Icicles 2
disclaimer: Do not own Star Trek
Marla took a deep breath as she entered the elevator up to the children's ward.
Two weeks had passed since she had awoken. Leon had somehow arranged a Starfleet interview. He told her that their first 'official' session and had given her a test, letting her know exactly what they were looking for. Since then, she could be found in only four places; home, the library, the gym and having lunch with Amanda.
The library and gym dominated the majority of her time and even while she was at home, she was barely eating, concentrating on the innumerable books of history, Klingons, Cardassians, Starfleet, anything she could possible get her hands on. In he gym, she trained hard. If there was a physical test, she needed to get back into boot camp shape. Her muscles screamed in protest as she resumed her army workout, but had begun to accept the fact they were getting back to where they were.
Andrew had been over almost every night to try and help her study. She refused to tell him when the interview was, just that she needed some serious catching up to do and he rose to the occasion. He told her in great detail the most recent horror, the destruction of the planet Vulcan two months prior.
She estimated she had gone through over fifty books about everything. Leon had hinted it would be mainly a teaching and research position. She had responded that she didn't possibly know how the hell she was going to be able to teach a class when she barely knew anything about what had happened in the nearly two hundred and fifty years she was dead. Leon had rolled his eyes and told her it would be a specialty course on Pre-United Earth and politics and the how the system in America had worked. The subject matter of her research would be up to her supervisors.
"If you get this job, I'll talk to Pike. I'm going to try and get you on my floor, Marla." Andrew had told her numerous times. "There are historians thrown all over the place since the History department at Starfleet Academy is under reconstruction until next winter."
"Andrew, they'll put me wherever they put me. I doubt I'll have an office." She responded after the fifth time he told her while they were out running. They had found their old running spot near the Wharf was still intact and had taken to running it every morning and evening.
"Fine." He grunted and took a swig of water from his bottle. "What are you going to do if you don't get this job?"
"Go back to stripping."
Andrew tripped and fell on his face.
"WHAT? NO. I TOOK YOUR ASS OUT OF THAT RATHOLE OF A STRIP CLUB ONCE I AM NOT DOING THAT AGAIN."
"I was joking, you idiot. I'll figure something out." Marla rolled her eyes at him as she helped him up.
"YOU BETTER BE."
"Shut up."
Marla knew inside she was only half joking when they had been out running, if worse came to worse, she might have no other choice than to start working the pole again.
The elevator dinged as it opened up to the pediatric center.
"Ah, there you are! Thought you got lost!" Amanda stood up and hobbled towards her. "Glad to see you're taking a break from the books, dear."
"Yes, a well needed break. My head was starting to spin."
Amanda laughed.
"Well, come on then, let's go get our sandwiches. Help me up."
The two made their way to the tiny café down the street, Marla relaying what she had learned to Amanda.
The pair received their sandwiches and sat down in a cozy booth in the corner. Marla glanced out the window to see the view of the hill, overlooking the Golden Gate and Starfleet Headquarters.
"So."
"So what, Amanda?"
"What is your opinion on Commander John Harrison?"
"I think you can get any man you desire Amanda. Who could ever turn down a sweet woman like you? I give you my blessing to go pursue a fit young man." She smiled.
"Don't be a smartass. But it's true." Amanda laughed.
"Personally, I've met him twice, I find him to be cold, rude, and arrogant. That's it." Marla stated simply before taking a bite of her food.
"Oh, he was just having a bad day. He's not nearly as bad as you think." Amanda waved her hand in a dismissive manner. "I will admit he can be arrogant, but usually I straighten him out pretty quickly. He has a heart, I promise. He helps me on and off the train, occasionally swings by with groceries for me if I say my hip's bothering me."
"That's nice."
"I'm training him dear."
"Training?"
"Trained my husband, I did." Amanda smirked. "I'll be having Johnny holding my knitting yarn for me at the end of the month on the train, just watch. By the end of next month, I just might have him into some shape for a young woman like yourself. A woman would do him good."
"I am not planning ever on dating Commander John Harrison. Let me say that now before you get any crazy ideas, Amanda."
"You must admit there's at least SOMETHING you like about him." Amanda insisted. "See the good in everyone. Every person has at least one good attribute about them. Remember that."
"Fine, if he helps you out Amanda, then I like that. But so does Tyrone."
"That's different. Tyrone's the grandson I never got." Amanda Sayes sighed. "Johnny is my little project. He's capable of love. He is capable of the deepest, most pure form of love, I just know it. Just got to dig down in and dig around for it a little bit under that permafrost of an attitude he has towards people."
"Well, good luck with that."
"What did I say about being a smartass? You two would get along well. Balance each other out, I'd reckon."
"I doubt it."
"Whatever, you'll come around." Amanda smirked.
"I doubt that too."
"I'm going to tell you what I tell him all the time. Keep an open mind. You never know what will happen."
"Yeah, me not dating him or going near him is what's going to happen." Marla leaned back in her chair defiantly. "I don't even know the man. Why is this relevant, I'm not going to see him any time soon."
"If you get that job at Starfleet, you will."
"Starfleet is huge! Do you see the size of that building? There is a very good chance I will not run into him."
"Train."
"We're going to get my motorcycle today, remember?"
Amanda scowled. This girl was definitely being stubborn and difficult. She was now regretting taking her to renew her license.
"You are certainly cheeky." Amanda shook her head. "I withdraw, you win this round."
Marla smirked.
Khan wanted to repeatedly slam Admiral Marcus's head against something. The Admiral had taken one look at his plans for the battle starship and told him that it could be better and he thought he had awoken a genius and his nephew could have come up with something better than that.
Khan shook with anger at his desk in his office. He used it mainly for paperwork, research, and thinking and escape from the lab. It was in a small shoot off of the hallway behind a door that contained another office that faced his. The other currently remained empty and he quite liked it that way. His lab was further down the main hall. He liked the privacy it gave. The lab was also private as it contained everything he was working on. The sketches, plans, ideas…His only complaint was he had gone into the empty office to get another chair late one night to find two of his coworkers having sex on the desk.
