SERIES/UNIVERSE: SG-7
DISCLAIMERS: M7 characters belong to Trilogy, et al, SG-1 characters belong to Gekko, MGM, and Showtime. Adriana, Carly, Lizzie, Josie and Jessica Tanner, as well as Evan and Pegeen Larabee, are all mine ... don't mind if you borrow them, just ask first, give them back intact and give credit where credit is due. Mindy belongs to herself and my neighbors, though she still thinks my family and I belong to her.
SPOILERS: For Mag7, all twenty-one episodes are fair game, along with my previous stories, More than Friends, A Light in the Distance, Under the Sun, Days of Yearning, Sun, Fun, and Ezra on the Run, and Full Circle, also all five seasons of Stargate SG-1.
WARNING: The usual, violence and language. Some h/c, more comfort than hurt, and smarm, but again, I'll be trying to keep the smarm down to a dull roar.
Evan Larabee was a dead man. That was all there was to it. Buck was going to kill him. Assuming, of course, there was anything of him left after Pegeen was finished. And Chris, for that matter. Only Evan Larabee would have the gall to shoot off his mouth like that. Although, Buck had to admit, Vin had done good. Real good. Buck had been real proud of him. And even before his sister had said something, Buck was already figuring a way to get Vin out of there. She just moved faster than he did.
Behind him, they could still hear the argument between the two elder Larabees as Buck gently lay Vin down on his bed. Adriana had followed him and JD into the bedroom, and she immediately went into the bathroom with the ever-present cup. Pain pills. JD moved around behind Buck, to put the pillows against the headboard, allowing Vin to recline. He stepped back, and Buck eased Vin back against the pillows.
The guide was having a terrible time, trying to breathe, but he wasn't hyperventilating. JD circled around Buck again, to sit on the foot of the bed. His hazel eyes shot fire. It was a good thing JD had come with him. The boy didn't always think before he spoke, and right now, the situation in the living room had the potential to be as disastrous as a forest fire after months without rain. JD's words could easily be the spark which set the blaze off.
"Bucklin, I just realized Vin's running out of his pain medication. I'll run to the pharmacy and have it refilled. Would you tell Chris where I'm going?" Adriana asked quietly, holding up the nearly-empty pill bottle in her free hand. She handed the glass of water to JD, allowing her to slip the bottle in her jeans pocket. Buck nodded, and Adriana looked from him, to Vin, to JD, then said, "You know, JD, why don't you come with me? You were with Chris when he originally had the prescription filled ... they don't give these prescriptions out to just anyone."
"Yeah, that's a good idea. Go ahead, kid, I can take care of Vin," Buck said. JD looked reluctant, but nodded. He didn't want to leave Vin, but the situation in the living room was still volatile. Buck couldn't get Chris out of this, but he could protect Vin, Adriana, and JD. He thought of one other whom he could protect, and said thoughtfully, "Why don't you take Lizzie with you, too, DeeDee?" His sister nodded, obviously understanding what he had in mind.
"Sounds like a plan to me. Back soon ... and yes, I'll drive careful," she replied, slipping to the bed to lightly kiss Vin. Buck watched with a combination of amusement and affection. She whispered, "I love you." Then she left the room, JD trailing on her heels. Buck turned back to Vin, eyeing the young guide with concern. In the living room, he heard his sister call for Lizzie, explaining that she and JD were going to get Vin's prescription refilled.
Buck tuned out that conversation, not at all convinced that the storm had passed, and instead concentrated on his friend. He said quietly, "You look like hell, Vin. Not supposed to be an insult ... just a statement of fact. I know you've been getting some beauty sleep, but quite frankly, it ain't done much for your appearance. It's just us now. And I know I ain't Chris, but I still see you as a little brother, just as much as JD. Talk to me."
"Nothin' to say. I ain't stupid ... I know I gotta take it easy, so I can get better. Right now, it feels like I'm gonna be hurtin' this way forever, and forever this weak. That ain't acceptable. Y'all need me to be strong again," Vin replied flatly. Buck sighed and sat forward. He didn't know if Chris had this conversation with Vin yet ... probably not. Both brothers had been struggling with the revelations, and working their way to a new relationship between them.
"That ain't what I'm talkin' about, Vin, and I think you know that. Now, normally, I'd leave this sort of thing to the ladies. They're better at it. But this is killing you inside, and I ain't gonna stand by and watch that happen," Buck answered. Vin looked away, and Buck said quietly, "You tell me that you ain't mad. That the last two weeks, you ain't wanted to scream and kick things, and just let it all go. You tell me that you don't want to rip off Evan Larabee's face, that you don't want to beat the living shit out of him."
