Family Vacation

Posted on 06 Mar 2021 @ 8:32am by Commodore Harvey Geisler & Lieutenant Commander Joey Geisler & Cadet Freshman Grade Eden Corwin

5,206 words; about a 26 minute read

Mission: Interlude
Location: Various
Timeline: January 14, 2390 || 1300 hours

Joey stood next to the couch going over a mental checklist of things that needed to be packed. She, Harvey, the twins, Eden and dogs were taking a short vacation away from the ship, and despite not knowing where they were going exactly, she found she didn't care where they ended up as long as she'd be able to put duties behind her for a little while... spend a little time focusing on her family.

Weight against her leg drew her attention to the ground where her son was using her to pull himself up. "What are you doing, squirt? Looking for some attention?" She asked, bending down to scoop the little guy up. "Where's your sister?" Of course, Joey wasn't planning on the baby answering her question, but couldn't help but smile when he babbled at her a bit.

More weight graced her leg. Alison couldn't let her brother get all of their mother's attention. she looked down and smiled at her daughter. "There she is!" Joey cheered, earning a bright smile from the baby as she sat down on the couch to scoop the second baby up to kiss her cheek, then Jameson's.

Rico and Pequeno were never too far away from the twins, and now was no exception. They were laying just outside the bedroom door keeping watch. Only a select few would get close to their little humans.

The door to the Geisler cabin opened, bidding entrance to one Captain Harvey Geisler. Even though the ship had been in drydock for two days, there had been much for him to do, including a lengthy debriefing with Admiral O'Connell and his support staff regarding the incident in the nebula. It seemed the excitement in the Gamma Quadrant would never end.

"Well, hi there!" he greeted his family, approaching his wife and embracing her and the kids in a wide embrace.

Joey smiled, and as much as she wanted to return the embrace, her full arms prevented that. Instead, she opted to press a kiss to his cheek. "Hey," she said, her smile never wavering. "Are you finally free of the uniform for a little while?"

Alison and Jameson both attempted to get their father's attention, little fists grabbing at the front of his uniform jacket.

Harvey laughed as he was attacked by their two little ones. "It depends on how quickly Alison and Jameson can get me out of it." He caught both kids as they shifted their weight onto him. He looked at them both, planting quick kisses on each of their foreheads. "Are you two little ones all packed?"

He was greeted with baby babble and some open mouth kisses to both cheeks. Now that Joey was free, she zipped up a bag packed for both babies. "They are, though, they had a lot more fun unpacking. Every time I put something in the bag, one of them would yank it out, and they'd both start laughing when I'd make a big deal of it. It became a game pretty quick. I must have folded their clothes a few dozen times, but it was worth it to hear them laugh like that."

Chuckling, Harvey took both kids to the bedroom and set them down on the bed. Jameson quickly made his way for the edge of the bed, but Alison quickly donned a frown and whimpered. "Just a minute, Daddy needs to change." Harvey then made a gesture to his black uniform capped in red shoulder pads. "Unless you intend for me to wear this the whole time?"

Alison smiled and laughed, clearly indicating her preference. Harvey chuckled in reply, "Well I could take an extra set of clothes to change into on the runabout."

Joey leaned in the doorway and watched the three of them... or rather five of them as Rico and Pequeno made their way into the bedroom and jumped up into the bed to get some attention from Not The Mama. "Mommy thinks you should change and leave the uniform here," she said, moving to stretch out on the bed with the rest of them.

"You mean this isn't a work trip?" he asked jokingly? Bearing a smirk, he unzipped the uniform jacket. He removed the badge and pips before taking the jacket off, leaving the black-collared undershirt. "I suppose it doesn't matter much what I wear. We've got a day aboard a Prometheus class and then a short runabout trip after that. I heard Prometheuses are a bit tight on space, but once we get to Yolvanda..."

"You need a Captain's yacht for things like this, but I suppose a day isn't so bad if it means more time on solid ground. I didn't know you chose Yolvanda, though," she said. "I'm not going to lie. That makes me a little nervous."

