A Quarian's Trek: Chapter 2; New Beginnings.
USS Enterprise, Tali's Private Quarters
Nine Hours Later...
Oh this is too good to be true. Yet it is.Jim thought as he quietly watched the young woman sleeping curled up next to his best friend, his mind already coming up with various ways in which to use this against Bones. But just as suddenly he realized how happy McCoy, well happy for him anyway, looked as Jim frowned and quickly left the room without disturbing either of them. I must be getting old if I didn't at least draw a mustache on Bones' face.
Instead he remembered that he had an appointment to keep with the doctor, so Kirk decided to head to medical and 'wait' there for Bones. When he arrived a few minutes later however, he heard Chapel recording her morning report and decided to wait until she was done before interrupting her. Besides, he figured it'd make up for his not poking fun at his old friend when he had the chance if he caught Chapel saying something embarrassing when she thought no one was listening.
"Lt. Christine Chapel, medical log. Stardate, god help me I can never remember the damned date. Oh well. The Enterprise's newest member has made marked improvement in her short stay so far. While I wouldn't recommend a vulcan mind meld as part of a patient's treatment, Commander Spock's ill advised idea has actually had a positive effect on Ms. Zorah. For someone who was forced to live in an environmental suit her entire life, Tali is making a remarkably fast recovery after serious mental and physical trauma." Taking a moment to take a drink of her morning coffee no doubt, Kirk was starting to get a little impatient for the good stuff. All that Chapel had said he had figured out for himself after seeing how peaceful Tali had looked, and still without the helmet no less. If that wasn't progress, Jim didn't know what was.
"Mmm...I plan on slowly continuing Tali's exposure to normal, for us anyway, life. My only real concern is that we will push her too fast, too hard. Even though she is still in a very fragile mental state, fortunately Tali seems to have bonded with Dr. McCoy, Chief Engineer Scott, and myself. Perhaps it might even be wise to say she has bonded with Jim as well, but since he's listening at the door I don't want to give him a bigger head." Chapel smirked as she heard the captain's sharp intake of breath at being found out.
"You scare me when you do that Chapel, but I'm sure you know that." Kirk quickly recovered and swaggered over to the nurse. "But it's good to hear that Tali is making progress, as a matter of fact, I just-" Jim realized what he'd been about to say and quickly shut up a second too late.
"You just what, sir? I'm waiting." Christine had a feeling she wasn't going to like whatever Kirk had been up to, knowing the trouble he usually got himself and others into. The one time he had done the right thing, the one time he would have appreciated a friendly ear, and Chapel probably wouldn't be willing to listen to his side of the story, go figure.
"I um... just got back from the mess. Gotta go, see you later Lt., keep me updated!" Kirk was only a split second away from a clean escape when a hand latched onto his arm. He knew he was in trouble when Chapel spun him around to face her, the look on her face was more terrifying than the one he had seen on Nero's.
"What. Did. You. Do. Sir?" Chapel had instantly realized Kirk was hiding something, and it had to be about her new patient, why else would he positively try to flee from her presence? "I do know how to administer injections almost as well as Dr. McCoy, and by well, I mean painfully." Chapel couldn't remember ever seeing the captain sweat so profusely before, even in the gym.
"I ah... may have checked on Tali...and saw that Bones was with her. I guess cuddling would be the proper term?" The new grin on Jim's face died a quick and sudden death as Chapel glared at him. Oh crap... There's no way this is going to end well...and I can't cheat my way out of it this time.Spock's little 'fear' test was the only time that Jim had cheated in his life, and really it had been fair game since that test had been rigged anyway so that no one could ever complete it. This however was a whole other ball game.
"Tell me you didn't embarrass them...so help me...if you upset Tali in any way..." Kirk found himself quickly backed up against a wall as Christine pressed toward him. Any other day he might have actually enjoyed this, not now though since this was absolutely terrifying. "Let me remind you that taking any action harmful to a patient's health on a starship is grounds for loss of command of said ship, Captain. Now tell me exactly what happened."
"Well first I got up..." Seeing that his wise ass brand of humor was only going to make things worse, Jim dropped the act. "I just went to check on her, and found them sleeping on the floor, their backs to the wall. That's it, I swear on a pile of Bible datapads, then I left and headed here. May I go now nurse? Might be a little awkward if anyone sees us out in the corridor like this." When Chapel didn't relent he quickly added more. "I promise I'll never go near her again without asking you or Bones first, okay? Unless she comes to me anyway..." Kirk was quick on his feet but not quick enough as Chapel got him by his ear and pulled him back into sick bay. "Crap! I was kidding!"
"Oh hell, what did you do this time Jim?" McCoy gaped at the two of them from the door. While he looked pissed, a slight hint of a grin pulled at the corner of his mouth as Chapel let go of Kirk and quickly distanced herself from him.
"Nothing! Um... thank you for the ear exam Nurse Chapel, it's much better now. Gotta go do... captain stuff." Jim made a hasty retreat before McCoy or Chapel could do anything else to him, having forgotten about his appointment with Bones entirely by this point. He had a long day today, given the fact they were putting in for repairs at the nearest starbase upon Scotty's recommendation as well as their new engineer, if Jim had anything to say about it anyway.
"Huh... Christine ya left the log recorder on again, I told you before I hate having to skim through these things to get past the damn extra parts. Wait... where the hell..." Chapel almost burst out laughing as McCoy suddenly looked like he had lost something important and darted back out into the corridor. She was thankful for his quick departure however, as she edited out the damning parts of her log. She'd given Kirk enough warning, having McCoy angry with him as well would be overkill.
Kirk meanwhile hadn't gotten far when he saw that Tali was looking around his ship, seemingly in awe if the way she was staring intently at everything she could was anything to go by. And apparently she had forgotten her breakfast which was on a nearby control panel behind her. "You know Bones' would have my head if you didn't finish that?" Tali jumped and spun on her heel, having been lost in her examination of the ship's systems. Damn, she has pretty eyes! Quick, think of something else! Too bad that suit is in the way... CRAP! "Eh...we'll be putting in a few days earlier than we had planned at one of our starbases out in these parts Ms. Zorah. You might want to check out the station, and there's a lovely little resort on the nearby planet, Risa, I think it's called."
"Hello Captain... Are you...asking me to permanently leave the ship?" Kirk felt like an ass as soon as the words were out of the woman's mouth. He hadn't meant it as such, but apparently she was more sensitive than he had originally thought as she looked torn between shouting and crying.
"Whoa, I didn't mean it that way in the least Tali. It's because of you and Scotty that we even know that we needed those repairs, and I thought you could use some shore leave like the rest of the crew is all." James was quick to reassure the quarian in front of him, glad to see that she was starting to calm down after he had said his piece.
