First Vacation In A Century

Posted on Thu Sep 13th, 2018 @ 12:35am by Commander Rita Paris & Lieutenant Commander Sonak

Mission: Holographic Horrors
Location: USS Hera, Deck 8, Lieutenant Commander Paris' Quarters
Timeline: 2395, in drydock at Artan Fortress, Kabul system

It was just past 12:00 hours when the gold and blue duo departed their shared quarters, which she already thought of as ‘theirs’ rather than ‘hers’. She’d bustled all over the ship, taken a meeting with the captain, gotten caught up on her reports and gotten her department organized as well as checking on the rest of the departments. After all, as first officer, she was now responsible for all of the departments running smoothly. The Captain’s job was to lead and set course and policy- the first officer made the starship run efficiently, to free the Captain up to do so.

Fortunately, this was something with which Rita Paris was quite accustomed. Years of overachieving at her last command had left her remarkably well-equipped for this one, as she had been doing the lion’s share of the work already as the ambitious second officer of the Exeter. While the faces and uniforms and starship had all changed, paperwork was a constant, and she knew how to stay on top of it without undue stress.

By 17:00 hours she was already spending far too much time thinking about what she planned to spend her evening with her… T’hy’la was an encompassing term, but it didn’t really relay their relationship effectively to the uninitiated. That was a conversation they needed to have as well, because ‘my boyfriend’ very much did not encapsulate her relationship with her good-natured lifemate. But as she considered, she also realized that there were still five days of shore leave left. While she had previously been burying herself in her work, she found she wished she were spending more time with her grey-eyed lover.

A workaholic by nature, the leggy lieutenant commander actually had very little to do with the mighty starship dry docked in port, and she had literally spent one day off the ship since arrival. Skating with Thex had been fun, and she’d been happy to see her friend enjoy herself. Getting drunk with Sam had been fun as well. But now she had a reason to want some time to herself- well, not exactly to herself, but she had reason to want to be places other than the Hera and doing something other than work.

They had been apart for what had felt like an eternity to her, and it seemed one night of reunion was apparently not enough for her. Instead she found herself wondering if there was somewhere with warm weather, surf and sand- a beach on an ocean was what the curvy California girl craved, and she wanted to spend it with her man.

Now to find a local beach they could afford to visit... tapping away at her PaDD, she sent a series of messages to the ACSO.

>KABUL 3 MUST HAVE TROPICAL BEACHES.<
>I WANT TO GO SPEND A FEW DAYS AT A CHEAP HOTEL ON A TOURIST BEACH WITH YOU.<
>WE ARE TECHNICALLY STILL ON SHORE LEAVE<
>PLEASE RESEARCH AND CHOOSE A DESTINATION<


With that arranged, Paris began considering which of her pilots would be their ferryman for her first vacation in a century.

The chime rang and a moment later, the door wooshed open and Sonak entered, hands clasped behind his back.

“No need to ring the chime, m’love, I already programmed it to recognize and authorize you,” Rita called from behind the partition where she kept her ‘home office’. Stepping out she was still tapping away at a PaDD as she navigated slowly toward him, still finishing up whatever she was working on before she looked up.

"Your formal confirmation was mandatory," he said.

Even the woman who new him best couldn't swear if he was joking or not.

The smile that graced her face was a genuine one- over the years Sonak had learned to differentiate subtleties in her expressions that, while on the surface might be easily mistaken for one another, each held subtle meanings. In this case it was genuine joy to see him. The curious kolinahr could feel her heart swell from here at the sight of him- while it was still re-establishing itself according to this new dynamic, it seemed their bond was still quite strong, and at this range her feelings were readily evident to him.

While he did not feel her joy, still did he understand and appreciate it.

"I must admit it is most agreeable to come to you after doing my duty, especially for someone accustomed to solitude."

Putting the PaDD behind her, the cheerful chrononaut smiled sweetly at her stoic partner and waited for him to close the distance between them with anticipation. His physical proximity caused many reactions in her- elevated heartrate, an increase in respiration, a dilating of the pupils to name a few. But anticipation was most definitely there, and quite strong. As always, she yearned for his touch, to assure her of her physical existence and to bring calm to her usually scattered and excitable emotions.

