Dreamfinder's little chat with Guinan had helped her confidence some, so that when she arrived at Data's quarters that night for dinner she felt a good deal more confident than she had earlier in the day. The door chimed softly and Data murmured, "Enter." As he did so, the door slid noiselessly open and Dreamfinder walked in, carefully taking in her surroundings.
She sniffed the air, her lips curling with the deliciousness of it. Something smelled very, very good and very much like home.
"I programmed the replicator for several Sivaon delicacies. I hope you enjoy them." Data said, showing her the way to his table. She sat down and smiled, a dish of grabfoot stew in front of her, studded with tail-kinkers for spice.
"I..didn't know if you used utensils." Data said, producing a linen napkin along with a fork ad spoon seemingly out of nowhere. Dreamfinder shook her head.
"Well..I do. Sometimes..but only in the presence of humans. Among ourselves, in our own camps, we normally just eat with our hands, or drink straight from the bowl." she explained and lapped gently at the steaming liquid with her tiny pink tongue. It may have been replicated and not made fresh, but she thought it was absolutely delicious and the familiarty of the stew calmed her quivering insides a bit. Before she knew it, she'd lapped up every single bite of the stew and it warmed her belly with a pleasant sensation.
"Data..I..I know we've gotten to know each other better over these last few days and I..I was wondering...I mean, that is..I have something I.." she stuttered and Data moved a little closer to her, taking one of her hands in both of his own.
"Do not be afraid to tell me, Starfinder. You may speak to me about anything, anything you wish." he told her, his circuits fluttering. He liked her..a lot.
"Data..you told me you've studied my culture, right? Then you must surely know about our ritual Walk to adulthood." Starfinder said, finding her voice. Data nodded and she continued.
"Well shortly after a female takes her Walk, she becomes..that is..she has her first cycle of mating. I..that is..shortly before I came on this trip with Star, I took my Walk and so have come upon my first cycle of mating. When a female is in her cycle, there is no telling who she will be attracted to, who she will want to take as a mate."
There. She'd gotten out part of what she was going to say and she looked in Data's goldenrod-colored eyes to gauge his reaction. Data merely nodded.
"I see. And..and is it me that you're attracted to, Starfinder?" he asked, clutching her hand just a fraction tighter. As his circuits continued to flutter nervously, he quickly went through what would be an appropriate thing to say if she asked him to mate with her, as well as the proper amount of pressure he could use on her hand or other parts of her body without crushing her to death with his strength and weight which seemed to be so much more than hers.
Starfinder nodded, flicking her tongue across her lips. It was a nervous gesture, but it endearred her to Data all the more because it so incredibly cute.
"Data..I had no idea I'd be attracted to you, but that night at the reception in Ten Forward kind of sealed it for me. I was..how do you say? Head over heels? Head over tail for me I guess. I also want you to know that I know that you cannot give me children, which is usually the purpose for mating and I"m ok with that. I'm too young to be a mother anyway..I have too much to do, too much to see. And I know that you cannot fall in love with me, which is perfectly alright too because while I'm attracted to you right NOW, I might not be later. Most Sivaons don't mate for life, after all. We mate during our cycles and most of the time remain good friends afterwards. But we choose different mates each cycle..usually. Sometimes a female will choose the same male over and over again but that's very rare." Starfinder closed her mouth with a frown, realizing she had been babbling.
Data smiled, softly. He moved to put an arm around Star and kissed her cheek gently.
"I'm glad you have said all these things to me, Starfinder. And I am glad that you have chosen me to be your first mate. I do not know about Sivoan culture, but in the human culture and in many others I have encountered, the first time a female mates is a very special one. I am glad you have chosen me to participate in your special time." he reassured her and she relaxed, leaning her head on his shoulder. Everything was going to turn out alright..she knew it would.
