Author's Note: I really, really loved the episodes "Three Minus Bree" and "Which Father Knows Best?" Loved the Bree/Donald relationship; we just don't see enough of that on the show! Also loved how Leo ended up being the one to solve the problem, and the Douglas redemption. Just a great couple of episodes all around. However, they left me wanting a bit more. So I wrote a few tags to flesh out the episodes a bit. This story will be three chapters, each one from a different character's point of view. I hope you like them.
Episode Tags: Three Minus Bree and Which Father Knows Best?
By 88Keys
12/4/14
Part One- Donald
He has never seen her like this before.
It's true that Bree often rebels in her own little ways. A roll of the eyes, a sarcastic comment, a heavy sigh of annoyance when asked to do even a minor task. But generally, she does what is told and stays out of trouble. Well, major trouble, anyway. All of his kids do, most of the time. And for that, he is very grateful.
He also knows that she is still upset that he denied her the opportunity to go to Australia. And he can understand, from her limited teenaged viewpoint, how it looks as if he made a hasty decision without listening to her side of things. And maybe he did, in a way.
Still, there are variables she has not considered. Conditions of which she is unaware, and he does not want to voice them because he doesn't want her to worry any more than she already does. She and her brothers are remarkably good at bouncing back and continuing on with their lives after traumatic experiences. He wants that to continue, and if it means he has to take the worries onto his own shoulders, then so be it. He will gladly bear those burdens for them.
She doesn't know how his breath caught in his throat when he opened the letter. How his stomach fluttered and his heartbeat pounded in his ears when he read the words "accepted into the study abroad program." She would be gone a month.
A whole month without her.
By the time she arrives home from school, he has worked out what he will say. He gives her some excuses about missions and teamwork and capsules, and though they are all legitimate concerns, they do not get to the real heart of the issue.
He cannot let her go because he would simply miss her too much.
He is not prepared to face the fact that his little girl is almost grown up. All of his children are. The children that he reluctantly took in on a whim all those years ago, who disrupted his life and his plans and turned his whole world upside down, are now the biggest part of him. And all of them are almost ready to move on and find their own way in the world. He knows this has to happen, but the thought of losing such a big part of his self is too terrifying to face right now. So he plays the part of the angry dad who lays down the law, and the turns and marches out of the room so that he doesn't have to see the hurt look on her face.
Later, when she goes to a concert after he specifically forbade it, Donald is surprised.
He knows she is still angry and hurt, but it is not like her to be so openly defiant. She's usually more subtle, more sneaky. Like when she applied to the Australia program without asking him.
Going to a forbidden concert is still pretty low on the teenage rebellion scale. And he knows the quickest and best way to punish her; public humiliation in front of her peers. But the interruption costs him valuable time and effort, and time is precious right now because Victor Krane is still out there, undoubtedly watching them and planning his next attack.
He has not told any of his children that the chip upgrade he is implanting right now will provide much more security for all of them. It will make their signals harder to track and make it more difficult for Krane or anyone else to hack their bionic systems. It is why this upgrade is so massive and so urgent, but he does not tell any of them those details. There is a fine line between being aware of the dangers in life and living constant fear of them, and he does not want to push the kids over that line. Especially when he teeters precariously close to it himself much of the time.
Krane is another one of those variables that Bree most likely has not considered. But Donald has, many, many times. How could he send her 8,000 miles away by herself when that psychopath is still out there? He may as well hand her to Krane directly and tell him to have fun.
The thought makes sweat break out across his forehead and sends a wave of nausea through his stomach. He tries to shake it off, and begins lecturing Bree about her behavior just to get his mind of things, but it is not working. The thought of Krane going after Bree alone has invaded his mind and taken over, upsetting his concentration.
Bree angrily smacks the chip into his hand. He sets it on the counter and turns away so she won't see the fear in his eyes or his shaking fingers.
The tension in the room is thick; even the boys can feel it. Donald is dimly aware of them speaking to her, and of her saying something about not wanting to be bionic. About freedom. But his brain is already too crowded, and his ears are still ringing, and the words register just a few seconds too late.
He looks up just in time to see her raise her arm and smash everything to pieces.
They are all shocked, but he is horrified as the total realization takes over him. She has destroyed her chip, wrecked their team, and left herself more vulnerable than ever.
And Krane is still out there.
All the variables she did not consider are screaming inside of his head. He wants to yell too, but he can barely breathe, can barely get out the words.
"You have no idea what you just did."