[Venus]

Lieutenant Yuhiro Kolem sat on the grass which her mother had been assured had originally grown on Earth before being transplanted to the colony. Still wearing her Maid of Honor dress from the wedding earlier in the night, or perhaps now the next day, she knew that William Hume was fast asleep in the guest room. She’d snuck out, after not wanting to or being able to rest and had wanted to go for a walk but now had nowhere to go. Hume, being born and bred Starfleet, could sleep at the drop of a hat as the saying went. He’d be out like a light by now, he also did not seem to have the same need to solve every problem intellectually before acting the way Kolem felt that she did. Still she felt a mind approaching her from behind she smiled at it’s familiarity.

”Mom,” she said.

Turning she saw her mother with two mugs, of she guessed herbal tea.

”Yuhiro,” her mother said offering her a cup.

”Why did you call me that anyway, we’re not Japanese, that sounds Japanese,” Yuhiro asked.

”Your father liked it for a name. I don’t know if it’s Betazoid or just something he heard on Earth,” her mother said, “there wasn’t a lot of Betazoids on Mars at the time, in fact your father’s family are the only ones I’ve ever met.”

Kolem knew that meeting her father’s family would have been a lot for her young mother at the time. The wedding must have been an interesting mix of Mars and Betazoid customs. Kolem wondered if when she got married if her relatives would impose Betazoid customs on the wedding, all the most reason to elope. She supposed that she should see them soon one day, maybe the next time she got enough shore leave to travel.

”How was the wedding?” her mother asked.

”Fun, but I’m different now. It’s strange though, everyone feels so familiar, but we’re all sad about Mars, and about being older,” Yuhiro said.

Her mother looked up, “Maybe not just being older. People regret choices around your age. We see pathways being closed off, and options dwindling. It’s hard on people.”

”Everyone expects me to be eighteen and fun, but I’m not anymore,” Kolem said, “At least not really.”

Her mother laughed, “It’s because everyone want themselves to be eighteen and fun. But I knew the moment that you showed up in that uniform looking so official you weren’t a cadet anymore. You’re amazing darling. Your father would have hated it.”

”He’d have hated that my Captain keeps thinking of me as Troi,” Kolem said grinning.

”Who’s Trey?” her mother asked.

”Troi, half-Betazoid councelor on the Enterprise-D. Married to Captain Riker,” Kolem said.

”I don’t know who that is, should I?”

”Mom, she’s like the most famous half-Betazoid there is,” Kolem exclaimed.

”Is her mother nice?“ her mother asked.

”I think her mother is like important on Betazed, like Ambassador or something,” Kolem said.

”Well dandy for her, but the most famous half-Betazoid I know is named Yuhiro Kolem and she’s in Starfleet,” Kolem’s mother said.

”And I have the nicest mother,” Kolem said.

”I’m not even an Ambassador,” her mother laughed.

”Do you like William?” Kolem asked her mother.

”I do, he’s good for you. A bit of muscle for your brain.”

”He’s not dumb you know,” Kolem said.

”He isn’t but he’s… not impulsive but he doesn’t over think things. He strikes me more like me, you’re like your dad. Your father used to think on something for days, or weeks. I just like getting to work on it,” her mother explained, “You study the mind, but you’ve got to have realized there’s things you can’t think your way out of. None of us are pure logic either, we can’t just exist on thought.”

Kolem nodded, “One of my crew. My friends, Tashai, she’s an El-Aurian. She was born in 1978, can you believe that. She… her life is like a game to her. She’s doing Starfleet the way I did summer camp, just to see how she likes it.”

”You hated camp, we had to pick you up after a week,” Kolem’s mother said.

”You said the same thing about Starfleet Academy, you thought I’d leave after a week,” Kolem replied. She had gotten home sick, but had stuck it out. Now she couldn’t have imagined giving up. While there had been something comfortable and familiar about being with her old high school friends once more she knew that her story, her future lay out there with her crew and with the Anaheim. The fact was she was not going to marry on Venus and settle down, that was not who she was anymore, if she’d ever been that person.

The night sky was dark and Mar–less. It stretched out forever. Space was big and it was bigger she knew when your daughter took a starship ride to the other end of it to risk her life for some ideals that she knew her mother did not subscribe to. The mother and daughter sipped their teas in silence, not talking. They had said what they were going to, what they felt their needed to, and now apart from being reminded that she was leaving latter that morning there was at last nothing left to say.

Kolam finished her tea, “I should at least try packing if not sleeping.”

Her mother took her empty cup and rose, “You should. The shuttle to space dock leaves early, you don’t want to miss your Starfleet approved ride.”

”Mom, thank you, if I don’t say it enough, thanks,” Kolem said.

”Dear I’m the one person in the world you don’t ever have to thank,” her mother said, “But you’re welcome now get to bed. Or pack, or sit here. You’re the fancy Starfleet lieutenant now, you can do what you want. Just tell your captain to take care of my baby. I only have the one.”

Kolem watched her mother head back into the house and then stood, stretching on the grass she gazed up at the dome and the stars. The infinite melancholy waiting to be explored. Shuffling in the dress she too headed back towards the house, and towards the room that her mother had set up after moving to Venus. 

It was time to go home.