Things Are Fucked Up

There were only so many places to run and hide from your problems on a big circular space tube. T'Pren had done her best, avoiding anything even vaguely Cardassian once she'd finally run out of the ability to wail and rend her clothes. She'd turned in the report to Starfleet on autopilot, barely managing to form coherent sentences. She'd taken her hypospray to keep herself from shaking quite so badly, but apparently it wasn't all neurological damage. A good portion of it, it seemed, was just good old fashioned panic attack.

She'd practically raced to the Holosuites when everywhere she looked was almost identical to the lab where she'd been kept. She ran a basic program of the English Channel and swam the shit out of it until she could no longer move her muscles without screaming. And with nowhere else to go, she and her little worn hardback book had found the most out of the way table at the Eel, away from the bar and Andorian conversation and prying eyes. Her hair dripped onto her loose purple shirt, hanging in soaked ringlets in front of her face as she buried herself in the pages of Vulcan poetry and a cup of cheap human whiskey. Mostly, though, she coached herself through breathing. Air goes in, air goes out. Air goes in, air goes out.

Rai was still groggy when he sidled up to the bar, but he was no longer exhausted, nor was his mind rife with images of carnage and cruelty. Instead, it was replaced with the dull ache at the base of his heart, deep in his chest.
Falten was never that far away, anyhow. Thank goodness for Falten.
"Tea, spice tea, with a shot of love," he said. He could feel Pren in the room, though parts of the bar were too dark too see her or anyone. The tingling on the back of his neck and the pit in his belly told him that she was here, and aching too.

When the Captain entered the bar, a sense of familiarity pulled at T'Pren's heart and mind. She knew exactly what it meant, and while part of her was grateful both for his presence and for the fact that he seemed to be okay, most of her was overcome with an urge to run. Or cry. Or both. Rather than look up at Rai, the lieutenant reached for her whiskey and knocked it back in one hard gulp.

Rai made his way across the room. The waif of a woman looked like a water sylph with her damp ringlets. He felt another small ache in the pit inside himself.
"Pren. Are you alright?"

Strangely enough, the closer Rai got to T'Pren, the less she panicked, so that by the time he was standing in front of her, she no longer felt the need to flee. She was a little light-headed from her difficulty breathing still, but it was easing, and she even found herself capable of putting down her book and making eye contact. If she was a water sylph, she was the saddest one that ever there was, judging by her round, wet green eyes. She wasn't crying at the moment, but it was obvious she had been at some point.

"Are you?" she asked needfully. She pushed her hands between her legs so that it wasn't quite so obvious how much she was trembling.

He smiled lopsidedly. "I'm as alright as I've ever been-- don't change the subject though."

Despite everything else, Rai calling her out on changing the subject invited a wry half-smile across T'Pren's lips. That, and the news that the Captain was okay, let her calm down just a little more. She was still shaking slightly, but at least she didn't seem like quite such a wreck.

"I'm better now," she admitted, not quite avoiding a mint green blush. "I was worried I'd hurt you."

"You didn't," he said. "It's so kind of you to worry, but I was already raw, and it was just the straw that broke the camel's back. I'm alright," he assured her. He plopped down across from her.
"So what can I do to fix that long face, Lieutenant?"

Apparently Rai was already on the right track. His further reassurances that he actually was okay, combined with his casual joining of her table and his willingness to engage her sadness brought a broader smile to T'Pren's features. It was still shaky, still tinged with pain, but her whole being had quieted considerably just through his presence.

"Well, we could start by gutting the station and replacing all the architecture with something a little more Federation," she offered, wan but cheeky.

"I was thinking of turning the whole station into a greenhouse, now that we have a Phylosian on staff. What do you think of that? Vines and shrubs everywhere. We can make it look like the Botanical gardens at the Academy," he said, patting her hand.

It was physical contact that T'Pren really wanted, and as Rai patted her hand, she ever-so-surreptitiously ran two fingers across his palm in a little Vulcan kiss. It was a poor substitute for her actual desire to just be curled up in his arms, but it was something. It helped.

"No wonder they made you Captain," T'Pren teased, managing yet another smile. "You have all the good ideas."

Rai's eyes lit up at the small Vulcan kiss.
"You flatter me sometimes," he said. "I was also thinking of those bright Bajoran prayer flags, the multicolored ones. I bet the Orb will never lash out again if we get the blessings of the Prophets," he said, wiggling his eyebrows.

T'Pren looked awfully pleased at Rai's reaction, her pain slipping a little further from her mind again. Her heart thumped with a little more vigor against her lower ribs. She still shook slightly, still wasn't quite herself, but she did give a small grin to the Captain. "I'm sure Wheezy would be delighted to help with that."

