A Meeting of the Minds, Part 3

Posted on Thu 9th Nov, 2023 @ 12:36am by Makila i'Hartelhai & Lieutenant JG Kellian Michaels

1,572 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Neither Yours Nor Mine
Location: Kellian Michaels' Quarters, Part 3
Timeline: MD -8, 1800 hours

Authors' Note: This series of posts takes place perhaps a week before Dangerous Baggage.

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"That's a shame," Kellian said, "but I can also understand it. No one likes to feel like the poor relation, and losing your homeworld has got to be horrific. The sense of loss..." He shook his head. "I feel for them, but still, bullying others doesn't make the new situation better."

"Romulans are by nature a proud people." she offered a one shouldered shrug "They have had a great trauma, and cling to the shards of culture they have left. The nature of the Romulan hasn't changed, they are still passionate, vibrant and at times violent. The culture will adapt in time, I think. "

Kellian nodded. "I'm sure it will. It'll have to. There are some beautiful aspects to it. I've seen recordings of some of the religious ceremonies they've done on the consulate decks. One of them put me in mind of a musical piece called The Four Seasons."

"Oh, did you go to the solstice celebration? It was a lovely ceremony indeed, I even took a stone. " She chuckled and shook her head "I had to ask father about the particulars, as I didn't grow up with the religious education that your average Romulan does. I speak it, of course, but the idiosyncrasies of the religious one gets with a rural education, not so much."

"What does it mean to take a stone, or why do people do it?" Kellian asked.

"It's a symbol. Water represents new beginnings, and is technically the beginning of the Romulan calendar year. It's a wish for good fortune in the new year, and a tangible way of letting go of the old for the new. Some people carry their stone with them in their pockets all year, and others will collect the stones of the good years, and not give them back. Mine is sitting on my mantle, over the artificial fireplace."

"So a reminder to let the bad things go. I like that," Kellian said. "It means to make room for new, better things. Shall we go together, the next time they perform the ceremony?"

"I would like that"

Kellian finished the last bite of shepherd's pie on his plate. He gave a contented--or was that sated?--sigh. "Let me know when the next ceremony will take place, and we can make plans to go." He glanced at her dish. "May I take your plate, or would you like seconds?"

"Not if you also have dessert planned." Dark eyes sparkled at him as she spoke " One must keep oneself in an appropriate shape. And while round is a shape, it's not my preference." Her eyes gleamed in amusement as her gaze travelled back to her empty plate and she noted its distinct emptiness. If he cooked for her like that all the time, she would be as round as the puff pillow she put her feet on at home.

Kellian laughed and then blushed slightly. "Erm. I would enjoy you in whatever shape you happened to be. But maybe it would be best for me to play the music before the food coma hits." He took her plate and his to the recycler and let it do its thing.

He had set the cello on its stand and hung the bow behind it in the living area of his quarters, along with the plain, black-upholstered chair he would sit in. "Sit anywhere you like," Kellian said, indicating the sofa and other chairs in the room.

"Indeed not" she commented giving him and his chair a long look before curling up on the spot on the sofa where she could watch him fully and in the most comfort.

Kellian chuckled and sat down in the chair. He lifted the bow and played a few bars of Brahms' "Lullaby" for her. It was a musical joke he suspected only he would understand, but it was still fun.

"I know this tune" she commented with a brilliant smile "They play it for newborn babies, to get them to calm. " She looked speculatively at him and then chuckled. "I'm not sure we're at that stage of our relationship" she teased just to see his face change.

Kellian laughed. "You look so comfortable there on the sofa, all ready for sweet dreams." He stopped playing the lullaby and repositioned the bow over the cello strings. "Now for the real music."

He drew the bow in a long slide across the strings, producing a deep, resonant note, followed by five higher notes that trilled in quick succession. like a bird awakening at sunrise and shaking its wings before deciding to leave the nest. From there, the main theme swelled outward, filling the room with dancing notes and droning undertones that blended with the melody, enriching it with color. Kellian's concentration was solely on the music, and he seemed entranced as he played.

Her eyes widened at his skill and the depth of emotion that he put into the playing. She found herself reacting, with gooseflesh all over her body and she drew the blanket around her to hide the shiver of delight it brought her. Her tongue drifted over dry lips, to wet them.

wow, he's incredible.

Kellian sank himself into the music, minutely adjusting the pressure of the bow against the strings as he held out a note for a four-beat vibrato and then moved back into the melody. He shifted into a variation of the original theme and proceeded through that. Musically, it felt like climbing a mountain before dawn and then reaching the top, to find sunlight bursting over the horizon.

The cello sang beneath the bow as if glorying in the expanse of light before at last quieting to a gentle crooning as if of a climber sitting on the ground to watch the sunrise. That was how Kellian thought of it, anyway. With one last, extended tonic note he let the sound fade away.

Makila almost couldn't catch her breath, as she'd been holding it for a time. Her exhalation was louder than she'd expected and she blushed at the noise. "That was...I don't have words." she whispered, her voice soft with the clear pleasure of it all.

"I'm--I'm glad you enjoyed it," Kellian replied, feeling inexplicably shy. He had long ago learned to graciously accept compliments on his playing, no matter how bad he might think it was. But somehow, when she complimented him, it felt intensely honest, not a polite nicety that he could respond to with an equally polite niceness. Her appreciation made him feel--humbled, he thought. "Thank you for giving me the music to learn. It's one of the very best gifts anyone has ever given me."

"However shall I outdo myself on your birthday?" she teased gently, her eyes downcast with the pleasure of knowing how much her gift had pleased him.

Kellian burst into laughter. "I'm not going to worry about that," he said at last, "though I am now seriously concerned with figuring out what you would equally enjoy for your birthday."

Laughing quietly she challenged him "Do you even know when my birthday is?"

"I haven't a clue," Kellian admitted. "I keep meaning to look it up at work. Then work happens, and I forget to. When I get home, I'm too tired to remind myself to look it up."

Her tongue drifted slowly over her lower lip as she pondered the problem he was having. "Is my birthday even in your computer system? No, that's silly; of course it is, because I'm a medical resident. It would be part of my demographic information. Forget I asked. The thought that you would want to know is sweet though."

The sight of Makila licking her lip did strange things to Kellian's chest. "People from Earth consider birthdays special days. Since you're here, and while it's on my mind, when is your birthday, lovely lady?"

"November 2nd, if I translate it to the Earth's calendar."

"We're getting close to it, then; just another couple of months," Kellian said. He grinned. "Just in time for Pumpkin-Spice Everything Season."

"Ah yes. Cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice, if I recall correctly. I've heard rumors of something called pumpkin pie, though I've never had it. I do like baked goods made with Pumpkin pulp."

"My Dad and I were never into the pumpkin-spice obsession, but pumpkin pie is good. Would you mind if I made one for your birthday?"

"I should like that very much.". That was definitely something she would look forward to. A reason to anticipate her birthday, something she didn't usually do. It wasn't that she didn't celebrate it with her father, but that the memory of her birth was both a source of delight in him and pain. It was a dichotomy she hadn't understood until she'd been an adult, but as a young girl it had felt something of a betrayal that her father hadn't enjoyed her birthing day with the same joy she did. Now, she understood what he'd sacrificed for her. She didn't enjoy making him remember the flight from Romulus in fear for their lives. Now, though perhaps it was time to allow someone else to celebrate with her. She was sure that Kellian would make it a memorable occasion.

 

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