Siblings

Summary: T'Resa ponders regret.

Author's Note:  This is for the June "Regret" challenge.

T'Resa Tucker was driving towards her parents' home. She had just been to the re-hab center at Starfleet Medical, to visit her cousin Thomas. Her cousin had lost his left arm during a hostage situation and had been in re-hab for about three weeks. Thomas had been in a crappy mood when she arrived because his new arm was giving him fits. By the time she left, after much cajoling and teasing, he was in a far better humor. Together they had gone through his exercises without dropping or breaking anything. Promising to return in a few days, she left him feeling much more confident with his new appendage.  
 

T'Resa's next stop was home to visit her parents and new sister.

She started to reminisce about the birth of her sister four days ago.

T'Resa and her fourteen-year-old brother, Morgan, were sitting in the hospital cafeteria. Both of the Tucker siblings had a bowl of tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwich sitting in front of them. T'Resa took a sip of soup and noticed that her brother was not eating.

"Something wrong with the food, Sweetie?"

"No it's fine." Morgan sighed, "Sis, do you think things are going to be alright this time?" 

"Oh Honey, Doctor Phlox said everything was fine. Babies have their own timetable. She's a girl and will make her appearance when she's good and ready."

"I know but she's two weeks early... and with what happened last time." Morgan's voice trailed off.

 "Morgan, there were a lot of specific problems with our brother. He just wasn't meant to be with us, but Phlox says this baby is fine."

 "I know but I can't help worrying about Mom. I don't know what we'd do without her."

T'Resa reached for her brother's hand, "Don't even think like that, Mother is fine and so is the baby, I promise. Now stop worrying and eat up, in a few hours you're going to have another sister to complain about."

Morgan grinned at the sister he loved and trusted. He dipped the corner of his sandwich in the tomato soup and took a bite.

The siblings were sitting just outside their mother's room. Morgan had felt a little uneasy about watching the birth, so T'Resa agreed to sit with him. However, both stood and stepped to the door when they heard a baby's cry.

"How's the baby, Doc? Is she alright?" Trip was gripping his wife's hand.

"She's fine Captain, let us clean her up and take a few measurements."

Trip's sister-in-law, Julia Tucker, was a neo-natal intensive care nurse, however today they did not expect a problem. Julia was with them more for moral support. She finished up her examination and eased over to lay the baby on T'Pol's chest. The infant immediately stopped her soft little cry.

"She's perfect," Julia said, "You two sure make pretty babies."

Julia patted Trip's back and moved away to give the relieved parents some privacy. Trip heaved a sigh and kissed his wife. Julia walked over to her niece and nephew.

"Come in and see your new sister."

As T'Resa entered her home she could hear her parents talking in the living room. Trip was trying to convince T'Pol to take a nap. She had only been home from the hospital for two days.

"Trip, I had hoped that once the baby was born you would stop treating me like an invalid. I am perfectly capable of tending to T'San."

"I know that, Darlin', but she kept you up for hours last night. Just humor me, you go upstairs and take a nap.  I'll take her to the porch and read, sing, or explain how a warp engine works to her."

With a sigh T'Pol capitulated, "Alright, I will take a short nap; however wake me in time to start dinner. And Trip, don't sing."

"Hey!" Trip frowned at his mate then headed out with his daughter in his arms. "You like to hear me sing don't you, Buttercup."

As Trip headed toward the kitchen with the intention of grabbing a couple of cookies and a glass of milk, he ran smack into his oldest daughter.

"We all enjoyed having you sing to us Daddy, that's how we learned to laugh."

"I get no respect around this house, make yourself useful you brat, and grab us some cookies and milk."

Juggling his child Trip headed for the porch swing. T'Resa came out with a tray of milk and cookies, setting them on a side table.

Trip cooed to his new daughter, "What should we talk about while mommy sleeps, baby-girl? You want to know about warp engines or how me and mommy met. She wouldn't even shake daddy's hand that day; fortunately she's gotten a little friendlier since then."

"I'll say, considering there are three of us," T'Resa chuckled.

"And your big sister is a smart-aleck. By the way sweetheart, what are you doing here this time of day?"

"I cut a class to come visit with my new baby sister. And chill out Daddy, I could teach Thermodynamics better than Professor Bell. I'm not missing much. Okay, hand her over."

T'Resa reached out and scooped little T'San out of her father's arms. They sat across from Trip in one of the wicker chairs that faced the swing.