After changing out of the ridiculous Starfleet dress uniform, Tal'Ara entered the Ceti Eel in one of her more glamorous outfits. It was a very tight, black dress, with shimmery gems woven into the Tholian silk fabric. The dress flared out mid way down the leg, and made an elegant, flowing train. The collar was deep cut, showing her rigid clavicle. And because it was backless, many of the bruises and love marks from last night were visible. Around her neck, was an ornate necklace, fitted with dark green emeralds. She wore black, sleek heels, that made her look intimidatingly tall. Her bangs were side-swept, and her lips were full.

She figured she might as well look her best for the celebration - plus, she had her date with Falten afterwards.

Tal'Ara didn't usually like to dress this way, it felt uncomfortable. Not physically, but in the sense that she would be caught slightly off guard if something suddenly went wrong. It can be hard to respond to a crisis in stilettos.

The bar was filled with people, although, it didn't quite seem the cheerful reception she'd expected.

She spotted Captain Rai and Lieutenant T'Pren at the bar, and approached them with a confidant stride; dress glistening.

"Captain, Lieutenant," she said politely, nodding to each of them. "Enjoying the celebration?"

She could tell that they were not. But she smiled anyway. This was a great day for her.

"The two of you together are becoming quite the common fixture," she teased.

Tal'Ara turned to HJ, "I'll have a glass of the 2360."

She missed D'Imus already, but drinking some of his ale might stave off some of the longing.

The hologram poured Tal'Ara a glass of the light blue Romulan ale - with just a touch of turquoise. She put it to her lips and took a sip, tasting her mentor's creation.

"What can I say? Finding friends in a place like this is a rare, and precious commodity. I certainly like to enjoy it when it happens. Would you like to join us, Commander?" Rai patted a nearby seat.

"Thank you, Captain. I would."

Tal'Ara sat down, carefully, making sure her delicate dress didn't get caught.

"I think a celebration is in order. Shall we have a toast?" she asked, looking to Rai and T'Pren.

"Commander," T'Pren greeted, suddenly much more subdued than she had been only a moment before. She pushed her wet ringlets back from her face but not behind her ears and carefully pulled her worn little book off the table and into her lap.

"I could deal with another drink," she agreed.

Tal'Ara noticed how damp T'Pren was, and looked at her curiously.

"My dear Lieutenant, how did you manage to get so... wet?" she asked, playfully. "Though, I daresay it is a good look for you."

She gave T'Pren a cheeky smile.

"What are you drinking?"

Tal'Ara held her glass of Romulan Ale up to her face, and peered at T'Pren through it.

T'Pren blushed a pretty green, but also smirked despite her best efforts at being a sad telepath, glancing down at her dripping hair.

"I was swimming the English Channel," she replied with amusement. The Romulan Ale caught her eye and she frowned at it thoughtfully. "I think I might like to try some of that, actually."

"A toast? Of course!"
Rai rose to his feet.
"Here's to the finest crew left alive in Starfleet! I could not be more fortunate!"
He clinked glasses with Pren and Tal'Ara.
"After this, I'm switching over to what the Commander's having!"

"HJ, bring our moist Science Officer a glass of the 2360. Put it on my tab."

HJ obliged and poured T'Pren a glass of the good stuff.

"My dear friend D'Imus is the maker of this fine beverage. He was gracious enough to outfit our bar with a few nice varieties of true Romulan ale," she explained to T'Pren. "This one is a younger variety - crisp and refreshing. It is a good starter ale for a virgin like yourself."

Tal'Ara really enjoyed teasing the half-Vulcan, in a benign sort of way.

Tal'Ara clinked glasses with the Captain.

"Here here!" she said, truthfully excited.

"HJ, put his next drink on my tab."

Left alive? T'Pren watched the Captain give his toast with concern and let her gaze linger after for a while too. At least until Tal'Ara was buying her drink and calling her a virgin.

Perhaps she wouldn't be so easy to tease were she not such an easy target. She flushed deeply emerald and shifted a leg beneath the table to touch Rai's. And then she blushed some more.

"Should I do anything in particular as I drink it?"

"Just enjoy it. It does the work for you."

Tal'Ara noticed T'Pren's blushing and sudden shift in her body.

"So, T'Pren - do you mind if I address you as T'Pren while we are off duty? - I am looking forward to working with you on our new vessel. I know Engineering isn't your station, but I am curious to hear your musings on our Artificial Singularity Core."

"That's a smashing gown, Commander. Where ever did you find it?" Rai asked. His eyes quickly skipped over the welts and bruises. It wasn't his business.