More Than a Lifetime #8: The Edge of Heaven

Chapter 8: Deeper

"I still can't wrap my mind around the idea of having children on starships," Archer said. He gathered a small pile of scrambled eggs onto his fork. He and Dani had met for breakfast. Kyle had not taken Dani up on her offer to join them, and Trip hadn't arrived yet.

"Why not?" Dani asked. "It's beneficial to have families on board. Think about it - you yourself said that you knew you wouldn't be able to survive without Porthos. So what did you do? You brought him along with you. Now imagine if you had a wife or kids? Do you really think you would be able to leave them alone for years at a time? If you couldn't survive without your dog, I think you and I already know the answer."

"First of all, there's a big difference between a dog and a person," Archer said. "Porthos takes up a hell of a lot less space than a person. Second, while I would certainly miss him if something happened to him, I probably wouldn't be devastated the way I would if I lost my wife or, God forbid, my child because of something that happened out here. It's a dangerous galaxy out here - I wouldn't feel comfortable putting my family in that kind of risk."

"You make good points," Dani admitted. "But for the record, many ships will be large enough to accommodate families in the future, so space isn't an issue in all cases."

"You know, the truth is that I never thought I'd have a family of my own," Archer said.

"Never?" Dani asked.

"Well, I knew my place was in the stars, I knew I wanted to be on the bridge of a starship," Archer explained. "But I also knew that unless you command freighters, space just isn't the place for families. So I just figured that I wouldn't have a family. Except for Porthos here."

Dani looked down at the beagle, who sat beside Archer's chair. She'd almost forgotten that he was there. Archer stroked the dog's head a few times. Then his eyes met Dani's again.

Trip walked towards the entrance to the cafe. He stopped short of going in when saw that Archer and Dani were engaged in another "moment". They were both gazing into each other's eyes, as they'd done earlier that morning on the beach.

'Damn,' he thought. 'How much bad timing can a guy possibly have?' He walked into the cafe and hesitantly approached the table, clearing his throat as he got closer. Dani and Archer self consciously looked away from each other as Trip pulled up a chair and sat beside the captain.

"So," he said, unfolding his napkin and spreading it across his lap, "how are everyone's accommodations?"

"Fine. Great," Archer answered quickly.

Trip thought Archer sounded just a tad bit anxious, like he'd been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

Trip looked to Dani. "Dani," he greeted. "How's your villa?"

"Cozy," Dani said. "Thank you."

"Any special plans for today?" Trip asked no one in particular.

"We'll, I was planning to see some of the sights," Dani said, "and then maybe head back to the beach later on."

"It's nice to be at a beach again," Archer said. "I lived in San Francisco all my life, and I spent much of my childhood on California's beaches."

"Being cooped up on a ship for so long must be difficult for you," Dani said.

"I imagine it's difficult for everyone," Archer said.

Trip looked at Janeway and Archer. This was quickly becoming a two-way conversation again, and he wasn't a part of it.

"Do you mind if I join you at the beach later on?" Archer asked Dani.

"You can join me for the whole day, if you want," Dani offered. "This morning, I was planning to explore some caverns I know."