"Course I do, Bucklin! Y'all are always goin' on 'bout how patient I am, but I ain't no goddamn saint! Just looking at that asshole makes me sick! But I done told ya, I ain't stupid, neither! Ya know what would happen, if I done anythin' 'bout how mad I am? I wouldn't never get better! I cain't even laugh without feelin' like a bomb's done gone off inside a' me!" Vin hissed, his blue eyes filled with rage Buck knew he had to be feeling.
He slumped back against the pillows, whispering, "I cain't even hold my Drina. I cain't do a goddamn thin,' and it pisses me off! I cain't do nothin,' Bucklin! I can watch out for Chris, but I cain't do nothin' about anybody who attacks him. I got two sisters, and I cain't do nothin' to look out for them! Chris done told me that a big brother's job is to protect, and I cain't do that right now!" Buck put a gentle hand on Vin's shoulder.
For a moment, he wished Josiah was in here, since the anthropologist seemed so much wiser so often ... but Josiah was needed in the other room. And Buck couldn't let Vin down.
He said softly, "I know, Vin. I know how frustrated you are ... and I know being this helpless is killing you. You can't do anything about the things that make you so angry. All of this was set into motion twenty-eight years ago, before you were even born. All three ... no, all four of you ... are angry, and you've got every right to be. You had your family taken away from you. But Carly, Chris, and Lizzie, they all have ways of dealing with the rage. You're hurt, and all you can do is lay here, and that makes you even madder."
Vin nodded, looking exhausted, and Buck continued, "You and Chris ain't that different. Neither of you say more than three words a day. But kid, this is one time, you gotta talk. There is no other way around this. We damn near lost you once. If you think we ... any of us ... are gonna give up you without a fight, you best think again. Talk to me, Vin. Tell me exactly what you want to do to Evan Larabee, tell me exactly how much you hate Jessica."
"I cain't do that," came the anguished reply, "I come from them, Bucklin, doncha understand that? Julia Tanner's my ma, and she always will be. The only ma who matters, but I come from Jessica and Evan. Doncha understand that? I cain't hate them, cause I come from 'em, and it's like hatin' myself!" Of course. Buck should have understood that, given his own relationship with his father.
The difference was, Buck's father had given him more reasons to hate him as the years passed, more than just his abandonment of his mother. The revelation of what their father had done to Adriana. That was the main impetus for his hatred of his father. Vin, however, didn't have that. His father was weak ... not evil. And Buck firmly believed that his own father was evil. However ... he and Adriana were not evil. They had become protectors, in their own ways.
That was the key. He said softly, "You may have come from them ... and I won't deny that Jessica gave birth to you. But you became more, Vin, just as Chris did, just as Carly did. Just as Adriana and I became more than our father could ever hope to be. Don't you understand? They only planted the seed, but you became your own man. You became a man that anyone with sense would want to call his son. You don't believe me, then you ask General Travis, or General Hammond ... hell, ask Josiah!"
Vin smiled, ever so faintly at that. Buck said, "There's one other thing you gotta know, kid. You ain't never gonna be alone again. Never. You got Chris, and your sisters, you got your aunt Josie, you got DeeDee, and you got all of us. That ain't never gonna change. You can't get rid of us, Tanner. Got that?" Vin nodded, that small smile widening. Not a great deal, but enough to relieve Buck's worry.
Not that it had been totally chased away. Vin hadn't growled at him for calling him 'kid,' a term which didn't really apply to him, not at twenty-seven. Still, it was sort of justified, since he was several years younger than Buck and Chris. However, the young man alleviated that concern a moment later when he asked slowly, "Bucklin? How the hell did ya get from the bathroom in here, to the other one?" Huh? What the hell was he talking about, and where the hell had that come from? It took a few minutes for Buck to figure out what Vin meant. The bathroom where JD had been busy polluting the air.
"Well, you see, it's like this. I knew that there was a key to the bathroom door, and that would be something my sister wouldn't expect. The key is down the hall, and I figured I would get it, and come back. Except ... it didn't quite happen like that," Buck replied. Vin was struggling not to laugh, his bright blue eyes twinkling with mischief, and Buck added with a shrug, "That was just plain *bad.* No wonder Adriana didn't want to go down that way."
"Yup, Miss Drina usually has reasons for what she does," Vin answered wryly, "whether we understand 'em or not is somethin' else." He closed his eyes and whispered, "Damn, I'm tired. Do nothin' but sleep, and I'm still tired." Buck didn't answer at first. He knew that the pain was taking its toll on his friend ... just as the emotional confrontation a few minutes earlier had exhausted him.
"Then go to sleep, pard ... I've got your back," Buck told the guide. Vin just nodded, closing his eyes. Buck put his hand on Vin's shoulder, giving a gentle squeeze. Within moments, the guide was asleep, and Buck eased his own weight from the bed and into a chair. However long it was necessary, he would stay here. Chris was dealing with an emotional storm of his own, but Buck knew his longtime friend well enough to know that Chris wanted him to stay with Vin. And it would take an earthquake to move him now.