After that he had stuck to the Lab mostly. His plans were safe there. He had gone with a smaller ship, minimal effort to build, minimal crew, packed one hell of a punch and would be good for infiltration. It was fast, furious and easy to maneuver, could be easily hidden and had double the defense shields of the Enterprise, the latest starship. It would include a transwarp beaming device in case of emergency.
But no, it appeared Admiral Marcus wanted something big and flashy to make the Klingons shit themselves upon sight of the beast with all the bells and whistles and still have the capability to be flown by one if necessary.
The whole thing was about who had the bigger gun, literally, it seemed.
He was about ready to break the fifth chair of the month when someone banged on his office door.
"WHAT?"
"Touchy there, Harrison?" The door swung open and Lakewood lounged against the doorframe, coffee in hand.
"I am in no mood, Lakewood." He snapped.
"Oh and here I was going to take you out with us to test out the new toys in the field." Lakewood simpered and shook the cup gently.
"What?"
"New phasers. They want opinions and feedback."
"Why isn't MACO testing them?"
"They wanted us to do it for some reason." Lakewood shrugged. "Come on, shuttle bus leaves in fifteen minutes to take us out to the hills."
Khan turned to gather his things.
"Oh you won't need those. Just grab you jacket and lock your office. We'll be back in a few hours. McGivers and Coore are already at the shuttle waiting for us."
"I see." Khan locked his office behind him and followed Lakewood to the elevator.
"So…uh…McGivers' sister. You think he'd kill me if I took her out?"
"You nor I do not know the woman and I do not know the man terribly well so I can safely assure you I have no opinion or advice on the matter." Khan stated coldly.
"Well, I'd like to get to know her if you know what I mean." Lakewood waggled his eyebrows. "And by get to know her I mean bend her over the console of the USS Bradbury. Maybe the captain's chair."
Khan closed his eyes in disgust.
"Do I really need to hear about your sexual fantasies?"
"Oh come on John, I was joking."
"No, you weren't and it is not in least bit appropriate to discuss sexual fantasies with your co-workers, especially if they involve another co-worker's family member. How the hell did you ever get hired here?"
Lakewood opened his mouth.
"And furthermore you were so drunk when you met her, you failed to even register the absolute level of discomfort your advances caused, so I'm going out on a limb here, Lakewood and say based off the other night, you have a tribble's chance on Qo'noS of ever touching her, let alone 'bend her over the console of the Bradbury' without McGivers ripping your throat out with his bare hands and forcing it up your rectum."
"It was a joke and I am sorry if it offended you, but you need to lighten up John."
Khan fumed to himself. He would lighten up when he was throwing Lakewood's warm corpse into the Bay.
Khan was still amusing himself with deciding the best way to kill Lakewood and make it look like an accident when they arrived at the shuttle.
"No, she won't tell me when her interview is or even who's interviewing her!" McGivers was whining to Coore.
"She probably doesn't want big brother hovering over her should the entire time." Coore shrugged. "Give her some space, she's still adjusting."
"Who?" Lakewood interrupted.
"My sister."
"I'll help her adjust."
Andrew McGivers sent a look of pure death towards Adam Lakewood.
"How's this? You outshoot me and I'll find out what you want to know. I outshoot you and you give me permission to take her out." Lakewood smirked as he got hooked in to the bus seat.
"Or you can find out what I want or I tell Nancy in accounting why you blew off your last date with her."
"I already told her why."
"Really now?"
"Yes." Lakewood lied.
"So, she was fine for you blowing off your date because you were getting treated for crabs?" Coore shot a sidelong look at Lakewood as the shuttle took off.
Khan snorted.
"Shut up, John."
"You can ask her out, but she's not going to say yes." McGivers snorted.
"We'll see." Lakewood grinned. "Don't worry, I'll take good care of her."
Khan hesitated for a second. McGivers could very well end up killing Lakewood for him. Didn't have to get his hands dirty and Lakewood would be taken care of. Win-win.
"And by taking care of her, does that entail your comments, and I quote, about bending her over the console of the Bradbury?" He commented snidely.
"John-" Lakewood sent a panicked look at Khan.
"I'M GOING TO FUCKING KILL YOU." McGivers attempted to lunge forward and was caught by the harness.
Marla whooped loudly as Amanda held on to her waist for dear life. Freedom. That is what she missed about a motorcycle. These motorcycles may have not touched the ground, but it was how she felt when riding one anyways. She tested the corner turn around the block heading towards Amanda's house.
"MARLA SLOW DOWN!" Amanda yelled at her. Marla reluctantly complied.
"GOOD GOD GIRL, YOU'RE GOING TO GET YOURSELF KILLED AGAIN!" Amanda continued yelling.
"Here we are." Marla went over the procedure. Put in park, wait for it to lower and then shut it off.
"GOOD. Remind me to NEVER ride with you again." Amanda was shaking as she dismounted the bike. "I am sticking with the train, you can't change my mind."
"Alright and sorry about that."
"Johnny would do you good. Settle you down some."
"For the last time, I am NOT dating Commander Harrison!"
"I will see you at group tonight." Amanda Sayes merely waved her hand as she hobbled to her front door.
Marla rolled her eyes as she made sure Amanda got in alright before taking off again.
She headed for the hills. The bike whipped through the city as she turned to head out. The open road. True freedom. Marla resisted the urge to pull the helmet off, let the air whip her face until it was numb and raw, until she couldn't breathe. She knew the windshield wouldn't let it choke her out, but still. She wanted to feel her hair becoming a tangled rats nest.
She hit the hills. Traffic was practically non-existent. Whatever cars she came across, she quickly passed. All worries about the Starfleet interview were put from her mind. Her brother, that creep friend of her brother's, the ice cold Commander John Harrison, all gone.
She wasn't sure when she decided to turn back. The thought occurred to her, she could just keep going. Leave it all behind her. Start somewhere new. Start again in whatever town was closest to wherever she ran out of gas. No, she couldn't do that to her brother. It would be terribly irresponsible. Hurtful. Unenthusiastically, she headed back once she hit the exit for Oakland.