Harvey pulled some civilian clothing out of a drawer and began to change, tossing the articles of clothing he was replacing into the nearby laundry hamper. "Oh? Why's that?"

"The virus you all were exposed to, but I know there's a cure for that," Joey said as she sat up to look at the babies. She was still a new Mom, and that came with all sorts of new worries. "They've never been to a planet before, and will be exposed to all sorts of new things, and that's what's truly making me so nervous."

"That was something that was purposefully engineered," Harvey pointed out, almost impressed that she'd remembered the incident. It had happened shortly before she'd first been assigned to the original Black Hawk, but even then, the memory of the incident had been fresh in her minds. "Besides, Yolvanda is a safe place, and the Wadi have seen to that, along with some help from the Federation. But, uh... consider it a test. If this goes well for the twins, we'll be able to take them to Earth to meet their grandparents."

That brought a smile to Joey's face. She couldn't wait to be able to take the twins to meet their grandparents. For now, though, pictures and videos were what they had to work with. "You two will do great, won't you?" She asked as Jameson moved over to her to pull himself up. "Mommy just needs to stop being so paranoid and enjoy herself. I'm quite sure Daddy will agree."

Harvey didn't verbalize his agreement, lest it lead to an unpleasant vacation. He quickly finished changing, wearing a long-sleeve henley and a pair of jeans. "Such is the burden of our careers," he said, smiling and tickling Alison. "Possessing knowledge of things most people don't know."

Joey watched as Alison fell over and gave a full on belly laugh when he started to tickle her. She smiled and held Jameson steady while he used her to walk across the bed. "When are we supposed to leave? I've got all our bags packed, and I'm pretty sure everything else is taken care of."

"Our transport departs at about..." Harvey looked around for a chronometer. "Well, in about thirty minutes from Gamma Command, docking port twelve. And, since Gamma Command itself is out of transporter range, we'll have to take a shuttlecraft to the base. Shuttlecraft Doohan is already prepped and on standby for us."

That didn't leave them a whole lot of time. "We better get moving if we're going to make it," Joey said as she climbed from the bed with Jameson in her arms. "Once we walk out those doors, I'm leaving everything behind so I can enjoy myself. And, I need to let Eden know to meet us at in the shuttlebay." The young would be joining them so they'd have a little time to themselves while away. And not only that, but she also deserved a little time away from the ship.

"Rico, Pequeno... let's get your leashes on." With that, she moved out of the bedroom to get Jameson in the stroller before leashing the two canines. Once those tasks were completed, she sent her cousin a quick message to let her know where to meet them as soon as possible.

* * *

Exactly twenty-eight minutes and thirty-seven seconds later, the Geisler entourage were shown to their cabin aboard the USS Hercules. It was a small one bedroom cabin, but at least there was a combined sitting/dining area. "Well, there really is no place like home," Harvey remarked, carrying in one of the bags and little Jameson.

Joey followed behind him with the two dogs and a few of their bags with Eden and Alison taking up the rear of their little convoy. She unhooked the dogs, who were all too eager to.explore, then took a look around as she set their things down. "Definitely cozy," she said.

"That's one word for it," Harvey said, heading for the bedroom and setting down the bag he carried. "I'll contact Operations and see if we can't get a playpen or something we can set up out in the main room. Otherwise, I don't think we'll have any space in the bedroom for it. Not unless one of us is willing to give up getting out of their side of the bed."

Eden spoke up before Joey had the chance. "If a playpen can be acquired, me and the twins can sleep out here, and you two can take the bedroom."

Joey looked to her cousin, then turned her attention toward her husband. "I'm okay with that if you are ."

Harvey, still wearing his silver badge with the two downward stripes, tapped his communicator. "Geisler to Operations. I would like to request a playpen for my cabin for our babies to sleep and play in."

"Requested acknowledged, Captain," came the reply. "We'll have it to you within the hour."

"Well, that was easy enough," Joey said as she reached for the bag that contained toys for the twins. She sat down on the floor with Alison and began to pull some of them out, much to the little girl's delight. "It will definitely be nice to be on solid ground for a little while. It's been a long time since we were back on earth."

