One Day at a Time

Posted on Sun Dec 13th, 2015 @ 11:30am by Lieutenant Bajun Julisa & Bajun Tora & Admiral Lucius Hawke & Lieutenant Commander Solis

Mission: Further Challenges

For any telepaths and empaths nearby, the exam room Bajun Julisa had been beamed to blazed with anger, fear, relief and guilt. Inside, Julisa paced, chewing at a thumbnail and mentally rehearsing her first moment with Admiral Hawke. Admiral? She needed to think of him as 'dad', and of Captain Hawke as 'sister'. She rebelled against that idea; much as she might appreciate Li Hawke as a fellow officer, she couldn't think of her as a sister. So why had she given Li's name as her own to Darhe'el?

The decision to do so had been a snap decision. If Julisa had given Darhe'el her own name, the Cardassian could have easily tracked her and her mother down, either killing them outright or making life exceedingly difficult for them. This way, the man's anger was directed towards a Betazoid named Li Hawke - and likely Lucius Hawke. Julisa had felt the Cardassian's recognition of Lucius, just before Darwin had shot her.

Still pacing, she switched from chewing her thumbnail to rubbing her belly, where Darwin had aimed. He had shot her! Part of her was irritated about that, but another part acknowledged it was the best way to quickly end a hostage situation. Even so, she briefly plotted how to get revenge.

Her plotting gave way to a realization that Lucius had likely been forced to leave Bajor because of her actions. If she hadn't said she was Li Hawke.... she smiled as the door opened, admitting Solis. "Hey, you."

Solis smiled ear to ear as he swept into the room and scooped her up in his arms. “Welcome home!” He didn’t want to say that he was afraid she wouldn’t make it back, especially given her trip through Gallitep. He couldn’t seem to let go of her either, despite the storm of emotions he could read in her. He decided to try and lighten the mood. “Why is it that every time you leave this station, it’s never a simple out-and-back?” he joked. “It’s like you have a temporal magnet attached to your ass.”

Laughing, she hugged him fiercely. "It is, isn't it? Though, apparently Darwin has that same jinx attached to him." This close, she couldn't help but read his mind. "My mother is here? And she and the Admiral already told you that bombshell? Nice of them." Her anger revived.

“Yeah,” Solis admitted. ‘Your mother has a way of just getting right to the point. She also still seems to think we are ‘dating’ and that one or the other of us is slacking since there’s not a herd of little me’s running around here.”

"At least you know where my bluntness comes from." She had let go of him, though she couldn't step back yet as he hadn't. The idea of little mini-Solises... Solii?... frightened her. "Kids, huh? Great that she's here to pressure us. That'll set the mood."

Solis laughed once more and shook his head. “I told her we have more important things to deal with for a while. There’s a lot that happened that she doesn’t know about too. Like your last time jump. Has Earl or Will given you the once over yet and declared you free to move about the station?”

"No, I think they were waiting for you. Or for Security," she said, stepping back and pulling up her oversized pant leg to reveal a cuff still clipped around her ankle.

“Oh.” Solis’ expression darkened. “Tell me they got you out before that slimeball harmed you? I’d hate to have to go back in time and break his neck but it would be justified. I’m regretting for the moment, though, that I’m not supposed to do any harm. Niro should count his blessings.”

“I stalled him, Solis. And then Darwin shot me,” she knew that’d likely get a rise from him.

“Darwin? Shot you? Shouldn’t he have been shooting at the spoonheads?” Solis frowned, hoping there was more to this story.

His reaction made her chuckle. “Yes, there is. Take a look,” she put her hands on either side of his neck and kissed him, letting him see what had happened. “So, he shot me to make me dead weight,” she shrugged.

“Tactically sound,” Solis agreed, sounding uncharacteristically logical. He kissed her again, then finally brought up the big question. “Your mother and the Admiral….they want to see you.”

“Right now? Could I have this removed, get a shower and some clothes that fit first?”

He nodded. “That’s what I suggested too - a little time to adjust to being home before all the heavy stuff. I’ll call Security and give them a nudge, then we’ll go home.”

“Okay,” she sat on the biobed and yawned. Shortly after Solis’ call, an Ensign arrived and cut the cuff from Julisa’s ankle. Solis tended to her with a regenerator and then walked her home.

