What's in a name?

Posted on Wed Apr 23rd, 2025 @ 12:59pm by Lieutenant Acacia Thomas & Colonel Jason "Jack" Frost
Edited on on Wed Apr 23rd, 2025 @ 1:01pm

1,692 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Let That Be Your Last
Location: Dr. Thomas' Quarters
Timeline: Slight backpost

Settling the baby into her crib in the nursery that she'd built seemed almost anticlimactic. The trees that were misted on the walls in paint created a nice effect that calmed her as well as the baby. An added bonus of the room. The faint pressure of clean filtered air from the recycler added to the calm atmosphere. The fact that Jack had been the one to tuck their baby into her bassinet made her tear up again.

"We have a baby ..."

Jack stood watching everything as he stood upright again. To think that all these years he'd been a marine, in green, knowing only duty and service to now where he was a Dad. He stepped away backing towards the door.

"Yeah, we do." He whispered so he didn't wake the babe all tucked in and asleep.

The tears welling in her eyes fell down her flushed cheeks and she swiped them away with the back of her hand. "How did you know that I needed you? You were ..." And she flipped her hand in a gesture of 'out there somewhere '

Jack thought about the answer, how did he know? If it were a marine matter it would have been easier to answer but this was far from it. "A feeling." Through the years of service Jack had come to trust his feelings when it came to various situations.

Nestling herself against his body, amused by the fact that he was in uniform...she traced her fingers over his nameplate. Tracing over each letter of Frost she caught her lip between her teeth. This was reminiscent of the first time he'd protected her from her fears...on that shuttle. "How...do you feel now?"

"Different, but the same in a way." Jack was still a marine and he'd been one for many years in the service of the Federation and protecting the innocent. Only now that word contained another innocent far more important. He felt her against him, his arm going around her holding her to him.

Acacia rubbed her cheek on his uniform and chuckled "Seems fitting somehow that you met your daughter in uniform. "

"It's how I met you, back in the shuttle. Huddled into the corner." Jack replied thinking back to that time and the vibrant purple hair that caught his attention.

A giggle escaped her and she nodded against him, remembering their first meeting with a fondness. "It has always been one of the factors that attracted me to you" Acacia acknowledged with a tender smile up at him. "Think she'll be a marine too?"

"I hope not." Jack spoke. He didn't want her to suffer the same as he did from his Father. As he was the son of a General, there was high expectations on him and the last thing Jack wanted was for that to transition onto his Daughter. "I hope she finds her own path, and be happy for it."

Acacia gave him a long, lingering look and then squeezed him gently. Wincing as the motion made her ache, she looked to the loveseat she'd slept in more than once and nodded to it. "Lets sit...I'm exhausted and we have one more very important thing to do today."

"Oh?" Jack answered wondering what that might be considering they were home now with their daughter asleep in the next room. "What's that?"

"Decide on her name" she said softly, smiling up at her love. "I had a few thoughts, and I'd been hoping to discuss that with you before she was born."

"Ok." That was fair, probably something that should have been decided before she was born but duty waits for no one. "And what thoughts have you?" He asked leading her to the chair she'd become acquainted with during her pregnancy.

"I was thinking something botanical, since my name is that of a tree, and it's unique..." she blushed and continued "I don't like most of the typical floral names of course because nothing can be easy in this life..."

Jack sat down once she was settled into the chair herself. "And what did you come up with?" He asked getting comfortable himself, tugging his tunic as it lifted at the back from when he sat.

Snuggling in at his side, she rested her head on his shoulder. Touching him, ensuring that he was real and she wasn't dreaming him. She wasn't dreaming the ache in her thighs and belly from her labors. "If you hadn't returned I would have named her Heather. Olivia was a close second on my list to that."

"And that I did, what did you come up with then?" He asked, letting her get comfortable against him fearful that nudging would cause her discomfort.

She chuckled again and tucked his arm around her so that she could entwine her fingers with his "Well...this is the point where you can give your opinion. I know you wouldn't have said anything if I'd named her without you and you would never breathe a word if you didn't care for her name...but you are here."

