<USS Avalon> "Between Sister's" Cmdr Skyler, Lt. Redgrave and Sr. Lt. Marksbury
- From: CmdrSkyler@xxxxxxx
- To: avalon@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Wed, 19 Jan 2005 14:11:26 EST
"Between Sister's
Cmdr Skyler, Lt. First Class Melanie Redgrave, Sr. Lt. Elissabeth Marksbury
Skyler had just finished her conversation with Lyryn or Lissis as she was
being called now. She felt strange being alone and awake, no longer in the
abyss
that she had grown to feel safe and secure in. She had been told that Geo
rgia had only been doing what her mother Celeste, had wanted her to do,
protect
her. She had also learned that she had a sister, that Sunni hadn't died and
was actually alive and serving on this ship, her ship.
It was an awful lot to take in but she just closed her eyes and tried to
let her body relax after the stressful time she had just been through. She was
back in the darkness but this time she was not hiding. She took several deep
breaths to try and calm herself down. As she did her mind started to wander,
something it hadn't done for a very long time. Before she was even aware of
it she was calling out to someone. "Sunni, Melanie" Were they really the same
person, she had to find out.
The dream that Melanie was having about talking rabbits and drugged out
blondes suddenly faded away and Melanie found herself alone and in the dark.
She
jerked herself awake when she heard her names being called out. Melanie sucked
in air as she looked around her living room. She'd been sleeping on the
couch since she'd given her bed to Georgia. Sitting up slowly, allowing her
mind
to clear, Melanie realized who was calling out to her. After looking in on
Georgia, Melanie slipped on her little slippers and headed to sick bay, still
in her PJs.
Skyler had managed to talk one of the nurses to raise the head of her bed up
a little.
She was tired of laying flat and thought the change might do her some good.
Her eyes were still closed and her vital signs were all remaining stable. She
had promised Lissi that she wouldn't go anywhere however she was seriously
considering going to her quarters. She tried to sit on the edge of the bed and
after several attempts she finally made it, although she was still wobbly.
Her mind was still wandering, racing, trying to figure out everything that she
had been told. Did she really have a sister and was she really on this ship?
How did that happen? Too many question's and not enough answers. "Sunni is
Melanie, Melanie is Sunni, Sunni, Soliel is not dead. How? Melanie"
"I survived the attack." Melanie said aloud from the doorway near Skyler's
bed. "Celeste somehow managed to make sure I wasn't hurt."
Skyler just about fell off the bed when she heard the voice. "I didn't hear
you come in. Didn't anyone ever tell you, you shouldn't sneak up on people
like that?" Skyler slowly placed her feet on the floor and tried to stand up
but
being as weak as she was, she just about fell over. "So, you are Melanie?"
"Wasn't expecting you to be awake so I didn't knock." Melanie replied as she
caught Skyler mid-stumble. "That would be me."
"Didn't think you would come, actually I didn't know what to think. I do
know that I am getting out of here so feel like helping me back to my
quarters?"
Melanie looked at her oddly. "You called out to me, why wouldn't I come."
She helped Skyler keep her balance but wasn't making a move to walk with her.
"Should you be leaving?"
"I don't know what I thought would happen. I am still trying to process all
the information. As for leaving, if you want to talk then you will help me to
my quarters or I will go on my own. The choice is yours." Skyler really hoped
that even though she really didn't know this person like she should she
hoped she would at least obey rank if nothing else.
Melanie laughed. "Your on medical leave, at the moment you don't out rank
me, Skyler. I'll help you to your room but you have to ask Cazook first."
"I don't have to ask anyone I am leaving, You can help me or not. Either way
I am leaving." Skyler started to make her way toward the exit, she may be
slow but she was stubborn and determined. "Besides Cazook is gone for the
night."
"I can call Georgia, she's asleep back at my place." Melanie watched as
Skyler moved towards the door slowly. Man this woman was hard headed. "You just
woke up out of a stressful telepathic coma. I know you use to be a doctor,
would you let a woman who just woke from one of those leave?"
Are you going to help me or not? I am going either way you can follow or not
the choice is yours." Skyler made it to the exit and waited for the doors to
open and then she walked into the hall. "and yes I am one stubborn woman so
get used to it"
Melanie smiled as she shook her head. Then she went over and helped Skyler
again. "We're really going to have to work on that you know." She helped Skyler
down the hall and into the turbo lift. The older woman looked tired and
Melanie frowned. "Are you sure you don't wanna have someone look you over?"
"I am if you are." She replied as the lift came to a halt. "I'd like to
leave a message for Georgia letting her know your ok."
