Ten Forward Lounge - OTA

[writes_with_digital_ink]

It's been a long shift.

Very long.

And frustrating.

As soon as she clocks off, Gaila stalks to her quarters, strips out of her uniform and pulls on a dress. A Terran sundress, not Orion, because frankly, she's over pants and she'd feel undressed if she pulled on one of her tunics without pants.

She'd meant to sulk in her room and chill, but her room is small, itchy, and so she finds herself at the lounge. The lounge has people, but it's after the main time people are here. She can handle it.

And so, Ensign Gaila betIlley commandeers a table near a window, and flops over it. She'll get to her drink in moment. For now?

Flop.

Comments

[reincarnshaman]

Strange green person...

In this particular case it's Trever who suggests to Veena that she should go bother the green person.

Cats are wonderful ice breakers.

So, there is now cat on the table.

[writes_with_digital_ink]

Green person who smells vaguely of something not unlike cut grass: she's used to getting attention from animals.

Cat, Gaila can smell, and lifts her head.

"Oh, hello, cutie, didn't hear you get up."

[reincarnshaman]

She leans over and sniffs at her, imparting things over to Trever.

Will green lady give scritches?

[writes_with_digital_ink]

She will indeed give scritches. Not with the confidence of someone used to cats, but carefully, with a growing smile as Veena doens't bat at her or otherwise indicate she's scritching wrong.

[reincarnshaman]

Yeeeeess good green lady... you too will become a minion.

After a minute or so Trever wanders over to say hi.

[radishearring]

Another flashback of the manor had hit so Luna somehow slips into the lounge just for a breather. Thankfully her favorite well hidden corner was empty and she decided on a cup of tea, she figured a tiny reminder of home could only help. "Just wish there was chocolate frogs or some sweets from home around." she mused. But between sips of tea she was going over a PADD for one class while looking over two others, she was using classes as a coping tool and it also made her look more normal. But in reality she was hurting more than she was letting on.

[writes_with_digital_ink]

Does she answer, does she answer, does she answer -

"Just a question of subroutines, probably," she comments without lifting her head. Or at least, without initially lifting her head. She does now, and her bright blue eyes fix on the human girl.

"Um. From the replicators, they can do pretty much anything, it's just a question of knowing how to ask, or how to program it."

[radishearring]

"Think it can handle a somewhat off the wall candy?" Luna looked up when she heard the woman speaking to her. "Its basically a frog made out of chocolate." she explained with a rare enough smile. But this felt normal, a good normal so Luna was holding onto that.

[writes_with_digital_ink]

"Don't see why not," Gaila says honestly, propping her chin on her hand and eyes going a little distant as she thinks. "If it's not already in the replicator program, either a question of asking for something similar, or just writing a new program for it. Usually. Different replicators have different standards of what they can make, but Starfleet's ones are very good."

[radishearring]

"Anything is worth a shot right? After all its only candy." Luna observed as she went to the nearby replicator and asked for the candy. She added,"Don't think we've spoken? I'm Luna." knowing internally her smile was as fake as ever but feeling like she had no choice but to keep hiding.

[tript]

Trip was still enamored of the idea of a bar on a spaceship. Plus he would claim, should anyone ask, that the alcohol is medicinal and helps him sleep. Or so he hoped.

He saw Gaila come in - she was hard to miss. Especially to someone on the lookout for green women. He drained his glass, then went over to the table next to Gaila. Where he sat down and stared at her.


((OOC: If Gaila doesn't notice or does nothing, Trip will do something next tag))

[writes_with_digital_ink]

Oh.

Him.

She thinks about ignoring him, but then the skin between her shoulder-blades is itching.

"You know," Gaila says, lifting her head from the table and giving him a disdainful look back, "I'm not going to vanish just because you're glaring at me."

[tript]

"I didn't think you would." For one thing, he preferred her where he could see her.

He got up and went around the table to lean back against it. He tried to look imposing by folding his arms, but his left shoulder still wasn't quite better and having got it in that position without wincing, he wasn't going to move it any time soon.

"You could just tell me what you're up to," he said in a reasonable tone that clashed with his body language.

[writes_with_digital_ink]

"Oh. Well. I could. Actually, I think I might. You see, Commander Tucker, what I'm up to is very, very important. It has far, far reaching consequences, and possibly a matter of diplomatic policy.

I'm currently debating if I should use my standard cayenne pepper in my hot chocolate, or if I should try bhut jolokia."

She smiles at him. It's an expression with a fair amount of teeth.

[tript]

If she was anyone else he would have laughed and made a comment about hot chocolate being fine as it was. But she wasn't anyone else and he knew she was just saying that to wind him up. He was determined not to let her get to him - that was probably what she wanted, after all.

"Maybe you could have both. If your mouth's on fire you're not going to be kissing anyone." There was a bit of a snarl in his expression.

[immutablysam]

"Hey you. Don't suppose I could buy a girl a drink?"

[writes_with_digital_ink]

"Sam."

She brightens.

"I suppose you could, but only if you get a little something for yourself, too."

[immutablysam]

"Of course, Beautiful. What would you like, and I'll be right back with it."

[writes_with_digital_ink]

"Ohhh, that's a dangerous offer. A Risian mai-tai."

[immutablysam]

"When it comes to you, I like dangerous." True to her word, Sam isn't gone long, returning with the mai-tai, and the largest beer she could get a hold of.

[original_fine]

Jim is standing nearby, gazing out the window. He couldn't sleep, and this is one of his favorite spots. The stars don't always resolve themselves into familiar patterns, but at least it's the sort of unfamiliarity he's used to. Everything here is just close enough to home to make him miss it more. But the depths of space? That's a mystery he's content with.

He's nursing a drink. He's used to people coming and going. Some recognize him, and some don't, but by now he's used to it. As used to it as he can be. What he doesn't expect is an Orion draping herself over a table nearby, and he glances over, eyebrow raised.

"Rough shift?"

He knows the look.

[writes_with_digital_ink]

"Very-"

Gaila stops, jerks herself up, stares with suddenly narrow blue eyes. There's hope on her face, but only briefly. What replaces it is confusion, edged with disappointment.

Wrong age.

Wrong eyes.

But...

"Jim?"

No, no, that sounds too forlorn, so Gaila tries again. "Jim Kirk?"

[original_fine]

That's not the normal reaction, and Jim's casual smile falters, searching her face for some other clue. She knows him... but not. And she knows him, not of him. And he thinks back to things people have said, in his time here. Another Jim Kirk. It would explain her sadness combined with familiarity. She knows who he is, but he isn't who she wanted to see.

"Yes," he says gently. "I'm afraid I haven't had the pleasure."

[writes_with_digital_ink]

"Yeah," Gaila mutters, mouth twisting a bit. Dammit.

But if he looks like this, he's the Jim Kirk from this timeline, and right age to be a captain, and really, she's being rude about it. So she forces her body to relax into a normal sitting position, tries to look more polite.

"Ensign Gaila betIlley, originally from the past a universe over. But I've been here over a year now. You're...the Jim Kirk from this timeline?"

[original_fine]

He hasn't met anyone yet who knows him, any him, and he's curious about the response even as he wonders if he should leave her alone.

"A pleasure, ensign," he says. "As far as I know, I'm from this timeline. I confess, I'd heard there was another... Jim here once, but no one's told me much about him." There are two major possibilities here, along with a score of less likely scenarios: either the other Jim Kirk is someone she's angry with, or someone she misses. Either way, his face has a resonance for her he can't do a whole lot about. "It seems strange to apologize for not being someone else, but... I'm sorry, for what it's worth."