She vaguely considered sending a message to Andrew to see if he was coming to group that night. He had come the previous week. The majority of the people were glad to see him again.
Group was good. Group was always good. Group was where everything could be out in the open. She hated to admit it, but she did entertain the fantasy one night of ending it all. It had been raining, the pile of books looming on the tiny kitchen table. The notion of jumping from the Golden Gate, running a cold blade across her skin…It had felt hopeless, she felt as if she didn't belong. Like a relic of the past. An antique in a city of glass and chrome. That night she had called up Fred Kraft. He had been the last to call her and check in. He had also been feeling like crap, so in a way, it made sense.
She sped up as she shamefully remembered their night. Ended up getting drunk and having sex on the couch. And against the wall. And bed. And shower.
They had agreed to not mention it again before having sex on the kitchen counter.
Marla pulled on the street of the apartments. She found that there was street parking around back and secured the bike. Her watch read that she still had a few hours. Perhaps a shower and food before heading over across the street.
Khan vaguely considered turning the phaser he was firing at the targets across the field at his companions and making a break for it. Make it look like they backfired somehow. Marcus would have his entire crew killed if he did that and he knew it.
Coore had purposely placed himself between McGivers and Lakewood and was keeping a very close eye on Andrew McGivers. After all, Khan had been forced by Coore to help pull McGivers off Lakewood on the shuttle. Adam Lakewood now had a black eye and split lip. His entire face looked swollen. Khan felt confident enough to guess their friendship was on the rocks at best, if not over.
Khan was rather amused by the entire situation. The overprotective brother, the pervert of a best friend.. played out like some stupid storyline.
He fired the phaser at the distant target, hitting it squarely. He liked these new weapons. Especially the wrap around phaser. It wrapped around the entire body. McGivers mentioned it looked like a leaf blower. When testing it, Khan found it had incredible amounts of power. The only downside was the length of time it took to recharge.
"Hey, Harrison, thanks for saying something." McGivers grunted as they packed away the weapons.
Khan didn't respond.
"Come out for a drink tonight. Same place, same time."
Socialize.
"Marla will be there."
It would piss Lakewood off, keep Marcus happy and his crew in decent shape. Then so be it.
"Fine."
"Good."
Khan wondered if McGivers had been talking to Amanda Sayes.
"A woman would be good for you Johnny. That Marla girl is really something else." Amanda had stated while he assisted her in the grocery store.
"No."
"Johnny, keep-"
"An open mind, yes."
"Alright, so why not?"
"I am not interested in romance right now, Amanda. I have far more important things to deal with."
"Like what?"
"Work." He had stated. Cold and short.
"Johnny-"
"I am currently on a project that requires absolutely no distractions, Amanda." He turned and looked at the old woman in the eyes. "It requires my full, undivided attention."
"Alright, but as soon as this project is over, I recommend going for a coffee with Marla." Amanda pointed at him. "I'm serious Johnny."
"I know you are." Khan sighed.
He had no idea why he had a soft spot for the old woman. Probably because she fed him on the train a few times when he had forgotten breakfast. Or maybe he subconsciously enjoyed he way she fussed over him. Either way, the old woman was a force to be reckoned with.
It was afternoon before Khan back to his office from the excursion to the hills. He decided to put in time in his lab and test out some new ideas in the scenario software on the computer.
He didn't even know what time it was until he looked down at his watch. He swore slightly as he realized it was almost seven-thirty. He proceeded to clean up and shut down the lab before going to his office to gather up his belongings.
He supposed he could always not go to the bar that night. Tell McGivers he wasn't feeling the greatest. Amanda's voice nagged at the back of his head to keep an open mind and Marcus's voice growled at him to go blend in and socialize.
The noise greeted him as soon as he opened the bar door.
"Harrison!" McGivers called and waved his hand to beckon him over. McGivers was sitting with the motley group he had seen last time. "This is my co-worker, Commander John Harrison." McGivers introduced him to the group. The group responded with various mumbled greetings.
Khan's eyes scanned the bar to find Marla and a few others he had seen before playing pool. Her hair was up, he noted. A ginger haired man walked up behind her, aimed her pool cue and muttered something in her ear. She laughed before elbowing him back. Khan watched his hand trail down her lower back as he backed up and grinned before he walked back towards the group.
"Fred, this is my co-worker, John."
"Hey! I've seen you around work." Fred held out his hand to Khan who reluctantly took it. "I work up in engineering. Fred Kraft."
Marla leaned back against the pool table, chalking up her cue, watching Fred talk to her brother. She was very confused as to why Harrison was there. Maybe her brother invited him. She glanced over at Tyrone and Marie stealing a kiss when they thought no one was looking. She gave a slight smile as she took a drink of her beer. Marla's eyes returned to the group. Harrison clearly was not comfortable with everyone. She contemplated rescuing him as she finished the bottle. Alright. She decided to be nice tonight.
She placed the cue on the rack and approached the group.
"Ah Commander Harrison. Lovely to see you again." She gave her best attempt of a smile she could possibly give the man.
He merely nodded, face unreadable.
"Let's go get you a drink, shall we?" She continued with her fake smile and motioned with her head towards the bar.
Khan's mind whizzed attempting to figure out what exactly her intentions were, but regardless, she was providing him with an out. He followed her, anxious to get away from the people he did not know.
Marla held up two fingers at the bartender who promptly opened and set two beers on the wood. Marla passed him one and sat on nearest barstool.
"May I ask why you brought me over here?" Khan asked coldly as he raised an eyebrow as he watched her drink.
"You looked uncomfortable, Commander. I decided to be nice."
"I don't need rescuing." He snapped.
"Fine, I'll leave you be next time." Marla replied icily, staring straight ahead at the television showing a Parrises Squares game. "Just trying to help you out Commander since clearly, you are not the sociable type."
Khan remained silent, slightly infuriated with the woman next to him. Him, needing rescuing? He drank from the bottle in front of him.
