reversedpolarity: (Expressions: Yeah I'm thinking about it)
Montgomery Scott ([personal profile] reversedpolarity) wrote2010-12-07 09:15 pm

[future!verse]

The problem with letting Helen take care of most of the planning for the wedding meant having to make several trips up north in order to get things sorted out, because even if Helen was doing most of the planning, it was still his and Liz's wedding. He personally would have been happy leaving the decisions to Helen, but at the same time, he was trying to at least attempt to help make a few decisions here and there.

Currently, he was trying and failing to tell the difference between two types of flower, which were apparently different enough that they had to pick one or the other and by the way Helen talked about it, it was apparently a life or death decision. Okay, so maybe that was a bit of an exaggeration, but flowers were pretty much just flowers, as far as he was concerned. Eventually he managed to untangle himself from the discussion and went back to flipping through the magazine he'd brought with him.

[identity profile] elizabethdehner.livejournal.com 2010-12-08 03:28 am (UTC)(link)
Liz had been ardently trying to convince her mother that she didn't even want either of those flowers. It took some convincing before she finally was able to get herself loud enough to drown out her mother's rambling about the flowers. There was some laughter afterwards and they moved on. Monty was able to slip out of the conversation much easier than she could. Liz was just a little jealous.

After a little more arguing about the necessity of flowers, Gerald finally joined them in the dining room where the table was covered in wedding things.

"This is disturbing," he commented. Liz and Helen both laughed. For whatever reason, this was funny to the both of them. Gerald remained unamused.

Of course, this is when Liz felt the need to blurt out something unrelated. She smiled up at her father, a look she often got when she was doing something she believe would make her father proud, that look of excitement. "I'm going back to school," Gerald remained unmoving. He'd want more information, "I'm going to get a masters in child psychiatry."

"Oh, Elizabeth! That's wonderf--" Helen said, being cut off.

"Of all fields, Beth, you choose the one that holds no merit in the medical community? Neurology, Beth, is what you should be working towards."

Liz just stared blankly up at him. The thoughts that he should be proud of her ringing in her head.

[identity profile] elizabethdehner.livejournal.com 2010-12-08 03:43 am (UTC)(link)
Liz broke her stare to look at Monty, shaking her head. Don't engage him. Just don't. She pleaded internally, hoping he'd heed her warning. She didn't know if he would, knowing that he'd taken her father's words as a challenge. Gerald looked as though he wasn't impressed at all or even surprised.

"Why?" he repeated back to him. "Because she's better than that. School for another fluffy field of psychology isn't worth the time it will take. She should be dedicating her time to making a substantial difference," he says flatly.

[identity profile] elizabethdehner.livejournal.com 2010-12-08 05:15 am (UTC)(link)
"Montgomery, stop," Liz said sharply. It wasn't that she didn't agree, but rather that she hated for them to fight. She didn't want to see that. She didn't want to have to hear this or see this. She didn't need her father to come up with more reasons to be a miserable soul. She didn't want any of this.

"No, Beth, let him say what he needs to say," Gerald replied calmly. He raised an eyebrow, looking unimpressed. "Her contributions to that sector of science is over. You've returned from that mission and she needs to find a cause, preferably one that will improve those of us on Earth. You too, will benefit from something that our neurologists work on, not just your little friends up in space."

Liz look notably disturbed now. Helen was looking down at a few pages of wedding colors, effectively blocking out what was happening around them.

[identity profile] elizabethdehner.livejournal.com 2010-12-08 05:42 am (UTC)(link)
Gerald looked completely unfazed. Not a word Monty said touched him in the least. He wasn't going to compare his parenting to a captain. Gerald went to open his mouth, but Monty was turning away and though that wasn't going to stop him, Elizabeth standing abruptly and slamming down the magazine she'd had certainly did.

"Montgomery, turn around," she commanded. Helen was still looking almost like she was vanishing inside herself. "Dad, I get it. I'm not good enough. I have never done enough, okay? You don't have to tell me every single time I am making something of my life that it isn't enough. Can we just let your disappointment remain somewhere lingering in the background? We all know its there!" Liz raise her voice as she spoke and then turned her attention to Monty, "I don't need you fighting my battles. We have had five years together where you knew nothing about what it was like to actually live with my father and I am not about to let you disrespect him in front of me when you don't know." She cut the argument short. It sounded unfinished and she didn't care. Instead she turned and left, heading back to her childhood bedroom, now the spare room and sat on the floor, leaning back against the bed.

Helen remained unmoving. Gerald looked mildly surprised at his daughter's outburst. He glanced to Monty and then back at Helen. Helen gave him a look and Gerald retreated to his den. Helen looked apologetically to Monty, hoping that there was something that could be saved.

[identity profile] elizabethdehner.livejournal.com 2010-12-08 06:02 am (UTC)(link)
Helen just watched him carefully. She knew her son-in-laws intentions had always been good. Helen was glad he would stand up for Elizabeth because so often Helen didn't do enough, or anything at all. She felt guilty for that. She knew she shouldn't have let Gerald get so awful with Elizabeth or with Montgomery, but there wasn't much she could do about their personalities.