"I may dose off every now and then but I will be fine. You can leave Georgia
a message when we get to my quarters." Skyler leaned against the wall of the
lift for a few minutes then left it and headed down the hall to her quarters.
Melanie helped Skyler to her room and then down onto her couch. "I hope you
remember her, it really hurt her when she didn't think you knew who she was."
Skyler sat down on her own couch and relaxed. "I'm sorry I never meant to
hurt anyone but you have to admit that this is all rather shocking to me as
well. I still don't understand all the details and such. I know Georgia was
just
protecting me but I don't understand the rest. I'm not even sure if you are
real or if I am just imagining it. Anyone could make up facts and such. I need
answers to questions. I need the truth for once."
"What kinda answers? DNA tests? The logs that belonged to our mother that
Georgia sent me? Ask me and I'll do my best, Skyler." Melanie sat in a chair
across from Skyler, looking into eyes that were so much like her own. "Ya know
this isn't how I wanted this to play out. You jumped the gun when you read my
thoughts."
"I jumped the gun?! Just what in the blue blazes did you think it was going
to work? If you are my sister then you should've known I would be able to read
your thoughts. How do you think it made me feel? I thought I was crazy and
losing my mind. I was ready to just give up and die. What did you want me to
do, welcome you back with open arms when I didn't even know who the hell you
were?" Skyler was getting a tad angry and needed to calm down so she leaned
her head back on the couch, closed her eyes and took some deep breaths.
Melanie waited until Skyler's breathing was even again. "I thought we'd get
to know each other first. I wanted to get the DNA proof first." Melanie took a
deep breath before going on. "I didn't know what I expected of you. I just
wanted to find what I'd been missing is all."
Skyler didn't say anything for awhile. She wanted to wait until her temper
had calmed down. This isn't how she wanted this conversation to go. Perhaps she
should have waited for Lissi to bring Melanie so she had a buffer of some
kind"I don't mean to yell but you have to admit after all these years it is a
shock to find out you have a sister and that she is serving on the same ship
you are."
"About as much of a shock as finding out your adopted and that your mother
was killed because she had bring you back from a medial outpost." Melanie
replied. "This situation isn't easy for any of us involved."
"At least you have had time to adjust to the situation, get your facts
straight and you knew what had happened. I was not afforded that luxury. You
just
suddenly appear on the Avalon, and the next thing I know I find out you are
supposed to be my sister and Georgia has been keeping this secret from me all
these years. I think you got the better end of the deal." Skyler stood up and
made her way to the replicator and got herself a glass of ice cold water to
sooth her throat. She needed something to occupy her hands and her mind. She
wished that Lissi was here. This was definitely harder than she had ever
imagined it would be.
--//\\--
Lissi had returned to her quarters and laid down, but her mind would not
settle enough to sleep. She shouldn't have left Skyler. Something was just
nagging at her about it. She moved her exhausted body back out of bed after
an
hour, knowing she'd rest better sitting up next to Skyler's bed.
Making her way to sick bay, she was more than surprised to find the woman
gone. After immediately asking the computer where she was, Lissi headed
straight for Skyler's quarters wondering what that stubborn woman thought she
was
doing.
--//\\--
Melanie sat there and watched Skyler for a few moments. Why couldn't this
types of things be easy? "The only think I knew when I got here was that I'd
found a DNA match that linked with Maddox and Celeste and that they had a
daughter. I didn't know anything about how I'd ended up adopted. I'd thought
I'd
been thrown away, just turns out I'd caused my mother to be in the wrong place
at the wrong time. Your not the only one with issues in all of this Skyler."
"Fighting back and forth like this is going to get us no where. At least you
had parents to grow up with. I'm not faulting Georgia, she did the best she
could and she has always been faithful to me. Still, I was the one left alone,
with no real family, no connections at all." ~~Damn I wish Lissi was here~~
"No real family.. Man I'm glad Georgia's not here. You'd have broken her
heart. She gave you everything she could." Melanie got to her feet. "Maybe this
isn't the best time to do this."
"Afraid to face the truth or me? Any sister of mine would stay and make me
believe."
Melanie couldn't help but smirk. "Give me a teddy bear. I'll stick around
and make you believe."
Lissi pressed the chime on Skyler's door, wondering how the hell Skyler got
back to her quarters.
Skyler heard the chime and yelled "Enter."
Lissi blinked with the tone of Skyler's voice as the door opened. She
looked back and forth between Skyler and Melanie, silently assessing the
situation, waiting for one of them to speak. At least now she knew how Skyler
got
back and she wasn't pleased.
"Lyr.....uh Lissi what are you doing here? Come in and join the party if you
can call it that."