* Solis & Julisa’s Quarters - Two Hours Later *

Lucius held Tora’s hand tight as they approached Julisa’s door. He stopped them in the corridor and turned to face Tora. “Would you believe me if I said I was nervous?”

“Yes. And I’m going to claim that you’re projecting and that’s why I’m so nervous. She’s my daughter! I don’t need to be nervous,” Tora huffed then smiled. “But things will be fine. At least we got invited over.”

Lucius had to laugh at that. “You are not the problem here, my darling. You didn’t take off for parts unknown and remain….unknown.” He took a deep breath, then nodded. “Alright, let’s do this.” He led the way down to the door and rang the chime.

A moment passed during which Tora squeezed Lucius’s hand lightly before the door opened. A stony faced Julisa stared at them for a brief second then beckoned them in. She turned and walked away from the door. “Something to drink? Me, I’m having hot chocolate.”

“No thank you, I’m good. Tora?” Lucius smiled at Julisa, then to Solis who was standing by the sofa. He had come in civilian clothes, since this was a personal issue and the urge to smoothe the front of his shirt prodded him. He resisted. “Welcome back, Julisa.”

“Thanks, Dad.” She came back from the replicator with two mugs. One, she passed to her mother, who smiled in thanks and took a seat on the sofa. Julisa moved to an armchair. “I suppose I have to apologize, don’t I? I used Li’s name when Darhe’el questioned me. That’s why you left and didn’t have contact with us, isn’t it?”

Tora’s face was a mask of confusion.

Lucius was silent for a moment, then finally shook his head. He moved around behind the sofa and rested his hands on the back of it, too keyed up to sit. “Not exactly. When we got you out, do you recall exactly what he said?”

“He thought I was your wife,” she answered, “And then Darwin stunned me. Before that, he and some of his lackeys talked about a weapon the Cardies were testing.”

Lucius recalled now that Julisa had been stunned by Darwin’s phaser when Darhe’el had shouted his threat. “It’s strange how that memory seems old when it just arrived. What I am referring to happened just after Darwin shot you. I corrected him, informed him you were my daughter and then he said….he said that he would hunt down and kill everyone I held dear. Given his reputation, I believed him. I took him down then, and we got you out. Unfortunately, I couldn’t kill him. There’s no telling what it would have done to the timeline.”

Solis moved over to perch on the arm of Julisa’s chair and rest his hand on her back. He remained silent, however. This was between Julisa and Lucius.

“He wouldn’t have said that if I hadn’t used Li’s name,” she reasoned.

“No that was my fault for telling him who you were. It wouldn’t have mattered what name you gave him,” Lucius answered. “So when you get right down to it, all of this is my fault.”

“Stop it, you two. You’re talking around each other, taking blame for the same thing. The end result, Jules, is that Lucius and I had an argument - he knew he needed to leave because of Darhe’el’s threat. If he stayed, Darhe’el’s intel would have discovered what we were to Lucius and Darhe’el would have had us killed... maybe... more likely tortured, etc.” Tora cleared her throat, not wanting to discuss just what the Cardassians did with children and women during the Occupation. “It happened this way the first time, too. Lucius wanted us to go to Betazed with him but I refused. I had - still have - duties on Bajor. At the time, I couldn’t just run away to a safe life when my people were still fighting for our home! So I made Lucius leave us behind.”

Julisa could respect her mother’s decision; the Vedek had been instrumental in so many Bajorans’ lives, not having her on Bajor would have been a tragedy. She could also see Lucius’ dilemma. “I suppose there wasn’t really a choice.”

Lucius stepped around the sofa and sat down beside Tora. “There is always a choice, it’s just that sometimes we may not like the ones we have to make. I hated it then and have ever since. I didn’t like the position it put Tora in, or you. That doesn’t mean, however, that I haven’t keep track of you over the years.”

Julisa winced. “Is that why Admiral Ch’liss always put up with me?” She’d been a good traveling prosecutor - great, really, but her people skills had often left Ch’liss smoothing out certain wrinkles and egos.

“You earned your position on your own,” Lucius assured her. “I will, however, take credit for your posting here.” He glanced over to Solis then. “And smoothing a few wrinkles, to use Julisa’s term, to get you here too.”

Solis nodded. “I appreciate that. I thought I was going to have to start banging some heads together to get it done.”

Julisa eyed Lucius. He’d just picked that phrase out of her head. “Well. This will take getting used to. Mom, what about Poh?”