Harvey sat on a nearby chair, only because there wasn't that much room on the floor for all five of them to occupy it. "That reminds me, I think I'm overdue for a communique to my parents. Maybe I'll send them a nice package after our time on Yolvanda."

Time seemed to be passing by quicker than Joey would have liked. The twins were going to be celebrating their first birthday in a couple months, and still neither her parents, nor Harvey's, had gotten the opportunity to meet them. "Mine, too, with a lot of pictures of these two little ones," she said, holding the little girl's hands so she could rather clumsily walk around the small space around her mother. "And perhaps, we should consider visiting home again before the twins join Starfleet." To her, it just felt like they were growing that fast.

"Do you think we have enough time?" Harvey asked, a coy smile on his face. "It feels like the kids were just born yesterday. And I swear we just enrolled them in kindergarten starting tomorrow." Harvey was of course joking, but even he didn't know how Joey or Eden would respond to that.

Joey held Alison's hands while she made her way over to her father on very wobbly legs. Once the little girl was.steady, she pulled her hands back. "You're right, it does seem like they were just born yesterday, but their first birthday is right around the corner. I'm not prepared for that just yet."

"And I'm sure enrolling them in kindergarten will happen before either of you know it," Eden stated.

"Oh, no...." Harvey said, shaking his head. "I know it's my fault for saying it, but we're not pressing any sort of fast forward here. These kids aren't going to grow up any faster than I allow them to, even if they have to stay this age for the next ten years. They're innocent and sweet and..." A sudden smell began to waft upwards from Jameson, who had. the biggest smile on his face. "... well, that too."

Joey laughed and reached for their son. "That's a job for mommy, isn't it?" She asked as she rose to her feet, placing kisses to Jameson's chubby little cheek as they disappeared into the bedroom.

Eden watched them vanish, then looked toward Harvey who had a certain little girl trying, and failing, to climb onto his lap. "How do you do it?" She asked, genuinely curious. "How do you manage to command a starship and oversee all personnel, and still find time to be a husband and father?"

Harvey wasn't sure how to answer that question. He never really thought about it before. It was just something that he'd chosen to do, adding in each little piece as it had come across. "I guess I just know where my priorities are," he answered. "Rather than try and juggle, I just take it one step at a time. It helps that Joey's supportive, but I don't take advantage of her either."

"What advice would you offer to someone that was considering joining Starfleet?" The young woman asked.

He raised an eyebrow. "Are you considering signing up?" Harvey asked Eden.

She nodded her head, but suddenly seemed unsure. "I was. For a brief moment," she said. "I'm not so sure if it's something I'm cut out for, though."

"Why is that?" Harvey asked.

"The hours are incredibly long, for one thing," Eden began. "Not to mention I have zero idea where I would fit in as far as a set department goes. Besides... if I enlisted, I wouldn't get to hang out with these two little sweethearts as much." She reached out to tickle Alison, earning a laugh from the little girl. "It's just something I was thinking about, and it's not completely off the table just yet."

Harvey smiled and chuckled. "Honestly, as much as Joey and I appreciate having you around, we both know that it's temporary. Sooner or later, you'll want to start a life of your own, and when you do, you will have our full support. That said, I know you've only seen a slice of life in Starfleet. Less than half of Starfleet's complete personnel compliment are serving on starships at any given time. There's tons of great places to be, and there's many career paths. If you want, there is a discovery program. Basically, you get to shadow different departments for a few weeks and see if there's something you'd like."

That certainly catered to her curious side. "What would I have to do to be able to do something like that?"

"All you have to do is say the word," Harvey answered. "I'll reach out to Mila as soon as we're back, and she'll get you started."

"I think I would like to," she said. "What could it possibly hurt?"

Joey made her way back into the main area with a freshly changed Jameson. Instead of returning to her spot on the floor, she settled down on the couch. "What couldn't possibly hurt? I feel like I missed something good."

