The Mess Hall

Posted on Mon Dec 14th, 2020 @ 10:14pm by Lieutenant Charlie Caspian & Lieutenant JG Ovrora Sh'rholok
Edited on on Mon Dec 14th, 2020 @ 10:15pm

Mission: 28 Days
Location: 7-11
Timeline: Mission Day 1 at 0000

Despite the climate controlled nature of the ship Ovrora's soup gave off a noticeable waft of steam. She leaned over the bowl, her feet crossed at the ankles and tucking back under her chair as she did so. Just the smell warmed her, reminding her of delightfully icy nights growing up on Andoria and the warm soups her mother used to make. If a scent could be considered cozy, this was certainly the essence of that feeling.

Settling back in her chair, her feet returning to the ground, she picked up the bowl, cupping both hands around it, and sipped. The broth was a deep savory, but while the food synthesizers did a good job with smell and appearance, the taste still missed the mark, even if just by a bit.

"Needs salt." she murmured to herself mentally eye rolling at the synthesizer's refusal to add the seasoning to her dish in the quantity she desired.

The double doors from the deck six corridor hissed apart to admit Caspian who moved directly towards the wall-mounted cabinet which held a selection of pre-prepared meals. She selected a tuna salad and filled a cup with chilled water. As she turned, her attention was caught by Lucas, the civilian crewmember from Chicago who managed the 7-11 bar. The recessed lights above the bar reflected off the dark skin of his muscled forearms and hairless head as he worked and Caspian's eyes were drawn to the expanse of chest visible underneath the man's open-necked white cotton shirt. She had to admit, he looked good.

As if suddenly aware of Caspian's appreciative observation, Lucas looked up from the act of wiping down the bar-top. He saw her an smiled, raising his eyebrows in a suggestive and question manner. Caspian grinned back in response and pointed at her salad. Sorry, but I'm just here for the food, her expression said. The manager gave a theatrical shrug and wiped an imaginary tear from his eye. Caspian laughed out loud at this and set off to find somewhere to sit.

"Hey Ovrora," she said as she took a seat opposite the Andorian science officer. She nodded in the direction of the woman's soup. "That smells good."

Ovrora glanced over her bowl finishing a straight of soup and then using her arm to wipe her lips.

"Oh, it is!" She replied happily. Her thrilled smile quickly shifted into something a bit more shy.

"So...." She began, eyes twinkling, "Lucas is absolutely undressing you with his eyes right now. Fun night?"

Ovrora raised an eyebrow as she spoke in a mimic of the well know Vulcan facial expression. The effect was ruined by the barely contained grin causing her eyes to crinkle with mirth.

"Ugh," replied Caspian with a frown. "Two nights actually. And both before we left Proxima." She studiously set to work picking each and every slice of onion out of her tuna salad, dropping each piece of the offending vegetable onto a napkin. "Only now he seems to think that makes him and me a thing... If I'd have known he was looking for a girlfriend, I wouldn't have bothered."
She suddenly sat up straight and squared her shoulders towards her friend. "Anyway, never mind him. Look at me. Notice anything different about me?..."

Ovrora pretended to look her friend over a look of fierce concentration on face as the other woman waited patiently.

"New hair cut?" She said, unable to keep the laughter from her features knowing this wasn't the right answer. Her antennae swivelled forward as if to suggest she was the most innocent of innocent Andorians this side of the quadrant.

Caspian was silent for a second. Then: "Seriously? You're joking right?" Unconsciously, her right hand moved upwards, her fingertips brushing against the two raised circles on her new badge.

Unable to keep a straight face, Ovrora burst out with a deep belly laugh.

"Congratulations Charlie. The new badge looks good on you." She flashed her friend a genuine blue lipped smile before picking her bowl back up and taking another sip.

"So... Do you want me to do something about him?" She said gesturing to the bar manager with her chin.

"Oh... no," Caspian replied. "He'll get the hint eventually. Anyway, I might need him again one day..." She flashed a lascivious grin. "And thank you - about the badge. Davies surprised me with it at the end of my watch. She also said that she's retiring after this tour..." She left her words - and the implication therein - hanging in the air.

"Reeeaaally?" Ovrora said, eyebrows raised in surprise. She set down her bowl and propped both elbows on the table, clasping azure hands in front of her as if doing so might keep her from wiggling out of her seat in curiosity. "How do you feel about that?" she asked, letting Caspian's implication hang a touch longer.

Caspian swallowed a mouthful of tuna before responding to her friend's question.

"If by 'how do I feel about that?' you mean do I want her job when she goes?... then no, I don't think I do." She gave a small shrug and speared a chunk of cucumber. "I mean, when she first told me, I was like 'yeah, cool! I'm gonna be the chief tactical officer!' - but now I've had time to think about it, I've changed my mind." Her fork paused halfway to her mouth as she spoke. "I've only just got this second pip, Ovrora... I think I should take some time to learn how to be the best lieutenant that I can be before I can even think about being a half-decent department head." She bit into the cucumber chunk. "Does that make sense?"

The Andorian woman sat back in her seat, hands cupped lightly around her bowl. Her antennae twitched--a tic that lined up with Ovrora's pause to consider her friend's question. Whether Caspian had meant it to be a series question or not, Ovrora decided to take it as such.

After a pause she spoke, a seriousness in her expression that belied her usual jovial delivery. "Charlie, I am pretty sure you have been the best lieutenant you can be since you were an ensign. Whenever it happens you'll be a great Chief Tactical Officer. If they offer it, don't turn it down just because the pip is new."

She picked up her bowl, draining it before running a blue thumb and forefinger down the sides of her mouth, wiping clear any lingering soup.

"Ultimately it's your call, of course." she added, standing to return her bowl to the replicator for recycling. "My shift starts in 10. See you on the bridge?"

"You will," Caspian agreed with a nod as she chewed her salad thoughtfully. "Another day, another sector..."

A Mission Post by

Lieutenant Charlie Caspian
Security Officer

and

Lieutenant JG Ovrora Sh'rholok
Bridge Science Officer