The three youngest members of the gathering at the Larabee house escaped to the driveway without much incident. Lizzie Tanner jumped into the back of Adriana's Tracker, shivering slightly. Things had gotten even more unpleasant after Pegeen Larabee had claimed her as her niece. Not because Lizzie's mother objected. If anything, Josie Tanner and Pegeen Larabee seemed to form some kind of an alliance. No, the unpleasantness had come from Evan Larabee.
As Adriana warmed up her vehicle, and she bantered lightly with JD, Lizzie thought back to the confrontation which followed the first. Buck, JD, and Adriana had been seeing to Vin, and the three Tanner females had quickly embraced Pegeen Larabee. The rest of Chris and Vin's friends had welcomed the woman as well. Pegeen had wanted to know everything. She wanted to know about Mary and Billy, she wanted to know about Nathan and Rain.
She had been surprised to learn that Lizzie's mother had only just started seeing Josiah Sanchez recently. They seemed so at ease with each other. Did Caroline have a young man? Oh, she preferred to be called 'Carly,' well, Pegeen would try to remember that. She had no young man? Why not? She was beautiful and smart, warm and funny ... what was wrong with the young men around here? Lizzie had laughed at her sister's response ... the only good ones she had found were taken or members of her own family.
Just as 'Caroline' had given way to 'Carly,' 'Elizabeth' very shortly gave way to 'Liz.' Lizzie sounded like a little girl ... either that, or frizzy. Since the youngest Tanner had often been called Frizzy Lizzie when she was growin up, she was very happy to be called 'Liz,' instead. The truth was, there weren't a lot of decent nicknames for 'Elizabeth,' none that she was particularly fond of at least.
Her biological father had been shut out of that circle, as Elizabeth Tanner had come to think of her brothers' friends. They were really a family, when she stopped and thought of it. They teased each other unmercifully, but let an outsider mess with one of theirs, then his days were numbered. Evan Larabee had been marked quite clearly as an outsider, as soon as he had attacked Vin.
He was further excluded after the confrontation between him and his wife. How had they stayed together so long, when he treated her like she was stupid? It occurred to the young girl that over the last few days, she had received an education about the opposite sex. There were the good ones, like her brothers and their friends ... and then there were the ones, like her biological father. The sperm donor, as she had taken to calling him in her mind.
She had never really thought about her mother never marrying. Josephine Tanner had devoted herself to raising Lizzie and trying to find her nephew, after Eli Joe had murdered Jess Kincaid. Lizzie had been fourteen when her mother learned of Vin's disappearance ... it was the first time she saw her mother lose control of her emotions, and it had scared her to death. That was also the day she had learned most of the truth about her family. The parts which her mother had known, at least.
Lizzie wished now that she had never found out that Evan Larabee was her father. She wished that she didn't have any part of him in her. He had started in on Chris, after a lull in the conversation. Chris had been repeating the story about how he had first met Vin, three years earlier. Lizzie had been enraptured, having never heard the story before. She was sure her mother had heard the story, but Mom had listened intently.
You would have thought that Evan Larabee would be proud to have two sons who wouldn't allow injustice to take place. Those bigots could have killed Nathan! All because he was trying to comfort his friend! Dumbest thing Lizzie had ever heard of. Until Evan began criticizing them. Surely a bar fight hadn't been necessary ... if they had really wanted to, they could have talked some sense into the gentlemen. Violence and fighting was never the answer. Sheesh. He sounded like that idiot Relena on Gundam Wing.
Lizzie had seen the rising fury in Nathan's eyes at this comment. She couldn't blame him. Nathan had been there ... the sperm donor hadn't. Well, for that matter, neither had Lizzie, but that was beside the point. And Chris was outright fuming. However, it was Ezra who replied coldly, "I assure you, suh, that if it had been possible for Chris and Vin to extricate Nathan from danger without any punches being thrown, they would have done so. However. It is customary to defend yourself when someone attacks you. Perhaps things are done in the academic world, and it's customary there to allow yourself to be beat to a bloody pulp?"
Ezra rocks. That was the first thing which Lizzie had thought. The second thought was what came out of her mouth. She said brightly, "Nope, Ez, that's not the way we do things at college. First off, on my campus, the first time someone messed with Nathan, they would have had half the football team breathing down his neck. And when Mary got shoved, the entire football team would have taught him how to treat a lady. It wouldn't have been necessary for Chris or Vin to get involved. I think it's really cool. I'm really proud of you both."
"How very civilized. Using your fists instead of talking it out," sniffed the sperm donor. He added a few uncomplimentary comments about the military under his breath. Lizzie glared at him. Never mind that her mother was out of the military by the time Lizzie became her daughter, the youngest Tanner still saw herself as a military brat. Her college roommate, herself a military brat for most of her nineteen years, had put it this way. The military was a family, for all its rivalries between the various branches. And you didn't screw with family.