"Oh...sorry. Thank you for offering, but would it be alright if I just stayed here for now? Your ship is absolutely incredible!" Kirk had to chuckle at her excitement since she oddly enough reminded him of a kid in a candy store in a way. Still, he was with Bones and Chapel in that she needed to get out and about, but at her own pace. He was however willing to give her a push if he felt it was needed, unlike the docs who wanted to take things one step at a time.
"I'll let ya explore the ship all you like, but you need to do me a favor in return Tali. I want you to check out the station, if not the planet itself, before we leave. I'm in agreement with the docs so if I push you out the door later, you'll know why." Jim couldn't help smiling as Tali nearly jumped with glee as he handed her the discarded breakfast tray she had forgotten about. "And just so we're clear, I won't step in if you don't start taking care of yourself and the docs get their hands on you. Eat, drink, and be merry already. That's an order Tali." Kirk had said the last part jokingly, but Tali seemed to take his words very seriously.
"Yes Captain! Whatever you say." She had a huge smile on her face but Jim still couldn't shake the feeling there was something he was missing. Maybe he'd ask Spock about it later. Oh crap!He had forgotten that his 'old pal' Spock wouldn't tell him anything about what he had 'seen' in Tali's head without her very clearly given permission, but Kirk left it alone since he didn't want to upset her more than she had been already. Besides, one look at her beaming face and Jim just didn't have it in him to ask.
Instead, he smirked and nodded his approval as she took a seat at the computer terminal she had originally left her food on and started to dig in. "Good to hear Ms. Zorah. I'll leave you to it since as surprising as it might be to some people, I actually do have a job to do around here, and it's one I actually like."
"Hey, wait a moment please!. I never got to ask before but aren't you a little young to be a captain?" Tali had once again abandoned her food in favor of curiosity. James had to shake his head at her but he let it go as he decided to give her at least something to mull over.
"It's a long story Ms. Zorah, maybe you can get Bo- Dr. McCoy to tell it to you sometime." With a wink Jim quickly headed for the bridge. Today had already gone badly enough, he didn't need Spock on his back for being late for alpha shift on top of everything else. Besides, he didn't want to start reminiscing about old times if it meant she didn't take care of herself during his storytelling by not doing something as simple as eating. Besides, it wasn't just his story to tell anyway.
Tali sighed but at least now she had a reason to talk to McCoy other than for any health concerns of hers. Finishing her breakfast which had actually tasted pretty good since it hadn't come in a tube for once, Tali sighed and wondered what she could do now. Maybe a shower would be good? An actual shower...there was something she hadn't considered since leaving the Flotilla once again. Despite what it stirred up to even think about the life she had been pulled out of, Tali was still able to smile even though she missed the Normandy and everyone there. She even missed that bosh'tet Cerberus cheerleader, Miranda Lawson, although she'd never admit that to the genetically modified woman.
Ten minutes later...
A certain helmsmen was glad to be back from the Risan botany symposium. It had definitely been fun, but it was good to be home. It was only when he turned the corner and got to his quarters that he realized something was amiss. What the hell, who put an airlock in my room? Good one Scotty... can't say I saw that one coming...Is that an EVA suit by the bathroom?
"Is someone in there?" The Enterprise had just docked about seven minutes ago and Sulu had wanted to unpack his few belongings he had taken with him before reporting for duty. Instead it seemed he was the last to be informed that someone had taken up residence in his old quarters. That in itself wasn't a big deal since a room was a room, but it'd have been nice to be told about it in advance.
He was about to leave to try to figure out where he'd be staying until whoever had been allowed to take over his former living area had since stepped out of the bathroom. It took his brain several long seconds to realize that the occupant hadn't even thought to put a robe on.
"Oh keelah..." Tali couldn't think of anything else to say as she quickly turned around and disappeared back into the bathroom, but she had to skid to a halt to grab her suit since in her rush to hide she had forgotten it on her first pass.
"Oh...I'm so sorry! I'll just..." An extremely embarrassed Sulu instantly started heading for the exit. "Sorry if I scared you, I'll just get out of here." Someone is going to pay for this...dearly. Before he could get far though, Tali had since returned, her dark cheeks still a shade of black that they hadn't ever been before, but at least she was dressed now as she called out to the man's back.
"Wait...I didn't know that this room was occupied, I should be the one be leave." She felt like such a stupid bosh'tet! She should have known that there would have been people returning to the ship if they were supposed to dock at a station, or starbase or whatever Kirk had called it! She was going to make him pay for this embarrassing situation! She forced herself to calm down though since it wasn't this young man's fault and he didn't deserve her rage at being put in such an embarrassing and compromising position.
"No, no... it's fine. Well, ah enjoy your stay aboard the Enterpriseum..." It was only then that he realized he didn't even know her name, and after another moment's thought, Sulu also realized he had never seen an alien like her before and he felt at a loss as to how to salvage this already awkward situation before it got any worse.
Tali quickly stuck her hand out, desperately trying to fix this awkward situation. "Please, call me Tali. I can't tell you how nice your crewmates have been to me since I...arrived on this ship."
Sulu gratefully shook her hand since anything was better than thinking about just how mortified he was right then. "It's very nice to meet you Tali, I only wish we could have met...well almost any other way actually." Just exactly how harsh that sounded hit Sulu like a sledgehammer. "Not that I'm saying you aren't attractive or anything!" Hanging his head in shame, Sulu decided it was best to get out of the room as fast as possible at this point. "I'm just gonna stop talking now and leave you alone."
Tali had to put a hand over her mouth to stifle her laughter since it felt better than being embarrassed as much as he obviously was. "It's alright, and you never told me your name. Isn't it customary for humans to at least introduce yourself before departing? You have my name after all."
"It's Hikaru Sulu." He quickly said over his shoulder, getting away from the room as fast as his legs could carry him. Well that definitely covers the 'seeking out new life' part of the ship's motto.He was going to have a very long talk with James Kirk about this, but despite his bad mood born of such abject embarrassment on both of their parts, Sulu couldn't help but smile a little since Tali was definitely unique and that made her interesting. Even if she wasn't of a species he hadn't seen before, there was something about her that intrigued the young officer to no end.
"Hey Sulu, good to see you again. Hey... you didn't happen to see a girl running around on this deck in an EVA suit did you? Most likely staring at everything and anything?" Only then did Leonard notice the strange look and the still disappearing blush on Sulu's face. It made the doctor quite puzzled since he hadn't expected much could throw the helmsman off.
"If you mean the grey skinned young woman that was...taking a shower when I blundered into-" Before Sulu could say another word, McCoy had thrown him against a wall. The sudden assault left him unprepared and unable to come up with a proper defense, and since he was very skilled in close quarters combat, specifically fencing, Sulu wouldn't have had much trouble if not for the surprise still making him slow on the said, Sulu didn't have a death wish and wasn't about to fight with the doctor in any case. "I mean...what woman?"
