Family

Posted on Wed Jul 27th, 2022 @ 12:15pm by Lieutenant JG Marina Tanger & Lieutenant Kasey Tanger

Mission: Shore Leave
Location: Quarters
Timeline: 239505.05

{ON}

Stepping up to Kasey’s door Marina pressed the chime, they had a lot to talk about and now seemed as good a time as any to do it.

"Enter." Tanger stated as the chime sounded. "How are you sis?" He added as the door opened.

Walking in Marina offered a smile. “Hi Kasey, I’m fine thank you. Can we talk?”

"I had a feeling this talk was coming. Let us hash this out." Tanger stated.

Marina nodded. "First things first, I wanted you to know why I changed my surname, I was raised as Marina Monroe but now I’m Marina Tanger just as I was always meant to be. I won't ever forget my adoptive family but they're gone, and all I have left now is you."

"Forgive me, but I am still coming to terms with having a sister and so another Tanger that is not my wife just seems odd to me." Kasey replied. "But I will ween myself to adapt to you having my last name, I promise. So what can we get out and solved with this talk, sis?"

“Well I would like to get to know you, learn more about our parents ...” Marina grinned. “Basically I want to get to know my family, plus I want you to have the chance to get to know me. Hell Ryan knows me better than my own brother” She paused. “We used to be lovers at the Academy, then I was assigned my first, and only assignment and that was the end of that.”

"Well, my parents, my bad, our parents were diplomates and I grew up on many different worlds and in many different cultures. So much so that I am a Betazoid that feels sort of lost on his home planet. Our family has an estate that I have visited twice since their death. I am the manager of the estate in name only. The descendants of the staff tend to the estate and live there and carry on as if it was theirs. I am always welcome and will make sure you are as well. The main house is more of a museum of work our parents did. Many of the tokens they received on their missions have found significance in the collection."

“Really? I’d love to see that one day.” Marina paused. “I wish I’d known them Kasey, that I at least had some memory of them. The first time I met you I could feel there was something about you, I just didn’t know what.”

"Talking to you, now, has made me realize just how much I miss our parents. I know they always had this sealed off place in their minds, which must have been that part where they hid their knowledge of you. Mom always made sure I had a protector when they had to leave me behind for a meeting or any strictly formal affair that children should not be attending. I accompanied them everywhere. I had my own security detail when outside Federation space. My nanny was even a Starfleet Security officer until I was eight. Then I was treated more like an adult but still had a bodyguard until I joined Starfleet on my own accord."

Kasey then got a few tears in his eyes and turned his face away from Marina as he did not want his sister to see him cry. He had learned a few things from Vulcans and was typically able to hold back his emotions but this new connection to his long lost twin was unweaving those teachings.

“Hey” Marina smiled as she gently reached out her hand. “Don’t hide your emotions from me Kasey, I’m your twin sister. We share a bond that no one can break, I know that now. If it wasn’t for you I’d most likely be either locked up with the other Caliphate members or taking my place back with harem.”

"Diplomacy is like logic, and thus I have learned a lot from Vulcan diplomats. I learned that they are the ideal diplomats due to their control of emotions and thus it is hard for others to resist the firm stance of someone not showing emotions. I try not to let the crew see me react emotionally and so at times a feel that the Vulcan teachings have helped me with my chosen path. Being a Betazoid has its own strengths but the emotional strain can be taxing and so I do my best to avoid the outbursts in public. Thus I enjoy a holodeck program where I create an old sweat lodge setting in the middle of an artic wasteland and let all my emotions out in there and purify my being. I find it very refreshing and enlightening at the same time." Kasey replied, still with a tear or two rolling down his face.

“Emotions maybe easy for Vulcans to control, but we’re not Vulcan.” Marina gently wiped away Kasey’s tears with the feather like touch of her fingers. “Holding back emotions is dangerous to us, with our abilities a big emotional outburst ... well you know happened when I hit that outburst point. I can still feel it, the need to shout and scream, to just sit down and cry.” Her smile faded. “I can’t let it go, not now, I need to keep that fire inside me so I can keep going and find Aurora!”