"That's fine, Mr. Larabee, if the other party is willing to listen to reason. However, in my years as a journalist, I've come across far too many times when the other party is not willing to listen to reason. We tried to employ reason. They wouldn't listen. They didn't leave either of your sons any other option," Mary Travis said quietly. Lizzie looked at the blonde reporter. She liked Mary. She hadn't been too sure about her at first, but after a while ... well, Mary obviously loved both of Lizzie's brothers, though in different ways.
"Humph. I really expected better of you, Mrs. Travis, as a mother. You are the giver of life, not the taker. It is your duty to raise your son to be a peaceful, reasonable man," came the response. Wrong answer. Fury leapt into the green eyes of the woman. And Mom, who had been bristling, simply smiled and sat back. She winked first at Lizzie, then at Pegeen, who was showing every indication of losing what little control she had left.
"That, Mr. Larabee, is where you are mistaken. I am a mother. And as a mother, I will do anything to ensure my son's safety. Anything. If that means taking up arms, if that means killing, if that means dying to save him, then so ... be ... it. I have already taken one life, to protect my child, as well as yours. And I am raising Billy to be a peaceful, reasonable man. Yes. But I am also raising him to be a survivor, forget that silly television show. And one of the rules of survival, is knowing what to do when the other person will not be reasonable," Mary fired back.
"Absolutely right, my dear," Pegeen had said serenely, "I would kill for Christopher, for his brother and sisters. I am opposed to war, as I'm sure you and Christopher are, but sadly, there are times when there is no other choice. You were born what, thirty years after Pearl Harbor? I was a child during the Second World War. My father helped to free those who survived the concentration camps. He never forgot it. And I never forgot what that sight did to him."
"You never told me that, Mom. I knew Grandpa served in the war, but I never knew about that. That explained why he reacted to the Klan rallies," Chris had said wonderingly, and Pegeen nodded. Chris continued, "I was thinking about him, just before my eyes met Vin in the bar. He used to tell me what an education he got in the Army. I never realized just what kind of an education he meant."
"He didn't want you to understand, Christopher. He never wanted you to understand anything that horrible. Unfortunately ... you found out anyhow. In any event, Mary ... you are exactly right. I admit, I had my misgivings about you ... about all the ladies. But from what I've seen today, I would be proud to call each of you my daughter," Pegeen had replied, and Lizzie grinned to herself, remembering the reactions of the others.
"Wanna share the joke with us?" JD asked, bringing her back to the present, and her current companions. They had just reached the drugstore and Adriana had eased her Tracker to a halt. She named her car, wasn't that funny? And the name she had chosen for it was even funnier. Bright Eyes. Lizzie thought that was cute, and there was probably a story behind it. She shook her head, responding to JD's query, and he just growled at her.
That started another round of Lizzie teasing JD, JD growling at her, and Adriana just watching in amusement as they headed into the drugstore. Lizzie always enjoyed teasing JD. He was fun, because he let her get to him. It wasn't nearly as much fun to tease Chris most of the time, because he could brush her teasing off. JD, on the other hand ... Lizzie was struggling not to laugh at JD's indignant tone when she called him an 'owie magnet,' again, when Adriana growled, "Aw hell!"
She was used to her eldest brother and JD growling. She had never heard Adriana snarl like that, though. And she had never heard Adriana use Vin's favorite expletive. However, as she stopped teasing JD and followed Adriana's gaze, she understood her older friend's chagrin. Standing at the window of the pharmacy was none other than Jessica Tanner. Could this night possibly get any worse?
There was no reason for her to stay in Colorado ... she should go back to Chicago, back to her husband. David hadn't urged her to return, but she wanted to go home, nonetheless. Didn't want to stay in this place, didn't want to make things right with her sister and her children. But that was what David wanted her to do. He had said it was time to stop running from her past, and face her mistakes.
She had married David Tucker when she was twenty-eight years old, only a year older than her twins. He had known from the beginning that Carly was her daughter, and he had quietly adopted her. But he hadn't know about Kevin, or about Lizzie. Not until she finally broke down and told him, weeks earlier. Before her trip to Texas, before her attempt to keep Carly from telling her brother the truth backfired so terribly.
David wanted Jessica to make things right with her son. He didn't accept her refrain that she hadn't done anything wrong, that Kevin was now someone else's responsibility. He had just looked at her, with disappointed gray eyes, and murmured that he had expected better of her. That had hurt more than her daughter's coldness, her sister's words. It hurt, because she had never seen that look in David's eyes.