Stepping toward her, Sonak extended his fingers for her to touch. Extending her fingers to meet his, contact was made and he could clearly feel her, hearing even her surface thoughts. That prompted him to make a gesture quite alien to him, which he knew was so meaningful to his human partner. And being so close to her after being so long apart, it may have been alien... but it was no longer meaningless to him.

Slowly and delicately, he hugged her.

Melting into his arms, he felt her calm, although she had not been upset. Low level stress of the day was present, although nothing significant. But feeling him close, feeling his presence in her mind filled her heart with joy and contentment, and she held him for ten seconds or so, sighing deeply as she took the comfort that he offered her. When she pulled back, she did not yield the embrace; instead, she simply withdrew enough so that she could see his face, even as she remained in close contact with his form.

Although this was far from the first time they had such physical contact - and there had been quite a lot more, deeper and intense than that - it was always a new and bewildering yet intensely sensual experience for Sonak. Vulcans, because of their innate touch telepathy, did not touch except when engaging in intimate relationships; and it was especially distasteful with strangers, even more with aliens. That's why they did not shake hands or embrace like Humans and some other species did.

But with Rita, even the emotionless kolinarh felt... something; and it was not disagreeable to him at all. On the contrary, it evoked deep peace and fulfillment in him, something that he could usually achieve only after several minutes of meditation. Here, it was as instantaneous as her touch upon his body.

Even now, after all the time they had been together, and all the time they had been apart. Not knowing if they would ever be together again, but each hoping against all odds, against all logic, that they would. Now her close contact stirred something even deeper within him. The void left by his removed emotions filled with hers, like warm, honeyed tea pouring in a cup inside him. It was quite new, most fascinating... and agreeable.

That was why Sonak was never the one to break contact.

And for a while, it even lingered, carried by Rita's musical voice.

“I know we just got back on duty, but… the ship is on shore leave, and we aren’t required to be here. I thought just a night together would do, and it would, but,” The time-tossed temptress smiled a guilty smile. “We can have a little more time and… I would like to take it. I would love to just go to a beach and smell the sea air and feel the wind off the water and take some walks on the sand and eat food that’s bad for us and just be… people.” The look in her eyes was a pleading one, but she was reasonably confident her sales pitch was winning her lover over.

"You are aware that Vulcans do not take... vacations," he stated, looking into her soft eyes. "When there is a need to replenish mental and physical energies, we enter a meditative trance; much more efficient for this purpose. But I am aware of the Human need to... do nothing and think about nothing while exerting themselves in unproductive activities out in the open. Since your well-being is of concern to me, I shall therefore find gratification in... how do you say it... humoring you."

He thought for a moment then lifted an eyebrow.

"A beach... that will be a most novel and interesting experience... especially with you."

Those big blue eyes rolled and Rita sighed slightly. “That’s my guy, romantic to a fault,” she teased lightly. “Thank you Sonak. I know it isn’t your way, but we can try some meditation on the beach, and you might find it soothing. Besides, you’ve never spent a lot of time with an active ocean, and your analogies often make me think of it. And…” she paused, then looked up at him from beneath her brows with a vulnerability he knew well. “I know it was only a few months for me, but… time. I know it is selfish and childish and illogical, but I just want some more time with you, that’s all. No Starfleet, no Hera, no responsibilities or duties, just… time."

"Time for us.”

"I am most in agreement with this assessment," he confessed, with a glint in his eyes that went clearly beyond the cold logic of his statement.

With that, she looked confused. "You agree that I am being selfish or that we should take some personal time...?" she asked warily.

"I was speaking about personal time, of course. As for selfishness, I leave it to you to make your own assessment and your own choices about yourself. It is not my place to judge you, be it professionally or personally. In any case, selfishness is irrelevant if you align it with the needs of others. As Ambassador Spock once said; a difference that makes no difference is not a difference. And as your shipmate of several years, I have always seen you unfailingly put the interests of ship and crew before your own, even at your own peril. In point of fact, it is in no small part why you are here, now."