"Well," she began quietly, going to Skyler's side to check on her, "I was
going back to sickbay like I promised, only you didn't stay there like you
promised. Luckily I didn't need a covert ops team to find you." She looked
at
Melanie sternly because Skyler seemed so flustered and that she had allowed
Skyler out of sickbay, but asked softly, "Am I intruding?"
'I know I promised but Sickbay was getting to be uncomfortable and for some
reason my mind started to wander and called out to Melanie and we ended up
here. I should have waited I know but, well.....what can I say. No you are
not."
Melanie looked at Lissi and then at Skyler. "I told you you should have
stayed." Then she looked at Lissi. "Apparently I jumped the gun this time. She
called out to me again and I went. I don't think this is helping."
Your not intruding at all. Please stay and help me figure this out. Please?"
Skyler was almost begging Lissi to stay.
Skyler looked at Lissi and then at Melanie and leaned her head back on the
couch, taking a few deep breaths.
Melanie looked right at her sister but spoke to Lissi. "I tried that,
according to Skyler no sister of hers would run off and I'm to make her
believe."
"If you stay I will do my best to remain calm, I don't plan on returning to
sickbay."
"Okay, now, I'm not the most diplomatic of people, just ask Georgia, I think
she's still made at me for giving her an order the other day... Anyway, I
just want the two of you to stop and look at each other. Look in each other's
eyes." She waited until the two women complied. "The two of you are the
greatest gift each other could have. What happened in the past... it was
tragic
and unfortunate... but don't you see what you are to each other? Something
neither one of you ever thought you'd have." She paused to let her words sink
in. "I didn't know your mother... but I can imagine how pleased she'd be to
know her daughters were a family again." Wondering if that made any sense
at all, Lissi sat in the chair by the sofa and waited.
Skyler sat up and looked at Melanie. For a moment she thought she saw
something but didn't know what it was. Trying to remain calm she looked at
Melanie.
"Explain how you could be Sunni?"
Melanie sank back into the chair across from Skyler and Lissi, taking a
moment, and a deep breath before replying. "Celeste somehow kept me from
getting
hurt when the outpost was attacked. When I was rescued, instead of taking the
time to see if I belonged anywhere, I was adopted." Melanie paused a moment,
her mind reeling. "DNA makes me your sister, Skyler, a simple test can prove
that. Wither or not I'm your Sunni is up to you."
Skyler looked at Lissi for help.
"It's all so confusing I don't understand."
"Well, Skyler, technically, Melanie is right and I believe she is who she
says. She has the proof..."
"If you are who you say you are then prove it. I need something tangible to
touch and see." Skyler was almost in tears, she didn't know what to do.
Lissi moved over and sat by Skyler, clutching her hand. "You need to calm
down or I'm taking you back to sickbay. This is getting to be too much."
Lyr......Lissi you have helped me through all this tell me what to do. I
don't want to self destruct. I want to believe but its so hard.....
"We can send for Georgia. She can do DNA scans if that's what you want."
Melanie offered.
Squeezing her hand tightly, Lissi said, "This is something you have to work
through yourself. I can't tell you what to believe or not.... But maybe
Melanie can bring her boxes to you to look through as you want." She looked
at
Melanie hoping that she'd understand that Skyler needed time.
Skyler held onto Lissi's hand for dear life and looked at Melanie. You have
boxes?"
One's got the research that lead me to you, the other Georgia gave me. Home
movies, Celeste's logs, pictures, my teddy bear."
Skyler hesitated for a moment, "Do you think I could look at them?"
"Maybe if Skyler had the time to look through things then adjust to the
situation, you two would have an easier time talking..." She looked at the
two,
hopefully.
Melanie thought about it and then nodded. "They were Celeste's things,
Skyler has much right to them as I do. She can everything but the bear."
"I just need to see things bear included. I will give it back. I just dont'
want to hurt anymore or hurt anyone else." She looked at Lissi as she said
that.
"He's kinda ragged so be careful with him. He's days as a weapon are over."
Melanie answered with a small smile.
"If Melanie is okay with that... I'll go with her and get the things and
bring them back to you." Lissi stood and kissed Skyler on the forehead. She
looked pointedly at Melanie to see if she agreed to the plan.
Melanie nodded and then got to her feet in order to follow Lissi out.
Skyler looked at Lissi and smiled a Thank You to her. After the two of them
left Skyler closed her eyes and tried to rest. She was so worn out. But in the
end it would hopefully be worth it.
Other related posts:
- » <USS Avalon> "Between Sister's" Cmdr Skyler, Lt. Redgrave and Sr. Lt. Marksbury
