The Gathering III

Posted on Thu 1st Apr, 2021 @ 6:02am by Commander Zed & Daeren Iril & T'Vala & Tessanna (Tessa) Valeri & Miadze Palel

1,317 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: Business Not At All As Usual
Location: USS Thunder Child, Deep Space
Timeline: MD: 2, 2010 hours

The small talk continued as everyone seemed to get their fill of the rather tasty food items. Zed made several trips to the punch bowl trying to use the spiked liquid to relax her nerves.

Richard was content to continue eating various foods, after all he was a big boy.

Pushing her plate back, trying to decide if she'd had enough tacos, or if she should try yet another delicacy from the buffet, Lissi scanned the faces and conversations around her. For the moment, she was content to sit alone and not be involved. There was a rumor of dancing to come, and a small musical group was set up and playing quiet music for the moment. She'd stick around a little longer and see what happened. She was surprised Ambassador Krell had agreed to miss all this, and miffed that he had ditched her. She was supposed to be his bodyguard, not dancing in the dark.

Standing and looking over the small crowd in the room, Regos debated staying or going. In the end, she decided to leave and have an early night. Who knew when she'd be pulled out of sleep by an emergency of some kind? It wouldn't be the first time. She made her way out of the room, past the musicians, nodding and smiling her appreciation for their talents.

Daeren had sampled a liqueur from Earth called Drambuie that he had never heard of before, but had decided he must add to his list of favorite alcoholic beverages. The stuff was sweet but with a burn, and it went down smooth. He eyed Captain Zed worriedly and made a mental note not to do any complicated dance moves with her. She was drinking an awful lot of punch. He didn't know her ancestry, so perhaps his concern was unwarranted, Daeren thought. Some beings could drink a lot of alcohol with no ill effects.

"How long will it take for us to reach our destination, do you know?" Daeren asked T'Vala after he swallowed his last bite of filet.

"Twenty-five hours, thirty-two minutes at current velocity," she said.

Zed walked over to Ambassador Iril. By her smooth, fluid movement, she was unhindered by the alcohol, "Ambassador, I believe I promised you a dance."

Daeren stood and offered Zed a slight bow and then extended an arm. "It would be my pleasure, Captain Zed. What dance would you enjoy doing?" He half-expected her reply to be, "None of them!" but she surprised him.

Zed stood up from her chair and took his arm, "How about a nice waltz. It's more mathematically geometric than any other type of rhythm and will provide fewer opportunities for me to step on your feet."

Daeren chuckled. "I think a waltz is an excellent choice. Shall we?"

Zed nodded and said politely, "Yes, please."

They walked together to where the musicians were seated so Zed could request a waltz, and then they walked onto the dance floor to lead the dancing. The musicians struck up a four-measure introduction, and then the song began. The song was pretty, though unfamiliar to Daeren. "Do you know what song this is?"

Zed blinked and looked puzzled. "It sounds like 'What Child Is This?' Which is weird, because this is the wrong season--though it is a nice waltz."

Daeren grinned. "Clearly, the answer is Thunder Child, then."

Zed chuckled softly and waited for her dance partner to begin. The music was indeed acceptable as the group played it well.

Daeren slid his right hand to Zed's left scapula and took her right hand in his left. On the upbeat to the fifth measure, Daeren began the dance, moving forward on his left foot and smoothly into the dance, keeping it a simple box step for a while before moving into a progressive step and then to a twinkle, in which he and Zed pivoted to move side-by-side for a couple of steps before returning to their original position and continuing the dance.

Zed was able to keep up with the Ambassador relatively easily as they danced, the threat of stepping on toes was just that. Zed had learned many forms of dancing since joining Starfleet and had learned quickly. She closed her eyes and allowed herself to melt into the music.

Daeren kept an eye out for others joining in the dancing. The music was lovely and stately, and he saw a few more couples approaching the dance floor. He raised his left arm to signal an underarm turn to Zed and then moved back into the box position as she completed the turn. "We may have to do this more often, Commander. You're a pleasure to dance with."

Richard looked at the women at the table and had a hard time choosing how to ask for a dance. His chances were about 50/50. He stood up and approached the young lady. "Excuse me miss, would you care to dance?" He asked Tessa and offered her his hand.

Tessa thought he was talking to someone else, then looked up. "Me?" She grinned. "I'd love to." She took his hand and stood, trying very hard not to giggle nervously.

T'Vala nodded to her assistant encouragingly. The girl needed to get out more and have fun, especially when she was on a lengthy trip like this one.

Richard escorted Tessa over to where Zed was dancing with Ambassador Iril and they joined them. Richard was a big man and didn't like to dance all that much, but he was pretty good at it and led well as the couple began to dance.

Richard actually enjoyed dancing with Tessa. He decided to strike a conversation with her, "So, where are you from?"

"I was born on a small colony, but I grew up on Vulcan," she said. "Believe it or not."

"Did you have to go to Vulcan schools?" Richard asked curiously. He would find it hard to believe that a human could endure the scholastic level of a Vulcan school.

"I had to go to a mixed school. There were Vulcan kids there, and the expectations were pretty high. I didn't do as well as any of the Vulcans, but I managed to graduate."

"That still must have been pretty brutal," Richard said as they changed direction to avoid running into Zed and her dance partner. "I bet it's something that you are proud of and wouldn't change."

She glanced at T'Vala. "It is. It gave me the opportunity to work with the Ambassador, and I really like my job."

Richard glanced to where she did, "You really respect and admire the Ambassador, don't you?"

She grinned. "I do. She's one of the nicer Vulcans. She doesn't expect me to act like another Vulcan and she's helping me figure out what I want to do with my life."

Richard nodded as they danced, "She sounds like a good person to have around." He paused for a moment, "Have you figured it out yet?"

"Not yet, but there's still time," she replied. "Or maybe I'll just stay with the Vulcan embassy."

The song finished and Richard stopped, "Well, I feel like I'm hogging your time. Perhaps when we return to Starbase 109 we could hang out sometime and do something fun?" He found her interesting and would enjoy spending time with her.

"Perhaps," she replied, smiling. She remembered his marked interest in Lissi, but there was always a possibility, and he was nice.

Near Richard and Tessa on the dance floor, Daeren offered Commander Zed a brief bow and then escorted her back to her table. "I very much enjoyed that, Captain, and I think all twenty of our toes are still intact. Thank you for the pleasure."

Zed nodded politely, "Thank you Ambassador,.I too enjoyed it." She sat back down in her chair and smiled, pleased that she didn't step on any toes.

 

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