As the scientist explained his perspective, her face warmed more and more, until by the time he had finished Rita seemed reasonably radiant. "You always know what to say, somehow. You are so truly brilliant, in every way. I'd say I don't know what you see in me, but sharing as we do, I can see myself the way that you do. Yet that perspective never fails to amaze me, from your perspective or mine."

Leaning back into him and cocking her hip to make herself a bit shorter, Rita snuggled into Sonak's shoulder, slid her arms across his back and sighed. "You're right. That is kind of exactly how I ended up here. I do work pretty hard, and I really do try to bring everyone home, and so do you. I'm... getting the impression things are a lot more dangerous in this time, in this universe. I think the missions are going to be a lot more challenging than they used to be."

"So I have been told," he agreed. "But I seem to recall one Human philosopher saying; what doesn't kill us makes us stronger. By that logic, after all that we've been through already, we should be adequate for whatever lays ahead."

"I think we need to go have some fun and a nice vacation... a nice memory. I have a hunch we might need a nice memory on this tour," Rita finished, taking the slender Vulcan's face in her hands then gently angling his head so that she could press her forehead to his.

Let's go on shore leave, my love. Let us vacation and be carefree... for a time.

We will make the best of this... experience... together, Thy'la.

The human adventurer turned her head slightly, expressive even in body language. Actually... that's something else we might discuss.

Vulcans do... marry, right...?

Both sharply angled eyebrows rose on the emotionless but not expressionless Vulcan. It is customary for Vulcans to formalize unions.

Would you like to do so?

Surprise was evident, but also his matter-of-fact state of mind about it. And something else; there was a reservation about him, as if he wanted to avoid hurting her by putting any pressure on her. But what she could clearly feel was that, for him, it was already a fact; and as he said, all that was left was to formalize it in the eyes of others. In his own eyes, he already belonged to her.

Pulling back so that she could focus on his face, to lock her eyes to his own, they darted back and forth between his as she wavered. "Yes? No? Maybe? It seems a little cheap to ask for a formalization of our bond... I mean, as romantic gestures go, it's going to be impossible for anyone to top 'came through space and time and gave up the reality we knew just for me', after all."

"But when I was lost and I tried to describe what you meant to me, no one seems to know what t'hy'la means, and telling people I lost my 'boyfriend' really didn't seem to sum up why I was so devastated without you. So... in that way, yes, I would like to formalize our relationship so that others may better understand who you are to me." With that, she ran the back of her hand along his strong and level jawline, letting her fingers linger at his chin.

"There's something I don't get, though. Something I don't know? Because you're concerned, and I don't understand why." Those blonde brows rose up a bit as her blue eyes broke their study of his grey, and she instead led him to the couch to sit beside her. "What is it?"

In a very human gesture, he took her hand and locked eyes with her.

"Vulcans take unions very seriously. After all, we share our thoughts, our feelings, our memories, our entire being when we bond, as you and I do. The formal ceremonial itself in our culture is very brief and simply stands as a statement of fact; other Vulcans know what that statement fully implies. However, Humans rarely if ever enjoys the deepness of sharing my people do; unless they experience it with a Vulcan... as you do with me."

He waited a moment to confirm that she truly understood what he was saying before continuing.

"My concern is that Humans, usually not experiencing such bonding, are more inclined to value other things, such as their freedom, over any such commitment. Particularly one so deep and permanent. A union with a Vulcan is no easy life for a human woman, as my lack of emotions goes even beyond the usual... coldness of the Vulcan heart, as some have put it. The last thing I would wish is for you to feel... trapped... now or later. You are free, Rita Paris; the choice must also be yours. You alone can say what will bring you fulfillment, as a Vulcan would say; happiness as a Human would say. If such is your choice, I could only promise to give myself and my best to try and give it to you; I can only offer you what I am, nothing less... but nothing more."

He now took her hand in both of his.

"A Terran named Victor Hugo, centuries ago, said it best: what you love, let be free; if it comes back to you, it is yours; if not, it never was."