"You just stay right there...I'll be right back." Before McCoy could go anywhere however, he turned around and saw Tali standing in the hallway, looking upset, at him rather than Sulu. No, not upset if the ice cold glare from her metallic blue grey eyes was anything to go by. "I...uh..." He was understandably struck speechless since he hadn't expected this at all.
"Let. Him. Go." McCoy didn't hesitate to follow Tali's very explicit yet simple order as he let Sulu go before listening to what his patient had to say. "Mr. Sulu apparently was using my current quarters before I arrived here. I don't blame him for thinking they were still his. It was an embarrassing, but honest mistake. I appreciate your concern, but I'm not as fragile as I was when I first got here, so I'd appreciate it greatly if you backed off. Now."
Leonard quickly backed away from the now thoroughly confused Sulu. "I ah... I might have overreacted just a little kid, sorry. Welcome back. As you can probably tell, you missed a few things lately." That was the understatement of the century but it was the truth. Sulu had a lot of questions, and he had a feeling some of them would be hard to swallow.
"I take it that Tali is still under your care Doc?" Trying to help McCoy save some face, Sulu turned to the young quarian. "Well I can tell you one thing for sure Tali, you couldn't ask for a better doctor. Our CMO here is one of Starfleet's finest." Sulu gave Bones a parting slap on the shoulder as he headed for the quartermaster's office, it'd be nice to have somewhereto at least get some rest before his next shift. Not to mention finding out where his stuff went now that he was out of a room.
Tali meanwhile had since calmed and despite her still ingrained fear of every breath potentially making her sick, she still found it in her to pull McCoy into an awkward hug given the EVA suit she still wore. "I really do appreciate your concern since very few people have ever stood up for me."
"Um... I'm sure Christine would kill me for mentioning this but, you know you don't have to wear the suit right? I mean without the helmet, it's kinda pointless darlin'."
"Oh keelah, I completely forgot. I must have left it on the bridge yesterday." After thinking about it for a second though, Tali gasped as she realized something else. "Uh...I never thought about this before but...are there any clothing stores onboard the station? I...don't have anything else but this suit to my name. Not that I'm complaining, but if you could maybe loan me some credits or whatever you use for-"
"Don't go worrying now Tali since I don't spend a damn cred, well except child support. Nevermind, the point is I have plenty of credits saved up, and we're going to get you some decent clothing to wear. But um, Chapel might have a better eye for that than me."
"Would... would it be possible for both of you to go with me? I know, I'm being silly. I shouldn't be afraid of a simple space station, but...when you've spent as long as I have with a layer of clothing severing you from the world around you..." She caught herself wringing her hands which was a clear sign she was nervous and rambling again, but she couldn't help herself.
McCoy gently put his hands on her shoulders before the girl could continue. "You got it Tali, just say when. Besides, Christine's always on my ass to get off the ship once in awhile anyway." He couldn't help the small and gentle smile that formed on his face, especially when he remembered the many times Christine had threatened to push him out the airlock if it meant him getting off the ship before he grew older than dirt.
"Um...would now be a good time? I don't want to bother either of you if you're busy..." Seeing the hopeful look in her eyes, there wasn't a snowball's chance in Hell that Leonard could say no to Tali.
"One second." Bones walked over to a nearby wall console. "McCoy to Captain Kirk, mind if I take my newest patient off the ship for a while? I'm thinking Nurse Chapel will probably be joining us and-" He never got the chance to finish as Jim cheerfully replied over the comms.
"Stop talking Bones and get your ass off my ship already. Oh, permission granted, return to the ship in a timely fashion etc. etc. Have to sound official sometime right?" Bones rolled his eyes as he turned back to Tali who was barely able to suppress her laughter at Jim's constant disregard for protocol and procedure. Despite this, she grew serious a moment later.
"Does he ever take his job as captain seriously?" Tali found the young captain to be incredibly odd and confusing. To a quarian there was no position with more respect or dignity than that of a ship's captain. This Kirk seemed to treat it like one big game. Even Shepard was usually more serious, usually.
To Tali's surprise, McCoy nodded since James could take his position quite seriously when it mattered. "He might not seem like it Tali, but Jim, as he likes to be called when he's not acting as the captain, is the side of him that treats everything like one big game. When it matters though, when the situation calls for propriety and a strong leader, James T. Kirk is the side of him that comes to the front. That's the side I sometimes wish was present more than it is, but on the other hand he wouldn't be who he is if that was the case. It's the mixture of the two that makes him both so easy to follow as well as makes him such a damned annoyance."
So she just hadn't seen the more serious side of him then? Tali found it a little confusing to consider that there was more than one side to Kirk as McCoy said, but maybe she just hadn't known him long enough to see the same thing that these people did? "Just out of curiosity, what does the T stand for?" She had needed to change the subject since she had a lot on her mind as it were anyway.
"Total-pain-in-the-ass." Leonard felt a damn smile coming on as Tali giggled loudly. "Yeah laugh it up, I'm a doctor, not a comedian. Let's go find Chapel so we can get you something to wear that doesn't remind me of how deadly space is." Tali couldn't help but giggle again as they made their way back to the sick bay.
"Are you sure you're not a comedian? You certainly have a talent for it." McCoy could only shake his head at his temporary charge while she walked over to Chapel. "Nurse Chapel, would you care to go shopping with us, I mean if you have the time-"
Chapel quickly held up her hand to silence Tali. "Okay two things, one; call me Christine from now on Tali. And two; you had me at 'shopping', of course I'd like to come with you." Christine quickly told the other medical personnel where she and McCoy were headed, and to contact them immediately if anything important came up.
Twenty minutes later...
"Do you have room for one more?" Uhura asked as she caught up with Christine, McCoy, and Tali before they got to the airlock that was against the Enterprise's hull.
"By all means, please come with us! I could use another woman's fashion opinion anyway. Tali here is going to be getting herself a decent wardrobe." As Christine spoke McCoy did his best not to outwardly cringe at the idea of being stuck clothes shopping with three women for god knew how long.
As if reading his mind, Uhura smirked at McCoy before speaking once again. "Most guys wouldn't mind having three women on their arm." She could only grin a little wider when McCoy fell for the trap she had set for him. He couldn't have refused in any way without sounding rude to at least one of them.
"Why, I'd be happy to escort you fine ladies today!" The words were out of McCoy's mouth before he could snatch them back. Oh God! Why did I say that?! I hate clothes shopping! The instant Tali actually wrapped a bare right hand around McCoy's left though, he forgot all about his dislike of shopping. She looked nervous as hell, but one look at her face told Bones that she was happy he had agreed to come along.
