DISCLAIMER: It's Paramount's galaxy.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: A/TP. T'Pol returns to Enterprise after the events of the season four episode "Home" and the day before the events in the episode "Borderland". With all that's going on in her life, it's a comfort to be back. References to "The Shipment", "North Star", "Azati Prime", "Damage", and "Zero Hour"

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COMFORT

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The transport from Vulcan exited warp space just outside the Moon's orbit. The blue-green planet of Earth shone brightly in front, only partially obscured by the central superstructure of the vessel as viewed from her seat on the starboard side. How different in appearance from her own world, her eyes drawn to the vibrant blue and white swirls. The twelve light year voyage between Vulcan and Earth had taken just over twenty hours. As they drew nearer, she could also detect Enterprise, still in space dock and visible in orbit over the dark side of the planet.

Unlike the outward voyage, she was alone. Her original travelling companion had returned two weeks earlier. She expected it had been good for him to get back and immerse himself into his duties and perhaps take some leave. It had given him more time to reflect, and she hoped time to adjust to their new relationship. He had been uncharacteristically silent that last day and was undoubtedly still angry or sad or both after her rushed marriage with Koss on Vulcan. Given the circumstances, it had been her only logical choice, but he did not share in this opinion as he had made abundantly clear after she revealed her intentions at the Valley of Heroes. His feelings for her and disappointment were evident, although he attempted to hide them. Her feelings for the young engineer, however, were… confused. A tempest of unfamiliar emotions that at times had threatened to overwhelm her discipline. She cared about him deeply. Her feelings had even compelled her to kiss him in the rushed moments before the wedding. The thought of it now made her face feel warm. She had imagined a future they could have had together. But the closer they grew, the more complicated things became. Perhaps it was best she had ended it now.

When Trip had left Vulcan, it was difficult. T'Pol reflected on the parting. Well, ah… Thank you for inviting me. I had an interesting time, he said at the spaceport. She had accompanied him there to see him off. There only time alone together after the wedding, but they had said little. I appreciate you being here, she replied. Although any romantic relationship was now impossible, she hoped they could at least remain friends. The hurt that flashed across his face, however, was painful to see, but was quickly replaced with an awkward smile. He still needed time. The smile faded ever so slightly. We'll see ya, he finally said, and then turned to head towards the transport. He didn't look back.

After that, her remaining time on Vulcan had been a blur. Various arrangements with Koss, Koss's family and Star Fleet were made since they had agreed on her accepting her commission and returning to Enterprise for the time being. Her mother had been strangely quiet and accommodating. T'Pol sensed she had spoken with Trip before the wedding, but didn't ask her to elaborate. T'Pol was pretty sure she knew what it had been they talked about anyway.

"Please proceed to your assigned disembarkation shuttle," a synthesized voice directed over the transport's speakers, interrupting her thoughts. T'Pol nodded to herself, concluding her previous reflections, and retrieved her small bag from under the seat. Those around her did the same and began their preparations to leave. She was assigned to shuttle six that was heading over to the space dock and Enterprise and was happy to finally get off the transport. The trip to Vulcan had been uneventful, but this return voyage had been nearly intolerable. News of her joining Star Fleet must have reverberated within the High Command given the judgmental looks from the group of Vulcan diplomats in her section. It shouldn't matter. It didn't matter, but brought into focus what her mother had said when she questioned whether she and Trip could have had a future together. Her mother had implied their children would have had to endure embarrassment and shame. All moot now that she was married to Koss, but nonetheless disturbing.

Her shuttle had just three others aboard, evidently workers returning to the space dock. The group spoke amiably amongst themselves while T'Pol remained quiet and to herself. They unloaded across from the docking port that lead to Enterprise, and she quickly went through. She felt a sense of liberation when the docking port door closed behind and she was back in Enterprise. The corridors were empty, with most of the repair work now contained in Main Engineering. She turned and moved swiftly towards her quarters.

When she arrived, she placed her bag onto the bed and then let out a sigh, surprised at herself for the sudden burst of emotion. She had changed, and her emotions were indeed closer to the surface, as her mother had said. An artifact of the Trellium-D, although she had kept that fact to herself. Doctor Phlox had assured her there was no trace of trellium left in her system, but the damage and changes to her physically and mentally persisted. Meditation would help. She glanced about, not sure if she should prepare to meditate now or if there was something else she should do first. Although essentially mid-afternoon, it was late, Vulcan time, and so it might be a good idea to just get some sleep. On the other hand, now that she was back, it would be agreeably distracting to check into her work station to catch up on what had happened on Enterprise while she was away. That would require she unpack and get on her uniform first. She frowned and glanced about her quarters again. Suddenly the comm sounded. "Archer to T'Pol."

T'Pol pushed the respond button on the panel by the door. "Go ahead," she responded, with a feeling of relief. The decision of what to do would possibly be made for her.

