none of this story surprised him. He knew very well she was a scrappy fighter and would be the first to recommend not taking her on.

"When you handed me my little bookbag that morning I remember you saying that there was nothing I couldn't learn so long as I had a pencil, a notebook and this." She pointed to her head indicating the gray matter within that had served her well. "He took my pencil and in my five-year-old logic he had potentially left me unprepared."

"I wasn't referring to the pencil or the notebook. I handed you your bag then your notebook because I wanted you to put it in the knapsack. I then tapped your forehead with the pencil because I knew your mind was quick and lively and with it you could learn anything. I wasn't expecting my daughter to become the reincarnation of John L Sullivan."

The group laughed at this childish logic that was a touch too literal, not entirely accurate and absolutely adorable. There were plenty of others Picard could tell Danaë and the lieutenant commander didn't mind the embarrassing stories at her expense. It was only fair. When she was finally introduced to Jonathan's mother, Sally, she wasted no time showing off naked baby pictures and imparting less than flattering stories of the great leader and diplomat growing up. She also knew that if Q were truly behind this then there was no telling when her father might be taken back to his own time and Jonathan would never get to hear such tales again.

It seemed Archer wasn't fated to hear this story anyway since the sound of chimes interrupted the tale forcing him to get up and answer the communication that was coming through. He assumed it would be something as simple as updates on vessel refits and reminders of meetings. Instead it was Admiral Gardner wanting to share the news that an ambassador from Rigel would be attending the dinner tomorrow night. It seemed he had heard many stories about Archer and was eager to meet him as well as his wife. As soon as the admiral mentioned the ambassador and dinner, the cat was out of the bag. Like a child that had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar, he glanced over his shoulder to see Dani sitting there still as death, the light happy air that had filled her all day was gone. He thanked Gardner for the mention then switched off the comm system.

Danaë began to silently clear the dishes while still trying to appear cordial and happy. It was not a mask she wore well and no one in the dining room was fooled except for the baby lying in his swing. There was fear and anxiety in her hazel eyes and it bothered the old man terribly. Carrying a plate of leftover food, she went into the kitchen leaving a wake of tension behind her. Archer excused himself then followed her, bracing himself for the storm. Seeing that something was amiss, Picard rose from his seat and took a step toward the kitchen. He could see that something was wrong with his daughter and the father in him wanted to know what it was and to help her. As a child and young woman nothing ever seemed to phase her and public life had been just another one of those duties required of her as his daughter.

Riker quickly advised him not to go in there and not to even listen in. As a long time married man he understood well that it was none of their business and best left for the two of them to work out. Interfering in-laws was something he had a lot of experience with since his mother-in-law was Lawaxana Troi and she had practically invented it. He also knew Picard had a way of unintentionally causing strife in marriages simply because he brought out a loyalty from friends that made it all but impossible to tell him no about anything. Picard heeded his former first officer's advice but only so far as to stand on one side of the doorway out of sight.

"When were you going to tell me about the banquet?" she asked, keeping her back to him as her hands rested on the kitchen counter. She was already beginning to feel the crowds around her, the eyes staring at her, judging her. The whispers that might only be in her head but they felt real enough. She felt them talking about her as though her life were bare naked before them. Her lack of a background, connections, her mental struggles, her mistakes that were nearly so costly. This mongrel commoner married to royalty. They may act polite to her face, but they were waiting for that inevitable moment when she might accidently reach for the wrong fork or sip just a little too loud.

"This evening after everyone left," he answered, softly clasping her arms. If Danaë were under Phlox's usual care this would be an annoyance but she would be able to handle it. "A species known as the El-Aurians are officially joining the Coalition. Their people are refugees scattered through the galaxy..."

"I know their history," she snapped, her hands beginning to shake. "I know it better than you do, but... I can't... I can't do it. Don't ask me to be there. I can't take the crowds, the noise... I just can't. " She could feel her heart pounding at the very thought and she wished it would stop. To Picard, listening in, this didn't sound like his child at all and it puzzled him. Beginning when she was a teenager, she had sat by his side through many diplomatic meals without the slightest care. Why was she struggling now? "Tell Gardner I have family visiting and can't make it."

"He already knows and has extended an invitation to them."

"Then tell him I can't leave the baby." she argued. Tears were beginning to well up in her eyes and she desperately tried to make them stop.

"Dani," he sighed, putting his arms around her waist and holding her. "I'll be right there beside you, holding your hand. Focus on me if that will help, or your father or anyone else to mentally separate yourself from the crowd. You know you can do this. You defeated the Romulans, this... this is nothing for you."

"Nothing," she half-heartedly laughed. It should have been nothing, but it never was. Not to her. "This is how things are going to be when you're on Earth isn't it?" Archer could only sigh and nod in answer to her question. "The rest of the time you'll be off exploring the galaxy without me."

Picard heard this and instantly bristled then went back to his seat at the table. He never heard Archer's apologies or his assurances that in a few short weeks she'd be right back in her office elbows deep in developing that new Warp-7 engine while their son slept in a bassinet next to her desk. Archer knew what Picard did not and that was that it was not just the idea of a diplomatic dinner, all its social requirements, crowds and interactions that was affecting his wife's mental health. She was already fighting the same depression that had been caused by the yamanu during the Xindi conflict exacerbated by not being able to have any treatment and because while on maternity leave she was feeling isolated and useless. Archer was also aware that these personal battles of Danaë were something she would want known by anyone, not even her father.

No, the old man did not listen long enough to hear any of those things. He saw only that his daughter was still recovering from childbirth and Archer was so focused on his career and the interests of Starfleet and the Coalition of Planets that he wasn't giving her the time she needed. This was the very thing he had tried to warn Danaë about during their walk the day before. Archer would always be about Starfleet. Nothing else. Career wise it was admirable, but it didn't allow you to be fully human. He had learned that lesson the hard way and he had never felt it quite so keenly as he did now that he was retired. When he sat alone in the evenings at his home in La Barre he sometimes heard the echoes of that last real conversation with Solenne and it never ceased to pain him. It was one that should have been joyous since she had come to tell him she was carrying his child, but instead his anger at her leaving and her anger over his neglect consumed the moment and the announcement never came.

"Of course, as always you are in a hurry to get back to your precious ship. Do you know why I didn't tell you I was leaving? I really didn't believe you would notice or care."

"I care about many things," he insisted.

"Things! Starships, planets, and exploration... not people!"

He closed his eyes and pushed that memory away. He didn't want to see his only child hurt like that. He remembered trying to see her Starfleet record and there was so little to it that he wondered now if she had given it all up to simply be Mrs. Archer. If that was the case then it saddened him. Like himself, Danaë could never be happy away from the stars or the engines she loved. She needs to come back with me to our own time, he thought to himself. There she can find her place and make a difference.