"How is Mother feeling today?"

"She's tired but fine, I made her take a nap. By the way how did you get here so quietly?" Trip reached for his glass of milk and a cookie.

"I parked in the front and walked to the back. I wanted to make sure I didn't wake anybody." T'Resa rubbed her sister's cheek with the back of her fingers. "You sure are a pretty girl, aren't you?"

"You both are." Trip said with pride. "Who do you think she looks like, me or your mom?"

"Well it goes without saying, she's got mom's ears and I think her eyebrows are going to be pointed also. The blue eyes are all you, Daddy. Bless your heart, punkin', we'll have to wait a bit for enough hair to grow in to tell the color. I just have one question though, should I be expecting another sibling in seven years?"

"Lord no, Darlin'. You three are it. I realize that your Mother tends to get fertile every seven years but we decided that we're done. I'm fifty-seven and your Mom is eighty-eight, we just want to sit back and enjoy you guys now."

"Daddy, can I ask you something that might embarrass you?"

"Are you about to ask me about the birds and bees?"

T'Resa burst into laughter and looked down at her little sister in her arms, "Oh T'San, our daddy is such a hoot. Trust me Daddy; I know what I need to know."

"You realize that you have plenty of time for that kind of stuff...don't you?" Trip was looking embarrassed and concerned at the same time.

T'Resa's heart melted, "Daddy I will never get involved with a man until I find one as wonderful as you. I made up my mind a long time ago that I want someone who will love me like you love Mother."

Trip got a relieved look on his face. "Okay so what are you wantin' to know?"

"I guess that you guys have talked to Phlox about us kids. My concern is Morgan. Do you have any idea if he will have a human sex drive or will he be subject to pon farr?" T'Resa shifted the baby to her shoulder, "I guess it's technically none of my business but I dearly love my little brother and that just seems like a hard row to hoe. I want him to know love like you do. I love our Vulcan heritage, don't get me wrong, but I want things to be as easy for Morgan as possible."

"Actually Honey, I know what you mean. I have worried about that myself. You want the best for your children and while Morgan is quieter than you, he also doesn't suppress his emotions. Phlox told us at his last exam that his puberty was progressing at human norms and the Doc thinks Morgan will have a more human adolescence." Trip chuckled, "Plus, he told me the other day that there's a girl in his class that he really likes."

T'Resa smiled at her father, relieved that at least she didn't have to worry about that aspect of her little brother's life. Father and daughter continued to chat for an hour or so. T'Resa told him of her visit with Thomas and his progress today. Suddenly the baby began to squirm and fuss a little bit. "What's the problem, little girl?" T'Resa asked her sister.

"She is hungry," T'Pol said from the door.

"Did you get some sleep Darlin'?" Trip wanted to know. 

"Yes, I had a refreshing rest. I am pleased to see you T'Resa; will you stay for dinner?"

"That was my plan. Can I help?"

"I will take T'San inside and feed her. You and your father continue your conversation. Morgan will be home soon, then we can begin." T'Pol took the baby and headed inside.

Trip and his eldest daughter began talking about school. He was curious as to how she liked taking a class from her uncle.

"Uncle Alan is a great teacher. He has the ability to engage the students and get us all participating before we realize it."

 They heard the sound of the transport dropping Morgan home from school. He bounded onto the porch.

 "Hey Sis, what're you doing here?"

 "Glad to see you to, Shorty."

 Morgan grinned, "I'm glad to see you, just surprised. In fact I've been wanting to show you my project for the science fair."

 "And I want to hear about this girlfriend of yours."

 Morgan scowled at his father, "Da-ad!"

 _________________________________

 T'Resa was climbing the ladder of her tree house; actually she supposed that it was now Morgan's. What had once been her sanctuary, now had her little brother's stamp all over it. There were tools, spare parts, and any number of 'in progress' projects scattered about. Morgan looked up at his sister's approach.

 "Hey Shorty, what kind of evil experiments have you got going on up here?"

 Morgan gave his sister a grin, "Just a few things to help with my plans for world domination, and by the way, you do realize that as of my last exam, I am now officially the same height as you?"

 "Ah yes, but even when I start having to look up at you, you'll always be my Shorty."

 "It does concern me, you know, having a crazy sister. I have high hopes that T'San will be a little more normal."

 "Hope springs eternal." T'Resa replied with a shrug. "So, how are things at school these days, any problems?"