"Tali...are you sure you want to do this?" Uhura asked, having lost all trace of her humor a moment ago given that she could just as easily see how nervous the young woman was. "I'm sure we could find something for you on the ship, if this is too much for you right now." Spock must have been wearing off on her since she was able to note the minor details. The slightly sped up breathing, the small bit of sweat on her forehead, and a few other such hints on top of the minute tremble in Tali's body that said she was afraid. Spock didn't want to talk about it...and maybe it was just as well if she's this nervous just standing by the airlock like this...
"I...have to do this. If I don't try now...I'll never do it. Facing one's fears...that was something Shepard did a lot and encouraged others to do. I never would have made it this far otherwise." Tali took a steadying breath and Christine wasn't the only one that was a little surprised when the quarian pressed the button to open the door in front of them.
Chapel wanted to cheer, cry, and hug the girl to death at the same time, but she limited herself to a subtle smile. Uhura was also surprised, and pleasantly so since she had a little bit of an idea of what this meant thanks to what Spock hadn't said a word about. To everyone else he was closed off, but to her, he shared everything but not this time. For him to not do so, it must have been something big, of course the incident on the bridge told her that much as well. The small grin on Bones' face was all he gave away as they started walking along the umbilical to the station itself.
Tali was mesmerized, not just by the further evidence of tech that was beyond her wildest dreams, but by the various other sentient beings who inhabited this strange new reality. Just in the docking section alone she saw more races than had ever been discovered in her universe. Some that looked like Mr. Spock, others with blue skin and odd antenna like limbs sticking out of their heads, and many many more she couldn't begin to classify. She couldn't help blushing as a green skinned woman with jet black hair, clearly a Starfleet officer as well, gave her the most curious and alluring look Tali had ever gotten in her life, well besides from Shepard anyway, but that was another matter entirely.
"Why hello... I don't believe I have seen anyone from such a...beautiful species as your's before. What's your name honey?" Tali was tongue tied and couldn't begin to get her mouth to work, but thankfully she didn't have to as Uhura, Christine, and Leonard stood between her and the woman in front of her a moment later.
"Not interested. That's her name, now go find some fun elsewhere, Ensign." Uhura glared at the orion woman in front of their small group, clearly unhappy about where this might have wound up if Tali had been alone. "Besides, don't you have somewhere to be, preferably before I report you for sexual harassment?"
How Uhura had survived living in a dorm room with an orion before she became an officer on the Enterprise was beyond her at that moment. Gaila had had a literal parade of men and women coming and going through their room, and she had tried to reign in the girl's hormones, to little success. But even Gaila had had far more class than to hit on an obviously young and highly nervous alien girl. Uhura couldn't help but feel her heart break a little more since she was never able to see Gaila again after the Battle of Vulcan.
She had died along with thousands of other Starfleet crew members on the six ships that had gone up against Nero's vessel. An entire planet had been lost as well, Spock's planet, and it still gave him nightmares although he was slowly getting better. His race was slowly recovering, but the loss would always remain, as it would always remain for Uhura and everyone else that had been affected by the tragedy. Thankfully the orion had wandered off when it became apparent she wasn't going to get lucky here and now.
"Thank you...I just felt so pulled to her... Lt. Uhura, are you alright?" Tali instantly noticed the distant look in Uhura's eyes as she watched the beautiful alien officer slowly walk away.
"Let's...find somewhere quiet to talk, Tali." Uhura managed to say, earning a quiet nod from Chapel and McCoy since they knew all too well what was going through the woman's head since they had been a part of it in some capacity, same as everyone else onboard the Enterprise. She had since gotten the impression that Tali wouldn't budge until she had some answers as to why she looked so bothered. Uhura had never met anyone quite like Tali; not just because she was from a new and interesting species, but because of her intensely caring and perhaps overly curious nature as well. That wasn't a bad thing in the least in Uhura's opinion though, it just made Tali all the more easy to be around.
McCoy and Chapel had suddenly decided that was the perfect moment to go get them all a snack as Uhura found a nearby artificial garden filled with lush greenery, fountains, and benches. A slight grin broke the frown on her face as Uhura realized Tali had gently grabbed onto her arm, not out of panic but out of concern for her. "I've been in war before, Uhura, and if the look on your face is anything to go by, I'd say you have as well. What happened?" She asked gently, hoping to maybe help the communications officer in any way that she could. "You all have done so much for me, it's only fair I try to return the favor."
"Thank you...normally I wouldn't have brought something like this up, but seeing that officer who was flirting with you earlier...she happened to remind me of someone I lost fairly recently." Uhura couldn't help feeling slightly embarrassed as tears started to flow down her cheeks. "Her name was Gaila, and she was my roommate at the Academy..."
Forty-five Minutes Later...
McCoy and Chapel had returned about thirty minutes ago, but had stood off in the distance to let Tali and Uhura talk amongst themselves. "Leave them be, this is good for both of them." Chapel didn't have to be told since she had a similar thought, just McCoy had said it before she could was all.
"I heard the Captain was thinking of assigning Tali in Engineering, maybe we should add Councilor to her job skills as well..." Chapel was impressed by the young woman's ability to calm those around her, as well as provide a patient ear like she had with Nyota. Seeing them on the park bench like they were gave her and McCoy hope for Uhura, and Tali especially. "Once she's had a proper chance to settle in with the crew, I think I'll bring up the idea with her and captain Kirk. On second thought...you might have to talk to Jim. I might hurt him." Chapel smirked and McCoy had to shake his head at his assistant's mostly humorous comment.
McCoy cocked his head to the side, interested in the possibility since it seemed plausible, especially watching the two talk as they were. "Not a bad idea Christine, not a bad idea at all. Now, I hate to be the hard ass here, but aren't we here to get the poor girl some necessities, like clothes for instance? You damn well know she's going to want to get back to Engineering sooner rather than later, so I figure the clock's ticking." McCoy was grinning a little but Chapel knew he wasn't entirely joking either since he was right, as much as she hated to admit it.
"Since when do clocks tick anymore Leonard? Okay, let's go break up their lovely conversation shall we?" Chapel replied, leading the way towards the two who were still locked in deep conversation. It wasn't as depressing as it had been earlier as they heard a heartfelt laugh from both of them before they got close.
"And Joker looks up at EDI's projector and wipes grease on it and then says, 'Not so nosey now are you?' I swear those two could have been married." Tali and Uhura, McCoy and Chapel noticed, had big grins on their faces when they finally got by their side again.
"And all that over her 'joke' about his extranet viewing habits?" Uhura looked up as the medical duo quickly approached them. "Oh...what am I doing?! We're here for you and here I'm wasting all your time!" Uhura felt stupid for having taken so much of their time up with her own problems, but Tali didn't get a chance to tell her it was perfectly okay before Chapel spoke up first.
