Knowing Me Knowing You
Posted on Sun Apr 12th, 2026 @ 1:04pm by Ensign Connor Turner & 1st Lieutenant Marjani Smith
Edited on on Tue Apr 14th, 2026 @ 5:19pm
2,600 words; about a 13 minute read
Mission:
Episode 17 - Going Home
Location: New Orleans Louisiana - Earth
Timeline: MD026 1200 hrs
Marjani had been called to Earth by her parents, as well as her relatives. Her Aunt was getting married!
On top of that Pappy had also requested that she take her team to head for Earth. Marjani packed up, met her team and they caught a flight on another ship.
The wedding was great, it was lovely to see the rest of her family, Aunt Janeen had drawn Marjani to one side and asked about Connor. Marjani had let her know that things weren't going to work out with Connor.
"I realized that we just didn't have the right chemistry, and he's too young and we just don't have enough in common." Marjani answered, "And I was to secretive not wanting to let people know about him."
Janeen gave an understanding smile.
"You need to talk to him. It is not fair for Connor to not know how you are feeling." reaching out to touch Marjani on her shoulder.
"I just hate the fact that I am going to be breaking his heart. Just this isn't right though." Marjani answered.
"Quit standing here and go call the man." Janeen responded, giving her niece a gently push to send her on her way.
Marjani nodded and left to make the call.
Would Connor be available to talk? Was he on shore leave now?
A message was sent.
"Hello Connor, I'm on Earth, are you busy?" Marjani sending out a call.
Was Connor ever busy? Well, perhaps he was, but if he was it was either playing games or talking to computers. He heard the signal come in and his ears shot up. "Marjani? You're here on Earth? What are you doing here?" he asked earnestly. "Where are you? I will beam down and we can spend some time together. It has been too long."
"You've not left the ship?" Marjani queried with a puzzled tone in her voice.
It took a moment for her mind to click, this was Connor she was talking with, Marjani having a duh moment.
"I am at my home city New Orleans, I'll send you the coordinates." Marjani doing such.
"No, I haven't left, yet. I thought about visiting my parents but there was some fluctuations in the EPS systems and I wanted to realign all the power relays to make certain things were sorted before I did anything else. Then you rang!" he told her happily.
"So, yes, coordinates would be good. I don't think I've ever been to New Orleans. When do you want me?"
When do I want him? Marjani thought to herself.
She swallowed hard, when Marjani heard Connor's voice. This was going to be difficult, it wasn't going to be an easy thing to say but still-she had to end things.
She could feel her skin raise up with goosebumps, giving a slight shiver, feeling cold. It was as if an unseen hand just ran icy fingers along her spine.
Her voice cracked slightly when Marjani answered.
"How about as soon as you can?" The pilot drew in a breath, feeling her throat constrict slightly.
"Of course!" Connor replied enthusiastically. If she's at her family's place, she must be serious about our relationship, wanting to introduce me to them. He shook a little nervously. Would he be acceptable to them?
He stopped for a moment and asked, "Mind if I tidy up first?"
"Yes, go ahead." Marjani replied.
For her, she was dressed in a simple light blue dress with a lace overlay, her hair pulled back with a blue matching ribbon. She wore a pair of matching heels with the straps crossing around the ankles.
Marjani had been part of the ceremony as maid of honor. The wedding had taken place in the Main City Park of News Orleans. The coordinates that Marjani gave Connor was near a stone bridge which arched over a stream.
Branches of a willow tree drooped closely to the surface while dragon flies hovered near the tender green leaves.
Marjani stood nervously, waiting for Connor's arrival.
That was the coordinates that Marjani had given to Connor.
Connor had not thought to ask Marjani how he should dress to meet her relatives. He tried to think back to dating Holly but he could not ever remember meeting her parents. After all, they dated in the Academy. There was not a lot of time to get outside of it.
Quickly, Connor researched the topic and finally decided that some dark, navy trousers and a blue button down shirt would be appropriate. He rushed over to the transporter room and beamed down to the established coordinates.