"Just talking about expanding the family business, 'tis all," Harvey said, reaching for Alison who had pulled herself up using Harvey's pants. "Nothing too severe."

"Expanding the family business, huh? Any idea which department you're most interested in?" Joey asked her cousin.

Eden shook her head. "No, but Harvey said he could make arrangements for me to shadow different departments to maybe get some kind of an idea," she stated.

"That's one way to figure out what department might be best suited for you," Joey agreed. "Though, I'm not sure how we would be able to do that with Intelligence given our entire department is blocked to almost everyone without proper clearance."

"Well, there's no need to worry about that for now," Harvey observed, picking up little Alison to bounce her on his knee. "It's time for a vacation, and we promise to not depend on Eden the whole time for nanny duties. She deserves some free time just as much as we do."

"Hey, I happen to love spending time with these two little ones," Eden objected. "They're pretty great company. Not to mention I don't really know anyone."

Joey looked her cousin over. "All the more reason for you to spend a little time away from us. Not that we don't want you around, mind you, but you deserve a little down time."

Harvey chuckled, enjoying both Alison and a stray thought. "Besides, we play all the cards right, maybe you could find a good location to take the twins with you. I hear they can be handy sometimes to help find an escort for the evening."

Eden blushed bright red.

Joey couldn't help but laugh. "Eden, honey, you get any redder we might have to take you to medical to get looked at."

And now the young woman wished the floor would open up and swallow her.

Harvey looked over to Joey. "Do you think she's embarrassed because we figured out her plan?"

"Oh, I have no doubt about it," Joey agreed with a smile, looking over at her husband before turning her attention back to her cousin.

If it were possible to grow even redder, Eden accomplished it. She covered her face with her hands and shook her head. "I wasn't going to do that," she insisted.

Perhaps, Harvey thought, enough was enough. "Well, we've got two days before we get to Yolvanda. Anyone have anything they'd like to do? I hear the cabins in the mountains are beautiful."

"Hiking," Joey replied, taking her hair from Jameson after he grabbed a fist full and tried to chew on it. She reached for a toy to distract him when he poked his little bottom lip out. "I haven't been hiking for my own sake in years."

Eden opted to remain quiet for a moment longer to give her cheeks a chance to return to normal. "I'd like to get some sun. That's one thing there isn't enough of on a starship. The holodeck helps a bit, but it's just not the same.

"I'm game for anything that's not behind a desk or starship window," Harvey stated. "That said, I hear the beaches are quite lovely, especially near the equator. Those might be worth a visit."

Joey lit up at the mention of beaches. "You know I'd love to go to the beach, and I'd love for Alison and Jameson's first visit to be at a real beach and not a holoprogram," she said. It was clear she was excited at that thought.

"Then a beach it is," Harvey confirmed. "I'll download all of the tourist brochures and then we can go from there."

"That sounds like a good idea. There's going to be a lot more to do than we'll have time for, so a second trip might need to be taken in the future," Joey said.

"We could make it an annual thing," Harvey suggested. "Give us something to look forward to every six to twelve months."

Joey smiled. "If you think I'm going to object, you're wrong. In fact, I absolutely agree with that a thousand percent."

Harvey smiled, looking down at Alison. "What do you think, little one? Should we make a trip at least once a year?"

Alison squealed with excitement. " 'Hopping!"

He roared with laughter as his smile grew. "You're going to make me burn all of my credits and latinum, aren't you, little one? Save some for your mother and brother now."

Eden joined in the laughter. "You two are going to have your hands full with her."

Joey grinned and lowered Jameson to the floor. She held his hands while he took the few steps toward Eden. "Oh, I don't doubt that for a second, but I can't say I blame her. She's a little girl after my own heart. Shopping is a lot of fun," she said, but living in space prevented her from doing it often. That was all going to change on their vacation.

* * *

Their transit time passed quickly, and it wasn't long before the Geislers and Eden had settled into their accommodations. It didn't take them long to find the closest beach and travel to it. The ocean reflected the bright blue of the morning sky, and the white sandy beach was sparsely populated.