"It's fine Uhura, you two looked like you needed the time alone." Chapel said, shaking her head as a warm smile formed on her face in an attempt to silently reassure Uhura it truly was alright.
"Please don't worry about it Nyota, I really liked just getting to relax and talk with someone for a while, it was nice." Tali urgently added since sitting in the beautiful park and having a long conversation had made her feel much more at ease with her new surroundings.
McCoy felt a slight pang of jealousy since Jim wasn't the only one that couldn't address Uhura by her first name. Most people didn't get the honor of knowing it to begin with, but almost an hour with Tali and Nyota was allowing her to say it? Still, it showed how much of an impression she had had on the young woman, which was a good thing in McCoy's opinion.
The four of them quickly headed towards the market sections of the starbase in an effort to make up for some lost time. Tali meanwhile had much to think about from what Uhura had told her while they made their way to the market. Time travel was not something that had ever been accomplished in her universe, yet it seemed that somehow, they had managed it in this one. At least, they would, maybe, figure it out but with the time stream changed, who knew if it would happen? Didn't really matter in the end she supposed, but the fact remained that it had been possible. The fact someone had used it as a weapon was terrifying in a way that even the Reapers hadn't managed to be.
She hadn't mentioned any of her own war to Uhura, figuring she had enough on her mind as it were, but if she ever asked, Tali would tell her whatever she wanted to know. It'd do her some good as well most likely since even before her shift in realities, Tali had had many nightmares about the Collectors and what they were doing to the human colonies, as well as her battle against Saren and Sovereign. She hadn't had any trouble lately because Tali hadn't allowed herself time to think about it, but she knew eventually she would go back to those dark places.
She pushed it into the back of her mind for now, needing to get her shopping done before she did anything else and quickly dashed into the nearest clothing store she saw. A few minutes later the three officers were doing their utmost not to laugh at one particular set of 'clothes' Tali had tried on. Considering there was far too much red lace and not much else, it didn't leave much to the imagination. She did cut an attractive figure, but that wasn't the point.
McCoy leaned over to Chapel and Uhura, quietly whispering to them. "I ain't gonna be the one to tell her, so I'll let you two decide how to break it to her."
Uhura gave an irritated huff, before rolling her eyes at the man. "I'll do it, you big wimp." Racking her brain for the kindest way to do this, Nyota tipped Tali's shoulder. "Um... sorry to interrupt, but ah..."
"It's lingerie? I know. I just...wanted to know what it felt like..." Tali blushed since it probably sounded stupid to Uhura, but to her it was a first time experience to have anything on besides her environmental suit. Well, technically Chapel's borrowed clothing was her real first, but that didn't necessarily count in Tali's opinion. The clothes weren't hers. "This is a...big step for me Nyota, you can't begin to imagine what it's like to never be able to feel anything, smell anything, even feel the sun on your face your whole life and then suddenly someone gives you the power to do so."
Uhura knew she'd never understand, truly understand what what must be going through Tali's head but she got the idea well enough. "I'm not against the idea of you experimenting Tali, but uh...maybe you should wear something like this back on the ship without prying eyes to worry about?" Tali hadn't thought of that in her eagerness to test her new gift of being able to live outside her suit.
"Sorry...you're right. I'll uh...be right back." Uhura glared at McCoy as Tali went back into the changing room and quickly switched back into Chapel's borrowed clothing, the other 'outfit' folded up neatly in her arms.
Between Tali's overly kind words and the less than subtle attire she'd been wearing, McCoy felt a blush coming on and instantly averted his gaze. Thank Christ Jim wasn't here to see this, I'd never have heard the end of it. Oh no... Ah Hell!
McCoy internally cringed as Tali went to the front desk and paid for the lacy affair she had tried on. It was the doctor's turn to glare at Uhura since he had hoped that she'd have talked Tali out of buying it altogether, but that didn't happen. Nyota just grinned a little since McCoy had put her in the uncomfortable position of trying to gently break it to Tali that she was probably scaring him half to death with the outfit she had tried on. McCoy couldn't help feeling a little protective of her since if he was being honest with himself she was already like a daughter to him. Perhaps his fatherly instinct was all the stronger because of his inability to see his own nine year old daughter, Joanna, a victim of his bitter divorce from his controlling ex-wife. Whatever the case, he was glad that she had put the outfit away in the bag the store owner had handed to her.
To McCoy's great relief that store was quickly abandoned in favor of a more practical clothing vendor. As much as he'd liked at maintain his reputation as a usually irritating man with a less than outstanding bedside manner, Leonard couldn't keep a constant grin off his face. Seeing Tali getting to enjoy some of the simplest things in life, as well as the incredible effect she had on Uhura and Chapel, made him content in a way he hadn't felt in years. Damn...I'm letting all this get to me.. I should really stop grinning like a stupid idiot already
His thoughts were interrupted when Nyota practically demanded that Tali let her pay for a elegant looking dark purple colored dress the quarian had been eying. Not to be outdone, Chapel insisted on buying a few items for Tali also. It didn't take long for Leonard to realize he was going to be the odd-man-out, literally and metaphorically. While Tali was insisting that she had repay Nyota by teaching her Khelish, the quarian language, McCoy desperately looked everywhere around him for a quick gift.
"Uh, um... here!" McCoy grabbed at the nearest t-shirt he could get his hands on, which might not have been the greatest idea as Tali unfolded it to find it boldly declared, 'Starfleet Engineers Are Warped People', in giant white letters. Aw crap...maybe I can fix this. "Just kidding, here let me get you something nice." Tali instantly jerked the shirt away from him as he tried to snatch it back.
"I...love this!" Leonard's embarrassment disappeared at the huge smile on Tali's face. Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea after all?McCoy rubbed the back of his head and couldn't help but grin a little as well at his unintentional success. "That's so funny Leon- I mean Dr. McCoy."
"Just call him Bones, or better yet, Bonehead, that's what I do." Chapel chuckled from behind McCoy, earning a playful glare from the doctor in question while Uhura and Tali had to fight a little hard not to laugh at the man's embarrassment.
"Ya got it right the first time. I just got you a corny t-shirt Tali, so you are officially allowed to call me Leonard." Leonard replied, smiling at the goofy grin that was on the quarian's face. Whatever the case might have been, McCoy knew that he would never make Tali upset if he could help it.
"Just don't call him Leo, he absolutely hates that right Bonehead?" Chapel burst out into laughter at McCoy's undignified glare. "What? I'm just giving her fair warning Leo."
