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

(snip)

She felt some of the tension leave him as he relaxed. Rand grinned in the dark and rotated her wrist so her palm touched his and she could hold his hand in return. “Ach, tis a good thing I was a wild fae child then.” Roman always got this look when her accent got more noticeable. She couldn’t really describe it, but she thought it meant he liked it. Usually, it happened when she was relaxed and comfortable (which she was around him), or really exhausted. The later applied but right now it was deliberate, making fun of herself, trying to make him smile. “A poor one I was too. In fact I dinnae ever manage ta truly enchant a furry animal much less a man. I was a sore disappointment ta Queen Titania.” Rand was simply being silly, for his benefit, and had no idea it came out flirtatiously. If she had, she would have been far too self conscious to have actually said such a thing.

Rand

Roman was giving her that look again, both because he loved her accent and because what she’d said was fairly flirtatious. He turned in her arms so he was facing her and smiled. “Well, you enchanted me, did you not?” He said, slipping his arms around her. He did not need to play up his accent, it was naturally quite strong and very obviously English. It was nearly pitch dark in his room, and he could only just barely make out her face, so he hoped she could see his expression - a playful smile.

~ Roman

If Rand hadn’t been so tired, she would have realized what she’d started a bit quicker. But when Roman turned to face her, there was that hint of low laughter in his voice that told her he was both teasing and flirting with her. She loved his accent, a fact that if she admitted to Randy would cause her to be subject to some overly dramatic shock and disbelief. “I did?” That was a heady thought. He slipped his arms around her and she settled in close to him. The ambient light from the chronometer allowed her to see his face more clearly than he could see hers. The smile on his face made her blush, but a teasing smile appeared on her face. “Really? I thought Elizabeth bewitched Darcy, not enchanted him?”

Rand

“Is there a meaningful difference?” She was blushing, he was pretty sure, though he couldn’t see her face well enough to be certain. She was settled in close to him and he hugged her, tight, as if he thought he might lose her and he loved her too much for that. “Enchanted or bewitched whichever I am I can hope it never wears off, if that were even possible,” he said after a moment of silence.

~ Roman

Rand shook her head no to his question. She didn’t think there was a difference, she was just trying to keep the mood light and help him relax. But then he was holding her, tightly. Roman always held her firmly, securely, made her feel calm and safe. This was different. This was like the time Pipkin startled them by banging her cage, or when they had thought something had happened at the Valentine’s dance. It had made her feel safe and protected by there had been an edge of fear to it. She held him tighter, pressing her face into his neck. It was a beautiful sentiment and made her smile softly. “I love you, too. Always.” Sometimes it surprised her how much, but it didn’t worry her or make her nervous, it just made her feel better. After several silent moments, he was still holding tightly onto her. She tipped her head back, trying to search his face in the dark. “Roman…what is it?”

Rand

That fear was ever present for Roman, in the back of his mind, always. As if something might out of the blue take her away from him. He’d spoken to Randy briefly about it, after the valentine’s dance, but he hadn’t made any progress with it. She held him tighter when she said she loved him and he kept his grip tight, holding her to him. After several quiet minutes she pulled away ever so slightly and looked up at him. He couldn’t think of an explanation that made any logical sense. There was no immediate threat. Rand would’ve noticed that any time the ship experienced spacial turbulence, or if the ship shook for any other reason, Roman gripped whatever was closest to him and tensed. But their flight, presently, was smooth. There were no loud noises, and no one except the two of them there. But perhaps because he’d just been dreaming of losing Jay again, the thought wouldn’t leave his mind. Finally he said, “I just… love you so much I can’t imagine losing you.” It sounded… Cheesy at the least, and Roman mentally face palmed. Couldn’t he have thought of something as smooth as he normally was?

~ Roman

Given that she knew what he was going through the words didn’t sound cheesy at all. She could follow the line of thinking even if she couldn’t fully understand what he was going through. Rand hadn’t really noticed the way he gripped the nearest thing. Well she did, everyone grabbed something to steady their balance when the ship shook some. The thing was that on duty, Rand was so busy running from place to place and with her duties for Rogers she didn’t see Roman on duty often. Except in the early morning, when she helped prep reports and at lunch. She noticed, but hadn’t connected the two until that moment. She leaned back into him.

She wanted to tell him he wasn’t going to loose her, to reassure him, but life was too unpredictable, they were exploring unknown space. She had no way to guaranteed that, and Roman knew that. Rand could only think of one thing to say, and she felt the truth of it etched deep in her heart, but she wasn’t sure if Roman would understand the quote or not. But it was deeply personal and etched in sad memories for her, reminding her of her very last performance. But she never felt the truth of it more than she did right now. “Death cannot stop true love. All it can do is delay it for a while.” She kissed him gently. “I will never willingly choose to be away from you.”

Rand (Quote from The Princess Bride)