 "Not really, there's this one kid that picks on me sometimes. Nothing I can't handle."

 T'Resa scowled, "You want me to kick his ass?!?"

 "I don't think that will be necessary," Morgan chuckled. "We both know that with our extra strength and the self defense lessons Mom gave us, I could kick his ass if need be. However, I usually just ignore him and he goes away."

 "You know it's a funny thing. It's easier to ignore what people do to you than it is what they do to someone you care about. When I was nine, I had sort of an epiphany about that."

 This got her brother's attention, "Do tell."

 "There was a girl in my class, named Kelly, that constantly made fun of my ears. She called me names and generally made my life miserable. Then a new girl transferred to our class, Jan Mason, her parents were in Starfleet and had just been moved here. Jan was pretty, smart, and human. From the day Jan showed up Kelly started picking on her. In our shared torment we became fast friends. The epiphany was that some people just need to try and belittle others to make themselves feel important. It had nothing to do with me being half Vulcan. Kelly was just a hateful individual."

 "Did she ever stop bothering you?"

 "As a matter of fact she did. One day during a field hockey game, Kelly made sure the coach wasn't looking and smacked Jan on the knee with her stick."

 "Why do I get the feeling you didn't let that go un-avenged."

 "You know me too well little brother. I calculated the exact trajectory and speed needed to hit the funny bone in Kelly's right elbow without doing permanent damage. I whacked that hockey ball and dropped her like a rock. After that she left the two of us alone."

 "Now I know why you are my hero, Sis. Not only can you do advanced math calculations in your head, but you have the most devious mind I know."

 "Well thanks, coming from you that is high praise indeed. We'll both need to keep an eye on T'San as she grows up, to keep people from picking on her."

 "My school has so many ambassador's and diplomat's kids now, that I'm hardly bothered anymore. I'm sure it was worse for you."

 T'Resa thought for a moment, "There were the occasional days that I felt like the town freak, but not often. I think Mama and Daddy made me feel so special and loved that the odd person who didn't approve of me was mostly inconsequential. And as I said, I found out quickly that mean kids pick on everyone."

 Morgan looked at his sister and laughed, "We would probably do better to teach the baby how to stay out of trouble at home."

 "No kidding, like don't dye the neighbor's cat purple," T'Resa snickered. "Or set the garage on fire."

 Morgan scowled, "Hey, give a six-year-old a chemistry set at your own risk. Besides Snowball wasn't hurt, it was non-toxic dye, but I still can't believe how volatile a half liter of home made rocket fuel was."

 Shaking her head T'Resa agreed, "Who knew my baby brother could build a rocket and make fuel out of household chemicals. Live and learn. When we heard the explosion I thought Daddy was gonna have a heart attack. You're lucky he didn't skin you alive. The funniest part was Mama trying to stay all cool and emotionless while Daddy was spraying fire suppressant on the garage and swearing up a blue streak."

 The siblings both dissolved into laughter. The homemade rocket had gone about twenty feet in the air, turned, came back down and landed on the roof of the garage, then exploded.

 T'Resa wiped tears from her eyes, deepened her voice to imitate her father, "T'Pol look what your son has done, he nearly burned down the neighborhood. I swear that boy just took ten years off my life."

 Morgan gasped for air, "Then Mom said, 'He is equally your offspring Charles Morgan Tucker the Third, and by the way which of us is the engineer?' I didn't laugh at the time because I was in so much trouble."

 "Mama is the only person brave enough to talk back to Daddy when he's in a state. We probably only heard half of what was going on." T'Resa ruffled her brother's hair. "Since you're still in one piece, I'm fairly certain she was using their bond to try and calm him down."

 Morgan grinned, "That had to be the worst trouble I've ever gotten into. While you on the other hand, my dear sister, remain undefeated champion at making Dad go ballistic."

 His sister dropped her head down into her hands and heaved a dramatic sigh. "I knew you wouldn't miss the opportunity to bring that up. It's funny how something can seem so reasonable at the time, and later you realize...that was plain stupid."

T'Resa had just turned thirteen and was feeling very much like an adult. There was a concert Friday night by her favorite band. It was all the kids at school could talk about. Her friend Jan was going with her older sister and they asked T'Resa if she wanted to go. She prepared her request logically.  T'Resa approached her parents with the confidence of an adolescent who feels completely grown up. She laid out the plan and was totally shocked when her parents said no.

