Posted by Lieutenant Commander Janusz Korczak (Counselor) in The Holodeck. Personal fitness program.

Posted by Cadet Catt Beñnet (Scientist) in The Holodeck. Personal fitness program.

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Janusz Korczak (Counselor) in The Holodeck. Personal fitness program.
Posted by… suppressed (12) by the Post Ghost! 👻
(Snip)

The program set up she streached while she waited for her time to start. Once again getting strange looks from passing crew. That she pretended didn’t make her feel self concious. There was a chime the door to the holodeck slid open and Catt piroetted into the room. She had a hope that by dancing her way in she might distract whoever was inside from scolding her for being rude. Ballet wasn’t really something Caitzns had embraced. She had of course never been to Czit. And she had only a childs understanding that of her own species customs. A small cat dancing ballet cause the two men with tennis rackets to laugh rather than vacrate the holodeck. She did her best to ignore them as she danced. They just stood there the entire time as she danced watching her. It wasn’t exactly ballet as her movements were not scripted but rather she used ballet moves and poses to follow the music in her own interpretation.
She was young and limber, more flexable and more graceful than most humans but admittedly she was a four foot tall feline not a tall human woman and she suspected she looked rediculous.
It wasn’t till the music ended and she stopped dancing that she noticed she had not ordered the holodeck door to close. Some crew had stopped to watch and a small crowd vhad gathered. Her ears blushed bright pink and she slid into a curtsey to the audiance. And straightened up again. Wishing the audiance that had formed was not blocking the exit so she could flee. There was silence. For a full minute as the crowd absorbed the fact that the performance was over. Catt had never danced before an audiance so had no idea what to expect.

Cadet Catt Bennet. Sciences .

A slow clapping began from the back, just a single individual. Slowly, the gathered crew followed suit and began applauding. After a few moments they began to trickle away, going about their various routines and duties after the pause to see something not the norm, until just a single individual remained… the one that had apparently started the ripple effect of clapping.

The ship’s Counselor, Lieutenant Commander Korczak.

To say their previous engagement had not gone terribly smooth would have been an understatement. But yet here he stood, all unremarkable and plain figure that he was, with a slight smile on his face.

“Very impressive, Cadet. I was pleasantly surprised to see you in such a public display. But you are quite a good dancer, if I may so. Such movement and grace is not a strong point for me, but I do enjoy a well-done performance of the dancing art. Well done, indeed.” he said in a friendly tone, the slight smile not leaving his features.

Korczak, CNS

Catt watched the crowd disperse with relief. She had a warm glow in her heart from the applause. But she was still feeling shy. As the councelor stepped forward and spoke she closed the distance between them. “It wasn’t meant to be public. I have had some issues with people overstaying their holodeck time so I burst in when their time was up and started dancing. I expected them to leave actually and I forgot to shut the arch so....”, she had of course been studying the floor as she said this. But she looked up into his face as she finished. “Once I got to earth. I couldn’t trust anyone. To many years of fighting to eat. Fighting to avoid ending up as a meal. So. Fighting to survive in a slave pen. i am sorry I alarmed you. I don’t function as well as I wish when feeling trapped.”,
Catt said quietlly shyly.
“Dance was one of the exercises I took up to keep up my activity level. It allows me to relax and expend energy. Every movement is a phraise in a conversation of pure body language. Caitans are good at linguistics.”, she was aware she was again talking to much. What was it about the councellor that made her so on edge.
She smiled, and let pent up tension relax. “Arch close.” , she said and skipped away from him to dance a few movements. Faster more aggresive poses a cat on the hunt. The joy of success, the frenzy of hunger sated. It led into wariness the hunter hunted. Flight, fear and captivity. Desperation submission and dejection. Release. Gratitude , rejection. The poses became lost and Disconected but led into purpose renewed, hope and dedication. She stopped dancing then and panted. Holding the last pose for a half minute then curtseyed.

She was hot and sweaty now. And released excess heat by panting hard. She knew she had danced her life story for him. The universe was a sea of emotions for a Caitan. She hoped he understood. She hoped their common language was dance. Her childlike frame and lack of mane likely made the more adult themie of submission hard to understand. She was adult but she looked like a 12 year old. She started to plan out a dance that might explain that but it dawned on her that he might misinterpret that as a overature she easn’t prepared physically or mentally to allows to happen.

Cadet Catt Bennet. Sciences

OOC: Nice posting and characterization. A small piece of info is you don’t really need to have a thread title down as a side sim. In general anything that does not say ‘Main Sim’ or some kind of check-in is regarded as a side sim, so mostly we tend to prefer to keep the thread title to the ‘Location : Activity’ format, so your first post title was perfect.

-Dave

(Bump)

OOC: Noted. I had thought to flag it such as it’s not temporally parallel to the away team main sim. But pointing that out was likely not required. This bump is to fix the title
And keep it current for thr CNS. Also practicing snipping.

Korczak watched intently as the Cadet danced, and when she was done, nodded in acknowledgement and understanding. “Your propensity for self-reflection during dance is quite impressive, Cadet. I would imagine the engagement of mind and body in such fashion to be at least somewhat cathartic. Is that the case?” he asked, but his tone was more of curiosity than of analysis. It was as if he had shut off being the Counselor and was now simply engaging her in conversation.

