Red Headed Menaces

[Tereska Kellow]

Teri woke up in sickbay, she looked at the hand that only hours earlier was taken off by a kilden blade, the only sign of any change was a slight scar on her wrist that she was pretty sure given modern medical technology would fade in time. What shocked her more, was the burly red haired man with a bushy beard sitting across from her.

"Stefan?" Tereska said as she sat up. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh I had to see ya." he said with a wide grin. "Not everyday I get ta meet my big sister as a wee little thing like this."

"Haven't seen you since you told everyone to fuck off when you turned 17." Teri said as she looked at him, much much older than she last saw him. His firey red hair and beard were as striking as her's. Everyone used to call them the twins, despite the 4 year difference between them.

"Yeah well... your kid, he's got a way with words." Stefan said as he looked at the floor. "I was barely making a living when he came and called, got me a good job on the shuttle assembly line. Eventually I moved on, started designin' them and building them. Got my degree. Been working on building your grandkid's new shuttles. Well, her grandkid's new shuttles. You certainly aren't MY Tessie."

"What makes you say that?" she inquired

"You seem a bit more... raw compared to her. She was always so prim and proper and deliberate, you seem like you have a bit of my spark of fun in you." Stefan said with a smirk,

"Maybe because you never saw that after you left. You left when I finally got interesting." Teri said and got up from the biobed and glanced at her outfit. "Who dressed me?"

"Probably Admiral Angel... girl is obsessed with clothes and with putting them on people." Stefan scoffed.

"As if I'm not? Need I remind you who bought you and altered your first suit so you could date that one girl... what was her name? Deena?" Teri said with a smirk.

"Tina and yeah... good point. Deena was the tattoo chick with the horse." Stefan said with a laugh and patted her back. "You stickin' around, I'm... kinda hoping to catch up. Tess and I... we don't really get along much lately, usually we end up shouting and walking away."

"Well how long did you 'fuck off' from everyone?" Teri inquired.

"Aaaaaabout 12 years." Stefan said and rubbed his neck. "And then another decade after that..."

"Well gee... I wonder why she would resent you?" Terri said as she rolled her eyes and playfully punched his arm. "Don't run off like that on your big sister you little snot. So I take it I'm your second chance hmmm?"

"Could be." Stefan said and sighed. "Nick has me working on some of his new projects for AlphaTek, kind of a favor... although he never told his mom I'm working with him. You're the only well... you that knows."

"I'll be sure to keep it quiet... so hey... think you can spring me from here and get me somewhere more comfortable? I love sickbays but I don't like being the patient." Teri whispered.

"Oh the red headed menaces strike again..." Stefan said as he picked her up and carried her out of sickbay.

[Stefan Kellow]

Halfway through the deck, Teri laughed and slapped his back. "Alright alright you big galoot... put me down!"

"You're short and you're too skinny." Stefan said with a laugh.

"I mean on the ground." Tereska said with a roll of her eyes. "Gah... you never changed."

"Oh I surely did, but something about seeing you this age... brings out the immature kid in me." Stefan replied and sat down in one of the chairs near a window. "So... you're free... what happened to you there?"

"Too much... Dominus is evil personified. I can't believe in some reality a version of me gave birth to someone like him. Worse still... in some reality there's a version of me that actually encouraged that." Teri sighed and closed her eyes. "What if I'm just like his mother somehow? It's not as if any of us don't have it in us. You've seen mom angry. We aren't exactly 'normal' either. I almost let loose there. I should have, but then he'd know. I don't think he ever saw his mother use... what we have."

"Ma always told us to use it if we had to, but not unless we exhausted every other option first." Stefan said and held her hand. "You did the right thing. So... you going to still go to medical school? Finish your degree?"

"Oh yeah... this era has some amazing stuff... I hardly would know that hours ago I almost lost this hand." Teri moved her hand. "It feels a little sore but this is amazing."

"Although I am a little attracted to that CMO..." Teri said with a blush.

"The old guy? He's like... old enough to be your grandpa." Stefan shook his head. "You always had the weirdest taste in men..."

[Tereska Kellow]

"I have a thing for older men... always did." Teri said and reclined back. "Besides... not like there's a Leo for me here... or for her. God, he was so handsome, even as an old man... that silver hair." she sighed and closed her eyes. "Stefan, remember when we were children and that one friend of mom's always told us that we'd be 'destined for something bigger and wilder than we could ever imagine', I saw that destiny and it's scaring the shit out of me. I looked at her record and her logs, giving birth to two sets of twins, commanding a starship with those kids on board, getting involved in rescue efforts that involved races and planets that in my era were still just fine. What kind of hell timeline did I go forward into? We lose Earth. It's... it's scary as hell here. Dominus, Bartyn, Bellatrix, all those other Ajem'dasis... not to mention the other governments that don't like the Alliance that keep quiet for now... "

"It's always scary... just have to hope for the best, cope with the rest. Your line I might add." Stefan said and put his hand on her hand. "We're Kellows, we're stronger than people give us credit for. Not to say that we can't just break down and cry for a few hours now and again and let it out. That's part of why I left, I couldn't take the family's whole prim and proper bullshit. Yeah we've got some royal Siofran bloodline but we're not royals and we're not even open about being Siofran. Even though a few years back they came out to help during the Imperium War, ol' Bessie May even was Veep for a little while, until they realized that they couldn't be in the open and went back to hiding." he shook his head. "I get it but still... so Teri... listen, you'll find a place in this. I know you will."

"I hope you're right." Teri said and looked into her brother's eyes. "So tell me about you... you finally get married? Have kids?"

"Married yes, kids, fuck if I know... four marriages, last one lasted two months before she tried to shoot me. I have a crap track record with women lately." Stefan winced. "Two of the ex's left and I never saw or heard from them again, they didn't even want alimony or anything, just up and left. First wife left because she wasn't able to have kids and went into a convent. Last one... she was psycho, but good golly she was hot."

"I need to set up your dates again... " Teri rolled her eyes. "And listen to me okay?"

"Deal." Stefan laughed and nodded his head. "So... need a place to stay?"

"Nicholas gave me a room in the Compound, but yeah I kinda want to find my way around and not feel like I'm his newest daughter or something. I like him though, very much a momma's boy which is nice... I'm not entirely used to men in positions of authority actually treating me like an adult or trying to look down my blouse. But I'm not his mom and I don't want to be if anything happens to her. I'm barely 20. "

"He gives you any hassle, he answers to me." Stefan said firmly. "Why don't you stay with me. I've got a huge penthouse near AlphaTek Tower. You can see how mature I've become."

"As long as I'm not your live in maid." Teri reminded him. "We're both grown."

"S'alright, I got a maid service." Stefan winked at her. "I accepted a long time ago that I'm a slob and I do well enough for myself that I can hire someone to come in every couple of days to keep the place up."

"Then it's a deal. How about you get me out of here and I can go shopping?" Teri said with a grin. "You know I'm feeling better when I want to go shopping."