LtCmdr Connor Dewitt - Sleepover?

[Tim]

((Indulgence of Chocolate-Coated Jama’haron - "The Dairy Godmother"))

The place seemed to empty further and further. Somewhere behind the counter, a machine hissed softly as it dispensed something sugary and unnecessary. Connor looked the bowl between them now little more than melted streaks.

C. Dewitt: Do you know where he is?

He kept his voice level, but it felt like stepping into a warpcore breach.

Ohnari: ::glancing up at him:: I can honestly say I do not know where he is.

Connor studied her face for a second. She wasn’t deflecting. Just… careful.

C. Dewitt: Did Shayne send them off somewhere? A shuttle, a transport… something coordinated?

If it had been official, he would have heard. Even on leave. Especially now.

Ohnari: ::raising an eyebrow:: Maybe he and Tori...Gott ::her foot tapped against his twice, attempting to convey the double letters:: some assistance.

Connor blinked.

C. Dewitt: :barely a whisper:: The Ferengi…?

He exhaled slowly through his nose turning into a chuckle.

C. Dewitt: I’m not going to ask how you convinced him. ::pause:: But I’m impressed.

A Ferengi did not provide assistance without leverage. Especially this Ferengi. He did not want to know what Talia had offered… or threatened. But if it had bought Kael and Tori freedom from a Temporal Affairs holding cell, it was probably worth whatever moral gymnastics had been involved.

Ohnari: Wherever they are...I have a feeling they will be ok.

C. Dewitt: He’s resourceful. Tori is, too. ::a pause:: They had to be.

Growing up in a timeline carved out of grief and survival. He swallowed.

C. Dewitt: With Tori involved, they’re probably halfway to the Gamma Quadrant by now. Or running a small shipping empire under assumed names.

Ohnari: ::humorless laugh:: Well, better than being in a temporal office for an eternity. ::quietly:: I know it doesn't make any sense but...I miss him. And her. I wish we had...I don't know, more time?

Connor did not answer immediately.

C. Dewitt: It makes sense. He was our son. However briefly. ::beat:: We met a version of our son who survived something we didn’t. ::another beat:: More time would not have made it easier to let him go. It probably would have hurt differently.

Ohnari: Response

Connor took another spoon of the mess in front of them and put it into his mouth. It did not taste great anymore. But it helped.

C. Dewitt: It can’t be easy for them either. Leaving their parents behind. For a second time.

Connor thought of his father. And then of his mother.

C. Dewitt: No matter how old you are… that doesn’t get simple.

Ohnari: Response

Connor felt the sting build in his throat and tightened his jaw before it could spill over. He swallowed hard, forcing the tear back down like it was something he could file away and deal with later.

C. Dewitt: I’m glad you’re here, Talia.

Ohnari: Response

He meant it more than the words suggested. Ayemet and Talia were the only ones who had known him when he was still a young officer. When he’d been more instinct than judgment. They had seen him before the scars layered in, before the Isles started pressing their shape onto him.

He had found friends since then… Ras with his dry steadiness, Amelia having become as close a sister to him… but lately it felt like the constellation was thinning. Shayne gone. Nolen leaving. The ship in spacedock. Even Ayemet felt just slightly out of reach.

Family was not disappearing. But it felt more scattered than it used to be.

He gave her a small, genuine smile.

C. Dewitt: Don’t let me get too dramatic about it.

Ohnari: Response

Connor chuckled.

C. Dewitt: You know we could have Nolen over for the weekends.

Ohnari: Response

TAG/TBC

LtCmdr Connor Dewitt
First Officer
USS Khitomer
A239901CD3