Posted by Commander Roman Alden (First Officer & Chief Science Officer) in side - sim: Honoring the Ardent

Posted by Ensign Rand Farquharson (Yeoman First Class) in side - sim: Honoring the Ardent

Posted by Commander Roman Alden (First Officer & Chief Science Officer) in side - sim: Honoring the Ardent
Posted by… suppressed (2) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)
Roman followed her pace whenever she stopped to walk. His leg caused no problems until near the end of the run, and even then it did not really hurt, but he could tell it was tired. When she slowed he saw she was smiling and he smiled too. “So did I.” He was not hungry, but he wasn’t going to turn down a little more time with her, so he nodded. “Let me get a quick shower out of the way first, then we’ll go”

~ Roman

Rand nodded and disappeared I to her quarters. Rand appeared in the corridor in a fresh crisp gold uniform, polished black knee high boots, communicator on her belt, key rods in her pocket, and a perfectly twisted and pinned bun. Sharp quick steps carried her across to her office where she collected her PaDD. Today would not be easy, but now that she was more awake she was sure they would get through it, somehow.

Roman came out of his own quarters, still tugging one of his sleeves down a little. His damp hair was perfectly combed, his blue uniform spotless as always. His own uniformed boots, a practical men’s ankle boot, were shiny and spotless as well. He stood with perfect posture, and to most, whatever he was feeling would be impossible to tell from his face. Rand had learned how to read his expressions.

Roman in his uniform never failed to strike her. He was crisp and neatly put together no matter what was going on. Rand tried for the same; for her it was like donning armor against life. Breakfast offerings in the galley was a full selection. And as much as she hated being around people, the extra time with Roman made her smile.

Rand

Roman took her hand as they headed down to the galley, only letting go when it came time to take a tray and fill it with breakfast foods. He picked a few small things, and then chose a seat with her. They still had nearly an hour before Rand would have to go to start her shift, plenty of time for their breakfast.

~ Roman

Rand wasn’t cold, but Roman’s hand was pleasently warm wrapped around hers, and gave her butterflies in her stomach. She didn’t think too much about people noticing anymore. Roman never asked he just took her hand, not that she expected him to. She imagined it was his way of silently telling her not to worry about what others might see or think. In truth Roman probably didn’t think about it at all, and that was reassuring on its own.

She selected an omelet because eggs as a food choice were rare. Chef usually reserved fresh eggs for ingredients. She ate quietly, enjoying his company, and then asked, “Have you ever fished?”

Rand

Roman didn’t think about it much, he just liked to hold her hand. It was a small show of affection that wasn’t unprofessional and was comforting to both of them. And everyone already knew so there was no sense denying themselves that small comfort in the effort to hide things.

He did not pick the eggs, better to leave them for someone who’d enjoy them more if he wasn’t really hungry. He ate quietly for a while and then gave her a confused expression. “Fished?” It just seemed a bit of a random question. Then he nodded and then shrugged. “Once. I wasn’t a fan. It’s not good for the fish”

~ Roman

Rand saw the confusion, she tended to do that to him. She had ideas and kind of blurted them out of no where. Well she did put thought to it, but her ideas came from a totally different perspective. She grinned a little at him. “Yes it’s cruel and dreadful as a sport. I was thinking about the lures though. They are designed to trick the fish into thinking their are insects landing on the water. I was wondering if something similar might entertain Mushu. On a spring wire so it bobbed and weaved about the enclosure for him to chase. Minus the hook of course. He would have to be trained not to eat it though.”

Rand

Roman smiled. “I think he’d like it. We could make it out of something that won’t harm him if he does eat it, just in case.” He thought about it another minute and then added, “I’m sure it could be made with things we have in the lab. Scott wouldn’t mind doing it.” Scott, though she was not a biologist, did like the animals. She was almost always willing to do things like that for them.

~ Roman

Rand nodded. That was true. Scott adored the animals and often complained to Rand that Roman wouldn’t most her or the other scientists get attached. Or at least strongly encouraged them not to. “She’s very creative that way and she will likely enjoy coming up with a solution.” Rand was apparently in a mood to talk about ‘work’. She completely enjoyed discussing the animals with Roman and never thought of it as work. It was a shared interest and she imagined she would enjoy discussing it with him when she was old and grey. “Do you have, well of course you do, but could you get me the environmental information for Nibbles’ natural habitat? She is hording food, almost like a squirl or chipmunk would. I know the lab’s environment stays pretty consistent, but I was wondering if she was trying to ‘prep for winter’s as it were.”

They talked for awhile and then Rand had to leave for her rounds. She hoped that Roman would be able to concentrate on his work. Maybe the prospect of helping Mushy would keep him busy. At 0700 she appeared, with tea and sat down to work. His usual reports. It wasn’t until those were finished that she produced the data disks like he had told her to do. But on top of them were the reports, recommendations, and accompanying research she had worked on all night. She was used to speaking softly as they worked, out of politeness to not disturb the others. “I took the liberty to do some preliminary suplimental research.” She wanted to tell him not to read it, just sign, but she wasn’t sure she understood the topics enough to leave it all up to her.

Projects that had been assigned to stellar-cartography, astrophysics and astronavigation had all been completed by other ships now, that had flown through those sectors. Recommendations to give credit for initial findings were drafted. Other projects from mechanical sciences, chemistry, and a few others had had their theories proved wrong or superceeded by newer proofs. But it seemed the initial work done on the Ardent had influenced the newer work. Recommendations for publishing, under the original research, post mortem, were written. That still left 8 projects, including Roman’s own, that Rand didn’t have the background or experience to do anything with.

Rand