Earth.
Katrina Swete
An Earth-bound shuttle
----------------------------------------------
Katrina opened her eyes and yawned. What had woken her?
"....arriving at Earth in exactly 10 minutes, so if you'll gather up your
belongings and......"
She looked out the window on her right. Blue and white filled her vision.
Beautiful Earth.
"Home," Katrina whispered.
--------------------------------------------
Earth
Some shuttle station
--------------------------------------------
Katrina was repeatedly shoved and tripped as she made her way out of the
shuttle and out of the shuttle station. Outside, a cool breeze brought a
smile to her face.
She hailed a cab, (Earth, the last place to use cabs and not convert to
hoppers like on other planets), and requested the airport. The shuttle had
landed in some city in England, (she'd missed that part of the announcement),
and now she had to fly to Maine.
----------------------------------------------
15 hours later
Bucketville, Maine, USA
----------------------------------------------
"Bye Harry," Katrina said as she tipped the cab driver. "Hope to see you
again before I leave."
"Bye Katrina," the 50 year old cab driver named Harry replied, and the car
sped off.
She turned and gazed at her childhood home. It hadn't changed since she had
left all those years ago to hop around the solar system having a good time
before she signed up with the JMC. The two story home with a balcony outside
her room had the same sense of home it always had.
Katrina strode up to the door and knocked. A lady in her late 50s answered.
Her eyes began to shine as she saw her youngest daughter. "Katrina!" She
wrapped her arms around the girl.
"Hi Mom," Katrina returned, hugging her mother back. "How are you?"
Mrs. Swete ushered her daughter in. "Great now you and your sister are here."
"Oh, who else is here?" Katrina asked.
"Lucy and John and the kids."
"Maybe I should stay in a hotel then......" Karina suggested.
"No, no, no, I won't hear of it!" her mother tutted. "I'll just kick Little
Lucy and Karen out of your room and set them up with Jim and Bobby."
Katrina grinned. "Thanks Mom."
"Richard! Look who's here!"
The 60 year old man wandered out from the kitchen. "Katrina!" he exclaimed.
He also swept her up in a hug. He then held her at arms length away, looking
her over. "My baby girl hasn't changed a bit. She looks just like you,
Helen," he father regarded her mother.
"Where's Lucy and John?" Katrina inquired.
Her father guided her into the kitchen. "They went shopping with the kids."
"All six of them?!" Katrina gasped.
"No, the seventh one is upstairs sleeping," her father answered.
"They had another?"
"Yes, another little girl called Carrie."
"Man," Katrina breathed.
Her parents sat her down at the kitchen table. "Come," her father began,
"tell us all about your life these last four years. We're dying to
know......."