A small smile pursed her lips as the all-too human woman shook her head. "You came back to me, Sonak. I know precisely how much I mean to you, and I've always known what you mean to me. I need no freedom from you, nor your heart that is so very far from cold. I told you, I will always be beside you if I can, and if not I will fight with every fiber of my being to return to you. Trapped is when I cannot be with you, far from the contentment and fulfillment I feel sharing my heart, my thoughts, my life with you."

Bringing his hand to her lips, she rotated it so the palm was upward, then kissed his wrist, where his pulse throbbed out his life's steady drumbeat. Shifting her eyes to lock with his, she placed his palm alongside her cheek, guiding him where she wished him to touch her. "You make me happy, Sonak of Vulcan, and I love you. In any time and place, I choose you. Life without you is difficult, life with you is bliss. It doesn't matter where you go or what you do, I want to spend each moment of the day with you." That brought forth a mischievous impish grin, as he could hear the strains of a song in her head.

"It's crazy but it's true- I only want to be with you."

He stood straight, his grey eyes boring into hers.

"There is no living being, in any universe or time period, that I would choose to go through this existence, but you. You alone give to me the full meaning of live long and prosper. Rita Paris, part of me and apart; apart but never parted, touched and not touched... you are my Thy'la... now and forever."

He then lifted an eyebrow.

"Do you wish for a Human ceremony, a Vulcan traditional ceremony... or for us to be formally united in the Starfleet fashion by our captain?"

"Do you have a preference? I mean, you are very big on tradition and ritual despite your unconventional taste in women," Rita asked, getting up to perch herself on his lap, something she had always enjoyed. It stemmed back to when in a daring gambit she had touched him when he was possessed by a Talosian. The brief contact had left Sonak time to produce a Ka-dasirkolin within her mind, a minor virtual copy of himself that communicated with her while she was in a coma from the brief contact with the Talosian's mind.

Interrupting a nightmare of hers, he had been sitting in the command chair on the bridge of the Constitution back when she had existed there as a ghost. The shadow of his mind had offered her information on the situation and perspective, and that the universe always held possibilities, particularly when it came to a relationship with him. But seeking comfort, she had concluded the conversation by curling up in his lap in the command chair. Then, as now, she was reassured by his arms moving to hold her there. That had been one of the first inklings that they might have a future together, and to this day curling up on his lap in this manner still made her feel just as reassured as the first time. "I know I plot the course, but do you want a traditional Vulcan wedding?"

He looked a bit thoughtful at this before replying.

"This might surprise you, especially coming from a master of Gol, but I am not fond of rituals. I prefer rational, efficient choices subject to constant reevaluation and improvement. There is much in our traditions that are... I would dare to say even illogical. And since I am free of the Pon Farr, I am not bound to follow through with the Kunat kal-if-fee."

He looked sideways at her.

"It is your right, however, as a Vulcan bride, to demand that I prove myself worthy of you and face a challenge from another suitor of your choice."

Looking mildly distressed at that, Rita hooked one arm over his shoulder to eye him quizzically. "Where in the universe would I possibly find another suitor? As for proving yourself worthy... ohhh, Mister Sonak," Rita giggled as she grinned. "There is no one in this universe or any other more worthy of my heart and hand than you. No, a Vulcan wedding all sounds very complicated and mildly dangerous, and I don't need you killing the defeated party."

Of course, she knew of the ritual of Kunat kal-if-fee from his mind, as they were still in contact, although not bonded in the mind meld. But his surface thoughts, which were what he allowed her to see in his mind at this level, still filled in years of cultural gaps for her. "Wow, Vulcans do have some illogical rituals there, don't they? So... you're all right not going traditional? I am not going to break some wizened and terrifying old Vulcan grandmother's heart that you didn't knock somebody's block off with a lirpa if we don't, right?"

"That would be unfortunate for the challenger; I am a master of the lirpa, " he stated with his typical even tone. "I have no relative in this century and this universe; and I am a kolinarh master. I am therefore not bound by tradition; I dictate it. So, I admit my appreciation that you are willing to dispense with the death challenge. Are we going to follow any of the oh-so-numerous human ceremonies then? Or the Starfleet way?"