She couldn't go home yet, that was why she was still here. She couldn't face the disappointment she knew she would find when David learned that things had been left undone with her children, all three of them. And yet, at the same time, Jessica recognized that they weren't her children. She had given birth to them, but they had become their own selves. Helped along by both of her sisters, and her parents. Helped along by David. Maybe that was why the estrangement with Carly was so difficult, because she had been in Jessica's life for so many years. She felt a bond with Carly that was absent with the other two.
None of which explained why Jessica was in this pharmacy at eight pm, instead of back at her hotel room. She had started driving around town, and recognized this as the pharmacy which had filled the prescription for her son's pain pills. She had stopped, telling herself that she would just grab a coke and a magazine or book. It was empty for a Friday night, and before long, she found herself engaged in a conversation with the assistant pharmacist.
The young man said, interrupting their conversation as the door opened, "Oh, great ... here comes trouble. Well, at least they didn't bring the colonel from hell this time." Jessica glanced over her shoulder, and was greeted with a very unpleasant shock. Her youngest daughter, accompanied by that little vixen, Carly's former roommate and Kevin's new girlfriend, as well as that bratty corporal.
The trio didn't seem especially pleased to see her, either, but Dr. Wilmington strode up to the window with a pleasant smile for the young man. She said, "Hi, I'm Dr. Adriana Wilmington, refilling a prescription for Vin Tanner. His older brother Chris Larabee sent this note along for verification purposes." She studiously ignored Jessica. Which was just fine with her, after the tongue lashing she had received from the girl.
"Oh, that was his brother. No wonder he was growling at me. Sorry, ma'am ... it shouldn't take me long to fill this, we're not real busy tonight," the boy replied and returned to his job. Dr. Wilmington turned away, engaging her two companions in a conversation. Was that flour which Jessica saw on her youngest daughter's face? Did she even want to ask? She and her mother had taught Carly to cook when Carly was about ten.
And that awakened long-forgotten memories. Her mother's kitchen when she was a little girl, with her two sisters. Her first memory of baking came from ... now, how old had she been? Four? Five? That sounded about right. Julia was about nine or ten, Josie was about seven, so that meant that Jessica had been five. It was Christmas time, and they were making gingerbread for a gingerbread house.
Five years old. The same age Kevin had been when Julia died. Julia had always been the maternal one, especially as they all grew up. She was the one who had often dried Jessica's tears, and it was to Julia whom Jessica had gone when she realized that she was pregnant with the twins. Had she really given up her dreams, to take Kevin? Jessica had never really thought about it, never really considered that Julia had her dreams.
And now that she was thinking about it, she felt sick. She was forty-three, and she had never once thought about what her sister had sacrificed for her. She had loved Kevin, yes, that had never been an issue. But could Jessica have found another way? No ... no, she had done the best she could. She had never been meant to be a mother. That was why she had given up Kevin and Elizabeth. And Carly ...
Carly hated her. Just as the girl now paying for the refill for Kevin's pain pills hated her. Jessica tried to tell herself that it didn't matter, and even if it did matter that Adriana Wilmington hated her, she wasn't fond of the archaeologist, either.
She had never found herself pregnant at sixteen, never given birth to children. She didn't know the first thing about Jessica or her life. No, came that annoying voice from the back of her mind, but she does know a few things about being abandoned. That's why she hates you. Because she was abandoned, and she would have done whatever she had to, for her child. No matter how old she had been.
And that was it, wasn't it? Jessica couldn't go home, not until she worked things out with her children. She couldn't work things out with her children, because all three of them hated her. Besides, she knew better than to think Chris Larabee would allow her anywhere near Kevin. And so, as the three young people left the pharmacy, Jessica Tanner realized something that took her breath away. She might never be able to return home to Chicago.
Adriana was more than a little surprised when she and her two companions exited the pharmacy without incident. She had felt Jessica Tanner's eyes burning into her back while she was patiently waiting for Vin's pills. The woman was still probably angry with Adriana for tearing a strip out of her hide. Too damn bad. Adriana wasn't about to apologize to her. Jessica Tanner meant nothing to her. But two of the people whom she had hurt meant everything to her.
She had been ... furious wasn't exactly the word for how she had felt when she learned that Carly was Vin's sister. His twin sister, more to the point. Shocked. Hurt. Betrayed. She understood why Carly had kept that secret, just as she had understood, sort of, why Will had done the things he had to protect Charlotte and Tansy. In Carly's case, Adriana had still been healing from the turmoil of the situation first with Will and Charlotte (the first time), and then the one with Claire.
Maybe that was why she had found it easier to forgive Carly, than Will, after the truth had come out. Because, as it had been pointed out, it shouldn't have been Carly's responsibility to tell Vin the truth. Whereas, it had been Will's responsibility to tell them, especially after the sabotage had begun. By keeping silent, he had put all of their lives in danger. The same wasn't true of Carly. If she had told Vin, that would have opened up a Pandora's box. He would have had questions that she couldn't answer, that no nineteen year old kid could answer. So yes, she could understand, she could forgive Carly.