Tora smiled sadly. “He’s always been a wonderful friend and he loved you like a daughter, so I didn’t see why he shouldn’t step in as your step-father.”

“Right.” She’d always known her mom and Poh hadn’t been a love-match. It hadn’t mattered to her: Poh had been a good dad-figure. “There’s probably a half-a-dozen things I should ask you. Does Li know? Has she known all this time?”

“No.” Lucius shook his head. “She found out somewhere around the crack of dawn yesterday, once we recalled here that you’d been taken to Gallitep as an adult.” Lucius hesitated for a moment. “It was a shock, of course, and she didn’t take it too well initially. Not in the way you think though. She was angry with me and worried about you.”

“I can imagine how she felt.” Julisa nodded. “A sister.” She smiled slightly. “How weird to go from being a single kid to having siblings... half-siblings.”

“Yes. None of whom have children yet, dear. Grandchildren would be wonderful,” Tora interjected.

“Mom!” Julisa admonished her and shook her head.

Solis merely smiled at Julisa. I warned you, Vina.

Looking up at Solis, Julisa shushed him. “We’ll talk about that later, Mom.” Much later, she added to Solis.

“Hmmphf, fine,” Tora said and sat back.

“Julisa, I know this has all fallen on you in a rush and it will take some time. Whatever I can do, though, just ask. Or yell at me about it...whatever.” Lucius smiled. “However, you’ve just gotten home from a strange ordeal. We’ll leave you to relax and get settled back in and have some time to get used to all this.”

“Thanks. I need some time,” she agreed. “Mom, you were coming out here anyway, though I forget why.”

“It’s okay, dear. I was just coming for a visit, and to see you married. But, Solis tells me you’re already married. You could have told me,” Tora chided her daughter.

“Oh... well... it’s just a certificate,” Jules downplayed it.

“We’ll let you get some rest now,” Tora rose and smoothed a hand through Jules’ hair. “Solis, take care of her.” She and Lucius headed for the door.

“Oh I intend to.” He winked at Tora as she and Lucius departed.

Out in the corridor, they walked several yards in silence before Lucius stopped Tora and turned her to face him. “Tell me about Poh.”

Looking up at him, a wash of emotions ran across her face. Confusion, mild irritation, finally levity. She smiled and teased, “Are you jealous? You remember Poh - he was part of the raid on Gallitep, on the ship with Niro. He’s why Jules is good with computers and the like. She certainly didn’t get that from me.”

“I recall the young man, yes. He was rather reserved at the time but it’s not that time I’m interested in now,” Lucius answered. “But to answer your question? Yes. I am.”

“Says the married man,” Tora chuckled and turned to keep walking. “He was rather reserved - he was frightened by that ship and intimidated by Ricky and you. Once you were gone, though, he became ... everything. He was good to Julisa; he was good to me.” She shrugged.

Lucius sighed aloud as he hurried to catch up with her. “I can’t fault him for that. He did a wonderful job. Being….there where I could not.” His voice had tightened considerably. “He had what I will never get to see. You’re damn right I’m jealous.”

“You had it with Li,” Tora said, as if that made up for not having a hand in Julisa’s childhood. “Poh was also good at finding resources to help her handle being part-Betazoid. Maybe I should have given up being Vedek and just gone with you to Betazed. Julisa could have had all the best schooling instead of being raised in the upheaval of the Occupation and the years following it.”

“Hindsight, Tora,” he whispered. “What’s Poh’s status now?”

“He died a few years ago. About the time that Julisa started her traveling attorney tour,” Tora said. “I was awful to him. He loved me, which is why he stayed with me, did everything he did for Julisa. But he knew he couldn’t ever replace you.”

“I’m sorry.” Lucius was instantly contrite. “I will always be deeply grateful for what he did for you both.” However, the news that she was unattached again warmed him. “At least I have no competition this time?”

“As if you had competition last time,” she reminded him. “I’m the one who should be jealous, you know. You were married to Marianna when we were together; now you’re married to Aia. Not that I think you should divorce her or anything like that.”

He closed his eyes and pulled her into a tight embrace. “I have no idea what to do. We have a little time before we have to jump into that issue, however.”

“One day at a time, Lucius.” She hugged him.

***************
Lt. Bajun Julisa
Lt. Solis
Vedek Bajun Tora
Admiral Lucius Hawke
Addressing The Past