"Looks like we got here early," Harvey remarked.

"That's okay with me," Joey said as she spread a blanket out on the sand, then helped Eden get the babies settled onto the center of it with some of their toys. Rico and Pequeno took position near Alison and Jameson. "It makes the experience more peaceful."

Eden set a sippy cup near each baby, then stood back up. "Would either of you mind if I walked down the beach a ways? I want to get a lay of the land a bit."

Joey shook her head. "I don't mind at all. We'll be in this spot, or in the water by the time you make your way back."

As Eden walked off, Harvey pulled a bottle of sunscreen out of the diaper bag and began to apply it to Jameson. "Don't take this the wrong way," Harvey said to Joey, "but I hope she takes her time and enjoys herself."

"I'm not going to take that the wrong way, because I agree with you," she said, reaching for the sunscreen when he put it down so she could apply some to Alison. "I actually feel a bit bad that she doesn't take time for herself. She's young, and has her entire life ahead of her. Maybe, I need to start urging her to put herself out there a bit more."

"We could always find a second sitter," Harvey offered, finishing with Jameson who found the sunscreen application process ticklish. "Not to say that Eden hasn't done a good job, but she probably only has a couple years of this job left. I don't opportunity to pass her by too late."

Joey looked thoughtful for a moment while she continued to apply the sunblock to their daughter. "Both Kelly and Mila have expressed their interest in watching the twins in the past," she said. And, while she'd taken them up on that, they had lives also, and Joey felt a bit guilty. Much like she did right now where her cousin was concerned. "Do you have anyone in mind?"

Harvey shook his head. "I really don't. If we had more children on the ship, I could get a grant from Starfleet to allow for a school or daycare aboard. But, that's a problem for another day. For now, we're at the beach. Let's not ponder too much about the future. Let's enjoy ourselves."

"That's a good plan," she agreed, helping Alison get to her feet once she was covered in sunblock. "What do you say we take them for their first swim?"

He picked up both of the floatation devices that doubled as toys with one hand and scooped up Jameson in the other. "I say, yes, ma'am!" With that, he turned and approached the shoreline. He waited until the water was just above his ankles before he set Jameson down. His son smiled and squealed, excited to be in a giant bathtub.

Joey laughed at their son and made her way toward the water with Alison. The little girl appeared more wary than her brother, and when she was lowered to the water's surface, the baby raised her legs to keep from touching it. Mom lifted her up and settled her in her hip. "You don't want to splash around like your brother? Honey, watch her." She lowered Alison back down only for her to lift her legs again.

Harvey looked over to see Alison's refusal to get into the water. He laughed, finding the situation to be comical. It seemed slightly inappropriate to laugh at the young one's fear and uncertainty, but this would be a story they'd tell for the rest of Alison's life. "Try holding her and going a little deeper. Once she gets wet, she should be fine. Jameson and I will follow."

"Come on, princess, we'll see if Daddy's way works," she said, holding the baby so she was facing forward to see what was going on. Joey began to walk further out and the baby paid it no mind in part to her Mom's soothing voice and splashing with her free hand. It took a few seconds, but soon, Alison was kicking her legs to mimic Joey's splashing.

True to his word, Harvey picked up little Jameson by his waist and began to wade deeper out into the ocean. Jameson splashed all the way with his hands and feet. Harvey laughed the moment he saw Alison. "See, she just had to see it for herself. Maybe I should go back to the shore real quick and get the floaties."

"If you want to do that real quick, I'll take Jameson," she offered.

Harvey quickly and happily obliged, passing off the active child to his mother. He returned about a minute later with two odd-looking life jackets which consisted of two thick armbands connected by a front panel and a fastening clip for the backside. "Let's give this a shot," he said as he secured the blue one to Jameson. He then let the little guy go letting him float and kick in the water on his own power. Jameson's smile grew, realizing his freedom and splashing more than he ever had before.

"Now, I know what you're thinking," Harvey said, holding a pink one up for Alison. "These won't let the kids flip over on their back or fall face first in the water. They're totally safe."