"My ex-wife used to call me that Chapel. Usually when she was pissed off. I'm a doctor, not a slave, or so I used to tell her all the time." McCoy almost jumped out of his skin when he distracted himself by looking at some of the other shirts. Jesus H. Christ! Good thing I didn't grab the 'Engineers Do It Faster Than Light' one! So caught up in the shirt he had found, he didn't know that Chapel and Tali both looked a little upset at their earlier behavior at his expense, especially with Chapel's reminder of his divorce.
"You never said...sorry I brought it up Leonard." Chapel could have kicked herself right then. While she had gotten to know McCoy quite well, he had never shared why he hated that particular nickname so intensely with her, until a few seconds ago anyway.
"Yeah well, don't worry about it Christine. It's been years now, I've gotten over it." The fact that the three women saw that McCoy still wore a wedding band begged to differ with his statement. Even Tali knew its meaning, having studied certain romantic human rituals and customs, but the small smile on McCoy's face did set them at ease since it seemed he was on his way to getting over his ex, if nothing else.
Thirty Minutes Later...
They had just gotten back to the docking area, a now truly exhausted McCoy trailing behind the still very cheery women, when Tali stopped in her tracks. Uhura was the first to realize why as she looked toward the sign Tali was staring at, 'Risa Resort Transport Shuttle 651 Now Arriving.' "Tali? Maybe we should take this a little slower. A starbase is one thing; it's contained, the air is re-filtered every which way, and the lights are artificial. Maybe next time?"
"Keelah... what's wrong with me?! My whole life I dreamed of doing something like..." Chapel instantly put her hands on Tali's shoulders, her now sobbing form shaking badly. McCoy and Uhura could only watch as Tali was pulled into a hug by Chapel before she silently beckoned them to help her calm the young quarian down. McCoy noticed as Uhura walked away a few steps and pulled out her communicator as he walked over to Tali and Chapel. He could have sworn he heard the tell tale noise of someone beaming outside the airlock a moment later.
Not surprised at all, Leonard silently thanked him when Scotty came walking out of the station side airlock less than a minute later. "Ah! There ya are lass. You try to buy half the station already Tali?" He grinned at her as he rapidly walked over. "Well, it's great to have found you so quickly, seems we have a wee bit of a problem with the ongoing repairs to the Enterprise, and I thought you might like to assist me." Tali forgot about her earlier woes as well as all about the several bags of clothes and personal items as she hugged Scotty tightly against her. "Um... You're...welcome! There you have it, always so much excitement going on." The four of them quickly grabbed Tali's forgotten shopping spree after she stopped squeezing the life out of Scotty and shot off back towards the ship.
Chapel and McCoy didn't dare give Scotty and Uhura more than the subtlest of nods as they ran just to keep up with Tali. McCoy wasn't complaining since he had long since decided that he preferred Tali smiling and happy rather than crying her eyes out as she had been a moment ago. He didn't particularly care if Jim and Scotty had to find some more 'damage' to be repaired if it made Tali as happy as she was now.
The Bridge
"Captain... the complexity of human pranks still eludes me. How exactly is it that a secondary fusion generator control panel and one of our hydro turbines suddenly and inexplicably 'went on the fritz' as Chief Engineer Scot has reported to have happened?"
"Oh... that's easy Spock. Because I ordered him to tell you that. I'm sort of scared of your girlfriend, let's just leave it at that shall we?" Seeing the determined look on Kirk's face, Spock took the most logical approach for this situation, and ignored the matter entirely. He had learned long ago that James was excessively odd even for a human and it was a better idea just to let some things go.
Main Engineering
Five minutes later.
"Did someone purposely sabotage this control panel?" Scotty quickly looked away before Tali could see the blush on his cheeks. "Scotty...did you have something to do with this? There's coffee all over the control panel...and is this a piece of gum holding these circuits together?! Scotty!" The Scotsman had since tried to sneak off but Tali had him by his arm before he got five steps away, pulling him close so their eyes were level with the each other.
"It wasn't ma idea, I swear! Talk to Kirk lass." Scotty was shocked that such a wee gentle lass was so incredibly strong, and very angry it seemed as she snapped Scott's communicator from his belt.
"Tali'Zorah to Captain Kirk, respond please." She didn't sound happy at all, and Scotty didn't have to look at her face to see that much since his arm was still a little tender from her grab a moment ago.
Kirk's surprised voice emitted from the device a moment later. "Hi Tali... how's it going? Sorry to have to send Scotty and cut your shore le-"
"You bosh'tet! Did you order Mr. Scott to purposely damage equipment so I could help 'fix' it?"
The Bridge
Kirk instantly knew he was in trouble, but he had an ace of his own up his sleeve since Uhura had already told him as well as Scotty what had been going on. "I...might have said it would give ya something to distract you from how upset..." Oh crap, how did I walk into that trap?! Wait... huh... that might get me out of this... Kirk's voice suddenly became stern, a rarity for him. "Actually, I don't believe that is a very proper way to speak to your captain, Crewman Tali'Zorah...vas Enterprise."
"Well I don't give a crap what you... wait... what did you say?" Tali's jaw dropped in shock, surely she must have heard that wrong. Scotty could only smile from behind his new assistant's back since he already knew the happy news.
"I said... Crewman... that you should have a little more respect for your captain." At this point Kirk was almost tearing up from trying to hold back his laughter. Tali's next words wiped the smirk off of his face.
"Don't push your luck captain.Where I come from someone that tells one of their crew members to damage their own ship is put on trial for treason. For a quarian, that is a fate worse than death since they can never return home again." What Kirk wasn't aware of was that Tali was having to bite her tongue from squealing with glee at her new position onboard the Enterprise.
"Geez Tali, chill out and be happy for once. I hereby order you to enjoy the rest of your day, so go get greasy with Scotty or something. Wait...that came out all wrong." Tali's belly deep laughter from his chair's intercom was enough for Kirk to forget how bad that last comment had sounded. He could only grin as he responded. "Was that so hard Crewman Tali? Enjoy your time with us, you more than deserve it. It won't be easy, you'll need to catch up on the rest of our technology, but you're smarter than the average cadet by a long shot, you'll be fine."
"Thank you, captain." Tali's sincerity was impossible to miss over the comm line, and Scotty had a front row seat to a similar facial expression the young mechanic's face. He was almost just as happy for their newest member as McCoy would be he was sure. "I won't let you down. Keelah se'lai. Um...I'll have to explain that one later."
Spock had heard that last bit and looked to James as if he was ready to faint as his mind meld with Tali hit him like a solar storm. By the home world I hope to see someday.It was an unfortunate side effect from a mind meld of such intensity as Tali's had been with Spock. Reminders like that simple phrase would bring those memories rushing to the surface and blast through whatever mental defenses he had in place to prevent such a thing. "I need to go down to Engineering, captain. I find...that I'm emotionally compromised once again, and the only way to correct it is if Crewman Zorah allows me to talk with her about the memories we have shared."