Jack thought, he'd given some thoughts to names fleetingly during a moment in his office, especially considering sooner or later, pregnancy would be on the cards he knew so thinking of names from time to time helped him prepare a little.. "What about Persephanie?" He asked. It was different to what she had in mind true, but a suggestion none the less.

"Goddesses? That's fitting as she's absolutely gorgeous. I think Persephanie is a little long to be combined with Frost, though." she tapped her lips with a finger, trying to think if there was a name that could meet both criteria.

"Ariana?" Jack suggested. "Athena, Calliope." Jack added, spilling more name ideas.

She brought up the PADD that she'd been using to make notes and entered some new search parameters that included goddesses of Earth that were associated with flowers. She wanted to have some similarity in name with her daughter. "What about Daphne, or Dalia. That's kind of cute, Dalia was a goddess of Fate, and is also a flower."

"Dalia." Jack thought, then spoke it listening to how it sounded. "Dalia Frost." He liked it, it was different, unique.

"Dalia Frost" she spoke it softly, quietly as if tasting it. Testing it for how it rolled off the tongue. "She needs a middle name...Something that won't give her an unfortunate joke or acronym."

"Something with a 'T' perhaps, 'Death To Follow' if someone messes with her." Jack mused.

Laughing aloud at that she nodded "T it is. Similar to why I discarded Holly as a possibility despite the cuteness of the name. Holly Frost is just mean when it comes right down to it, especially if she hasn't chosen the name" She queued up her PADD to the T's and started to scroll through them. "Thea?"

"Dalia Thea Frost." He spoke, he liked it. It ticked all the boxes and he was glad she took well his remark about the 'T'. "I like it."

"My little flower." she said before correcting "No, our little flower." She put a tiny bit of emphasis on the our.

"She's going to be a handful when she's older. Just like her mother." Jack smirked playfully.

"Of that I have no doubt. Did you see the fire in her hair?" her sigh was soft, and utterly delighted.

"Might have to train her in phasers early, keep the boys away." Jack responded, amused by the idea, his daughter and weapons.

"She's not even a day old." she growled slapping his chest, lightly but hard enough to get her point across.

"I could always put you on the range, some tight fitting outfit, laying down with a rifle." Jack may have thought about that, more than once.

"That's the sort of talk that will get us more babies" she teased him lightly, her voice both amused and warm. Acacia leaned up and kissed the underside of his jaw.

"I am a marine, you can't fault me if I mix pleasure and business." Jack mused as he pictured her in yoga pants, a tight fitting top staring down the scope of a precision rifle.

"We'd make a scene you know" she thought about it for a moment "But it won't be the first time I've done That"

Jack smiled. "That is true." He answered. "When do you have to register then name?" He asked, making sure they didn't cause any issues later down the line.

"That, is the easy part. Computer." she paused to wait for the chirp of the computer listening to her "Please note in the official record that Baby Girl Frost, born to Dr. Acacia Thomas and Colonel Jason Frost of the USS Dreadnought is henceforth named Dalia Thea Frost. "

Well that was that, it was done, baby girl was named. "I suppose a little celebration with all your medical friends soon?" Since any department was a tight nit team. A baby was no small moment for anyone.

"Are you going to show her off to your Marines?" she countered, knowing very well the deep seated loyalty they felt towards him.

"Eventually yes, they are busy with training and certifications at the moment while we head to our next AO." Jack answered thinking he should at some point show the troops, they would be happy for him.

"You know, many of them called me mum, while you were gone. They've been..." she smiled softly with a faraway tearful look in her eyes "intensely loyal to you, even in your absence. You should take her down there."

Jack knew she was right, marines looked after each other and families too by extension. "Yeah, I know." He replied, it just fell down to when would be best to do it.

She made a sleepy sounding humming sound and rested her cheek once more on his chest. Exhaustion was getting the better of her and she was warm, comfortable and surrounded by the scent of Jacks soap and aftershave. Acacia could barely hold her eyes open. "Just take her... next time she is...awake"

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