The moment that he saw Marjani, his eyes widened. "You're so beautiful...." He approached her, practically in awe as he went to give her a hug and kiss.
She could have just let Connor sweep her into his arms and give her a hug and kiss. Marjani could have, but, she didn't let him, she stepped back holding out a hand.
"Connor, thank you, and you look great yourself." A weak smile appearing.
She drew in a breath, letting it out in a heavy emotional sigh.
"Connor, I'm sorry but, I can't let you kiss or hug me anymore." Marjani remarked. "I don't want to continue with our relationship."
"What?" Connor asked, his eyes growing large. "What are you going on about?" he wondered. "I do not understand."
She stiffened her resolve, Marjani feeling awful that she was doing this, but, it just couldn't go on.
"This, you and ,I" the marine motioning between the two of them. "It's just not working. I'm not around that much and I am not going to be around much. I'm not a part of the USS Pioneer, and I won't be a part of the crew either."
Marjani lowering her hand, her shoulders drooping as she said her next part. "Besides, I really don't think that I'm truly good for you. You may protest against that, its just facts, pure plain and simple."
Connor's body slumped. He knew that was true. She was not around much but they knew that when they started, so what was the problem now? That thought caused him to stiffen and stand up straight. "We both knew that this would take work, so why quit now, Marjani? And if the distance is an issue, you can join Pioneer...." He thought about it for a moment longer before adding, "Or, I can follow you."
At Connor's last statement. Marjani's eyes widened. He was suggesting that he follow her?
Marjani shook her head emphatically, causing her dark curls to jostle about. "No Connor, I don't know where I am going to end up. And I just don't feel like I am to travel on the path of the Pioneer. It's not written in the stars."
"A choice of location is not a feeling, Marjani. It is a choice. You choose your future. Why would you choose against us?" Connor tilted his head, his eyes becoming larger while his pupils dilated.
There it was, Connor utilizing his logic, but that wasn't going to work, not this time.
"Connor, we are from two different worlds. I've had experiences that you've not had. And you've had experiences that I've not experienced before. I've been in battles, lost friends."
Marjani walked over to a nearby bench not taking a seat just looking at it, then turned back towards Connor. "I feel that we don't have enough in common for our relationship to continue."
"I love to talk about food, the feelings that I get when I either cook it, or even eat it. I am a rather active individual, where you are not. Except well when it comes to intimacy, but that isn't something to base a relationship off of." Marjani added.
"I have no issue being more active and I love to listen to you talk." Connor replied, squinting slightly. None of this was making sense. "This very much reminds me of when after a day of dating that you were getting scared of being in a relationship. Why must this happen again, Marjani?"
Marjani shook her head. At times trying to talk with Connor about something was like talking to a lawyer.
"Connor, yes I wanted to back out of our relationship earlier as I was frightened about being in one. I am not afraid of being in one now. And I will thank you for that." Marjani responded, her eyes flashing with fire.
"Now though, I had some time to think about things. And Connor, I also saw your age, I checked the roster. I am older than you. Sure, if there is true love happening it wouldn't matter. It matters to me, way too much. I want things to be able to flow naturally, and they just are not happening in that way between us. Not to me." Marjani plunked herself down upon the stone bench.
"Not happening naturally?" Connor asked confused. "I seem to recall someone all over me on the Pioneer, trying to kiss me when I said I had a girlfriend and then when I confirmed my relationship was over with Holly, you jumped all over me. What is more naturally flowing than that?" he insisted.
Marjani's face darkened with embarrassment, at that memory. She hid her face in her hands. Giving out a sigh, her voice came out muffled.
"You know, I shouldn't have done that." Marjani choked out. "It was lovely yes, I followed my desire my attraction for you, and now I've made a mess of things for you, and for me."
Marjani looked up, her face filled with woe. "Here you are, fighting to keep this relationship going. And I am not. I don't have the drive, nor the will, nor the energy. I decided to let you know personally, not via a letter. Not by just disappearing on you. Not by a video message. You are a great guy, and have potential in being much more than what you are allowing yourself to be."