"I know emotions are part of us. I do have a way to let out all I contain. We will have to do it sometime." Kasey replied. "I am your brother and I need to be stronger now because I have our connection and I am the head of the family. I never had a sibling nor a person who I loved in a way that I needed to protect. Sure I have had a few lovers over the years, but each was only a fling for a few months or so. Nothing was long term. I now have a person who is in my life that needs me to love her in a way that need strength behind that most vulnerable of emotions." Kasey was firm and took ahold of Marina's hand. "I will be the best brother I can be and I will do what is necessary to get Aurora back in your embrace come what may."

Marina nodded and smiled. “Thank you Kasey! Just knowing I have you here is everything to me. If it wasn’t for you I’d never have found the will to have escaped the Caliphate. I won’t be your weak point that I promise you. I need you to promise me something...” She paused for a moment. “You’ve seen in my head what I went through during my time in the Caliphate, all that training and programming is still inside me. A lot of it uses negative emotions to work, I’m not sure how I’ll react when I’m faced with a threat I’ve gotten used to letting my instincts guide me and I can’t do that here. I want you to promise me you’ll keep me in line!” She grinned.

"I am going to promise you that I will within all my power do what I can to get you to a point you can safely and properly in the universe we live in." Kasey replied with a huge smile on his face. "I know of some rituals we can perform that will allow me to help you organize your mind and also allow me to alter your concepts of emotions. Once these concepts have been altered you likely will not see the same responses to the emotions you had been conditioned to trigger actions of a negative effect."

“I trust that you’ll help me Kasey.” Marina smiled. “It’ll be nice to be free to live my life how I want to live it, not how I’m ordered to live it.”

"Sis, you are my family and I will be there for you. I will help you and support you no matter what now that you are assimilating back into a normal life." Kasey replied. "I hope to help you understand how much you mean to me now that I have you in my life. You are in essence a part of me and we will always have one another's back going forward."

Marina nodded. “I’m looking forward to getting to know you better Kasey, to learning more about our family as well.”

"I am looking forward to experiencing life as a brother now and I am more than happy to teach you about the Tanger family and the role that our parents played in the universe as it is." Kasey replied.

Marina nodded. “Well our family is now part of the fifth house of Betazed, I’ve no doubt our parents would be very proud of that.”

"The government of the planet of Betzed is the Fifth House of Betazed. Derived from the fact that Betazed is the fifth planet in system. Rixx is the capital city and thus the Sacred Chalice is enshrined in the center of the city and is really an old clay pot that is broken and had a lot of mold growing in it." Kasey stated. "The Tanger Family is one of the founding noble families of the Four Deities. The title of 'Daughter of the Fifth House' is the honor that is giving to descendant females of the founding noble families. The six founding families are fading so now that you are back in the family you got the title. As a Son of the Tanger family, I need to wed and have my wife bare a daughter for the family line to continue but you are now reunited and are the heiress of the family estate so we can share it."

Marina nodded. “Goes to prove how much I know about my own people and heritage. I never really bothered to learn when I was young, then when I was assigned to infiltrate the Caliphate I just went along with their ethos. My parents were already part of the Caliphate which made me the ideal choice.” She paused. “My adoptive parents were good people Kasey, they just thought they were doing what was best for our people. I wish I could have saved them.”

"Sis, you are fine, no one expects you to know what you never had a chance to learn or witness." Kasey replied. "You received an honor none the less and that is a good thing."

Marina looked at her brother curiously. “So... this whole heir to the family line, what does that mean for Aurora? What would her place in our family line be?”

"Being the daughter, you technically now own the estate on Betazed. I was default heir and the staff will understand the shift in the changes. You are now able to go to the Council of Heirs and you now even have a vote when in person." Kasey replied. "As for Aurora, she will need to understand that due to her upbringing, she may not inherit the estate but we have time to get her on course once we rescue her. She can be reintegrated into how the society works and thus could prove herself to make a successful heir to our estate."

Marina nodded. “I just hope we’ll find her in time Kasey, I know what these drugs and training do to you. She’s just an impressionable child. One way or another I’ll find her, I don’t care how long it takes.”

"Sis, you have Starfleet on your side and they will work to find her and others in her situation." Kasey replied. "I will work to find her in a diplomatic point of view and I know we will succeed before it is too late."