"I don't pretend to understand how that mind meld affected either of you Spock. If you think it will help, permission to leave the bridge Commander. Just keep Bones and I updated, alright?" Kirk wasn't going to take any chances with his XO's or brand new Crewman's health, mental or otherwise, and if it did help he was more than willing to let Spock have some time off.
Main Engineering.
Two minutes later.
Tali jolted as she stood up from under a console that needed some maintenance, to find Commander Spock standing behind her. "Could we speak for a moment, Crewman Zorah? I wish to discuss the mind meld I performed on you, I fear it has had...greater side effects than expected."
Tali had wanted to tear Spock a new induction port for what she had been forced into, but one look at his face told her that he was troubled. Being a quarian amongst only her race during her younger years had taught Tali how to read another's body language, otherwise she might have missed the slight hints of how deeply affected Spock truly was. She didn't know nearly enough about vulcans to understand what it meant for Spock to ask for anything like this, but she got the impression it wasn't easy all the same. "Alright. Chief Engineer Scott? Permission to leave my post?"
Scott had looked up from a nearby console and simply waved her off. "Ack! Don't be treatin' me so proper lass, makes me feel old." He didn't have to ask her to explain her need to leave so quickly after being officially assigned to him. Spock never came down to Engineering, that was explanation enough for him.
"Um... is that a yes Chief Eng-"
"Yes! Yes, go, go on, shoo!" When Tali cocked her head in further confusion, he sighed. "You. Are. Relieved. Crewman, permission granted." I'll nay be able to put up with this for long...
Tali was getting the hint that Scotty wasn't much for proprietary either, just like the Captain, and she felt a little foolish for having to make him spell it out for her. "Uh...thanks. Alright, we can...go." Her cheeks were black once again as Spock raised an eyebrow at Tali and Scott's interaction. As they walked to a nearby office, Tali muttered to herself. "Humans are so confusing sometimes..."
Spock's excellent hearing caught her quiet statement. "I am as equally perplexed by their actions as well." Tali gasped in shock since she hadn't meant for that to be heard. But she felt a little better about her current situation since it seemed they had something in common. "Human pranks and their complexity for example, escape me entirely."
"Their humor escapes you? Maybe you should try chasing after it." Tali couldn't help a small smile from forming on her face as she tried a simple joke on Spock. His response reminded her of Legion, their resident geth.
"How would one... ah, that was a joke, was it not? I still do not see the 'humor' in chasing after a non physical entity such as an idea."
"Oh Keelah... EDI had a better sense of humor, and she was the Normandy'sonboard A.I." Tali wanted to facepalm herself since this was giving her a major sense of deja vu, and not exactly in a good way either. After she had gotten past her fear of the geth...after she had gotten past her fear of Legion, she had had many talks with the machine, most of them very enlightening on both of their parts, but humor had utterly escaped it...him. The fact she was thinking about that particular platform as a person was something else entirely.
"I am not sure if that qualifies as an insult or another joke... perhaps both?"
Tali noticed a couple chairs and moved to sit down before stopping Spock short. "Um...Commander could we sit down for this chat you wanted to have?"
Spock raised a curious eyebrow. "At ease Crewman, please sit." He remained standing until he caught onto the fact he was supposed to sit down as well. Uhura would have found the slight twitch in his cheeks cute, as he sat down a moment later, feeling slightly embarrassed for being a little slow on the uptake. "If you would allow me, I wish to speak of the memories which we have shared."
"Why?" Tali had a feeling she wasn't going to like where this was going, especially after she remembered that the first painful memory Spock had brought to the surface was the recent death of her father.
"I have been...distracted from my duties as of late, and I find the only logical way to deal with what we shared is to talk about it. As I would never speak of your personal memories to anyone else without your explicit permission, I find myself in need of your assistance or your permission, if not both."
That caught Tali by surprise since she hadn't expected anything like this. "I...hadn't realized it would have such a profound effect on you as well. Wait...I remember now, you didn't just observe those memories, did you? Keelah...you experienced them as well? I can understand why they bothered you so much if that's the case. Where do you...want to start?" Some of her memories, especially those involving her father, would not be easy to talk about, but maybe...it would help both of them if they did?
"Logically, I believe we should start at the beginning Ms. Zorah. I sense your discomfort, please do not feel obligated to share any information you do not wish to."
"It's alright... I'll tell you whatever you want to know. The beginning, well I'll start with my childhood then..."
Three days later...
She had settled into a comforting routine since being assigned to Chief Engineer Scott. For anyone else it wasn't a big deal, but for Tali, experimenting with clothing was a bit of a big deal for her since the highly sensitive nerves in her skin weren't ready for certain fabrics just yet. Needless to say, she wasn't looking forward to laundry day for that same reason. The standard uniform was out of the question since whatever fabric the outfit had been made from irritated her skin badly. Nearly to the point that by the time her first shift had been over, she might have been in sick bay from it if she had worn it for any longer. McCoy had not been happy with her for insisting on wearing it, to say the least. After she had apologized to Scott the first time she had been officially out of uniform, he had ordered her, begged her actually, to wear whatever she felt like. Apparently, Scotty was allergic to death threats from Chapel. Since then, she had been quite happy with her attire.
That first day though, she was glad no one had figured out how close she had been to passing out from the standard uniform, otherwise Chapel might have physically harmed Scotty when Tali found out about it later that day. Whatever the case, it usually took her an hour to settle on a comfortable and appropriate outfit in the mornings before she even got cleaned up for the day. Thankfully she had always been an early riser so she always had plenty of time to go through her new morning routine.
Breakfast always followed of course, especially after McCoy threatened her with being intravenously fed if that was what it took to make her eat rather than spend her mornings reading up on their technology when she wasn't working. And if she wasn't working, she was supposed to be taking it easy since McCoy had made it pretty clear that he'd sedate her if he suspected she was working herself to death. Chapel just happened to check on her a couple times a day, wherever she might be. Tali had started making a game of it with the nurse by finding reasons to work in harder to get to places. Even Spock made it a habit of challenging her to a daily game of three-dimensional chess, most likely with the same intent as McCoy and Chapel's concern for her health. As much as she appreciated their concern, it was starting to get a little annoying. She wasn't a child after all, they didn't have to babysit her.