"Welcome back, Commander." He emphasized her new rank, undoubtedly hearing through Star Fleet of the acceptance of her new position. "I know you're still technically on leave, but when you get a chance, could you come by my ready room? Our orders have finally come through from Star Fleet, and I'd like to discuss them with you."

"I'll be right there." She turned quickly and left her quarters and moved off to the turbo lift, not bothering to change out of her travel clothes. She was up onto the bridge and at the door of the Captain's ready room in under a minute, pressing the signal at the threshold. Almost immediately the door swished open and she stepped inside.

Captain Archer was seated and looked up from his computer screen. He was in casual clothes, clearly still on leave but unable to stay away from his command, and flashed a warm smile. "You could have taken some time to settle back in," he said casually while gesturing to the chair across from him. He then pointed to the desk where two mugs were sitting, one of them apparently meant for her. "I made some tea to welcome you home."

"Thank you," she said, taking the seat. She picked up the mug and took a sip. Chamomile and lemon, one of her favorite Terran blends. "I haven't yet adjusted back to ship time, and so I plan to mediate and sleep as soon as we're done. Now's a good time for us to discuss our upcoming mission." As she was speaking, Porthos had stood up from where he had been laying and moved over to T'Pol's feet. She noticed him immediately and reached down and scratched behind the dog's ears. Ever since the day when the Xindi weapon was destroyed and they thought the Captain had been killed, Porthos had sought her out when she was around. A comfort to her then, and strangely enough, even now. She liked to think the feeling was reciprocal. Jonathon seemed pleased by the development.

"I hear congratulations are in order," Jonathan said. He moved his mug off to the side and T'Pol wondered idly if it was also chamomile and lemon tea like her own. The notion that he might think of her when he drank it crossed her mind, since he knew it was one of her favorites, but then she chided herself for the random thought. They were friends and colleagues, nothing more. And of course now she was married to Koss.

Her thoughts returned to his congratulatory sentiment. Since he had already alluded to her new rank, it apparently wasn't that. "My marriage to Koss," T'Pol finally stated. "Did Trip tell you?"

"I have my sources," Jonathan replied with a wink. Trip had already been back for two weeks, so it was likely Jonathan was simply teasing. She had updated her records with Star Fleet when accepting her new rank and making the arrangements from Vulcan, however, so it was possible Admiral Forest had spoken to him as well. "Koss has waited a long time to be with you," he added. "I'd like to meet him one day."

"I would have invited you to the wedding of course," T'Pol said.

Jonathan waved his hand. "It's okay. I… I think I understand."

T'Pol nodded. Although probably surprised by the suddenness of the marriage, the Captain had been aware of her situation for nearly a year now. "It was necessary," she said and hesitated. She didn't want to delve into the details with him just now. Her mother's situation, or Trip, or Koss. The expectations of her as a daughter, a former lover, and now a wife. As for the latter, it had been over fifty years since the two of them were engaged on that stormy evening in the summer when she was seven years old. Why Koss had waited and persisted for so long, despite her indifference, she couldn't fathom.

Jonathan seemed to understand she didn't want to talk about it. "He's a lucky man," he said, almost as if he was answering T'Pol's current thought. She stiffened and quickly looked to see if he had noticed her surprise, but he was looking off to the side at something on his desk.

For her part, T'Pol recalled something she gleaned from her own conversation with Admiral Forest and decided to turn the conversation back around. "Did you have fun catching up with your friend Erika?"

Now Jonathan looked surprised. "Yes. We went… rock climbing."

T'Pol raised an eyebrow.

"How did…?" he began, and then chuckled.

"I have my sources too," T'Pol replied. In fact, it was possibly the same source. The admiral had mentioned that Captain Hernandez had been selected as Columbia's captain when they had spoken. That piece of information combined with what she remembered from the Vulcan intelligence briefs she received before joining Enterprise was enough. It had been speculation on her part as to what might have transpired between the two during the past few weeks, but apparently she had been correct. She was both pleased that Jonathan had been able to relax after the events of the past year in the Expanse, but also another emotion she couldn't quite pin down.

Jonathan turned more serious. "It helped to reconnect with her. With others on Earth. It's been a good break, for the whole crew."

"The dreams?"

"Better, thank you." Archer paused for a moment longer. It was evident he wasn't ready to speak of it further either. Friends, colleagues, and occasional confidants, but the latter for another day.

"And so, what are our orders?" T'Pol asked, attempting to distract him and move on to a different subject and the reason he had asked her to his ready room.

Jonathan gathered himself and then held out a PADD which T'Pol accepted. "We leave space dock in a week. We're essentially ready to go now, just completing some final tweaks with the engine. Star Fleet has asked us to conduct a more thorough exploration of the Arcturan sector." A bit of excitement returned to his voice, which was encouraging.