Andrew came over, pulled up a barstool and sat between the two.
"So, having fun yet?"
Marla rolled her eyes and Khan grunted.
"Here, I'm not going to finish this." She passed her beer to her brother.
"What? You not finishing your beer, what's up Marls?"
"I have a job interview in the morning." She admitted, grudgingly.
"What? At Starfleet? But it's my day off and I'll be across town!" Andrew began protesting.
"Exactly." Marla smirked. "Also, I'm driving in the morning and driving hung over is not the best idea."
"Driving?"
"Yes. Ms. Sayes accompanied me to go get a new cycle."
"MARLENA MADLYN MCGIVERS!"
She looked at her brother with disinterest.
"Yeah?"
"YOU DIED THE LAST TIME YOU WERE ON ONE OF THOSE THINGS."
"Last time I checked was when I was coming home from Ms. Sayes's house and shocker, I'm still alive." She smiled sarcastically. "I'm going to go play pool with the two lovebirds now." She stood up and punched her brother in the arm as she left.
"God, she is so infuriating!" Andrew snarled.
"Are you talking to me?" Khan took another drink. "Because if you are, I would suggest not dragging me into your sibling disputes."
"John, do you have siblings?"
Khan hesitated.
"Yes." In a way. The Augments he was raised with, his crew, he considered them his family.
"Then you will know why exactly I don't want her back on a bike."
"It is not your decision. She obviously has a mind of her own and your opinion on the matter does not have any value to her."
Andrew scowled.
The two men drank in silence, watching the game.
"Is it just me, or has Marcus been more agitated lately?" McGivers finally broke the silence.
"I was unaware he was anything but."
"Something's been bothering him. Something's up. I can feel it." Andrew muttered darkly and took a drink.
"McGivers-"
"Call me Andrew." Andrew interrupted.
"ANDREW, it is probably just something on his mind making him more disagreeable then he already is. I would not waste time fretting about it."
Andrew was silent for a moment.
"You're probably right."
"I am right."
Andrew snorted and shook his head.
"What's so funny?"
"Nothing."
"Drew, I'm heading home." Marla seemed to come out of nowhere and embraced her brother, getting in between the two of them. Khan could smell her. No perfume, but he could smell her shampoo. Something citrus and gingery. It suited her.
"Marla…" Andrew started.
"What?" Marla sighed, slightly agitated.
"Please be careful." Andrew spoke quietly, almost pleadingly and touched his sister's hand.
"Drew, I live right around the corner in a nice apartment complex with a lot of neighbors. I'll be fine. I'll call you tomorrow."
"Call me when you get home preferably."
"Fine." She gave in. She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Commander." She nodded at him before she left.
Andrew closed his eyes and sighed.
"She can take care of herself." Khan grunted.
"It's not her I worry about. It's everyone else."
"People such as Lakewood?"
"John, don't. Not right now." Andrew raised his hand.
"Why are you so distraught over this?" Khan turned to face him. This entire situation was a complete mystery as to why the hell the man in front of him cared who was attracted to his sister.
"Because I know him, John. I know what he does to women, I know how he treats them and I know what all he's got and I want them nowhere near my baby sister."
"She is not a baby anymore, Andrew. Besides, judging by their interaction, I would say her and Kraft have been sleeping together, so I would gather she has no interest whatsoever in Lakewood." He took a drink and ignored the noise of rage growling in Andrew's throat.
They sat in silence once more for a few minutes.
Andrew's phone rang.
"McGivers…oh, okay. Didn't realize it was that close…shut up…Marla, shut up. Goodnight."
Khan raised an eyebrow.
"Shut up, John."
It was nearly one in the morning before Khan got home. He wasn't sure how, but he was fairly certain he just made a friend.
It was Khan's ritual now. Close the door, lock it, turn on the light, start heading towards the bathroom, removing clothes as he went and leaving a trail behind him.
The night had just been one giant mass of social confusion for him. He was not used to having to make introductions and was never one for small talk. He found it immensely amusing that Marla thought he needed assistance. Although he as grateful that she pulled him out of that horrid conversation about Tribble feeding habits.
As he toweled off, he thought about what exactly he needed to do in the morning before work, after work, during work. He had nearly worked out the plans for the ship, what it would do and all that fun stuff. He figured once he got that sorted it, he'd pass it to engineering to make it work. He was still figuring out modern technology. No way he'd be able to work it all out on his own.
He ran his fingers through his wet hair. If he didn't finish the designs soon, Marcus might not be exactly patient and most likely would start killing off his crew. After all, they had two weeks left of guaranteed safety. After that, it was back to him.
He climbed into bed and stared at the ceiling. He grunted and rolled over.
Marla quickly hit the elevator button down. She wondered how the hell it got bent in that way, momentarily distracting her. The interview…well she honestly didn't know how it had gone. They said they needed to run a check on her and that they would be in touch within the week. Generally that meant either they would call or not. She hated that waiting period. The elevator pinged softly before opening up to reveal Lakewood.
"Seriously?" She glanced at the ceiling and hissed.
"Marla?" Lakewood looked up startled before grinning wildly. "What are you doing here, Miss McGivers? Come in!"
Marla looked him over, black eye, busted lip. She smirked, ah yes, that would be Drew's handiwork. He had told her everything after work over the phone. Including what exactly Lakewood had in mind.
"I think I'll take the next one."
"Nonsense, my little firebird." He held his arm against the door and she begrudgingly entered the enclosed space.
"I had a job interview." Marla stated tersely.
"Really now?" He leaned against he wall next to her.
"Commander Lakewood, I would greatly appreciate it if you backed up."
"My apologies. Allow me to apologize formally by taking you out to dinner?" His green eyes stared beseechingly at her, blonde hair perfectly in place.
"I'll pass."
"Oh come on, it's just dinner. How about lunch then?" Lakewood persisted as the elevator pinged open.
Oh great.
Commander John Harrison observed the situation in front of him. Lakewood looked terrible and determined while McGivers looked extremely uncomfortable. He smirked as he got on, files in hand.
