Posted by Lieutenant Commander Natasha Knight (Chief Medical Officer) in Twas the night before Christmas - What happens on the bridge does not stay on the bridge - Natasha and Dante

Posted by Captain Dante Knight (Commanding Officer) in Twas the night before Christmas - What happens on the bridge does not stay on the bridge - Natasha and Dante

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Natasha Knight (Chief Medical Officer) in Twas the night before Christmas - What happens on the bridge does not stay on the bridge - Natasha and Dante
Posted by… suppressed (2) by the Post Ghost! 👻
Natasha moved around the quarters putting the last few things under the tree and generally just puttering around. As the Captian, Dante had to set a good example. Everyone wanted Christmas off except for the few species of crew that did not celebrate the day. Since they were all on the same ship, Dante always ran the holidays with a skeleton crew. A simple flip of the red alert button would bring everyone running in an emergency but someone still needed to man the helm. Dante had stayed with her and Oscar until their son drifted off to sleep but then went to cover the graveyard shift on the bridge. It was not the first time Natasha had let her mind wander back to when they were younger and just took the entire month to spend the holiday without any added responsibility. As she made her way around their quarters, she picked up an image of her and Dante from their time at the academy.

She ran her fingers over the image and smiled. They might be twenty years older, but the sentiment between them was strong as ever. Adjusting a bow on the gift for the tenth time, she looked over at the kitchen table debating if she should go to bed or wait for Dante to come back home. Without Oscar, she would have stayed up all night but Christmas with kids was very different than Christmas as a couple. Kids wanted things and were far more persistent in getting their needs met even at seven in the morning. Moving to the table, she picked up her drink and the PaDD sitting there. She would give it another hour and clean up some of her work which had piled up to an almost overwhelming level. Opening the first chart, she took one look at the results and threw the PaDD down. Glancing at the bedrooms, Natasha stood up and headed to the door. It was a ship. What could possibly go wrong?

As she reached the turbo, impatience began to creep into her psyche. Tapping her hands on her thighs she almost willed for the turbo to move faster. As the doors slipped open, Natasha turned her body sideways squishing through them as they opened. This caused her to stumble onto the bridge as if she was pushed bodily from the turbo.

The sound of the turbo-lift door slipping open in the quiet of the Bridge on a graveyard shift during Christmas Eve made the entire Bridge Crew, including Dante, turn at their stations to see who was breaking the monotony. The hour of jokes and Christmas gags had long since past into quiet reflection as many of them, including Dante, scanned the extranet in search of last minute gifts that could be purchased from IFEA via gift-voucher. Seeing Nat coming onto the Bridge in a rush made him push himself out of his chair though and frown slightly. “Nat, are you ok?” Having her leave their quarters and join him here was unusual these days, and he was immediately slightly on edge.

“Dante,” she said trying to find her feet as she moved towards his form in the Captain’s seat. Ignoring everyone else on the bridge, Natasha jumped into his arms as if she were the wild cat cadet he met years earlier. “To quote Kelly…You slipped the puck past the goalie,” she laughed and kissed him as if the impromptu display of affection was not being witnessed by the entire crew.

Natasha Knight.

Falling back into his chair under her weight, Dante let out a slight grunt but returned the kiss, for about three seconds before pulling back and tilting his head slightly either side to indicate they were not alone, but he was grinning.

“‘Tasia, Kelly uses that phrase broadly for a bunch of different ways. Remember her first date with Rick? Yeah? So you are going to have to be a little more specific.” Then, he lowered his voice. “Cause we aren’t exactly back in Russia hiding in the hay barn trying to avoid Babushka anymore.” Looking her straight in the eyes, he waggled both eyebrows which lead to snickers from the Bridge crew that were able to see his face.

Dante Knight

“Oh there is gonna be no hiding the fact we were in the haybarn in about three months,” she joked standing up. “Okay so you only get one shot at this.” Turning so that he could see her profile she asked. “Do I look fat to you?”

Natasha Knight

“Baby, you know I am never, ever going to answer that question with a yes even if you were the size of one of my Runabouts.” Grinning, Dante shook his head in the negative. “Even if you were pregnant I’d still never answer that trap with the Y word.” Reaching out, Dante took her hand and pulled her back down onto his lap no longer caring about anyone watching. It was Graveyard on Christmas Eve after all and everyone here was a volunteer, all of them had made a sacrifice so others could enjoy the night with their families.

“So tell me, why in three months would people know..” his voice trailed off and his mouth hung open as he stared at her, then down at her belly.

Looking back up at her, he still hadn’t closed his mouth. “Oh my god, really? Again?” Once the words had left his lips, Dante broke into a massive smile as he waited for Natasha to answer.

Dante Knight

“Again,” she let out a laugh. “Not wow we did it or oh my god I am so happy but really and again.” While her words might not impart it, the look she was giving Dante spoke volumes about how much she adored his humor. He might be the best damn captain in Starfleet but right now he was not taking down an enemy or brokering a diplomatic treaty. He was some ordinary guy that just had a bomb dropped on him that he was struggling to process. Leaning forward she rubbed her nose on his in a playful eskimo kiss. “Now that the shock is worn off how about we try this again. Dante…guess what,” she looked at him barely able to contain her smile.

“Really?” was the very next word out of his mouth. “You want me to guess again? Uh huh, nope. That horse has sailed and the goalie already missed the duck.” For a second, Dante’s face went blank and he looked at her, trying to work out what he was saying. “I mean what you know, Wildcat.”

Pulling her in closer to him he kissed her again and looked at her, speaking quietly. “Guess what? I am so happy honey, and I love you.”

As the Captain and his wife completely ignored that they were not alone on the ship, the helmsman leaned slightly to his right. “Oh my god, Fred. You know what this means right?” The look on his face was serious with a hint of concern.

“Babushka will be coming back,” Fred said in a lower tone as he looked over his shoulder as if the mere mention of the woman’s name would cause the woman to appear like an apparition.

“Who’s Babushka,” the science officer said in a low tone in a rhetorical manner. “She is like the boogeyman and comes for at least three months before the cap tosses her off. She has this big cane. Thunk…thunk…thunk....I tell you it is like an omen when you hear her coming and when you do, you should run.”

Natasha Knight.

Dante pulled back and looked at Nat for a minute, then bit his lip in consideration. The two Officers conversation hadn’t been as quiet as they thought. “She is coming back isn’t she.?”

“Baby, hear me out okay. You think we can go hide in Romulan territory for nine months? Surely she can’t find us if we go hide out there, right?” While he kept his face dead serious and the relationship between Dante and Natasha’s Babushka was well known, his affection for the old Russian battlewagon was also never in doubt.

Dante Knight