Joey smiled while she watched their son kick and splash around in the water, then looked to Alison. "How about you, Princess? Do you want to splash around with your brother?" She asked, holding her just right so Harvey could get hers in place. "They look safer than most I've seen, and Jameson seems to feel pretty secure in his."

"I'm not too surprised," Harvey said, trying to put the floatation device on little Alison. "He's a daredevil, just like his mother."

"We are so screwed, " she groaned, keeping Alison as still as possible. "At least one of them won't give me grey hair too soon. She's more cautious, and Mommy definitely appreciates that. Am I that much of a daredevil, though? Honestly."

Harvey chuckled. "Believe me, you are far too young and attractive for silver hair to come anywhere near you. As for the daredevil side of you... let's just say I hadn't known anyone in security to be so bold. Taking down an entire starship single handed, helping take over a starbase, almost taking over the Black Hawk. Though to be fair, that last one wasn't you at all. And let's not forget the most daring thing you did above all."

Joey was very glad she hadn't succeeded in taking over the ship, whether it was her or not. Still... she'd definitely been pretty bold like he'd said. "Oh? What is the most daring thing I've done above all?"

He secured the floatation device around Alison and lifted her out of Joey's arms. "Somehow, you taught me how to love again." He gave her a smile before leaning in to give her a kiss.

She returned the smile and the kiss. "Maybe, but I definitely consider myself to be the lucky one. I get to love you and our two precious little ones, and there's nothing better."

Jameson and Alison squealed together, showing how much they both agreed. "Agree to disagree there, but I suppose it'll be our forever argument." Harvey let his legs go limp so he could get to eye level with both kids. "It's like a giant bathtub that never ends, isn't it little ones?"

Joey sank down into the water and watched the two babies instantly become water babies. "You know we'll have to take many trips to the holodeck after this to make sure they stay used to this," she pointed out.

"And we've still got the swimming pool too," Harvey pointed out. "I'm sure there's plenty of crew who'd love to help out with the little ones there."

"Oh, I know of two right off the top of my head," she said with a smile. "Maybe a few more. Mila and Kelly for sure. We should let them visit the crew a bit more, too. Maybe as unofficial morale officers. Look at those two sweet little faces and tell me you aren't filled with joy and happiness."

"I can most certainly not deny that at all," Harvey chuckled. "We've been through so much as a crew. We all need a reason to celebrate life once in a while, and definitely far more often than we have been."

Joey smiled as she took a hand of each baby and began to move them around in the water a bit. Jameson seemed to appreciate it, but Alison wasn't quite sure and reached for the safety that was her father. "They definitely make me feel better when I'm having a bad day, and so does their Daddy."

"And I can say the same," Harvey said with a smile of his own. "Though replace Daddy with Mommy and it's perfect. I could use seeing a little less of myself sometimes."

"Believe it or not, I know exactly how you feel. Sometimes, I get tired of my own company. Especially when I'm working a longer than normal shift."

Harvey nodded. "You know, it's so easy for you and I to shift back into work mode. This is part of our problem. Our issues will still be there when we get back. I think we just need to do our best to let it all go until then."

Joey smiled. He was right. "It's been a long time since we've had a vacation. Nineteen month, to be exact. And who knows how long it will be before we'll get to do it again. I say we take your advice and forget we're even Starfleet until we have to go back. Unless an emergency pops up."

He smiled. "No emergencies. No Starfleet. Just you, me, and the kids." He looked down at the splashing Jameson, and then back at his wife, hair and swimsuit already dripping with water. "Or maybe we find ourselves a sitter for a while and enjoy some us time."

"Oh, I like the way you think. As soon as Eden comes back, we can do just that," she said with a smile. "Anything in particular you want to do?"

"For starters?" Harvey asked with a smile. "How's a nice walk along the beach sound?"

Joey smiled. "That sounds absolutely perfect to me."

Harvey kept his smile as he slid down in the water and laughed along with his children who continued to splash about. This certainly would be the perfect vacation.

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