Pondering

Posted on Fri Apr 26th, 2019 @ 10:03pm by Commander Rita Paris & Lieutenant Commander Thex sh'Zoarhi

Mission: Detours
Location: Officers mess

A smile was on the chief engineer’s face as she took another spoonful of her broth, as she gazed out at the stars flying by. Everything was going rather well in Engineering, which was a good thing, given a quarter of her staff were unavailable due to the pregnancy plague as ensign Kaarja had called it.

She smiled briefly, thinking of the own children she was wanting. Would Hera's effect work on a species whose reproductive system was rather complicated before you added in the genetic engineering they'd all had, she wondered?

It was another hectic day for the friendly first officer of the Hera, Commander Rita Paris. Already she had been all over the ship solving problems this morning. It was reaching the stage where even bridge duty was a thing of the past for her, as she seemed to spend more time running all over the starship dealing with the various departments and their needs and issues.

While she did still spend some time on the bridge, most of it was spent staring at PaDDs and reports and duty rosters and progress reports and proposals. Drowning in paperwork, she’d come up for air and realized that it was early in the afternoon and she still hadn’t eaten. Rather than just grab a replicated meal and go, she’d decided to get out of her office and away from the hubbub and just go to the mess hall like anyone else, get a hot meal of real food, sit down and enjoy it for a change.

Taking her tray through the line, Rita decided to indulge in a vegetable medley casserole, and as she looked around the officer’s mess, she spotted the familiar blue engineer, which brought a smile to her face as she changed course to approach the Hera’s chief engineer.

“This seat taken?” she asked with a smile as she approached, indicating the chair opposite Thex.

It took a moment for Thex to realize she was been spoken to, before she snapped out of her thoughts. " Oh no, you can take it, Rita. Sorry about that… i was a million miles away."

“Not that far at warp speed,” Paris wisecracked as she settled into the seat opposite the polar pixie. “What’s on your mind, pal of mine? The three new bondmates driving you up the wall?”

"Nah, everything's going great. Other than Tathaa's combadge waking me up when she has to dash to help with the next delivery, and Oribiar's tidying habit," the andorian said with a grin. "Just with all the pregnancy and deliveries, I was thinking of my own family's future."

“Ahhh, time for some blue baby fever, eh?” Rita grinned at that as she began poking at her casserole. “I’ve got no room to talk… Sonak and I chose the names for all of our children months ago, so planning in advance is just a step in the schedule for us. I won’t even get pregnant for another three years yet, according to our schedule. Which I assume, like ours, you won’t be doing any accidental pregnancies. So… what thoughts are you thinking when it comes to your next generation?”

"Oh, plenty of thoughts. Many that get mixed up along the way. I never had much of a childhood so I don't know much about being a good mother combined with the complications that could happen... I don't want to hurt any my little zygote's and I'm nervous that I'll mess something up," The andorian replied.

Taking a healthy bite of casserole, the conventionally cheerful commander chewed and swallowed, then wagged her fork in the air as she spoke. "Sonak has reassured me on a great number of occasions that my crummy childhood will simply insure that our children will be insured a good childhood. That I won't repeat those mistakes. I'll instead make all new mistakes- but that's just life. I'll have him along and invested in that adventure, in our kids, and we'll do it together. You have four of you, that should make the distribution of duties pretty sweet, and you raise the child like a tribe, no?"

"Yeah I guess that makes sense," Thex said as she took another sip of her broth. Her best friend's husband always did make sense. "I guess having four pairs of hands will help immensely, as well as all of our friends on the ship."

"I suppose I can be counted on for some babysitting," Rita laughed, then pressed a few questions. The ship's computer was an enormous database, but sometimes just asking about other cultures tended to be more rewarding. "So your people tend to produce one child at a time? We do twins and triplets as humans from time to time, and apparently amongst Vulcans even twins tend to be very rare, as they just have a tendency to make one child at a time in a logical, orderly fashion. What about Andorians? No surprises, just one or do you get surprised by your own fertility every now and then as well?"

"Yeah, these days twins are rare and more than that even rarer. Mostly it's just one these days. A far cry from the eight we could have in the past. Not that I'd mind having more than one." Thex said with a grin on her face.

“Well, you do travel with the Goddess of Motherhood and Families, Protector of Women and Childbirth. So I’m just saying, be careful what you wish for…” While Rita phrased it like a joke, in point of fact, she was not joking in the least. She’d seen the power of the goddess Hera firsthand, and she knew that although she was benevolent these days, Amazons still flocked to her banner. As evidenced by the Security force of almost entirely women who were in surprisingly good shape. A birth in Sickbay in which she had intervened had spawned a future Amazon, and the fertility rate on the starship was statistically beginning to look suspicious. So with Thex considering it, Rita felt compelled to intervene.

“If you are serious, though… go talk to Hera. Bring the whole family. Bring her a bottle of real wine, a wedge of nice cheese and some crackers, maybe some olives if you can swing it, and talk to her honestly about what you hope for, see what she has to say. I mean, she’s the patron of the starship, she genuinely wants to help, and this is very much exactly what she’s all about.” Paris paused to take another bite of her lunch before pointing out, “Her quarters are just restricted access, but you are on the list, and I can authorize the rest of your family as guests if you like.”

"I'll think about it. Asking my quad if we want to get a goddess involved would be quite some conversation." Thex answered with a grin on her face.

“It’s a thought. While I am a big fan of modern medicine, there’s something to be said for seeking the blessings of a goddess of motherhood when considering motherhood,” Paris shrugged. “So beyond that, life in the quad is nice?”

" It's going great." The andorian said with a cheeky smile on her face. " I never though i'd get the three people who know me without having to say a word. One literally in her case."

“Good, I’m glad to hear it!” Paris responded, genuinely happy for the formerly lonely Andorian engineer. “So how’s work going? Any more progress plumbing the secrets of mythological treasures that are best left undisturbed?”

" Nah no luck with the others. Tried a few hundred words, but still no luck. Not tried wearing the armor again even if the batteries are fueled up. Asa said not to do anything that could change my bodies chemistry if I'm attempting to get pregnant." Thex explained.

“Seems like sound medical advice,” Rita replied, taking another bite of her casserole. “Okay, so that’s your love life, family, job… I am guessing with three new roommates your hobbies are a bit on the shelf at the moment…” Having asked all the probing questions she could think of as the engineers only seemed to be replying, Paris let the silence sit for a moment while she finished her meal.

" So how's life been treating you my friend? Is everything going well with Sonak? " Thex asked realizing she'd not been asking how her friend had been doing.

“Sonak is eternal,” Rita chuckled. “Constant as the North Star and placid as a windless lake. We haven’t been entertaining of late, but perhaps I should remedy that. With all that’s been going on with the titans and now the buildup to the Tribunal, I’ve just been so busy lately. Which reminds me, I should get back for bridge duty.”

" I'll see you later my friend. Want to try and get a holodeck later?" She asked as she finished her own meal.

“I really should probably try to get some fun in somewhere… sure, you’re on!” Rita grinned at the acrobatic engineer. “You let me know, I’ll work it into the schedule and we’ll go spend some time doing something fun for a change. Great idea, Thex!”

" See you later than my friend. Start thinking of holo-programs! I think it's your turn to pick one!" Thex said as the two of them headed for the door.

"I'm thinking something familiar and traditional..."