Chapter 14

North brought himself to the door of Vaughn's quarters for the second time this evening. He did not consider himself an arrogant man, but it was never easy to admit one's faults. And he knew he would rest easier once he had made peace with Vaughn, apologising for his rudeness.

He sighed and pressed the door chime. A few moments later, it was answered by Angie, who smiled.

"Commodore!" she exclaimed cheerfully. "Back so soon?"

"Yes," he said with a polite smile. "I'm not staying long; I just need to speak with your fiance." If Angie was unaware of his brusque exchange with Vaughn, then there was no reason to inform her.

"He's not in. Went down to Sal's Diner with some friends. I guess he needed some male company after you left, before he has to spend all his free time with the wife." She laughed.

"I see." He nodded. "Thank you. And apologies again for having to leave so early."

Angie waved her hand. "Not at all, Commodore. Oh, I meant to ask you at dinner: Did you get that maple syrup from Rhys?"

North had to think a moment, recalling breakfast. "Ah, yes. Very good of him to get that for me." More guilt gnawing at him - the man had brought him a gift just that morning.

"That's a relief," said Angie. "He's been at it for weeks trying to get that stuff."

"Weeks?" North also recalled Vaughn telling him he had acquired the syrup just yesterday by chance.

Angie nodded. "Uh-huh. When he heard you were his new CO, he looked up your files to see if there was any way he could make things more homey here for you. He was searching everywhere for something, then he heard about a trader on Aldebaran Three who had a stock of genuine Canadian maple syrup."

North frowned. Aldebaran was clear across the quadrant. Further from Berengaria, in fact, than Earth, the source of the syrup in question.

Angie continued her rambling tale. "After some back and forth over subspace, Rhys eventually worked out a deal. There happened to be a Rigelian freighter at Aldebaran at the time, they took on the syrup and headed for a Vulcan outpost. An Earth ship there then took it to rendezvous with a freighter, who brought it here." She chuckled. "I think he had to beg, promise or threaten half the galaxy to get it all to fall into place, but it was still easier than ordering some from Earth and waiting on the next transport out here."

North cast his eyes downward. He had no idea that Vaughn had gone to such trouble just to make him more comfortable, only to then downplay the effort to him. The guilt in his stomach was practically aflame now.

He looked back up at Angie. Did she know that he was unaware of all this? Was that why she was telling him? He couldn't be sure.

"He's some man, your fiance," was all he said.

She smiled at him. "I think so."

The next leg of North's journey to atonement took him to Sal's. The diner was packed with customers - staff from Alpha Shift enjoying an evening meal after work, those from tonight's Gamma Shift starting their day with breakfast, and a small number of civilians just passing through the sector - all busily chatting and eating.

He couldn't spot Vaughn anywhere.

He did, however, see Sal wiping down the counter and made his way over.

"The King has returned!" Sal said when she noticed him. "What can I get you, my liege?"

"Nothing just now, thanks, Sal," he said. "Has Lieutenant Vaughn been by?"

"Yeah, he's…" The buxom Draylaxian scanned the crowd. "There he is, in the corner."

North glanced over to see Vaughn sitting by himself at a two-person booth with a milkshake in front of him.

"I thought he was here with friends?" North asked.

Sal shook her head, golden hair cascading around her. "I've never seen him in here with anyone other than Angie, his fiancée."

North frowned in concern. It was unlikely that Angie would lie, so why would Vaughn tell her he was seeing friends?

He looked at Sal's grinning face. She had a way of drawing information out of people. "What do you know about him?"

"Vaughn?" She shrugged. "Throws himself into his work too much, according to Angie. Fun, gregarious guy, but never really has time for many friends."

North found this all too familiar as he gazed back towards Vaughn. The Lieutenant likely lied to Angie regularly about meeting non-existent friends to spare her any worry. At dinner, she had mentioned that she hated to see people throw themselves into their work too much.

"I suppose that means, when he does try to make friends, he comes on a bit strong," said Sal in her knowing way.

North nodded, feeling the guilt in him turn into a pity that was just as scalding. "Thank you, Sal. I'll actually have a coffee now, please."

"Milk, no sugar," said Sal. "I'll bring it to your booth." She smirked, prompting North to briefly return the expression. He wondered if Draylaxians were partly telepathic.

He crossed the bustling room and approached Vaughn. "Is this seat taken?"

Vaughn looked up and stiffened. "Sir! Uh, no, please." He gestured to the empty side of the booth.

"I owe you an apology, Lieutenant," North said as he seated himself.

"Sir, that's not-"

"I also owe you a greater thanks than you got this morning," North interrupted. "For the syrup. Going to all that trouble, over weeks and light-years."

Vaughn's round face screwed up in confusion. "How did you-?"

"It doesn't matter," North interrupted again. "Look, I'm not an easy person to get along with, I know that. I used to cultivate it. I preferred my own company and to keep my staff distant. But, recently…

"I made a promise to myself during the war, after I lived through the Battle of Cheron: I wouldn't just sit back and let life pass me by anymore. I would try new things. That's why I joined you and Angie for dinner tonight."

"And it wasn't for you, sir," Vaughn said. "I completely understand. I'm told I'm an acquired taste." He laughed.

North smiled thinly. "It's not just my promise though." He sighed. This posting was forcing a lot of change on him and a lot of personal details out him. "When I was serving on starships at the start of my career, every time a captain left command, almost the entire crew would show up for the send-off.

"Assignments didn't last very long back then, but the cramped and dangerous conditions forced a sense of camaraderie on everyone. When the captain left, it was like losing the head of the family.

"But when I left the Victory at the end of the war… Nobody showed up to see me off on my last day in command. Oh, my senior staff did, but I got the impression that my first officer was practically holding a phase pistol to their backs." He chuckled drily. "And that was my fault. I didn't make myself approachable as a commander, so it was no great loss when I left.

"I want things to be different from now on."

Vaughn smiled at him, a bit less broadly than normal. "Well, I suppose I could help you out, sir. Let you cling to my social status."

North smiled at the joke. "Perhaps we could help each other out. Then, at least, we'd each have one friend here."

Vaughn's warm expression returned. "I'd like that, sir."

Sal brought over North's coffee at that moment, with expert timing. North nodded his thanks then looked back to Vaughn, holding up a hand. "Within reason, of course. I still prefer some solitude, and we'll keep things professional when on-duty."

"Of course, sir."

"But… maybe the occasional dinner with you and Angie would be nice."

Vaughn now beamed with his usual brightness. "I think I could talk Angie into that." He leaned forward, with a bolder smirk on his face. "And, you know, sir… you don't have to come to the dinner alone. Maybe Ambassador-"

North pointed at Vaughn. "Careful, Lieutenant. We're not that close as friends," he said with a forcefulness that was only barely in jest.

"Not yet," said Vaughn with a grin.

North sipped his coffee to stop himself from grinning as well.