"Lakewood." He sneered.
"Ah, Harrison, the snitch."
Khan settled himself in between the two.
"I assume you just had your interview?" Khan glanced over.
"Yes."
"Well, then, allow me to take you out for a quick coffee?" Lakewood interrupted. "As, uh, good luck?"
"Actually, the lady agreed to go have a quick coffee with me last night." Khan stated mildly. Marla looked up at him, taken aback.
"What?" Lakewood's face scrunched up in utter confusion.
"You heard me. Isn't that right, McGivers?" He gave her a look that clearly stated to play along.
"Um…yes?"
"Well, good. Let's go." Khan grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the elevator as soon as the doors pinged, leaving a stunned Lakewood behind then.
"What are you playing at?" Marla snarled once they were out of earshot and the doors had closed.
"Merely returning a favor." Khan sneered into her ear as he dropped his hand and walked away. He had to shake himself once he hit the stairs. She smelled of Earl Grey tea and honey in addition to the citrus he smelled before. The way she had stared at him in disbelief was rather satisfying. It had felt as if he was hit with electricity when he had taken her hand and he wasn't sure why.
Marla stalked her way to the motorcycle and hitched her skirt up to sit properly, modesty be damned. She let her hair down in order to fit it in the helmet and snapped it in place before revving up the motor. Damn Commander Harrison as well. She let loose an agitated noise. Arrogant bastard.
She took off, flying out of Starfleet as fast as she could, earning glares.
Not even three days had passed when Marla got the call.
"Amanda, I got the job!"
"GOOD GIRL!" Amanda cackled on the train.
"I get my own class in the beginning of next week!" Marla squealed. "I can't wait!"
"A professor needs an office for office hours. Your brother has been nagging Pike about it. He told me so."
"Oh, I haven't told him yet. I want to surprise him."
"Why don't you tell him over dinner?"
"I thought about it."
"I'm surprised he hasn't been calling you daily."
"Oh he has."
Her phone rang.
"Guess who?"
"What?!" Khan snarled.
"I said, that office is going to be occupied soon. The history wing at the Academy is under construction and that office is empty. We have a new professor and they need an office for office hours. You two will barely see each other unless you two go take a piss at the same time, get over it!" Admiral Marcus snarled back. "Be glad I'm giving you some warning."
"I enjoy my privacy!"
"You will have your stupid privacy for god sake! Keep the damn door closed and you'll be fine. Now get back to work."
"When?"
"Now!"
"No, when are they coming in?" Khan growled.
"Wednesday."
Khan's brain furiously worked before the pieces clicked together.
"I will prepare for Miss McGivers' presence then."
"How the hell-"
"I'm a superior being, remember?" Khan sneered.
"How long until those plans?"
"Wednesday." With that Khan turned and strode out of Admiral Marcus's office.
Khan threw his grey uniform jacket aside the second he hit his office. Of course Marcus had wanted to see him after he was forced to make an appearance at the court marshal of one of the lieutenants from the USS Endeavor before telling him he was no longer going to have the little recess in the hall to himself.
Why the HELL did they keep running into each other? A nagging voice reminded him that the majority of the few times he'd run into her was at the bar she frequented with the support group she so desperately clung to. The woman was a distraction and now she was going to be across the hall from him.
He didn't have to interact with her if he was in his lab the majority of the time and she was teaching. The thought reassured him a bit. Marcus was right, as long as he kept the door shut, it would most likely be fine. She didn't seem the type to come and willingly talk with him. In fact, he was getting the vibe that she did not care much for him. Perhaps he was overreacting, casting around for something to lay blame on for the loss of his privacy. The stream of students was going to be annoying. Lakewood hanging around was going to be hell.
He heard the door across the hall slam shut. He immediately rose out of the chair to go investigate.
He approached the empty office cautiously, hearing a smattering of giggles. He turned the handle quickly, snapping the lock and entered, throwing on the lights. A woman screeched. He looked at the scene in front of him, one of the women from a floor below sitting on the edge of the desk with her skirt hiked up, panties sown with Lakewood and his pants undone in front of her, erection on display.
"Do you mind, John?" Lakewood yelled.
"GET. OUT." Khan seethed. "OUT!" The woman didn't need to be told twice. She pushed Lakewood away and ran out, pulling up her underwear and pulling her skirt down.
Lakewood grumbled as he shoved his penis back in his pants. Khan was in front of him, quick as lightning and grabbed him by the front of the shirt. He dragged him out, Lakewood yelling before throwing him down the hall and slamming the door to the private hallway behind him.
He could hear other office doors opening to find the source of the commotion. He sat and reviewed the plans in front of him. Soon his office door swung open.
"John, what the hell is going on?" Andrew McGivers looked absolutely bewildered. "Lakewood's in the hall saying you assaulted him."
"I merely found him in a compromising position with one of the women from downstairs on the desk in the empty office. I gave him the option of getting out of the room on his own or me assisting him. He chose the latter." Khan settled in and spoke as if he spoke about the weather.
"John, you could get in serious trouble for this."
"Like you beating him in the shuttle?"
"That was outside the office." Andrew hissed. "This was inside the building."
"He will get into far worse than me for inappropriate conduct." He replied dismissively. The phone rang beside him. "Commander Harrison."
"Commander, Admiral Marcus requests your presence once again." The voice on the other side of the line spoke without emotion before hanging up.
Khan swore.
"Marcus, I presume? I told you." Andrew sighed.
Marla shivered with excitement. It was six-thirty in the morning. Fred had met her at her apartment, had breakfast, and put her boxes in his car so she could take the bike over. They had provided her with a red Starfleet uniform dress which she wore. She had taken extra time to make sure everything was perfect. The old army habits she figured.
Fred walked beside her, assisting in carrying two boxes. Marla herself also carried two. Just the basics for right now for the office. Files, books, notes, all the lectures she had prepared in the last few days. The rest she would bring in over time.
"Thanks again, Fred."
"No problem. What office did they say?"
"It's on Andrew's floor. They told me 1725B."