"We're returning to the Expanse?" T'Pol asked with a note of surprise.

"Not immediately," Jonathan clarified. "But we do have some unfinished business Star Fleet would like us to take care of." T'Pol scrolled down the text of the orders. "No thermobaric barrier this time around," he added.

"A colony ship has already been dispatched to the human settlement we discovered," T'Pol remarked.

Jonathan nodded. "We'd arrive well ahead of it to prepare the inhabitants for the new colonists and make arrangements for any of the existing settlers who wanted to return to Earth. It had been planned clandestinely after our report of the human settlement in the Expanse made it back to Star Fleet and only recently declassified. Just in case we weren't able to stop the Xindi in time."

A sobering thought. If Earth had been destroyed, the remnants of humanity would have scattered to hide in the Galaxy's hinterlands. T'Pol skimmed the rest of the document. "An extra warp coil, plasma injectors and antimatter for cargo bay two," she mused.

"It all arrives in a few days. We'll attempt to track down the Illyrian vessel and return what we borrowed," Jonathan interjected. "Or go to their homeworld to make reparations."

"That may be awkward."

"It's the least we can do," Jonathan replied, his jaw set and tone a little harsher. "We have to do it. I have to do it."

T'Pol suspected that portion of Star Fleet's proposed mission had been Jonathan's idea. He was still haunted by many of the things he had to do this past year in the Expanse to save his world, and if he could set things right, he would do what he had to do. She was determined to help him in any way she could. "And a diplomatic visit to Azati Prime?" she asked.

"The Aquatics. There, and also the kemocite production facility. Star Fleet wants to open up a dialog with the Xindi in the hopes of forming an alliance. On a personal note, I would like to thank Gralik, and perhaps even meet with Degra's family." Peace with the Xindi. If Jonathan was right, with what Daniels had revealed to him from the twenty-ninth century, the Xindi and Earth would both be part of a greater Federation of Planets one day. "In the next few days, I'd like for you to cross reference with our star charts and ascertain additional scientific priorities we should have as we explore this part of space. We didn't have much of a chance the last time we were in the neighborhood."

T'Pol nodded. That was prudent. "The Orion Syndicate operates between here and there," she commented.

"Is that a problem?"

She shrugged. "Perhaps. We went through their space rather quickly a year ago and didn't encounter any of their vessels. This time, we should be more cautious."

"Go over Star Fleet's proposed course with a fine toothed comb and make any recommendations you see fit."

"Understood." Jonathan's occasional use of human idioms was sometimes confusing, but she believed she knew what he wanted. The short meeting was apparently coming to an end.

"I have something to give you at breakfast tomorrow, so don't be late," he added cryptically.

"What is it?"

Again Jonathan flashed his easy smile. "I can't tell you now. It's a surprise."

T'Pol shook her head. "Very well, I will wait until breakfast." She glanced at their proposed route one final time before standing. She would begin work on it the next day, although it was likely circumstances beyond their control would modify these orders before too long.

"What?" Jonathan asked as the door slid open.

T'Pol turned to face him. "What do you mean?"

"You were smiling just then."

"I was not smiling," T'Pol protested.

Jonathan gestured to her face. "The corners of your eyes," he said, but then shrugged dismissively. "Well, anyway, I thought you were smiling."

"I was not," T'Pol repeated, although she had to admit, he was very perceptive. She did find humor in the orders and this very well may have been subtly reflected in her manner or expression. She would have to be more careful. "It is curious, however, the scope of these orders from Star Fleet. Plans for nearly a year of exploration."

"So?"

"Given what has transpired these past three years, I suspect there are many as yet unknown events that will divert us from these orders. In the next week, before we leave space dock, we might have new orders and a new mission in hand."

Jonathan smiled and nodded. It was good to see him smile so easily again. "Settle back in and get some sleep Commander," he said. "Who knows what even tomorrow might bring?"

Indeed. "Captain." She nodded crisply, turned, and exited the Captain's ready room.

The bridge was nearly deserted, with only Crewman Fuller working on some of the circuitry at the tactical station. Final details and part of the upgrades, no doubt. T;Pol hadn't noticed her before. "Afternoon, ma'am," Fuller said, looking up.

"Good afternoon," T'Pol replied. Fuller returned to her work and T'Pol entered the turbolift to leave. It was a comfort to be back. Back home, as Jonathan had said. The routines of her work as science officer and Jonathan's First Officer. Hopefully, the stress and confusion of the past few days was left behind on Vulcan and she could focus on the future.

Archer's gaze lingered on the closed door for a moment after T'Pol was gone. He glanced at a wooden, brass-bound box on the corner of his desk, mostly hidden by the computer screen and then nodded slowly. It had gone unnoticed during T'Pol's visit. He picked up his mug and took a sip, the taste of chamomile and lemon remaining on his lips.

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THE END