<USS Avalon> "Dreams and a Plan"

Dreams and a Plan
By Lieutenant First Class Melanie Redgrave and Ensign Elijah Dareth
 
 
Elijah sat at the bar with Trinity having coffee.  His mom had gone to work, 
his Dad, as usual, had locked himself in his office, and Melanie and Eliza were 
sleeping late.
 
"So you're falling in love with her, aren't ya?"  Trinity grinned at him.
 
"Let's not go there, Trin.  I don't want to jump ahead of myself, okay?"
 
"She's really sweet, Eli, and she likes you a lot.  I can tell."
 
Elijah grinned as he took another sip of his coffee. The house was quiet and it 
felt so good for him to be home, talking to his sister again.  What he had told 
Melanie was true...he didn't realize how much he missed it until he did come 
home.
 
Eliza came stumbling into the room looking as though she hadn't quite woken up 
yet.  
 
"Eli," she said, "I think something's wrong with your girlfriend.  She sounds 
like she's crying in her room."
 
Elijah was on his feet and down the hall in just a couple seconds.  He stopped 
outside the door, and sure enough, it sounded as though Melanie was crying.   
Only it wasn't the active sort of crying sounds he expected.  It sounded more 
as if she were having a bad dream.  
 
He knocked on the door and called out, "Melanie?"  
 
The feelings that the dreams brought always outlasted the dreams. The knocking 
on the door brought Melanie out of her dream and her restless sleep, but it 
couldn?t stop what she felt. Another set of knocks came and once again she 
heard her name called out. She could feel the wetness on her face from a few 
real tears that had spilled from her eyes and she wiped at them angrily.  

 
When heard Elijah call out again she simply said, "Come," and then cringed at 
the coldness of her response, she wasn?t inviting him into her office after 
all. 

"Melanie?" he asked softly as he opened the door slowly.  He saw her sitting up 
in bed, tears staining her face.  "What's wrong, sweetheart?"  He took a step 
or two closer, not really sure if it was appropriate.  
 
Melanie drew her legs up and hugged them through the quilt. She rested her chin 
on her knees and with a look of disgust, pain, and anger on her face she simply 
replied. "Stupid dreams." 
 
Deciding that comfort was more important than decorum, Elijah sat on the edge 
of the bed facing her.  He reached over and pushed her hair out of her eyes.  
"You wanna tell me about it?" 
 
Melanie didn?t shy away from his touch, in fact she kinda liked how it chased 
away the hurt she felt. "I don?t really understand them. Until recently 
everyone in them but me were shadows. The only thing that is ever the same is 
how I feel." She looked down the slope of her legs and picked at fuzz on the 
blanket that wasn?t there. "It?s stupid to let them bother me."
 
Elijah lifted her chin with his fingertip.  "Feelings are not stupid.  
Especially not yours.  You have a mess in your life right now with Skyler and 
the hurt surrounding it.  It's only natural for that pain to manifest itself in 
dreams."  When she didn't say anything, he brushed away the last remaining 
tears clinging to her cheek.  She seemed not to mind his touch and he reached 
his arms out for her, hoping that she'd accept the hug.  
 
With simple, yet frightening ease, Melanie slipped into Elijah?s embrace and 
snuggled into him. "It?s not just Skyler but everything that came before 
meeting her. I can only find bits and pieces of what happened to our parents 
but I?m not mentioned in anything. Skyler is. Even Georgia is. It?s like.. It?s 
like I wasn?t apart of them."  

 
Melanie was quiet for a moment, content to sit there a feel the rise and fall 
of Elijah's chest as he breathed. "I know I shouldn?t let it bother me. I mean, 
I wouldn?t ever want to give up the life I had. I love my mother and I adored 
my father, but.. It hurts."

Elijah held her silently and let her talk.  He stroked her hair softly and 
wished he knew exactly what to tell her.  "Do you want to tell me everything?  
I mean, maybe if you talked about it - got it all out into the open, it 
wouldn't hurt so much.  Or at least you could start letting go of some of the 
hurt.  I'm not trying to push - it's just that I already know the biggest 
secret so...if you want to talk, I'll listen.  And if you don't, I'll leave you 
alone too.  I'm here Melanie, for whatever you need.  Just let me know." 
 
"Thank you, Elijah." Melanie said softly. She raised her head up a little and 
brushed her lips gossamer light on his. Then she returned to allowing him to 
hold her. Somehow it seemed safer to open up this way.  

