Posted by Captain Eela Dasca (Lt. Governor) in Earth- Tipping Points

(snip)

But Caridee wanted him to reassure her that everything was okay and he couldn’t. =/\=Dee…=/\=

“Oh gods!” Her hands covered her mouth as she braced her elbows on the desk.

=/\=Dee, confirm first. Call him, send a message, something, and find out if he’s around. Maybe we are jumping to conclusions, so let’s start there.=/\=

Caridee gazed at the man she’s known since she was four years old and nodded. Roger always knew what to do. It was late enough that she would send dad a message and they could just chalk all this up to a strange doppelgänger, right?

Steading herself Caridee told Roger she’d call him back and sent a quick message to her father asking if he was still wanting to get together for dinner in a couple days as they had discussing earlier. S he tried to not pace but instead went to check on Alais and Kian. She didn’t say much to her husband and he just wrapped his arms around her tightly. After a few minutes, she explained and he just held her tighter.

When she ventured back into the office a little while later, there was a reply and she hesitated to look. When she finally did, Caridee felt something inside crumble. It was short and just said he’d have to postpone as he was off-world just now.

When she called Roger back he could see it on her face. =/\=He’s not there?=/\=

Caridee shook her had. “Nope. Off-world. How could he be so stupid?! I mean…” She shook her head.

=/\=Dee… I know this is hard for you. I know it seems so sudden and out of the blue, but it’s really not. And to be honest, I don’t give a crap about him right now. The person I am most concerned about is my best friend. So I’m going to send her a message myself and see what she says about it all.=/\=

Caridee looked alarmed as she gazed at Kellen. “Do you think that’s a good idea? She hasn’t even replied to me.”

Roger gave her a rueful smile. =/\=Ahh, Caridee. Consider what little we know. Your father shows up on the planet where his ex-wife lives and works, whom I might add he had a rather tumultuous end of marriage with, and keep in mind they had an agreement to check first about contact. We see him being escorted by guards in tactical gear, which tells me they mean business and this is serious. So she felt the need to have her security deal with the situation Dee and we don’t know what actually happened. Do you really think she’s in a position to talk to her daughter about whatever her father might or might not have done? You know her too well to ignore reality, Love.=/\=

Caridee’s shoulders slumped. “I just don’t understand.”

=/\=I know. But I do, Dee. And that’s why I should be the one to reach out. If she’s going to talk to anyone, she’ll talk to me.=/\= Dee nodded but she appeared so lost. =/\=I know this is hard, but I think it’s about time you understood that there was a high probability of him doing something like this. I’ve been careful not to interfere where I knew El wouldn’t want me to, but her having something wonderful of her own was exactly what she needed and I’ve no doubt he resents the hell out of her success.=/\=

He watched her brows knit in confusion, though he could also see Dee working through the variables so intensely that she sat more upright, alarm sweeping across her beautiful face. It pained him but Roger also knew it was necessary. They couldn’t truly support Eela through whatever was happening if they all ignored reality. It was about time her kids saw things with a bit more truth. =/\=She became small around him these last years, Dee. I think if you let yourself, you’ll see it too. I know because I talk to her now and I can see the change. She’s her again. Vibrant and funny and determined. Ask yourself why she hid herself from relationships, from connection these last years. I’m not even sure she knows exactly why, but I have my suspicions and nothing I come up with paints your father in a great light. I’ve known Cory just as long as I’ve known your mom, Dee, so I have seen them go through a lot together. She wasn’t the only one that changed.=/\=

Caridee blew out a breath and slowly nodded. “Okay, I’ll leave it with you. Just…”

He gave her a reassuring smile. =/\=As soon as I know anything and she says it’s okay to share, I’ll let you know.=/\= Dee nodded. =/\=Remember, Dee, she’s got a lot of people there to keep her safe and taken care of. We’re going to have to trust them to do so. And failing that, your mother is an extraordinary and resilient person. I believe in her ability to find her way through. We just have to have patience for whatever that looks like, just like we have been.=/\=

She smiled at him. “Always. And thank you. I’m glad she has you.”

Rogers chuckled. =/\=I’m the fortunate one. She just puts up with my nonsense for reasons I stopped trying to figure out a long time ago.=/\=

Caridee grinned. “Hey, some things don’t need explanation.”

=/\=No, they don’t. Now try to get some sleep. There’s enough of a time difference that it might take awhile before I hear anything from her.=/\=

They hung up and Caridee sat at the desk lost in her thoughts. He was right. She wanted to see her parents as she had when she was younger. Those days on the Berlin had been pretty amazing for a young child. It had all been so lovel… no, it hadn’t all been lovely. There was that dark time when Jour was born and Mom had just lost her parents. And then Dad’s work took him away from the ship so soon after and mom, well, there had been a lot of people in and out of their quarters, helping, like Roger. Mom and her had had conversations about that time as Caridee got older, so she now understood that on top of terrible grief and dealing with a premature baby, Eela had fallen into severe postpartum depression. It was strange that time though. She remembered it with the child’s awareness that not everything was okay, but her mom lit up when Caridee came into the room. That was the thing she remembered. But Dad wasn’t there for awhile and then he was back suddenly. She had never thought to ask her mom about that, about why he left so soon after Jourin was born and what made him return.

Suddenly Dee was examining the lens she saw her parents with and wondering what else she had missed. The answer was disturbing.

~Caridee Severn & Rear Admiral Roger Kellen