"Alright. Sounds like Drew managed to get his way."
"Yes. Hopefully he will be too busy with his own work he won't be interrupting mine too often." She smiled at Fred.
"Ooh…" Fred stopped short of the door that read 1725AB.
"What?"
"You're being thrown in the Lion's Den it would seem. Harrison is in 1725A." He drew in breath through his teeth.
"Are you serious?" Marla's voice dropped a few octaves. "And why do you say the Lion's Den?"
"He threw Lakewood down the hall earlier this week. Straight down the fucking hallway. The man does not like people in his area while he's working. The reason why that office has been empty for the past two months is no one will dare go near it. Your brother and Lakewood are the only two brave or stupid enough to go in and talk to him. Has a tendency to break chairs too. He has a private lab he's mostly holed up in, you shouldn't be too worried. I'm not going in though."
"Thanks Fred. No really." Marla looked slightly alarmed at the new information she was receiving about Commander Harrison.
Marla's hand shook for an entirely new reason as she reached out and pulled the handle down to open the door to reveal the small recess. The lights were out in 1725A. She sighed in relief as she turned to open her door. She put down the boxes and reached for the key. As she looked for the keyhole, she saw the lock was missing. She pushed the door open and turned on the lights.
Almost immediately, she was greeted with the sound of trilling.
Marla gasped at what she saw.
Tribbles.
Everywhere.
"Fred…" She called.
"What?"
"Come here and tell me I'm not hallucinating?" She responded. She heard him put the boxes down and approach.
"Holy hell." Fred ran his hand through his flaming red hair.
"So, um, who do we call about this?"
"Erm…oh shit, they're reproducing."
"No, really?" She turned and snapped sarcastically.
Khan approached his office in a huff. He stopped when he saw boxes outside and smirked. Looked like McGivers was in. He heard raised voices in the small hall and opened the door.
"What is going on in here?" The two jumped at the sudden intrusion.
"Commander Harrison." Kraft mumbled as he backed up.
"Tribbles is the trouble here, Commander." McGivers didn't look at him and kept staring straight ahead.
"What are you talking about, tribbles? Move." Kraft jumped out of the way and Khan gently placed his hands on Marla's shoulders to get her to move aside. Sure enough, the room was infested with tribbles. A prank, no doubt.
"Well, I reckon perhaps we should give Sam a ring? Seems more humane than killing them all like you would normally do." Fred sighed.
"How fast would he be even able to get over here? They could triple before he gets here."
"What have they even been eating to reproduce so fast?" Fred glanced in from behind a stunned Khan who was still staring at the fluffy masses with bewilderment.
"Call him." Marla brushed past Khan as she walked in towards the massive pile. "Come here, ah yes." She gently picked one up to reveal a new tribble underneath. She gently placed it to the side to see what they were feeding on. "Oh dear."
"What?" Khan strode in, careful not to step on any to see what she was staring at.
"Birdseed mixed with oats. Enough to last at least five more generations." Marla sighed. "Harrison, if you kill that Tribble, so help me."
Khan put the trilling fluff ball back down, curious as to how good her peripheral vision was to have seen him pick it up in the first place.
"Alright, Sam is on his way as fast as he can." Fred gathered up enough courage to enter the room.
"Alright, here's the plan." Marla straightened up. "I'm going to get this birdseed and oats cleaned up as best I can so they can't get at it and hopefully that will slow them down."
"There should be a broom and dustpan in the closet back there." Fred edged around to it.
"Okay then." She reached around and grabbed the tall recycle bin. She was grateful it was empty and began quickly and gently placing the tribbles in it.
Khan sighed. He had to get those plans up to Marcus. But if he left, the tribbles could potentially spill over into his office. He bent over and began grabbing at tribbles and assisting her.
Marla glanced over at him as he rolled up his sleeves and dusted the food off of them before placing them in the bin.
"Kraft, go get the bin out of my office. Don't touch anything." He threw the key at Fred who quickly complied.
"Thank you." Marla murmured to Harrison. Khan glanced at her, covered in Tribble fur. Perhaps he wasn't as bad as everyone was making him out to be.
"I do not wish them to overrun the building." He replied curtly. She rolled her eyes and shook her head slightly. Nope.
He allowed his eyes to travel down her figure to her legs. She had some scars showing at the hem of the dress, presumably from the motorcycle accident that killed her. He admitted to himself that she looked good out of the baggy sweatshirt. He shook himself mentally and refocused.
Marla stood and started sweeping and putting everything in a bin bag while Khan continued to sort through tribbles.
"We're out of space." Khan commented.
"But the bins aren't full." Fred noted, confused.
"He gave some room so that they will be full from them reproducing by the time Sam gets here." Marla answered without looking at the two men. "Just start moving them to the corner where there is no food and make sure they don't get back over before I'm done. I'll try and be quick."
"Please do. We have work to do and I am not a Tribble wrangler." Khan grunted.
"It's too early for this." Fred sighed and looked up at the clock, now reading seven am. "Sam should be here soon."
"Good." Marla muttered as she swept as quick as she could.
She was halfway through the pile when the door opened.
"Okay, I hear you have a Tribble problem." Sam poked his head in.
"Speak of the devil. Did they give you any trouble downstairs?"
"No. Just said I got a call about a tribble problem and they signed me in as a guest right away. Well, this isn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be." Samuel reached down and removed a tribble from the bin. "Looks like you caught them pretty early."
He reached down into the case he had brought in and removed a hypodermic needle and a large bottle.
"Fred, get the folding container out of there please and open it. The green one."
Fred complied as Sam injected his concoction into the tribble which squealed slightly before he put it down in the container.
"Next."
Marla made sure she found all the tribbles and food while Fred continued passing tribble after furry tribble to Sam. Khan supervised.
"What is he doing?"
"Sterilizing them. Then he'll sell them as pets." Marla responded.
Khan raised an eyebrow. He did not know who the hell would want one of those damned things as a pet.
"Commander, can you hand me that tribble please?" Kraft reached his hand out and Khan realized he had indeed been holding a large, purring tribble and unconsciously stroking it.
