CHAPTER 2

Hoshi laughed softly to herself, something she was doing more often, as she looked over her first two interviews.

She was the only one in the dining room at this hour of the night. Slumping down in her chair, she took small sips of her steaming tea as she continued to read, enjoying the solitude.

"Funny that the two most humane reactions to my interview were from the only aliens on board," she muttered.

T'Pol and Dr. Phlox had immediately answered her questions, the doctor with an enthusiasm that was somewhat startling.

"Ensign Sato, what an intriguing way to take part in a human experience," Phlox had said as he continued to feed his multitude of medicinal animals. "Of course, you may ask away."

Phlox's most embarrassing moment, of course, was when he tried to give poor Travis a lobotomy.

"Really troubling that was for me," he said, and then laughed as he continued, "but how Ensign Mayweather avoided me for weeks afterward really made it rather humorous."

Hoshi didn't want to think much about his nickname, which roughly translated into English as "flexible tongued-devil."

Hoshi cringed to herself, remembering the look in Phlox's eyes as he waited for her reaction. The man had such a twisted sense of humor. It was one of the reasons why she was so fond of him ... perhaps. He was so different from her father.

"Enough of that, back to business," she scolded herself, going back to her first interview: Sub-Commander T'Pol.

The Vulcan answered each question succinctly, only pausing slightly at some of her more silly questions.

"At least I now know what body part I'm most jealous of," Hoshi said with a laugh. "T'Pol can say more with one lift of an eyebrow than most people can with words."

She was surprised at how candid T'Pol was, and was more and more coming to appreciate her dry sense of humor.

"I have two answers to your question of what is the most surprising thing the crew could learn about me," T'Pol had told Hoshi solemnly. "I leave it to your discretion to decide which to use.

"When I was on Earth I developed, I suppose you would call it a fondness for saltwater taffy," she said, lifting her right eyebrow a tad. "A Vulcan delicacy, it is not."

T'Pol linked her fingers together, glancing down at them briefly before looking back up at Hoshi.

"The second: I believe that the Vulcan High Command has erred in its dealings with humans," she said in an even tone, ignoring HoshiÕs dropping of her PADD that soon followed.

"By commanding and treating humans like children, we have caused you to strike out in protest. Our desire for caution had led to some reckless behavior that might have been avoided with a more even-handed approach."

T'Pol inclined her head at Hoshi before getting up to leave the ensign's quarters.

Coming back to the present, Hoshi scrolled down to her list of remaining victims: Travis, Malcolm, Trip and Jon.

She had special plans for the remaining four men, each of whom had "all of a sudden" become awfully busy.

"Try to duck me, will they? The Captain gives me this assignment and then expects to duck out on taking part?" Hoshi asked the empty room as she grinned evilly before drinking the last bit of her tea. "They will learn not to mess with this linguist again. Oh, yes they will."