Surprise!

Posted on Tue Jan 15th, 2019 @ 1:51am by Mackenzie Bergman
Edited on on Tue Jan 15th, 2019 @ 1:54am

Mission: The First Step...
Location: Station/Campus - Various
Timeline: 2388/08/26 1355 (August 26 2388 1:55pm)

Mackenzie walked out of her apartment and locked the door behind her. There were still a ton of things she felt she should be doing, like unpacking and heading to the salon/spa to check up on inventory, supplies and furniture, but doing that wasn't nearly as important to her as seeing Kelly. Sadly, it had been over two years since she'd seen her, and now her young cousin was a cadet, training to be a Starfleet Officer. She was definitely proud, just like everyone else in their family was.

The redheaded woman consulted the PADD she'd been provided with that held necessary information on it and accessed the campus map. She had a general idea of where she was supposed to go, but in a place this size, it would be so easy for her to make a wrong turn and get lost... or worse... end up in a place she wasn't supposed to be. That was something she definitely didn't want. Now, or ever. Who knew what would happen to her if she'd accidentally wandered into Intel.

After double checking the location, Mackenzie made quick work of moving to the dorms where the cadets stayed, then turned down the hallway she knew Kelly's room was on. For the second time in less than an hour, another case of nerves moved through her. How would Kelly react to seeing her there? Would she see it as a way for their family to keep an eye on her? Of course... this wasn't the case in the slightest, but for an eighteen year old it could easily been seen like that. They'd always had the best relationship despite the nine year age difference, so with luck, Kelly would be so excited that those thoughts would never even cross her mind.

She came to stand in front of Kelly's door and took a deep, calming breath. This is it. She thought, reaching out to press the chime off to the side of the door that would let the young woman inside know there was someone waiting to see her.

In the room, Kelly was tapping on a PADD that looked like it had seen every quadrant in known space, a hum coming from her throat. When the door chimed, she nearly jumped and set the PADD down. She hoped it wasn't someone who was coming by to ask if she was okay or anything, unless they were bringing her chocolate. Not that I can eat a lot of chocolate until I get off restriction, she mentally mumbled as she went and opened the door.

A tiny redhead stood there in the doorway and Kelly wondered where she had seen the young woman before. Then her hazel eyes went wide and her jaw dropped, and she took a step back, bringing a hand up. "Mack?! Is it you?"

"It's me, Squirt." Mackenzie said with a smile. "Are you going to give me a hug or stand there?"

Reaching out with the hand she had raised, Kelly grabbed her cousin's shoulder and pulled her in for a tight hug. "It is you! Oh wow! What are you doing here?" She let her go just enough to look down, then realized that she was taller than the woman she had always looked up to. A series of thoughts warped through her mind about the reason Mackenzie was at her doorstep in the Delta Quadrant, but she waited to hear why her cousin was there.

Mackenzie returned Kelly's hug and looked up at her when she stepped back, the smile that was on her face still present. "Believe it or not, I'm the new owner of the new salon and spa that's opening here. I had the opportunity to make it happen and jumped on it with claws out."

Kelly looked a bit dubious as she stepped aside. "Come on in, Mack. Tell me about your journey?"

The dorm room had a common area with two doors on either side of the couch leading to other rooms. The couch had a gold and blue pattern on it and a glass coffee table with black legs and frame sat in front of it. Several large pictures adorned the walls, a replicator on one of them, two comfortable-looking chairs and a rug that tied everything together in the same color theme.

"From the look on your face, I take it you don't believe me in the slightest. I have proof." The red haired woman said as she walked inside to look around. "Nice digs. They sure do take care of their cadets, don't they?"

Closing the door, Kelly turned to face her. "Yeah they do. After all, we're the first class on the frontier. They want us happy. It isn't that I don't believe you, Mack. It's more of...why this location when there's so many in the Alpha and Beta Quadrants?"

"Why not here?" She asked. "How many salons and/or spas do you know of in the Delta Quadrant? I had the chance to open one here, and like I said, I took it. I didn't come here to cramp your style if that's what you're worried about. You can do your thing without worrying if your old stick in the mud cousin is going to be spying on you from the bushes."

"Oh please," Kelly said. "I know you wouldn't be here to spy on me. It would take too long for messages to get home and responses to get back to make it worth it." She gave a cheeky grin. "Come on..sit down. Do you want something to drink? Sorry, all I have is replicated here."