"Our father was killed by the Dominion not long before our mother was killed on 
an outpost which had been attacked by Romulans. She?d left Skyler with Georgia 
and she?d taken me with her. The outpost was in a hot zone, I don?t understand 
why she brought me. I can?t.. I can?t shake off all the negative thoughts that 
my imagination comes up with."

"How old were you?  How old was your sister?" 
 
Melanie relaxed a little as she eased into the topic. "My mother said that when 
she adopted me the doctors were saying I was a little over a year old. That 
would have made Skyler nearly twelve according to date of birth in her 
profile."  
 
"Big age difference.  So you weren't even a year old...and she took you to a 
hot zone...  Was there anything in the profile about you being sick?  I mean, 
did you need her specifically for anything?"  After the words left his mouth, 
he thought about it for a second.  "I'm sorry, that's my logical mind trying to 
solve your problems.  Go on with your story." He held her just a little bit 
closer. 
 
Melanie thought about it for a moment and then shrugged. "Celeste was a doctor" 
she stated as if that somehow answered a question. "There really isn?t much 
more to tell. I can?t find anything else about what happened on the outpost.  I 
just know from clippings my mother saved that only four people made it out 
alive. Georgia said she tried to find me to see if I?d made it out alive but 
they wouldn?t tell her anything. I think she knows more then she?s letting on. 
That?s why I was looking for her when we met."

"Ah, I see," he said, finally putting some bits and pieces together.  "And you 
never did get that conversation, I take it?"  
 
Melanie shook her head. "She?s avoiding us. Me and Skyler. Sometimes I forget 
I?m suddenly not the only one this is affecting. I mean, out of the clear blue 
sky Skyler has a sister she doesn?t remember having."  
 
"I wonder how she's doing," he said idly, remembering that Marksbury was 
friends with Skyler or so he thought she had said something about it.  "But 
more importantly, it sounds like Georgia needs to answer some questions for 
both of you.  Do you know where she's going for shore leave?" 
 
A light red blush colored Melanie?s cheeks and the bridge of her nose. "Her 
travel logs say she normally heads to Mississippi when she?s near Earth."  
 
"Just a hop, skip, and a jump from here, Mel.  We could go down there if you 
wanted to," he offered.  "And why are you blushing?  Did I say something 
wrong?"  
 
"I kinda used my position to access her records," she admitted nearly sounding 
like a child who?d been caught misbehaving. She thought about the idea of going 
to Mississippi for a moment. Georgia had said she?d take both her and Skyler 
there to explain things. "You don?t think that if I just showed up she?d just 
withdraw more?" 
 
"Seems to me like you'd be cornering her.  What's she gonna do, run away?  I 
think you should go.  Finding your answers and sleeping peaceful nights are 
more important than anything we had planned here.  I'll go with you," he 
offered.  
 
Melanie smiled up at him and then reached out and caressed his cheek. "That's 
sweet of you, Eli, but if you go with me then Georgia will know I told you and 
it?ll get back to Skyler." 
 
He sighed, not wanting to send her there alone.  "I can understand, but I don't 
like the thought of you going by yourself.  I don't have to actually go with 
you to where Georgia is staying...I could just come to the area.  It may sound 
stupid, but I want to help take care of you.  Seems like it hasn't been done 
enough lately.  Of course, you probably don't need me..." He let the sentence 
trail, feeling rather unsure of himself anymore. 
 
"Elijah," she said softly before leaning in and kissing him. "I?d like nothing 
more then to take you with me, but I started this on my own and I need to 
finish it on my own. Can you understand? I promise to come back here when I?m 
done. I recall promising you a lunch in London."

"Yeah, I can understand," he told her.  "But I worry about you.  Especially 
since I know about the nightmares.  They can be rough on your everyday life 
too.  I've been down that road before."
 
Melanie had to admit they did make things a little fuzzy since she normally 
didn?t sleep well afterwards. She sat there for a moment just thinking. "Your 
right, Eli, it has been a while since I?ve allowed anyone to take care of me. 
Thank you." 
 
He smiled at the thought.  "Do you know where?  I'll call ahead and make 
arrangements for the night while you get dressed."  Before she could answer, 
however, he tipped his head down and kissed her sweetly, though longer than 
before.  "Good morning, by the way."  
 
A bright smile spread across her lips after the kiss ended. "Good morning," she 
replied. Then she reached over to the nightstand and opened a small drawer. 
Handing him a PADD, she said, "It?s some small town. So small you have to take 
a bus if you don?t transport right to where you?re going." 
 
"Okay.  I'll make the arrangements.  And breakfast will be waiting when you're 
finished getting ready.  We'll leave right after that." 


                
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