Korczak, CNS

Catt smiled and stepped near to him. “You need to smile more often. I couldn’t read your body language. It was driving me crazy.”, and she offered a hand to him. “If you ever need to interview another Caitan. They will try to interpret your body language as well as what you say. They can’t help it.”, she shifted her weight to one foot and sighed , “My own body language makes other Caitans uncomfortable as well. So I avoid them. But you don’t need to. You can just relax and everything is fine for you.”, and again bright eyed attentive ears and a sweet smile her tail lifted but still. She didn’t hold the pose long but giggled at herself. “Part of why I took up dance was to master using body language better. ” she admitted.

Cadet Catt Bennet. Sciences

Korczak nodded slightly and said “People trying to interpret my body language and facial expressions is exactly why I don’t smile and such during sessions, Cadet. I can’t have those coming to me be so focused on saying ‘the right thing’ that they fail to be honest. ” in his odd and strangely-cadenced accent. “All though I can see as to how that may have made tings difficult for you during our first interaction. If that is so, I do apologize.” and then he looked at her intently for a moment. “But it is good to see that you have allowed yourself to release some of the stress you came on board with. You are doing quite well, if I may so.”

Korczak, CNS

Catt nodded and ordered up a bohemian cafe from the holodeck. It came with a sparce population and a poet in a corner reciting ltrical stanzas of a type forgotten as fast as they were uttered. The clientel looked to be academy upperclassmen trying to impress each other with a false air of sophistication.
“Can I get you a tea sir?” And she then uttered a few commands to change her wardrobe to better fit the environment. A simple knee length skirt a blouse and a vest.
“Of course the simulation doesn’t react to how your dressed but I used to pretend to be part of the program. At the Academy the engineering class built the sim in holodeck 7 as a experiment to see how long it would run before developing noticable flaws. It ran for 3 years nonstop. I was reported as a flaw hundreds of times. The lead engineer was really annoyed when he shut the program down and I was still there. I wrote my social engineering paper on my prank.”, and she smiled as she sat in a overstuffed chair.
“They forgot to factor in people toying with the program for their own amusement.”
Cadet Catt Bennet. Sciences.

Taking a seat across from Bennet and ordered a black currant and lemon tea. Once it arrived, he took a sip. “It is good to see you becoming comfortable aboard. I will be honest. I was quite concerned when you first arrived. But I am pleased that that concern was invalidated. You have done well.”

Korczak, CNS

Ordered a cup of beef broth and took a sip. “Soup is likely the best thing that Alien cultures have given the Caitan people.”, she said in a amused tone.
“While one of the factors that the academy tests for is the ability to fit in socially.” She aid, ” I will admit to not being as social as is expected of a Caitan. “
And she flicked an ear and looked into her tea. “The shuttle ride had me trapped in a runabout for a week with a gentleman who thought he was a gift to the females of the galaxy.” ,and she preened in a I am so hot type of mannerism, “I unlike every Caitan ever born. Do not like being touched, pet, or flattered.”, and she sighed “it’s a problem that keeps occuring.”, and she met the CNS’s eyes again, “it’s particularly bad when I meet other Caitans. But I had barily slept. And had to rush onto the Challenger. Look my best and present myself to physical and mental probing.”, she took a swallow of her broth and let herself breath. “I was focused a bit to strongly on my failings at that time.”
“Also I look like everyones little sister. So I was trying to act tough.” And she made a scratching motion with a hand while making a kittenish growl. “I seem to do that when scared. I was meeting people who would ultimately decide my life. Starfleet or a forced marriage to a male who could only hate me for being unable to give him children. Even marriages for political gain are supposed to bear children. My aunt, ordered me home to marry. So I have a lot to lose if I fail.”, she shrugged and flicked an ear.
“My aunt is not happy. But she also refused to care when I was returned to the Federation. It may be childish of me. But I am not helping her at the cost of my own happiness.”,
Catt looked at the CNS a bit unsure how he would react. “Janusz”, she said quietly unsre using his name was proper even in this informal setting. “I was scared. I should of trusted you. I am deeply sorry I didn’t.”,

Cadet Catt Bennet. Sciences

Korczak smiled slightly and said “It is pronounced ‘Yah-nooz’. Don’t fret. Polish names are problematic for humans. I have yet to find any other species that gets it correct on their first try. Except for Klingons, oddly enough. Every one I have met… spot on the first time around.” and he took a sip of his tea. Setting the cup and saucer down on the table, he looked at Bennet and said “My role here is not one many find easy to deal with. You not trusting me is not at all insulting, nor unexpected… nor rare. What I am pleased to note is that you have come out of the framework of your past and managed to begin to become your own being, not a bodily representation of past traumas. And I do not see any reason why that progress will halt going forward. You do dwell on your past a great deal. But even that will slowly diminish over time. I would imagine that should I speak with you in the years to come, you will manage an entire conversation without a single mention or thought of your trials before. That, Ms. Bennet, is when you will truly be free. It will take time. But as you succeed in your field and your career, your confidence will build. And you will see, as I do now, that you are much more than a product of a toxic environment or what you think now is a poor excuse for a Caitan. You are you, and that is enough.”