 "I happen to know for a fact that at the last venue where, 'Open Up The Heavens' played there was a riot," Trip said. "You are way too young to go to an event like that. I'm not letting my girl go to something as potentially dangerous as that, Sweetpea. "

 "I agree with your father, that is not an appropriate event for a child to attend." T'Pol's voice had that 'there will be no further discussion' tone to it.

 T'Resa rankled at her mother's use of the word child, however she had learned long ago, arguing with her parents when they agreed on something was a waste of time. She retreated to her room to contemplate the unfairness of the universe in general and her life in particular. The more the half-human, half-Vulcan girl thought about it, the angrier she got.

 "They act like I'm a baby!," she shouted at her stuffed sehlat. T'Resa picked up the toy and looked it in the eye, "If I were to sneak out and go to the concert then tell them the next day, they would see how wrong they were. They would then realize that I am old enough to make my own decisions."

 The Tucker daughter formulated her plan. She would not mention the concert again. The night of the event, T'Resa would sneak out after telling her parents she was going to bed early. A quick walk over to Jan's house and they would be on their way. It had all seemed so simple.

 The doorbell to the Tucker house rang, waking the couple from a sound sleep. Trip looked at the clock; it was a little past two in the morning. Wondering who on earth it could be, Trip and T'Pol got out of bed and headed for the front door. Opening the door, the Tuckers found a police officer standing outside with a hand on T'Resa's shoulder.

 The officer explained, "Captain and Mrs. Tucker, a scuffle broke out at the concert being held at the civic center. We were called in to restore order. When we were sorting things out and talking to the kids I recognized your daughter's name. I decided to escort her and her friends home." The officer gave the Tucker's a smile, "She's fine, no harm done but don't you think she was a little young for this event?"

 Trip gave his daughter a glare, "Go to your room young lady."

 Through the bond, the couple felt a wave of unease coming from their daughter. T'Resa headed to her room at a run as Trip and T'Pol thanked the officer for his help in getting their daughter home safely.

 The door to her room flew open and the panicked girl faced parents that she had never seen quite so angry.

Morgan said to his sister, "In what alternate universe did that ever seem like a good idea. My room was two doors down and I could hear every word Dad said to you."

 "He sure was mad," T'Resa shook her head. "They both were, only Mother controlled it better. Now, I can't imagine why I pulled such a dumb stunt. I, mistakenly you understand, felt like I was mature enough to make my own decisions."

 "How mature did you feel when Dad spanked you?"

 "Ah, you heard that too huh?"

 "Actually, I snuck down the hall to see what was going on. I got there about the time he was yelling at you, wanting to know if you realized all the bad things that could have happened to you sneaking out of the house at night like that."

 T'Resa gave an embarrassed chuckle, "Yeah, I had to meditate for hours over the lack of wisdom in that little adventure. Okay, let's make a pact. When T'San is old enough to start causing Mama and Daddy trouble, we'll tell her about all our mishaps and maybe keep her on the straight and narrow."

 Morgan smiled, "Well I guess it's worth a try but she does have the Tucker mischief gene you know. According to Grandpa, we are just the latest in a long line of Tucker trouble makers."

 T'Resa looked at Morgan, "Maybe T'San will suppress her emotions and never give them any trouble. You know I almost feel that we would need to protect her more if she goes that route."

 Morgan thought about that for a minute. "I know what you mean. People can be so stupid sometimes, even if they aren't trying to be mean. I had a teacher ask me once, if I regretted not being Vulcan."

 "Honey, you and I are the first of our kind, at least in this universe, alternate timeline, or dimensional rift we live in." The siblings smiled at each other. "It is not for anyone to tell us what we are or how we should act. If I chose to select the best of both my worlds, well I defy people to tell me I can't. I'm sure there will be more of us in the future and maybe their parents won't be as supportive as ours have been about finding our own path. I will feel sorry for them if they're forced to choose one lifestyle over the other, but I'll support it if it's their choice. The only thing I will ever regret is if we don't explore all that our two heritages have to offer us."

 T'Resa noticed their parents stepping out to the back porch.

Trip called up to his kids in the tree house, "Pie's ready, come get some dessert!"

 T'Resa called down, "Okay, Daddy we'll be right there." T'Resa looked at Morgan, "We are answerable to that man and woman down there, and our conscience. The rest of the world better just watch and learn." 

The End