Mackenzie moved over to the couch and settled down. "I wouldn't do it, anyway. This is your time to spread your wings and fly. With that comes the good, the bad, and the ugly." She tucked her PADD next to her and shook her head. "No, thanks. I'm going to have to walk back part of the way to my apartment soon. I left Liekos asleep in his kennel. He can get whiny when he has to go."

"Liekos?" Kelly asked her as she went to sit beside of her. "You keep your boyfriend in a kennel? I think I would whine, too."

Laughing, she shook her head. "No... I don't have one of those. Liekos is my hybrid wolf puppy. Half wolf, half Alaskan Malamute. You're going to have to come see him."

"A puppy!" Kelly exclaimed. "Okay...I have to see him. How old is he? What made you decide on a wolf/Malamute hybrid? Are you allowed to take him out on campus?"

"Nana and Papa's wolf and Malamute had seven puppies. That's how I came to get him. He is super sweet, and I know he's going to love you." Mackenzie said. "I'm fairly certain I can as long as he behaves himself, and I clean up after him. I planned on bringing him to White Lotus with me when I'm working."

"Nice name. Sounds very relaxing," Kelly said. "Speaking of Papa...my Papa...I've been trying to figure out how to write a letter to him."

"Just write it. Unless, you're concerned about some of the things you want to put into it."

Kelly took a moment to compose her thoughts. "When we first came through the wormhole, we were having a meet and greet at Zulu Base. I was eating chocolate brownies and lost control of my speech and motor functions. They said it was Ariolo Parasitic Infection that was inherited. I'm on medical restriction for a few weeks while I finish getting my treatments."

"Oh, honey!" Mackenzie said, pulling the young woman to her for a hug, her mind racing a mile a minute. It was hard for her not to panic. "Are you okay? Is it very dangerous? Fatal? Can I do anything?"

Returning the hug, Kelly nodded. "I'm fine now. It's genetic, but I'm cured now. The treatments are going to take a few weeks. It's similar to Progressive Arteriosclerosis - a condition relating to the hardening of a humanoid's arteries. For a minute, I thought they were going to make me stop eating chocolate. It's bad enough that I have to cut back on my chocolate and caffeine intake to under one hundred milligrams a day."

"It's worth it if it means you're going to be okay." She said. "You know what this mean, though, don't you? Uncle Streeh and Aunt Victory are going to be here as soon as they're able to to make sure you're okay. They won't take my word for it."

"I know," Kelly said. "Not that I don't want to see them, but they'll try to get me to come home. I can't now that I'm here. I don't want to wait a year to try again."

"You know... I don't think they would try to make you leave. They're so proud of you... we all are. You're making your way in life, and that's all anyone ever wanted. If you'd like, I can write to them and let them know that I've seen and talked to you, and that you're doing great. Then, you can write to them and tell them everything."

"Would you?" Kelly asked with a hopeful look. "Without making it into a report about me, Mack. Not that you would. I'm going to do my best while I'm here. I'm studying Flight Control as my major and Engineering as a secondary."

"Of course, I would." Mackenzie said with a smile. "I have a bit to do today since it's my first official day here, but I'll sit down and do it before I go to bed later."

"Do you need help finding anything? I haven't had much of a chance to explore, but I've had a chance to study the directory and know what's off limits," Kelly offered.

"I'm going to take myself on a tour after I can get everything settled at White Lotus. Are you confined here, or can you leave?" She asked, turning toward Kelly.

"No, I can leave," Kelly said. "As long as I don't push myself, I'm fine. Want to go while everything is still relatively calm?"

"That sounds like a plan. We can swing by and pick up Liekos, then go on our own little tour together."

"Then let's roll," Kelly said, getting to her feet. "Oh! I wrote new music, too. I'll have to play for you some time."

Mackenzie rose to her feet as well. "I saw a bit when Mister Raziel showed me around, but it's going to be nice looking over things with you. I'm looking forward to being able to spend some time with you, Cadet Kiddo."

"It'll be nice having someone that I already know," Kelly admitted, giggling at the nickname. "I'd introduce you to my roommate, but she's not here at the moment. She's a singer and we work well together. She's also cute."

"I'm sure there will be a ton of time for me to get to meet her, and I know you're going to have more friends here than you'll know what to do with." The redheaded woman said, wrapping an arm around her young cousins waist. "Now, let's go get Liekos and wander around a bit."

"Let's go," Kelly agreed, slipping an around around Mack's waist as well. "There are places to go and people to see!" She headed out of her dorm room and turned down the hall.



Kelly Khan
Freshman Cadet

&

Mackenzie Bergman
Owner: White Lotus Salon and Spa