Kathryn shook her head a little. "On a personal level? Not in a million years. I hate the idea of her putting her life in danger like she is... Politically? It's hard to say, really." She replied.
"Hard how, exactly?" Mariah asked, still carefully.
"Exactly?" Kathryn considered her answer a moment. "Alright, since you asked... Generally speaking, it's easy to sympathize with both sides. I doubt very many people in the Federation don't have at least some sympathy for them, whether they'd admit to it publicly or not. More specifically, on the one hand, the Maquis are clearly right that they have a legitimate grievance here - they got a bad deal when the peace treaty was signed. There's no way you can deny it, reasonably. At least if you've been raised on Federation values.
"Regardless of the larger picture, regardless of whether they, you, made the right choice to stay or not, regardless of who started what, or what anyone's intentions were going into all this, it's hard to really morally justify that the Federation has simply abandoned our own to fight for their very lives out here, especially against an enemy that's, by in large, notorious for lack of mercy towards their enemies. Being stubborn isn't a crime, and it certainly shouldn't be punished in a way that's far worse than the punishment we give to our worst criminals.
"But then... on the other hand, of course, those same Federation values I mentioned also tell me very strongly that diplomacy is a far better option than war, and that, sometimes, compromise and sacrifice are simply the price of that. By not acquiescing to the terms of the treaty, it's, in effect, creating a situation that could lead to a resumption of the war. Are the upset lives and livelihoods that would have been caused by abandoning these colonies worth the lives that would be lost and the sorrow and suffering that would result if the conflict here ignites another war?" She asked.
"A fair question, but..." Mariah shook her head. "As you said, as a rule, Cardassians don't have much in the way of mercy, do they? ...How much appetite do you really think a people like that have for peace, Kathryn?" She asked.
Kathryn regarded her and saw where her reasoning was going. "You think the peace treaty is only a tactic on their part, not any genuine desire for peace?" She replied. It had occurred to her too, and she knew the Federation council had to have taken the possibility into account when they'd made their decisions as well. There was no proof of it, no way of knowing, not really, but, not to have strong suspicions? She wasn't nearly that naive. "That they saw they couldn't win by continuing the war, so they agreed to peace, but only to use the lull in the fighting to build up their forces again - is that's what you're getting at?"
"There's very little doubt of it, in my opinion." Mariah replied. "And, if that's the case..."
Kathryn smiled, recognizing that it was a logically sound argument, if still, in her opinion, an obviously imprudent one. "If that's the case, then it really doesn't really matter what the Maquis do. Oh, the Cardassians would posture, try to win concessions perhaps, but they wouldn't go to war over what's happening here. Not until they're ready, and they'd do that anyway. That's what you're getting at, I take it?"
Mariah nodded. "And the Federation knows it too, mark my words." She replied jadedly. "They're just hoping a taste of peace will give them a taste for it too. That the Cardassian people won't want to live through another round of the deaths and austerity that a resumption of the war would entail. They're looking for another success like the Khitomer Accords, and they're willing to hang us out to dry to get it. What they don't seem to understand is that Khitomer was based on something good - something honorable, as the Klingons would say - and, like you said, there's nothing honorable about any of this. Bad foundations, the building falls. They're being fools."
Kathryn had to smile. "I have to say, you might just be right about that." She admitted. "That they're being fools in some respects, almost certainly I think." She said softly. Not that she honestly thought it was a good enough excuse for what the Maquis were doing in the final analysis.
"But you still think we're bigger fools too for sticking around and suffering the consequences, don't you?" Mariah asked.
"You said it, not me." Kathryn replied.
She shrugged. "You might be right." She admitted. "I don't think that's going to change much of anyone's minds though, so what are you going to do?"
What indeed? Kathryn wondered to herself. "I guess I'll find out." Was all she said. Privately, she had to admit that Mariah's arguments had swayed her thinking to an extent. Not enough for her to agree with her perspective, but enough to shift her own perspective to a degree... which was more than Phoebe had been able to do in all their long debates on the matter. Phoebe acted on her feelings, where Kathryn knew that, for herself, while, yes, life in Star Fleet had taught her to rely on her instincts, in the end, she liked facts. Always had.
