Shara was walking through Serenity City on her day off-duty. She hardly knew what to do with her time. Karissa was working and the twins were with River Sage, the babysitter. Not that she couldn't visit them, of course, but she felt restless. It happened from time to time.
So she wandered the streets. Looking in shop windows and distracting herself as much as possible. She was also still adjusting to being planet-side. She hadn't been in several years. It wasn't a bad thing, she knew, but it was a different sort of atmosphere and feel, not just the surrounding being different, but the lighting, the temperature... everything.
Suddenly a shop caught her attention. McCairn's Kid Depot. Immediately, she thought of the twins. Like any good aunt, she loved to spoil them rotten, and she knew she could be occupied in there for quite awhile looking at everything.
As she entered, she heard the tinkling of bells. She looked around, but didn't see any, figuring it had been a sensor. Immediately, she went to a shelf full of different toys. There was a red-headed woman, not far from her busily stocking a clothing rack. As the woman looked up to greet her knew customer a smile of recognition crossed her face.
"Oh, hi!" she replied. "Where are the twins today?"
For a moment, Shara stopped in her tracks and then smiled. "The twins are with River," Shara replied. "I'm also not who you think. I'm not Karissa."
Summer's eyes opened in surprise. "You're not?" she replied. "But you look exactly like her! Are you her twin?"
"Well... sort of..." Shara replied. "Though I'm 5 years younger. It's a complicated story."
"Well, then I guess I should introduce myself!" she smiled. "I'm Summer McCairn."
"Shara Mikori," she replied.
"Are you in Starfleet too?" Summer asked.
"Yeah," she replied. "I'm a Security Officer."
"And do you have kids?"
Shara shook her head. "No," she replied. "I'm in here shopping for the twins. I want to surprise them with a present. After all, I have to spoil them. It's my job, right?"
Summer laughed. "Definitely! Are you looking for anything in particular?"
"Well, not really... just trying to see if something catches my eye," she replied, her dark eyes gazing back at the shelves.
"Oh, okay. If you need any help let me know," Summer smiled.
"I will," she replied.
For the better part of an hour, Shara remained occupied. Finally, she had settled on a doll for Maya with dark hair and brown eyes, and a set of good sized starships for Luc. She had also grabbed a book for them. One that was a fairytale that took place in space. She took her items up to the register.
Summer was there and tallied them up. "Luc and Maya are going to love these," she said.
"You know them well?" Shara asked, more or less to make conversation, though she found Summer to be a very warm and friendly person. It would be hard not to like her, Shara decided.
"Well, Karissa and I met at the park awhile ago. She comes in every so often for the twins and then they play with my daughter Kaylee," she replied.
"Ah yes, the infamous park!" Shara smiled. "Karissa does love to take Luc and Maya there."
"It's the best place for kids on Serenity. They can run around and have a ball," Summer replied.
Suddenly, Shara looked at her. "I know you probably hear this all the time, but your last name is McCairn and the mountains near here--"
"Are Cairn," she smirked. "Yeah, I get asked that a lot, but it has nothing to do with me or my family. My Ex-husband and I came here together. When he left, I opened the store. But those mountains were named long before we got here."
"Well, had to ask," Shara smiled.
"Of course!" Summer replied with a grin. As she gave Shara the total for the items, Shara paid. Summer looked her over once again. "I still can't get over the resemblance..."
Shara smirked. "Most people can't," she said as she grabbed the bag. "Anyway, I'll probably be back in again. It looks like you have just about anything a person might want to find."
"I try!" Summer replied. "Well, have a good day and thanks for shopping at McCairn's Kids Depot!"
Shara's smile brightened as she headed out the door.
back to TOC