In the afternoons she had lunch with Uhura, Sulu, and either Chapel, McCoy, or sometimes even James when his duties as captain didn't keep him too busy. She greatly enjoyed lunch since she and Uhura had become very good friends since that first day on Risa's starbase. Unfortunately Chekov hadn't gotten a chance to meet their newest member yet, but as soon as they were able to meet up, he had promised in a nicely worded message to her private terminal that he planned to do just that. Tali had sent a reply back and had said she looked forward to it. That aside, usually after lunch Uhura made it a point to learn more about her language, and Tali was more than happy to teach her since she was very good at picking up the pronunciations necessary to speak Khelish.
By the time her shifts ended, well it was more like Scotty having to kick her out of Engineering lest he face an angry McCoy and Chapel's wrath, she would have a quiet dinner while reading over a stack of datapads that were rich with technical specs for everything she could get her hands on as well as the physics necessary to allow them to work. Element zero fueled drive cores were diesel engines compared to what these people possessed. It required a far greater education than Tali had initially possessed to completely understand it all, but she was quickly catching up. A month, maybe two tops and she'd be on their level she was sure.
After dinner she sometimes managed to find Spock for more trips down memory lane, but she had given him permission to speak with only two people about what they had shared. One of them was Uhura since she had since gotten into the habit of talking about her past experiences with the woman anyway, and the other was James but Tali had made sure that Spock only shared the more military related issues with the captain. The Reapers and the threat they posed for instance was at the top of her concerns. Even if they were in another reality altogether, he deserved to know since for all she knew, there could be something like them in this one.
Two Days Later...
The Enterprise's repairs were nearly complete and Jim had shuffled around their upcoming missions to allow the crew a little extra shore leave. Which was fortunate for one Ensign Chekov, Pavel Andreivich. He was practically running to transporter room two for some much needed R & R only to find that their new crew member was talking to one of the transporter operators. "Oh, Ms. Zorah. Learning about our beaming technology are ve?" His genial smile put Tali at ease as she felt her cheeks start to turn a shade darker. "I think you vill find it quite fascinating, it is an amazing inwention."
"It's incredible! But... Ensign Chekov... doesn't it scare you, just a little bit? I mean, being disassembled at a subatomic level before being put back together an instant later somewhere else?" Pavel caught Tali's shiver of fear as she stared at the transporter pads. It certainly gave him something to consider if nothing else since now that he bothered to think about it, Chekov could see where it would be a bit startling.
"I had never considered it before Ms. Zorah. It's just something I'm used to, same as you were used to wearing an environmental suit I guess." He confidently stepped up onto one of the pads and held his hand out to her. "Here, vould you like to come vith me down to the planet? I'm told it's an extremely beautiful place."
Normally Tali wouldn't have considered going planet-side so soon, but she had been doing a lot of things she hadn't considered she'd ever do before. Besides, who knew when she'd get the chance to visit a planet again? It was now or never, just as it had been with the starbase a few days ago. "And you're sure this is perfectly safe? Nothing... bad will happen if I use this device?" Tali reached out with a shaking hand as Chekov helped her up.
"You vill be perfectly alright, I promise you...are you ready?" Chekov nodded to the operator. "Energize."
Two seconds too late, Tali realized that the transfer had already happened as she shouted. "Oh Keelah! I'm not crazy enough to do this! Wait...we're not on the ship?" Chekov was biting his tongue as he stood next to her in the middle of one of Risa's resort complexes, a large white sandy beach not a stone's throw away. More specifically, they were located on the grounds of one of Risa's best vacation spots for Starfleet officers, or so the reviews had said anyway. "Is that a beach?"
Chekov had heard most of the stories pertaining to Tali's previous non-existent immune system and how she had lived most of her life in an environmental suit, but he hadn't been prepared for her mixture of emotional responses. Fear came first, but that was quickly replaced by the exhilaration of actually standing on a planet without having to suck in air through filters, let alone being able to feel wind and the surf against her skin and through her hair. She couldn't have been happier after she pushed back that initial fear of the unknown as Tali's grey blue eyes shone with just how truly happy she was. "You have...no idea what you've given me."
Pavel quickly spotted a bunch of flowers nearby and picked one. "I heard a few things before now about you Ms. Zorah, but you're right, I really don't and I probably never vill. Still, seeing you so happy gives me another good idea. Here." Chekov gently handed Tali the blue wild flower he had picked, and he was glad to have talked her into coming just to see the look on her face when she inhaled it's fragrance.
"Thank you... I can never repay you for this..." Everyone on the Enterprise had been doing so much for her. She'd never be able to repay them all appropriately, but Tali was bound determined to try. Even as tears of joy started to fall from her eyes, she still had an enormous smile on her face.
"Vell...would you be interested in hearing the many great contributions of the Russian people to humanity? The others are alvays, vell they're not wery interested when I mention that." Tali could only laugh as she wiped her eyes on the sleeve of her shirt as she beckoned Chekov towards the beach. If they were going to talk, she wanted to feel the sand between her toes and the sea breeze on her face. "Vould you like some sun block?" Tali looked at the cream Chekov was liberally applying on his skin from a bottle and just shook her head with a gleaming smile. Chekov had the funny feeling that she'd enjoy getting sun-burnt as well as he followed Tali and plopped down on the sand next her without needing to be asked twice. Could quarians even get sunburns? He guessed they'd find out one way or the other.
Archer83: Well that was a little longer than I figured it'd be. Once we get started it's hard to stop! Well, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, Vergil and I wanted to go for a nice mix of humor and drama. I think we managed to pull it off, while trying to keep everyone in character at the same time.
Vergil1998 the Crossover King: Guess that's another chapter down at last. :D
Envirosuit: Argumentatively: Long chapter, more enjoyment for the readers.
Vergil: Not if they're like the readers I had for my Final Calibur before I stopped trying to update it. 16k was far too much for them apparently. And apparently we have an Elcor in the cast. Great, as if my day wasn't weird enough. :P
Archer83: Oh great Enviro thinks he's an elcor now...
Envirosuit: Condescendingly: You did compare me to one. Both of you. It fits.
Vergil: Where do you get these crazies Archer? First we had an orion try to hit on Tali, and now this. Joking aside, before we have anyone trying to chase us down with pitchforks and flaming torches, we know that orion normally can't affect women the same way they do men. We figured to...tweak them a little bit for this lol.
Envirosuit: Sarcastically: I'd just love to meet an orion...
Vergil: You might want to check up on their data first before you say that. Men become their slaves through the use of their pheromones while women are normally repelled by the same. Orion males have the reverse effect as far as I was able to figure out anyway. For this though we have it to where that they can pick and choose who they want to draw in and who they want to keep at bay.
Archer83: Totally worth it...
Envirosuit: Sarcastically: Agreed.
Vergil: Ah hell, I have to go with it too, lol. My luck it'd be the only way I'd get laid anyway. :P
Envirosuit: Truthfully: The truth hurts.
Vergil; Yes, yes it does. Well, that's all folks. Hope you enjoyed this!