Daddy Issues

Posted on Tue Jul 24th, 2018 @ 2:00am by Commander Rita Paris

Mission: Holographic Horrors
Location: Paris family home, San Francisco, Earth
Timeline: 2260
Tags: Flashback, dream-excuse, The Commander

As she slept, the girl who'd come unstuck in time revisited the past the only way that she could- in her dreams.



Flashback to an old jingoistic newsreel. "The year is 2260. The five year missions are getting underway, although not all of Starfleet’s heavy cruisers will be dispatched at once. The Starfleet brass are staggering the missions, so that while some of our pivotal starships are exploring strange new worlds, others will still be ready on the home front to deliver supplies, patrol the borders and maintain the various Federation outposts scattered across a larger area of space than Admiral Archer ever dreamed. In this exciting pioneer period of the expanding Starfleet, excitement is in the air!"

Or in some cases, a distinct lack thereof.

“Dammit Rita, be reasonable for ONCE in your life!”

Commander Clifford Paris was growing more and more accustomed to arguments with his daughter. First she insisted on going to Starfleet Academy despite his best efforts to block her appointment. Then after graduation she wasn’t content to take a nice safe job on Mars directing traffic over the Planitia Utopia shipyards. Then the dead-end posting he had gotten her to teach her a lesson on the Antares had still not daunted her. Then she’d had the gall to apply to Tactical School, where her glowing reviews from the Antares captain Ford Prentiss had gotten her in the door. Two years on the Farragut had honed her skills, and now she was wanting to sign on to the Constitution for one of those stupid five-year missions.

Through all of this, not only had he maneuvered to try to stop her by calling in favors and friendships and working over the boy’s club of Starfleet, but he had found himself on more than one occasion in actual face-to-face arguments with his willful daughter. All he wanted was what was best for her, but she refused to see it. Instead she seemed determined to go gallivanting across the universe, as if that were a place for a girl like her. Now she stood in his study, arms crossed under that ridiculous figure of hers, wearing gold (which he told her wasn't her color), defying him once again.

“Reasonable. That’s funny coming from you, Daddy. Every single thing I’ve ever pursued in my career-“ Rita shot back before she was interrupted, as per usual.

“You career? Your CAREER? You are a woman in Starfleet! You have no business on a starship, absolutely no business on the bridge and you certainly don’t belong at the console that controls the weaponry of a starship!” the elder Paris hissed and spit.

“Really, Commander? Is that because I’m prone to ‘female hysteria’ once a month, or is it-“

“Partially, y’damn right!” Clifford Paris retorted. “It’s a proven fact that women base decisions on emotions rather than logic, and you’ve never been reasonable to start with. You have a bad day and suddenly we’re at war with the Klingons because you had cramps!”

The statement was, of course, radically unfair, as well as degrading to women, and downright offensive. But the logic (or lack thereof) was not uncommon in Starfleet in the 2260’s, and that was why there were still no lady starship captains. Hell, they’d rather promote an ensign to captain than let an actual qualified woman command. Just look at Jim Kirk and Nyota Uhura.

“Well, Captain Augenthaler doesn’t feel the same way. He’s seen my scores and he’s familiar with my accomplishments-“ Rita began, but of course did not finish.

“Jack Augenthaler is taking you on just to piss me off. He’s been waiting for a chance to get back at me since the Academy, and you just handed him a golden opportunity on a silver platter. And all of this is moot, because you should be listening to what I am telling you and considering Will Decker.” The elder Paris gestured expansively. “He’s smart, ambitious, good-looking, comes from a fine family…”

“He’s in his junior year as a cadet at the Academy, he’s seven years younger than me, and we’ve never even met! Why are you so determined to marry me off like some prize mare-“ Rita protested.

“Oh, THAT’S rich!” Commander Paris snorted. “A prize mare would imply worth. So far you’ve been nothing but one disappointment after the next, little girl. You have no idea just how hard it is to find someone who might not know about you who would be willing to consider even dating a girl like you.”

“Dad, I’m twenty-seven years old, I’m hardly a girl anymo-“

"Well you sure as hell aren’t a grown woman, not with the choices you make. Look, Rita,” The old man’s tone softened and he reached across the antique desk, palms up in a pleading gesture. “I’m trying to help you, even though you can’t see it. The universe is a big, dangerous place, and it’s nowhere for a young woman. Leave the galaxy exploring to the menfolk and just settle down with some nice young officer-“

“…from a good family who will help cement the Paris clan’s position and churn out some male babies so that we’ll have more allies, maybe amongst the Deckers or the Traceys or-“ Rita said as she rolled her eyes, and her father stood up excitedly.

“Yes! Yes, exactly! You’ll be happier staying close to home anyway, and you can still have a career! Hell, you might even make Lieutenant, maybe even Lieutenant Commander in a shore billet.” The smile on his face was one his daughter knew well- it was the one he wore when he knew she was going to bend to his will and do what he wanted done. But this time he was in for a disappointment.

“I see your sense of humor and irony still haven’t evolved much, Commander,” the tall blonde sneered. “No, I’m not going to be your close to home breeding mare, cheerfully spitting out grandchildren for you to dote on, as long as they’re boys. I’m going on a five year mission to explore strange new worlds, to seek out-“

“Oh, can the recruitment crap,” Clifford grunted, dropping back in his leather desk chair. “Just because they put you on a recruitment poster doesn’t mean you have to live up to it. Be reasonable and listen to common sense, for just once in your life, Rita! Space is disease and danger wrapped in darkness and silence. It’s no place for a girl like you.” The elder Paris paused, then gestured to the portrait on the wall. “I don’t want to lose you like I lost your mother.”

At that, Rita Paris’ eyes flickered to the portrait of her mother which hung on the wall of her father's study. Named for one of her distant ancestors who was the first human woman in space, Valentina Paris had died when Rita was young, and while it was seldom that the old man tugged on this particular thread, it still had its effect. Rita considered her father’s words, which stiffened her resolve once more.

“If I thought that was the real reason you didn’t want me to go, Daddy, I might consider it. But you aren’t concerned for my welfare, you’re just worried that I'll somehow tarnish the Paris family name and hurt your chances of advancement, or Albert’s. No, Daddy, I’m going. And you can stop trying to set me up with every Tom, Dick and Harry whose daddy’s got a nice rank like 'Commodore'. Because I’m not interested.”

“What, are you a lesbian now?” Clifford Paris snickered. That was the last straw for Rita, who turned on her heel and marched out of her father’s study.

“I didn’t dismiss you, young lady!” the Commander roared from behind his desk. As she strode away, wiping the bitter tears from her eyes, Rita Paris had disagreed.

“You dismissed me the moment the doctor said ‘it’s a girl’, Daddy.”



As she dreamed of bad days gone by, the slumbering Rita Paris reached out for comfort, from someone who wasn't there.