Even instincts, she believed, were only facts when you got down to it. Millions of small pieces of information human beings take in that our minds and bodies process and make conclusions about somewhere on an unconscious level. Mariah seemed to be of a like mind on the matter, seeming to think in the same ways she herself did. Still, Mariah had also been right when she'd said that leaving, regardless of anything else, would be the better option. The trouble was, Phoebe probably wasn't going to give her the option.
Mariah laughed softly. "You know? I think I've decided I like you, Kathryn Janeway. I think we could even get to be friends."
"I'm game if you are." Kathryn replied.
"Well, in that case, I'll be friendly and remind you that you really should eat some of that stew before it goes cold on you." Mariah offered, resting her chin on a hand propped up on the table by an elbow.
"When you're right, you're right." Kathryn agreed, realizing again how hungry she was and eating some of her stew, closing her eyes as she took her first bite, and appreciating how good it was.
"Better than the replicated stuff, isn't it?" Maria asked.
"I won't argue the point." Kathryn replied. "Something tells me I wouldn't win."
Mariah laughed. "Now, see? With an attitude like that, you'd make a terrible Maquis."
Kathryn shook her head. "That's unfortunate."
"Why?" Mariah asked.
"Because, unless I'm luckier than I think, it's very likely that's what I'll end up as soon enough." She told her with all honestly, the truth of that still not at all sitting right with her.
"I uh... think you're going to have to explain that to me." Mariah told her guardedly.
Kathryn sighed. "The reason I came here is to convince my sister and her family to leave the Demilitarized Zone with me... Whatever else, Mariah, she's the only sister I have. I... I just can't lose her. I can't stand the idea of..." She shook her head. "It's kept me up nights, and I've talked, begged, pleaded with her... she won't listen."
"But you think if you're here in person, she'll listen then?" Mariah asked, not unkindly.
Kathryn smiled. "I'm hoping she will. But, realistically? No, probably not..."
"So...?"
"So? Like the old saying goes: If you can't beat'm..." She left the thought unfinished.
"Join them?" Mariah asked, sounding a little unsure.
Kathryn tilted her head to the side a little. "She's family." Was all she said. And, really, that's what it came down to for her - politics and big picture thinking be damned.
"Huh... didn't see that coming." Mariah smiled, looking at her a little like she was really seeing her for the first time.
Kathryn smiled at the look. "I've been told more than once: I'm full of surprises." She told her, eating some stew.
"I'll bet. So then, I guess you'll be off to make your appeals when you've finished eating with me? Or, is it too far out for that?" Mariah asked.
Kathryn shook her head and swallowed. "Not that easy, I'm afraid. I've got to find her first." That, and it was getting fairly close to sunset, and, privately, Kathryn would admit that she was pretty tired from all the traveling, and she'd gone probably about eighteen hours now without sleep. Hardly a personal record, but, she mused, she really would rather have a good night's sleep behind her when she confronted her sometimes flummoxing little sister.
Mariah looked at her, smiling a little. "You don't know where she lives? Your own sister?" She asked.
"You don't have to say it like that." Kathryn replied a little ruefully. "I know she lives near here on a farm. She used to live in Leonis, a port city on Tracken II." It was another planet in the DMZ. Phoebe had met her wife there and moved here with her after a while. "This is the first time I've visited since she moved to Volan III and settled on that farm a couple months ago, so I never needed to ask directions before, and... well, I didn't want to ask this time because, let's just say I thought the element of surprise might help my case."
"And how would it do that, exactly?" Mariah asked, clearly intrigued.
"We don't have a lot of things in common, my sister and me. We do have a few things though, stubbornness being foremost amongst them. Believe me, the less time I give her to... stew, the better my chances are going to be." Kathryn told her with a fond but also still rueful sort of smile, wondering obtusely at the fact that she's was currently eating stew.