Korczak, CNS

“Yah!-nooz, YAH-nooz. It does have a Klingon ring to it. But I would of never guessed you were of Polish lineage. Every Polish person I ever met has a last name that started with a Z or Zed if you prefer. Zeleskey, Zarbatani, Zmrotchev, and simular. But I can hardly claim to have met a large sample either. ” , she waves the server over and ordered biscotti and flicked a ear, “I hope you like Biscotti. I find them fascinating but can’t actually eat them. I know all replicated foods are basically the same. But I still find grain based foods unsettle me.” , and she smiled, “Ones past is the foundation of who they are. But I’m not sure That’s completely true. A lot of effort was made to create a safe environment once I was returned to the Federation. A great deal of posative reenforcement. Being out on my own has made me rediscover some realities. But I face them as they come and don’t allow them to influence who I want to be.”, and she looked over at the poet reciting away. “The program is quite clever actually. He never repeats a verse nor does he quote any published poetry that I am familiar with. Nothing is particularly good but maintains a consistant easily forgettable mediocrity. So he does his job perfectly.”, and she looked back to see if the CNS was trying the Biscotti.

Cadet Catt Bennet. Sciences.

Korzcak shook his head. “Apologies, but I have never been a fan of biscotti. I suppose I was a bit spoiled growing up, as my mother is an exceedingly good cook and baker. My father as well. And he makes a biscotti that is simply superb. And even that one I do not particularly enjoy. But please, order something you can partake of. My appetite is a bit… well… regulated. I only eat two meals a day and very rarely do I snack.”

Korczak, CNS

Flicked an ear and her whiskers angled forward. “A shame then.” and calling the waiter over she inztructed him to give them to the poet with the poets beverage of choice.
“My adopted Father would be disapointed. He always believed that food and drink were part of the social contract we all live by. You provided food last time we talked so I am under obligation to provide hospitality is a like manner. My own diet is not really something I can share with others. Which makes meal time less posible. Beside given some enduring stereotypes..” and she broke off with a amused snort. “I talk to much.”,

Cadet Catt Bennet. Sciences.

Korczak shrugged slightly. “I had a roommate in university. An Antican. His preferred meal was meat. Raw. Bloody. Sometimes even alive.” and a rare and dry chuckle escaped his lips. “Many colleagues were put off by that. I found it fine. We eat what we eat. I am sure some of the fare served in my home would not be what others would consider… pleasant. But I do so enjoy a home cooked meal.”

Korczak, CNS

Catt leaned back and cocked her head her ears twitched a bit her tail moving with the slow sway of a cat stalking, “So if I invite you to dinner you would not object? Purrhaps with a few friends? Who would you suggest? Also when is a good time for you?”, and she smiled then frowned and looked thoughtful. “It dawns on me Janusz, that we have spent a fair bit of time here. I enjoy talking with you. But, well… I have a habit of causing trouble for males. I look younger than I am so male friends tend to be seen by others as being perverted. In truth I do not think the rumor mill will ever be kind.”, and she sighed. “So perhaps dinner is a bad idea. Even with chaparones.”, and she closed her eyes a moment. Then her demeaner changed, “Would you like to see me dance one more time before we go?” She practically chirped. “Or perhaos a waltz. As while you proffess to be unskilled You do carry yourself with dignity and grace. A quiet grace perhaps. Sometimes the best times of our lives are when we allow the shell we hide ourselves from others to drop.”

Cadet Catt Bennet. Sciences.

Korczak looked at Bennet for a long few moments. “I would find a dinner to be quite pleasant. Thank you for the invitation, Cadet. As far as the ‘rumor mill’ goes, I doubt that anyone who knows me will find anything to gossip about. I can assure you my social circle is both small and not prone to rash judgments based on any appearance. Nor would they think that there was anything… askew… with such an engagement. I am free most evenings, but I can adjust around your work schedule.” and he stood up. “But I really must decline the offer of the dance. I have several duties to attend to.” and he extended his hand in a somewhat formal, but still friendly, handshake. “Thank you for your candor, Cadet. I am looking forward to seeing what you do once you depart our fine vessel. I’m am certain it will be most spectacular.”

Korczak, CNS

Catt smiled, ” I am not worried about your friends.”, and she took the hand and held tight, “Nor do I fear that you would be inappropiate. In actuality.” , and she stood up. “One thing is very Caitan of me Janusz. I crush over at least three people a day. I am pleased to have actually been able to do so while talking to that person.”, and she slipped in close if allowed and quickly hugged him. But even if blocked she says, ” The holodeck is a place to indulge whims. Thank you for being whimsical with me. But friends or not . We enter the corridor and the wall of formality is renewed. Have a pleasent day sir.”, and she courtseys, and says, “Computer end program and exit.”, the cafe fades, reality sets in and once more in the rainbow leotard she exits. Tail held high.

Cadet Catt Bennet. Sciences.