And looking at her friend now, side by side with Carly's brother in her mind's eye, she could see the similarities. The line of her jaw, the bright blue eyes. Carly's hair was considerably paler than Vin's ... a pale blonde, compared Vin's light brown hair. But yes, there were similarities. Her reverie was broken on the walk back to the Tracker, when Lizzie said hesitantly, "Uhm, Drina, there's something I wanted to ask you, but I didn't know if I should."
Adriana looked at the girl, who continued, "It was something that Carly said, while it was just her and me in the kitchen. About the sperm donor. And how you learned to ignore him, or people like him. Have you known people like him before? I mean, it kinda makes sense, that you would meet a lot of different people, cause you've traveled so much. Mom and I always lived in the same place in Texas, and there were a lot of ex-military there."
"So, until you found out about your biological father, you hadn't really met anyone who was anti-military," Adriana observed and Lizzie nodded. The archaeologist unlocked the doors for her two companions, trying to figure out how to answer the girl. The truth was, since she had grown up near (relatively speaking) the Air Force Academy, the military had always been part of her life, even before she found out that she had an older brother.
True, she had only been seven years old, just a little younger than Billy, when she met her brother, and her early childhood memories were vague at best. But it seemed to her, looking back, that there had never been a time when there hadn't been the military around her. She said slowly, "It seems to me that a lot of civilians are afraid of us. Especially the civilians in Hollywood. And yes, I know, technically, I'm a civilian, but I don't consider myself a civilian. We frighten them, because they don't understand us. And what people don't understand, they fear or they hate."
"Gargoyles," Lizzie said promptly. Adriana blinked. Come again? Lizzie continued, "Gargoyles, the cartoon. My roomie got me hooked on it, and sometimes I watch it with Vin. That's something the gargoyle leader, Goliath, says. What people fear, or don't understand, they try to destroy. But the gargoyles, Goliath's clan, still protect people, even when they try to destroy them. Same is true of the military, at least ours."
"That's a pretty good analogy ... that's the function of our military. To protect and defend the United States. When I was in Germany, I met another American, a woman who is a few years older than I am. She was a military brat, whose father served during Vietnam. He didn't serve in 'Nam, but he served during that time. What she had to say, really opened my eyes. A lot of things I didn't know," Adriana replied.
She paused, then continued, "You asked about Evan. And yes, I've known men, and women, like him. What makes him so repugnant to me, aside from the way he's treated the three of you, is his inability to look past himself. His inability to acknowledge that someone else's opposing opinion has just as much validity. And believe it or not, some of the people who share his opinion aren't like that. I've met some who understand that people have different life experiences, experiences which shape their perspective. They're still anti-military, but they don't try to shove it down other people's throats."
"He's like Conklin. I've been trying to figure out who he reminds me of, and he reminds me of Dr. Conklin," JD said from beside Adriana, snapping his fingers. Adriana started the car, thinking over what JD had just said. Yeah, now that she thought of it, he had a point. The major difference being, Evan Larabee wouldn't be caught dead in the SGC, for any reason. JD continued for Lizzie's benefit, "Dr. Conklin is a guy who works on our project. Real asshole. He kept trying to get Vin kicked off the project."
"I heard about him. So, what you're saying is, you can handle his opinion ... it's just that because he won't admit anyone else might be right, that's the trouble? Aside from the fact that he's just a sperm donor, and not a father?" Lizzie asked. The archaeologist nodded, flicking on her headlights and glanced at her two companions, to make sure they were both buckled up. It was one of the few rules she had while driving ... her passengers had to buckle up, there was no smoking or drinking. She was no fun, she had been told several times. Point being?
She discovered that Lizzie was, JD wasn't ... she glared at the young corporal meaningfully, her eyes flickering between his face and the buckle. Even in the dim light provided by the street lamp, Adriana could see JD flushing. However, he buckled up and Adriana started the engine, saying, "Yeah, that's what it comes down to. He thinks his own opinion is the only valid one, that anyone who thinks anything different is wrong-headed or evil."
A snort from the back seat told Adriana exactly what Lizzie thought of that. JD said into the silence that followed, "So he's never really grown up. I mean, when I was younger, I saw everything in absolutes. Hell, it's still hard for me not to see things like that. But that's it, isn't it?" Adriana shrugged. She didn't know. It wasn't a bad theory, but she wasn't a psychologist. She didn't see how someone could live for so many years, and not grow up.
"You know, my mom told me something once. That people grow up because they have to. You had to, because your dad was such a bastard, Drina. Vin had to, because there was no one else. And Chris did because the sperm donor walked out on him and Pegeen when Chris was a kid," Lizzie said thoughtfully. Adriana couldn't argue with her logic, and the girl continued, "So, I wonder if he was never forced to grow up."