Mariah shook her head. "Well, you won't find many people around here that lack for stubbornness, as you might imagine. So, all things considered, you'll probably fit right in."
Kathryn laughed. "I might at that."
"...So listen, since it sounds like you'll be spending the night in the city, how about you stay the night with me and mine tonight? My husband would love the company, and I'll make sure my son doesn't interrogate you too badly." Mariah offered good-naturedly.
"Interrogate me?" Kathryn asked curiously.
"He's curious. Very curious. I'm hoping it's going to blow over a little in a year or two." Mariah explained.
"Curious you say?" Kathryn ventured mildly, privately thinking that, just maybe, Mariah Hanley's son might be modeling his behavior in that regard after his obviously very inquisitive mother. Not that she considered that a bad thing.
"Do not say it." Mariah warned, eyes alight with humor.
"I wouldn't dream of it. Besides, I happen to think curiosity is a very fine sort of character trait to have. I've always had it in abundance myself. Why I was drawn to the sciences, and to Star Fleet. That, and a healthy appetite for adventure, I suppose." Kathryn admitted.
"Star Fleet, you say?" Mariah asked.
"I thought I should be up front about it, yes. Before I accepted your invitation." Kathryn admitted.
Mariah shook her head. "Plenty of former Star Fleet coming out here to, well, to join the fight." She replied. "You're still on active duty?"
"On leave." Kathryn replied.
"What rank?" Mariah asked.
"Captain." Kathryn replied. "My current assignment is the Billings. My ship's docked at Utopia Planitia for an overhaul at the moment, my crew on leave - throughout the Terran System mostly, I imagine. I ranged a little farther out, obviously."
"Fight in the war?" Mariah asked more soberly.
"Oh, yes." Kathryn admitted. "I have a few tall tales I could share, believe me. I came through it in one piece though... I'm fully aware of how lucky that makes me, and of how far too many weren't nearly so fortunate."
Mariah sighed. "Isn't that the truth."
Kathryn looked at her in a way meant to convey that she would listen, but that they could also let the subject drop if her new acquaintance would rather not talk about it.
"I told you I had a sister. At one time, I also had a brother." Mariah said. "And that's all I want to say about it right now." She told her, a certain sort of hollow darkness just evident behind her words that had Kathryn suspecting strongly that the woman across the table from her had told a boldfaced lie when she'd said she wasn't a member of the Maquis.
"My condolences." Kathryn told her simply, meaning it.
Mariah nodded and looked out towards the street. "So, how about it?" She asked after a long moment, turning back to meet Kathryn's eyes. "My offer's still good - will you accept?"
Kathryn smiled to her. "In fact I will." She replied.
And so it was, a course of action set for the immediate future, the two women shared the rest of their meal together and then headed out into the evening, towards Mariah Hanley's family home. As she walked beside the other woman, Kathryn found herself looking forward to meeting her new friend's family. She'd only actually ever spent time with one other family where the couple in question were heterosexual, and they had been Vulcans.
Oh, it was far from unheard of for men and women to couple in human society, and there were certainly no taboos against it, but the fact was that it just didn't happen very often, comparatively. There weren't any official statistics on the subject, and, she knew also, heterosexual couples did tend to congregate in certain regions and worlds more than others, so that cut down on the likelihood of encountering them more frequently as well, but she had heard some estimates putting the ratio at around two percent of the human race or so, with perhaps up to ten or fifteen percent being bisexual to one degree or another. There were no solid numbers on it though, the only data having been collected via small to mid-sized surveys run mostly by educational institutions for sociological purposes.
The part of her that enjoyed dabbling at times in sociology was interested to have an opportunity like this.
A short time later, they arrived at Mariah's home. "Mariah Hanley, authorization WG619." She spoke when they got to the front door, the door beeping and opening at the command. "Come on in." She offered Kathryn amiably.