Khan handed him the tribble as Sam reloaded his syringe.
"Alright, last one. Looks like this one is the one that started all of this, judging by the size."
Marla watched Sam pack up and load the container of tribbles onto a cart.
"Do you need help, Sam?"
"Oh no, I've got this. It's your first day, isn't it?"
"Yeah." Marla looked embarrassed.
"I know what will cheer you up." Sam winked as he reached down and picked up the tribble Khan had been holding. "Consider it an 'office warming' gift. For when times get stressful, there's nothing quite like a Tribble to help calm the nerves."
He handed the brown tribble to Marla. It started instantly trilling affectionately and snuggled into her palms.
"You are not keeping a tribble in the office." Khan grumbled.
"It's perfectly sterile." Sam turned. "Perfectly harmless. They make very good therapy pets. I'll see you tonight, Marla. Good luck." With that, Sam wheeled away his bundles of tribbles.
"Fred, I've got it from here." Marla sighed as she held on to the tribble. "Thank you."
"You sure?" Fred's eyes darted to Commander Harrison and back.
"Yes, go get to work. I need to unpack things and start finalizing these lectures. Have a good day." Marla smiled reassuringly at him.
"Okay." Fred also turned and left.
Khan waited until he heard the door close.
"Well, what a fine first day you're having." He smirked. "Try not to inconvenience anyone again the next time."
"Sorry?" Marla turned to face him.
"You have managed to waste an hour of my time collecting tribbles, the worthless things. Get your act together, McGivers. That prank was obviously meant for you so I suggest you sort out any issues you have so they do not create any more problems."
"Oh really? And how do you know they weren't meant for you. I hear you have a bit of a penchant for throwing people down hallways, Commander and may I remind you the only people I know here are you, my brother and Fred." Her eyes narrowed as she got close to his face.
She stared challengingly into his blue eyes. She could practically feel the agitation radiating off of him. He turned and growled and stalked out of the office. She heard his door slam shut and lock behind him. She exhaled. She had half expected to be dragged out by her hair or threatened.
She set down the tribble and began dragging in the boxes and unloading everything. It wasn't long before she heard the crashing noise next door. She jumped slightly and nearly dropped the laptop she carried. Marla hesitantly got up and walked over. The shade on Harrison's window was down. She took a deep breath and knocked.
"Is everything okay?" She heard footsteps approaching the door and she backed up quickly. The lock scraped open.
"Fine. Mind your own business." Commander Harrison growled. Marla could see the shattered remains of a chair in the back. "I have a meeting. Move. Please."
Marla got out of the way as he stormed past her, a file in hand.
Khan shook with anger. The damn woman was right. The tribbles were supposed to be for him. He had found a note slipped under the door telling him to enjoy the little bastards. The look on her face after said everything. She was completely terrified of him. Regardless of the fact that she stood up to him, he had clearly rattled her by breaking the chair. Perhaps she would request an office change and he would be freed of the distraction she brought.
He threw the file down in disgust on Marcus's desk.
"Well then. Heard you had some tribble trouble." Admiral Marcus grunted.
"I request an inquiry to figure out who exactly risked a tribble infestation in the entire building, possibly the city, merely for a prank." Khan snarled.
"Sit the hell down. I'm already looking into it. Alright, let's have a look." He put on a pair of reading glasses and began flipping through the files. "This is more like it. Dreadnought class? I like it." He continued flipping through, minding the notes, occasionally making satisfied and dissatisfied noises.
"I like most of it. Here." He whipped out a pen and began scribbling over some of the plans. "Look over that." He passed them back to Khan.
Khan glanced them over. Of course, bigger phasers. He nodded.
"Alright, I'll go get this to the right people. Might make a few more adjustments here or there. Good work."
"My crew?"
"I'm not done with you yet, Khan." Admiral Marcus smiled a cold, heartless smile. "I need you to do some other designs for me. As for your crew, I'll arrange a visit with them as your reward. Now get out of my office. I'll send word when I need you. Go home."
Khan lunged towards Marcus. Marcus grabbed for the phone, fingers above the pad.
"Stop, I'll dial that number so fast your ass will spin and your crew is dead. If I die, they've been told to destroy them all. GET YOUR ASS OUT OF MY OFFICE, SINGH."
Khan shook with rage as he backed up, eyes on Admiral Marcus's hands.
Marla heard the hall door slam open and she ran to shut hers as fast as possible. One thing was certain and right now, she did not want to be in the path of the hurricane that was Commander Harrison. The entire hall seemed to rattle when he slammed the office door shut. To Marla, it sounded like a gunshot. The tribble in her hand quivered and started making a whistling, screeching noise.
"Shh, it's alright." She attempted to calm the fluff ball, and herself, down. "Calm down Napoleon."
Marla sighed as Napoleon the tribble settled down.
A gentle knock came from the door before it opened,
"Hey Marls."
"Hey Drew." Marla smiled as her brother walked in and sat in a spare chair.
"Is that one of the tribbles from earlier?"
"Yes. A gift from Sam. I decided to name it Napoleon."
"Remember our frog, Leif Erickson?"
"Yes!" Marla laughed. "We set him free in the river so he could go conquer the world."
"Are you okay, Marla?"
"Yes, why?"
"I heard John slamming stuff around, so I decided to come look and make sure it's all alright."
"Yes. Everything is fine."
"He's really a good guy. Just having a bad week I suppose." Andrew sighed. "Marcus has been riding him like nobody's business. Hell, he's been on all of us, but it seems like almost every other hour John's being called down to his office."
"I see. Where's the break room?"
"I'm about to head over there. Want some tea?"
"Yes. Bring me an extra cup of hot water, a teabag and few creams and sugars separate."
"Why?"
"I've decided to be civil. More like extending an olive branch in the form of a teabag, really." Marla grumbled.
"What, to John? Marla, you might want to let me take care of that one." Andrew warned.
"Look, we're both here sharing a small area. It would be wise to get on his good side."