Marjani got up from the bench, moving behind it, as if she needed a barrier between herself and Connor.
The engineer looked at Marjani, his eyes going cold. "Making a mess does seem to be your strength," Connor answered. "Here I thought I was coming down to meet your family, that we were becoming more and now you're quitting. You could have done this in countless other ways and times, but you obviously chose some family event. Rather than talk to me about issues, you make a unilateral decision. Perhaps that is why your name is Voodoo. You enchant and then say it was all fake. Go on, then. Run away. That's what you do best. Relationships scare you." He made an audible huff and clenched his fists, as if he was rooted to the spot.
Staring at Connor, then looking about where they stood. There wasn't anyone around no family, not even any onlookers. It was just them, Marjani, and Connor.
"If I run away, then I run away. I didn't do this where my family can see this happening. And just how did you want me to do this? How would you have done this? Tell me Connor. What would you have done?"
His words did hit hard, and the coldness that radiated from him, it showed another aspect of Connor. Marjani didn't crumble into tears either. Her body stiffened as she waited to hear what he had to say.
"You want to know what I would have done? I would have been honest from moment one. If all you wanted was a snog and a shag, then fine. That's not what you said. If I had any moment that I felt uncertain or this needed to stop, I would have talked about it. I most certainly would not have brought it up for the first time at a family affair and made it sound like I was introducing my significant other to their family. You could have even come onto the ship, knowing Pioneer was in dock, but you chose none of those things, Marjani."
He paused for several moments and finally concluded, "But at the end of the day, none of that really matters, does it? You just want to run away. So fine, run away. Hopefully you will mature at some point. Maybe the universe will show you what we could have been and at that point, maybe you will get lucky and I'll be over this and available. If not, well, your voodoo, no, your fear will have you gobsmacked at what transpired thereafter."
She let Connor's words hang in the air, it having the essence of a thick mist. "Perhaps the universe will show me that I am a fool, or it will also show you that you avoided something you don't need in the future. " she drew in a breath her heart thumping loudly in her ears.
"Connor I did try to talk to you about how I felt, then your way with words, made me want to try. I wanted to give it a try. Just it's not for me. Being with you. You being with me. The only way I could even think things over was being on another ship, away from you. A quiet place for me to think, to look at my own feelings." She crossed her arms around herself.
"Yes, I should have introduced you to my family. I didn't except for Aunt Janeen. I could have told you all I wanted was just a kiss and a quick one night stand. Nope not with you. Something about you pulled me in. I called you a Wizard, that still applies. I am keeping my distance as, I may get pulled in once more. I just can't have that happen." Marjani stated rather firmly.
"Right. You can't let your walls down because ultimately, you're afraid of anything that might be good for you. Even away from me, you could have rung me and said something. No, Marjani, you're just making excuses so you will feel better about this. Maybe the moment I'm gone, you will continue to do so, but I won't let you do it while I'm here. I've never been good at doing less than speaking and seeing reality
The sound of clapping could be heard, as a man stepped out from behind another tree. His skin was the same color as Marjani's, his hair cut short. He was the same height as she.
He wore a necklace, upon which dangle a pendant, the symbol of Baron Samedi. "Bravo, a comeuppance for Marjani." he stated with his rather noticeable buttery smooth accent. It hailed from this area.
"Jimmie! Stay out of this!" Marjani exclaimed.
Her cousin, blast him! Connor was right, she should have done this in another place.
"You know Connor, and Jimmie. Think what you will, I'm done." Marjani spat out.
"Connor, as I said before, We're through. I have my reasons, be it either being scared of relationships, Not wanting to be with you as I don't think we will ever mesh well together. Ever." With a strangled huff, Marjani stalked away being very, very angry.
The Engineer shook his head, as he tapped his commbadge, =^=This is Connor Turner. One to beam up, please.=^=
A Joint Post By
Ensign Connor Turner
Computer Systems Specialist, USS Pioneer
First Lieutenant Marjani Smith
Pilot
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