[USS Tempest] Keeping a Promise
- From: "Miranda Craig" <mirandacraig@xxxxxxx>
- To: <usstempest@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 4 May 2006 14:21:15 -0400
"Keeping a Promise"
Ensign Miranda Craig
After packing a small over night bag and double checking to make sure Livvie
had signed off on her request, Miranda sat at the desk in the lounge and
scribbled out a quick note to Lindsey. "Linds," She read out loud as she wrote,
"had to keep a promise. Went to Bajor. Be back in the morning. Try to eat
something other then coffee for dinner and try to sleep. In a bed. With your
eyes closed! See you in the morning. Mirrie."
With the note laying where she knew her sister could find it, Miranda headed
off to the station and the transport to the planet. Her mind was cluttered with
thoughts of what she was about to do. She couldn't get Adam out of her mind.
Seeing the old man and his grandson reunited, and hearing about the Klingon and
her son, helped, but men still died. There were still those out there who
wouldn't get a happy ending. It almost seemed unfair to make them grieve all
over again, but she had made a promise.
When the transport landed Miranda headed for the small Starfleet hotel were she
signed in for a room. After settling her things and changing into a clean
uniform, she took two black velvet boxes out of her bag and set them on her
small table. Next she pulled out a couple of padds and placed them on the table
as well. Then she sat on the small single bunk and just stared at the things.
An hour passed before she finally got up, pocketed the items, and headed out
into the city. It had taken three days but Miranda been able to find Adam's
sister living on Bajor with her Bajoran husband. As she walked up to the door
of the woman's home, Miranda paused before knocking. She felt strange, but
couldn't explain it. Taking a deep breath she squared her shoulders, cleared
her throat to curb her Texas twang, and knocked.
A woman with dark hair and eyes, younger then Lindsey, older then herself, with
a baby cradled in her arm answered the door. "Yes?"
"Excuse me Ma'am. I'm Ensign Miranda Craig from the USS Tempest and I'm looking
for an Emma Mitchell?" Miranda said kindly.
The woman looked Miranda over before replying, "I'm Emma Mitchell."
Miranda steeled herself. "Ms. Mitchell, I've come about your brother, Adam."
Emma looked surprised for a moment and then nodded her head as she stepped
aside to allow Miranda in. "I can't say I'm surprise that someone has come to
my door step." She said as she lead the girl into the lounge. "I am surprise
however, and forgive me for saying so, but your awfully young to be dealing
with such things."
"Normally they'd send in the black trench coat team, but," Miranda swallowed.
"I'm sorry that wasn't the best way to..."
"Don't worry, Ensign." Emma said kindly. "I know the moment I saw you."
"Oh." Miranda said as she took an offered seat. "I really am sorry."
Emma nodded again and sat in the chair across from the girl. "You were about to
tell me why your here and not the condolence duo."
The very corner of her lips curled at the name for the officers who's job this
normally was, but it was only a brief flicker. "Adam was one of the men that
Tempest rescued from a Dominion POW camp. He was in our MASH unit. I was there
when he came too. For a few moments he thought I was you."
A sad smile tugged at Emma's lips. "I was about your age the last time I saw
Adam."
"You two were close." It's was a statement of fact that Miranda could
understand.
Emma nodded. "I was the oldest, he the youngest. I took care of him."
"That's why he wanted me to bring this back to you." Slipping her hand into her
pocket, Miranda pulled out the smallest of the two boxes. She ran her thumb
over the velvet before opening it and handing it Emma.
Emma reached out with her free hand and took the box. Tears glistened in her
eyes as she looked down at the small gold crescent moon and chain that were
snuggled into the box. She sat there for a long time before finally whispering,
"You've no idea how much this means."
Miranda swallowed back her own tears as she pulled her dragonfly from behind
her uniform. "I might. My own older sister gave this to me the day I was born,
so I can pretty much imagine what that meant to him."
"Thank you." Emma said simply.
Reaching back into her pocket she pulled out the second box and a padd. "This
is all the official information. I think there's going to be something done
officially on the station or Tempest, but that'll tell you how to get his..."
She could say it. She set the padd on the coffee table and then opened and
present the second box. "His comm badge, and his strips and stars. Admiral
Sullivan, in one of her first acts as C-n-C of the Gamma quadrant issued him a
promotion to Senior Chief Petty Officer."
Again Emma reached out and took the offered box. She started down at the strips
and stars and nearly laughed. "One step closer to those gold strips."
There was another long moment of silence before Miranda pushed to her feet. "He
held out until he was home with the Federation again. He was a good man."
Emma smiled up at the girl. "A sign that we did right in naming his nephew Adam
as well."
Miranda smiled brightly as she watched the woman pulled the chain from the box
and place it around her son's neck. The little one had a garden angel for sure
now. "Goodbye, Ms. Mitchell."
"Thank you, Ensign."
"Elphaba, where I come from we believe all sorts if things that aren't true..
We call it.. History."
~The Wizard
~Wicked~
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