“I know we’ll find her Kasey, I have to have faith that we will.” Marina smiled warmly before moving to Kasey and giving him a sisterly hug. “I’m so happy to have found out about you!”

"I appreciate not being the last of my family's branch." He replied as his sister hugged him as only a sister could. "I must say that I am now questioning my purpose in Starfleet and as a diplomat." Kasey had never had a questioning of his purpose until now as he was no longer the lone leaf on this family's branch.

“Really?” Marina looked at Kasey curiously. “All because of me? What makes you question being in Starfleet? Isn’t it a worthy place to be? Diplomacy is an important role too, or do you want to move to something else?”

"I do feel Starfleet is a worth endeavor but I am questioning my role as a diplomat. Maybe I need to be in a different role. I have combat training and I have other skills that I could be using to help more in other ways. I also want to do all I can to find my niece and make our family whole. I had never had that. I was raised as an only child but yet felt that something was missing. I need to do all I can to protect my family. I one day hope to stand up and see a thriving family full of love and the thrill of life. I am thinking maybe of stepping back and maybe taking a permanent role of teaching at the university or even taking a position as permanent advisor to an ambassador on Risa or such." Kasey replied as he was really letting his emotions out for his sister to see.

Marina smiled warmly. “Whatever you choose to do I’ll support you 100%, you’re my brother and I will do anything and everything for you.”

"I will need to talk to the captain and see but I really feel like I am not that useful on this ship but was so excited to get assigned to this ship for the sector of space it worked in." Kasey replied. "I just found you and I want to find the rest of my missing family that is out there possibly and yet I feel like I am needing more in my life. I was very content until you came along. I don't mean this in a bad way, but you made me realize there is more to my life than what I had and I want more now."

Marina nodded. “I would hate to see you go Kasey, I’ve only just found you! I will support you, but I hope you decide to stay onboard.”

"Marina, I do not want to leave you. Yet, I must do what I need to do but for now, I will remain on the ship. I have learned other positions along the way, so I can fit in just about anywhere on the ship." Kasey replied.

Marina nodded. “When the time comes I won’t get in your way, that’s a promise” she offered a warm smile. “In the meantime I learn what it is to have a twin brother, and learn about our family.”

"I appreciate that, and I am also going to learn what it is like to have a sister, and twin sister on top of that." Kasey replied. "Family is important and now that we have been reunited, my sense of family grew 100% as I thought I was the end of the line."

“Not any more!” Marina grinned. “Aren’t twins supposed to be extra special? I know I felt an instant connection with you, so what does it mean where our abilities are concerned? Are we stronger together?”

"I am just not feeling the diplomatic side of things. I have been trained in Engineering and Communications. But I honored Mom and Dad by becoming an diplomate and to get assigned to the Leto which is mainly a diplomatic ship I was extremely honored. I know at this age I should be enjoying life and taking advantage of what is available. However, I feel I am in a rut in my career. I guess the stress of all that has happened recently is having a toll on me." Kasey replied. "Twin Betazoids are a rare phenomenon. They are more telepathic than regular Betazoids and when they are together they are even more powerful. We could let our minds do things that mere humans would not understand. But a practiced sense of self-control is what I have learned form my time on Vulcan and it helps me resist the urge to read the minds of all on the ship or such. I am finding life is fun when I have a special someone and that is what is growing with Emily. She is only half Betazoid and so it is nice to know she can feel my emotions but not fully read my mind but I keep my practice of self control and don't read her mind. I do pick up on her emotions so that helps with the courtship of our relationship. I am still working my way to let the relationship mature naturally."

“Well I hope your relationship becomes everything you want and more” Marina smiled. “You deserve to be happy.”

"As for our relationship, I wish we had the lifetime we should have known but I am certain we will continue to foster our sibling status without all the sibling rivalry that we could have known. I am happy to call you sister but I know we are closer than friends but I want nothing more for you than to help you find happiness and be reunited with Aurora." Kasey stated.

Aurora’s smile said it all. “That would make me the happiest woman in this whole universe!”

- OFF -

Lieutenant Marina Tanger
Chief Intelligence Officer
USS Leto

&

Lieutenant Kasey Tanger
Chief Diplomatic Officer
USS Leto