"Don't be sorry," she said gently, "I never did stick up for her like I should. They have a complicated relationship, Montgomery. I don't know how it works or why they continually disappoint each other. There's something that neither of them have ever explained to me about it, but I suspect if you ask her, she will do what she can to explain. As for my husband, his actions are inexcusable. You shouldn't be apologizing."

[identity profile] elizabethdehner.livejournal.com 2010-12-08 06:16 am (UTC)(link)
Helen smiled softly, a warmth emanating from her that was fairly normal for her. She listened to him, noting the things he said that deserved answer. She understood his frustration. She knew why he was defending Elizabeth and she was supportive of it, even if Liz didn't understand.

"Montgomery, have you ever noticed that Elizabeth goes on making decisions for herself, presenting them to us, taking the abuse from Gerald and then goes on and keeps doing what she's doing?" Helen knew the question sounded complicated, "Elizabeth knows what she's doing. She knows what she wants out of life and even when Gerald looks at her and says he disappointed, she only lets herself hurt for a moment before continuing on the path that she's chosen. He may not being saying he's proud, but he's pushing her and regardless of what he wants, she keeps moving forward."

She sighed heavily after that. She didn't like to see Monty this upset either. "And if you let Gerald's opinion of how Elizabeth's life should go ruin your path of where you want your life together to go, you are giving into him. Liz has never once given into Gerald. It may look like she's hurting and that she's only ever gone to school and become a doctor because he told her to, but he always held the bar too high and she decided where to go from there. Don't give him the satisfaction."

[identity profile] elizabethdehner.livejournal.com 2010-12-08 06:37 am (UTC)(link)
"She's going to hurt sometimes and there is nothing you can do about it," she argued, "she deserves what she works for and Gerald doesn't recognize that. He's not the deciding factor in her life and though she hurts a little bit, she won't keep hurting about that. You two will have the wedding and she will go back to school and have children and suddenly his opinion won't be so important anymore."

However, when he started to question himself, Helen shakes her head, "Don't you start that. Gerald hates the institution of marriage because he settled down with me when he always thought he'd be able to avoid marriage. Don't get me wrong, he didn't marry me because he settled, but because he realized he couldn't manage without me and he loved me. He hates that he lost that battle. I should resent him for it, but he beats himself up for it too often for me to mean it," she smile softly. "Do not let Gerald's foul opinions effect your marriage. You are wonderful and the absolute best thing to happen to Elizabeth since she discovered her calling as a psychiatrist."

[identity profile] elizabethdehner.livejournal.com 2010-12-08 06:53 am (UTC)(link)
"You're welcome," she replied, hugging him, "Oh, and Montgomery, Elizabeth doesn't want you to hurt either. Keep that in mind."

Liz was still sitting on the floor of the spare room, counting the books on the shelf. She kept losing count and it wasn't making it easy on her to keep up. She was too shook up to actually keep counting and mean to get anywhere, but she was just fine with staring at the shelf to keep her mind occupied. She knew when Monty was coming, though and she straightened herself up a little bit even though she was still sitting on the floor.

[identity profile] elizabethdehner.livejournal.com 2010-12-08 07:03 am (UTC)(link)
She doesn't reply at first. In fact, she isn't sure how she wants to respond. Finally she gives in and looks over at him, her face implying no anger, but her expression was stiff. "He's my father... I love him and I know that he makes me upset and every time he says something about how I'm not doing enough, I look completely shocked, I still know that I love him because he wants me to be better," she gave him a mental nudge, letting him know she wasn't still upset with Monty, though she wasn't exactly okay just yet.

[identity profile] elizabethdehner.livejournal.com 2010-12-08 07:11 am (UTC)(link)
"I've learned to let him go on his rampages and then move on. Sometimes it really hurts. Sometimes its worse than others. When he tried to tell me that being married was a waste... that hurt because I knew it hurt you, too," she explained, leaning over on him when he wrapped his arm around her. "I'm not waiting for him to approve of me anymore. I'm just wondering if he plans on stay so miserable."

[identity profile] elizabethdehner.livejournal.com 2010-12-08 07:25 am (UTC)(link)
She leaned even heavier against him. She couldn't stay mad, not when he was talking to her like this, the ever attentive husband. His last comment made her smile and she looked up at him, "Looks like you are going to have to be a captain after all." She was teasing him after all that convincing her that he didn't want to have to be one in Starfleet. "I know what kind of man you and I know you are going to be spectacular as a father. I really can't wait."

[identity profile] elizabethdehner.livejournal.com 2010-12-08 05:56 pm (UTC)(link)
She kissed him right back and when he suggested demanding a promotion, she laughed. He seemed to drift into something more serious when he continued and she looked up at him with doe eyes, smiling softly. "I don't think I could manage that long without you," she said, just as serious.

[identity profile] elizabethdehner.livejournal.com 2010-12-08 06:19 pm (UTC)(link)
She knew he still wanted to be out there. He wasn't good at being still for too long and she didn't like that she knew. Liz wished she could block out that part of him that longed for all that adventure. Liz looked at him, a sense of sadness in her because she knew he missed space. "Earth isn't enough to contain you..." her voice was quiet and it trailed off.