A slight frown settled on Rita's face as she considered, then the cheerful commander burst into laughter. "My first thought is of that great big white dress, and immediately I don't want it, because of how often dear old Daddy tried to get me hitched off to some 'good Starfleet family'. Ah, no, darling- my relatives are long gone and buried in another dimension. As callow and heartless as it may sound, I haven't missed them a bit. In the era we left them they just think I'm dead, and knowing my brother and father they likely started a betting pool on when I'd show back up again."

"No, Sonak. No traditional Human wedding either, thank you for offering. As dashing as I am sure you would look in a tuxedo, I have always loved you in science blue." At that Rita pulled up her feet to curl up a bit more on his chest and lap, even as he moved to support and hold her there. "Starfleet wedding it is. But I still want to go to the beach, so... wedding at sunset? I'll ask the Captain to officiate, because even off her ship it still counts, right? Thex can be my maid of honor... we have to have 2 witnesses. Do you have a groomsman, like a second I guess?"

"Unfortunately, I am quite new to this place and time and have yet to make any significant acquaintance to pay justice to the tradition. I doubt the Masters of Gol I met on Vulcan upon my arrival or Captain Data who oversaw my Academy training would be available. Logic therefore would suggest my immediate superior officer on board is the one I should ask to perform this duty."

He thought for a moment before answering her first question.

"If memory serves, the ancient naval tradition which has been transposed to modern spacefaring implies the captain's marital powers and duties being limited to her ship. Again, logic would suggest the wedding proper to be performed on board and the following ritual done on that beach you wish for us to go; that would be the... sugar star, is it not?"

Something in the back of her mind was telling her the quote was actually Richard Bach, and that 'sugar star' might very well have been a deliberate joke on his part. "We refer to it as a Honey-moon, my love, though for the life of me I couldn't explain the origin of the word nor its significance to the occasion," Rita admitted. "But... practical. Weddings on the beach are always a lot windier than you remembered and it's all just a pretty sunrise with a huge hassle. Your logic, as always, is sound- wedding on board, honeymoon to follow."

"That means I have some discussions that need to happen and some arrangements to make." Rita scooted her feet back to the floor, keeping her rounded rear parked in her Vulcan lover's lap briefly before she needed a PaDD out of reach, then she was off and running. "I'll make the arrangements on board. Can you ask the Lieutenant if he'll attend and book the hotel on the beach? I can get one of my pilots to ferry us down then come pick us up..."

"Affirmative," he replied.

For a moment, he was tempted to propose using the transporter instead; faster, more practical and going with her might help alleviate her fears of the device. Her fears were certainly well-founded, but life could not be faced with fear.

But then, he realized how this ceremonial was obviously important to her. In his mind, it was already a "fait accompli" a done thing; but she was an emotional creature and she needed more than just to know it like he did; she needed to feel it and to express it to herself and to the universe. Marring this with a fear therapy event was not congruent to make it the experience she looked for and needed. Besides, the shuttle flight would make it all the more solemn and provide a longer, deeper moment to share, reminiscent of the carriage travel of antiquity; something that would resonate all the more for her. This small concession to her feelings would in a modest way convince her that he might not truly share her emotions, but he certainly understood them... and respected them.

Already Rita Paris was in motion. A plan had been agreed upon, so now the mission was on, and things Needed to Get Done. And like a force of nature, the hourglass heroine set about preparing to make something happen, to bring to pass a desired result. It was one of her purposes in the universe, and she pursued it with considerable enthusiasm. Which, in this case, she began a To Do List, and began tapping away to create it. The future takes root in the present, after all.

As he made himself ready to go and ask the chief science officer for his involvement, Sonak noticed that his mate was going about it all with an energetic, efficient, methodical manner; an uncharacteristically all-rational manner for what he had known and heard of Human women in such circumstances. His eyebrow went up before he looked away to hide his surprise.

It seemed his own mind had imprinted an echo of itself in hers, just as her emotions slipped into his own psyche.

Most interesting...




Soundtrack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQbC4DuPKN4