"Alright. I know he takes it black. Hope you know what you're doing Marla."
Marla really didn't. She was playing it by ear. But she'd be damned if she allowed herself to continue to be frightened by the man across the hall.
Fifteen minutes later, Andrew returned with two travel cups of tea.
"Took you long enough." Marla teased as she looked up from her plans.
"This one's yours. I know how you like it."
"Thank you, Drew."
"I'll be waiting right here."
"For gods sake, you act like he's going to kill me."
"I'm just saying, John can get pretty nasty. I'll be right here."
Marla sighed and rolled her eyes before getting up.
She took another deep breath before rapping gently on Harrison's door.
"Enter." He growled from within.
She opened the door slowly and looked around, confused before looking down to find Harrison laying on the floor using his jacket as a folded up pillow.
"What do you want?"
"Are you alright?"
"I am fine." He hissed.
"Judging by the fact you've broken a chair, been slamming doors and are now laying on the floor when you've insisted you've had work to do is telling me otherwise, forgive me." Marla walked over and looked down at him.
He glared up at her. Marla gave an involuntary shiver before sinking down to sit next to him. She held out the cup.
"Tea?"
Khan looked at her, attempting to figure out what exactly she was attempting to accomplish.
He sat up and accepted the cup. He removed the lid and sniffed slightly.
"It's not poisoned, you know."
Khan glared at her again before taking a sip.
"You are afraid of me." He stated.
"I am afraid of flying chairs and splintering doors. You, not so much."
Khan chuckled darkly. Marla turned her attention to the tea in her hand.
"What of you, then? What happened to your lesson plans?"
"Next week's is done. I will probably start outlining the semester this afternoon."
"What subject?"
"Pre-Federation Earth politics."
"Interesting."
"And what of you?"
"I was told to go home."
"Then why are you still here?"
"Because I am having tea."
They sat in silence, drinking.
"My apologies for earlier." Khan finally broke the silence.
"Apology accepted." Marla got to her feet and dusted herself off. "If you'll excuse me, I have work to do."
Khan watched her leave before chuckling to himself and shaking his head.
She wasn't afraid of him, or so she said.
That was a lie. He could smell it on her. Yet, she sat there next to him, drinking her tea as if nothing was wrong. As if every nerve in her body wasn't screaming at her to leave and fast. No, she had sat there to convince herself he was just a man with a temper. That she shouldn't fear him. She was wrong. She should fear him in every single way possible.
He stood and snatched his jacket from the ground. He watched the older McGivers leave through the crack in the door from Marla not shutting it completely.
He shut and locked his office door and entered hers silently. Marla's back was toward him, she was clearly deep in thought over a book. He sat down in one of the chairs facing the desk, placed his leg on his knee and waited.
When she did look up, she jumped.
"Jesus…What?!" She slammed the book down.
"You wasted an hour of my time, I've chosen to return the favor." He sneered. He disliked what he was about to do, but it needed to be done for both of their sakes.
"Really?" Marla sat behind the desk and began sorting through papers and scribbling notes.
Khan observed her. This wasn't going to be as easy as he thought.
"So, your beloved brother."
"What about him." Marla tried her best to not look up at him.
"Has he always been this protective, this doting?"
Marla's skin crawled. His tone sounded almost mocking.
"No." She answered shortly and attempted to refocus on the plans in front of her and ignore the man in front of her.
Khan waited for her to become absorbed once more.
"So he does blame himself for your death then. Curious."
Marla's pen stopped scratching at the paper before resuming, clearly choosing to ignore him.
"He has chosen to compensate then, determined to not allow anything to happen to you if he can help it. Driven by guilt. What exactly is he guilty for anyways? Surely he did not crash that bike himself." He leaned in, watching closely for an reaction, searching for the right nerve to hit.
Marla ignored him. He was looking for a rise and she wasn't about to give it to him. She focused on her opening lecture about the start of the United States.
"Perhaps over the fiancé. That he couldn't protect you from him and the pain and humiliation he caused. What was it he said? Betrayed you, slept with a co-worker, possibly a friend of yours? Surely if he truly loved you, he would not have done that. Made you out to be an idiot in front of everyone you hold near and dear. Surely, your brother blames himself for not seeing it earlier and stopping the engagement. Perhaps he had been sleeping with her all along and was stupid enough to get caught. Or did he want to get caught so he wouldn't have to leave you at the alter while he ran off with her and having to admit he made a mistake in asking for your hand when clearly he wasn't keen on spending the rest of his life with just you."
Marla's hand hesitated. She felt the ice wrapping around her stomach and heart, the lump beginning to form in her throat.
"Get out." She managed to whisper softly.
"Hit a nerve, did I?"
Napoleon trilled on the desk, inching towards her. She reached for the tribble and began stroking it, hoping to calm down and not start crying in front of Commander Harrison.
"So it seems you have. Congratulations. Now what do you expect to do with this information? Throw it back in my face every time I irritate you? Use it to emotionally manipulate me?" Marla hissed. "You are nothing but an arrogant bastard."
Marla rose with the large tribble in hand and stormed out the door, past a silent, stony-faced Harrison. She quickly walked down the hall before locating the women's restroom and ducking in. She leaned against the wall before sliding down it, tears simultaneously sliding down her cheeks. She wiped them away furiously as she sat on the bathroom floor, Napoleon attempting to snuggle against her chest. She clutched the furball to her and buried her face into the fur, allowing the tears to flow.
He was right. She was stupid to have not seen the signs even before he proposed. She was stupid to not have seen it in her friend's face whenever she started talking about wedding plans. The mixture of guilt and satisfaction. The excuses. She had trusted them both completely. She was so stupid to have done that. So stupid to trust anyone.
Khan gathered his belongings and walked down the hall. He paused outside the women's bathroom, hearing someone crying within, most likely McGivers. He had reduced her to tears, but she had to learn that she needed to stay away from him. He was not her friend. He was not going to allow himself to be distracted by her. He admitted that it was cruel to bring it up, but it needed to be done.
He continued down the hallway to the elevator to take him home.