"Uhm, there's one problem with that. I could see that today, if he was the same age as Chris and Buck. But he's not. I don't know enough about that family. Pegeen is sixty or so ... I think she's sixty-three, so she was a little girl at the time of Pearl Harbor, and the Second World War, and a lot of people had to grow up fast then. Evan is older, so you would have thought that he would have that, as well as the Depression, to deal with," Adriana replied.
"Well, whatever the reason ... I imagine Ezra is taking bets, about how quickly Chris will deck him. Especially after that crack he made about Vin when they first got there. I bet the ladies, and the fact that Evan's an old geezer, are the only things holding Chris back. We could even the odds, and let Josiah take 'im. What do you two think?" JD asked, turning the topic to the far less murky topic of who would be the first to be pushed too far. Less murky and probably safer, too. Adriana preferred to leave the more in-depth analysis of human behavior to Dawn, who was a psychologist, or to Josiah.
"I think, if I were betting on who finally took a swing at Evan, my money would be on Pegeen," Adriana replied. A glance in her rearview told her two things. First, that there was no one behind her, and secondly, that Lizzie was nodding like one of those bobbing head dolls which Adriana had seen in other cars. Buck had a bobbing head doll of a Hawaiian hula girl. Of course. JD frowned and Adriana explained, "He lied to her, twice. He cheated on her, twice. And even worse, he's not taking responsibility for any of it."
"Yeah, and you're a guy, JD. Maybe you can explain to us why guys say, 'she didn't mean anything' to me when they cheat, like that's gonna make it all right? That happened to my roommate," Lizzie snarled from the back seat. Adriana raised her brows, thinking that one over. She could honestly say that none of her friends had gone through that. To the best of her knowledge, Chanu had never looked at any one other than Claire.
Chris had done his share of looking, especially after Sarah and Adam were killed. Before Mary, he had been semi-involved with a vice detective named Lydia Whittaker. But that had been more a matter of mutual need than anything else. Maybe Adriana was wrong about that, she had never met Lydia ... only heard about her when Vin and Ezra told her the story about Ezra in the purple dress. But once he had become involved with Mary, after the first go-round with Ella Gaines, to the best of her knowledge, there had been no one else.
"Who, me? Are you kidding? How am I supposed to know? Casey would remove certain body parts, if I ever cheated on her, and if she didn't, Vin and Nettie probably would!" JD yelped. Adriana hid a smile. He was probably right about that. For the rest of the trip back to the house, she listened in amused silence as once more, JD and Lizzie began arguing. Maybe they should have invited Casey and Nettie, and made it even more interesting?
May you live in interesting times.
Ezra Standish had heard that before. To this day, he couldn't figure out if that was a blessing or a curse. When Li Pong had used it, it had been a blessing. He thought. But then, Li Pong had never had the misfortune to meet Professor Evan Larabee. And she really hadn't had the misfortune to be on hand when his wife had found out that he had cheated on her a second time, creating yet another new life.
To her credit, Pegeen Larabee had not blamed either twin, or young Elizabeth, for her husband's wrongdoing. After Captain Travis had summarily put him in his place, he had fallen into a sullen silence, while conversation started once more. A bit awkward, to be sure, but Pegeen had been interested in all of her son's friends. And, she had made it clear from the beginning, that Vin Tanner was just as much her son as Chris was.
She had been fascinated with the revelation that Ezra's mother was now a senator, and that Ezra had put himself through college by playing cards. Ezra must have told her a good ten stories about his early years, before the conversation wen another direction and led eventually to Josiah, and his years of traveling.
Evan Larabee tried to interject a rude remark several times, about Ezra's less than savory past, or about something 'disgusting' Josiah had seen. Each time, he was silenced by his wife. The fourth attempt to make a scathing remark was about Vin's unkempt appearance, and Pegeen had had enough. She turned a green eyed glare to her husband, growling, "Evan. Another word from you, and so help me, I will find the dirtiest, sweatiest sock available, and gag you with it!"
Well. At least Ezra knew now where Chris had gotten his glare. Evan Larabee turned a rather unappealing shade of gray, and shut up. Pegeen shook her head, muttering, "I never! Kevin does not have overly long hair! I'm not always fond of longer hair on men, but his isn't too long, and it's very flattering to him. Wouldn't you agree, Mary?" The captain nodded her agreement, as did Josie Tanner.
Josie Tanner. Now there was a fascinating woman. His own mother had confessed to him before returning to Washington that Josephine Tanner was the closest thing she ever had to a best friend. The admission had startled her ... he could see it in her eyes. But there it was. That two women, so very different ... could be friends. And his mother was as different from Josie Tanner as Ezra was from Vin.