Kathryn followed her in. The significance of Mariah having a security passcode for her own door wasn't lost on her. Most people didn't have one and, if they had any security on their door at all, usually just wore a small key charm somewhere on their person that functioned in a similar way to the comm badges she was used to wearing in Star Fleet. Those were easier to get around with certain types of scramblers than a security code was though, especially when also keyed for voice recognition. From the, admittedly sketchy, reports she'd heard, as well as the first hand reports related to her on her way here, there was, in effect, a small gorilla war taking place in the DMZ presently. If forces from one of the Cardassian colonies were to attack and land troupes in the city, Kathryn had to imagine a locked door that couldn't be circumvented with a scrambler would seem an asset to someone with a family to protect. She wondered if perhaps there were also security fields installed as well. She knew well enough that people in conflict zones during the war would often have them. Given what she'd learned of Mariah's history, Kathryn guessed she probably did as well.
A little boy ran up and hugged Mariah's legs, she laughed, Kathryn smiled fondly. "This is Casey, my son, in case you were wondering." Mariah informed a touch dryly.
"Who're you?" Casey asked, letting his mother's legs go and looking up at Kathryn with curiosity and just a little bit of a dare in his voice.
"Kathryn Janeway, pleased to meet you." She offered her hand for him to shake.
Not missing a beat, the boy stepped forward and shook it firmly. "Casey Hanley, good to meet you too."
"Kathryn's a new friend. She's here looking for a wayward sister of hers and I offered to put her up for the night." Mariah offered her son by way of explanation.
A man came in then following Casey. "And this is my husband, Daniel Jarvin. Daniel, Kathryn Janeway. I told her she'd have a place to stay with us for the night."
"Welcome. Good to meet you." Daniel offered his hand, a friendly, if noticeably guarded, smile gracing his face.
"Likewise. I appreciate the hospitality." She replied.
He nodded and Mariah showed Kathryn the rest of the way in. She and the family talked in the living area for an hour or so. Daniel excused himself to tuck his and Mariah's son into bed.
"You've got a wonderful family." Kathryn told her genuinely.
"Thanks, that's always nice to hear." Mariah replied with a little relief evident in her voice. That had Kathryn wondering if her new friend sometimes felt less than fully accepted because of her choice of life partner... Oh, she doubted there would be anything overt, but... from a sociological perspective, she knew that tolerance and acceptance weren't the same thing, that there were degrees of both, and that, while tolerance was easy to will yourself towards, true acceptance of others different than yourself was considerably less so. Star Fleet officers usually had little trouble with that, experience, training, and the kind of temperament needed to do the job working as natural counters to any such tendencies, but she knew everyday Federation citizens didn't always measure up to those same hight standards in day to day life. "I have a friend who'll know where to look for your sister." Mariah went on. "I'll talk to him and see about getting you on your way in the morning."
"I'm grateful, thank you." Kathryn replied.
From there, they talked a while longer until Daniel came back in and they said their goodnights, Mariah showing Kathryn to a guestroom for the night.
Alone, Kathryn got undressed enough to sleep comfortably and went straight to bed, falling off to sleep without any problems.
Some half hour later, Mariah Hanley came into her guest's room. "Kathryn? You still awake?" She asked softly.
Receiving no reply, she went over to her sleeping guest and, using a hypospray, injected her with a mild sedative to keep her blissfully asleep and unaware as she first took out a tricorder and scanned both Kathryn and her possessions, then, the device reading nothing of interest besides a standard Star Fleet issue comm badge and phaser (which she would have expected to find), went about searching through Kathryn's pack and discarded clothes.
That done, she sighed. She'd found nothing.
She'd had to look... Not that if this woman were a Federation spy, she'd have really expected to find anything incriminating either, but then this wasn't the last of the precautions she and her fellow Maquis would take before letting Kathryn Janeway get any information about them that could compromise what they were trying to do. It did give her proof at least that Kathryn probably hadn't been lying about being a Star Fleet captain. They could do a lot worse than recruiting one of those into their ranks, for any number of reasons.
Satisfied, she put Kathryn's things back to rights and left.
Kathryn would wake the next morning none the wiser.
to be continued
and I'm always happy to get comments (even really short ones)