It was amazing, when you thought about it. That of the two remaining Tanner sisters, his mother was closest to the sister who was the least like her. Although, Ezra would have never tried to draw any comparison between his own mother and Jessica Tanner. For one thing, that would have resulted in a blistering tirade. His mother loathed the woman. Absolutely loathed her, and any indication that her son considered her to have anything in common with her ...
Well, it would have gotten ugly. And as Buck was so fond of saying, he did hate ugly. Speaking of Buck ... was he still seeing to Vin? Ezra knew that Adriana had taken JD and Elizabeth into town with her, to refill Vin's prescription. But he hadn't seen Buck since that trio took Vin back to his room. That was most unlike Buck. Not his dedication to taking care of Vin, since he tried to take care of all of his friends. But ... he hadn't returned yet.
The door opened and three young people spilled back into the house, JD and Elizabeth arguing yet again. Ezra smiled to himself, shaking his head. Those two. They had provided quite a lot of amusement when he was planet-side. In some ways, Elizabeth reminded him of a female JD, back when the boy had first joined SG-7. And in other ways? Well ... it would be best just to say that in other ways, she was very much the younger sister of Vin Tanner and Chris Larabee.
Adriana caught Ezra's eye and smiled at him, before disappearing into Vin's room. Probably to check on him. Dealing with his father this last hour had left Chris unable to make sure his younger brother was all right. That brought Ezra's attention back to the man now pouting in the corner. Amazing. The man had to be at least seventy years old, maybe even older, and he was pouting like a five year old.
Only seconds after Adriana had slipped into Vin's room, Chris followed suit. It wasn't that he didn't trust the Wilmington siblings to take care of Vin ... far from it. They were, in fact, among the first people whom Chris trusted with the care of his brother, along with his sisters.
But Ezra understood that when a younger sibling was hurting, body and soul, it was the desire of an older sibling to alleviate that pain. He had learned that fact in the last three years, as he had been gifted first with six brothers, then with a younger sister. He had never come to think of Mary as a sister ... more like a cousin, though she was considerably kinder than the cousins he had known as a child.
Chris Larabee had the additional baggage ... additional guilt ... of being unable to protect his younger brother while Vin was growing up. He, at least, had his mother, even if his father was the very definition of unreliable. Further, there was the ugliness surrounding their previous mission, and Ezra knew Chris Larabee well enough to know that he wouldn't forgive himself any time soon. As Adriana had put it, while Chris hadn't lost faith in Vin, he hadn't trusted him with the truth. That wound, Ezra was sure, was still fresh.
However, for the moment, it had been put aside, because Vin had other things to deal with. His body healing from the ... now, how was it that Colonel O'Neill termed it? His impromptu flying lesson? Yes, the elder colonel did have an ... interesting way with words. There was that, and the matters of Evan Larabee and Jessica Tanner. Ezra really wasn't interested in either of them. Their children, both together and separate, were far more interesting.
Elizabeth left the room, heading into the kitchen to help her older sister. It was either that, or find some sort of weapon to kill her paternal unit. That left Josiah and Josie, Nathan and Rain, Mary and Billy, JD, and the two elder Larabees, as well as Ezra himself. There was a temporary lull in the conversation, and Mary said, "Billy, why don't you come with me into the kitchen? I'm sure Carly and Lizzie wouldn't mind the help."
"Well, if dinner is ready, maybe we should put up the table in here, so the ladies have some place to set the dishes," JD suggested. This met with agreement from the others, and JD continued, "You wanna help me, Billy?" The little boy nodded eagerly, looking to his mother for permission. When Mary nodded her agreement, the pair went to the door just off the front entrance, the door which led to the basement.
Mary watched just long enough to make sure the light had been turned on, and they were making their way down the steps, then she headed into the kitchen to help Carly and Elizabeth. There was another long, awkward silence, then Pegeen asked, "So, Ezra ... forgive me for being so blunt, but it seems to me that you're the only one of my son's friends who doesn't have a lady. Surely a young man as handsome and intelligent as yourself has someone special in his life?"
Ezra, who had just taken a sip of his wine, nearly choked. Oh good heavens! Worse yet, he was blushing. Ezra Standish did not blush. He left that to his two younger companions. He managed to say in a hoarse voice, "I have found it most difficult, my dear lady, to find a suitable companion. Your son was twice blessed with his female companion, and I have yet to find the match that fits me as well as Mary and Adriana fit Chris and Vin respectively."
"In other words, he ain't found the right woman yet, and if he has, he ain't admitted it to himself," Josiah laughed. Ezra just glared at the big man. As if Josiah had much room to talk?
True enough, while the last two women who had attracted Ezra's attention ultimately weren't right for him, he could always remind Josiah of his infatuations first with Ezra's own mother, then with Emma Dubonet. However, while Ezra was what was popularly known as a smart ass, he wasn't suicidal. If he could break Nathan's spine, then he could undoubtedly do far worse to Ezra, without breaking a sweat!