Posted by Lieutenant Junior Grade Rand Farquharson (Yeoman First Class) in Gym- Saturday Night Fever (Open to all)

Posted by Commander Roman Alden (First Officer & Chief Science Officer) in Gym- Saturday Night Fever (Open to all)

Posted by Lieutenant Junior Grade Randal Farquharson (Jack of all Trades) in Gym- Saturday Night Fever (Open to all)
Posted by… suppressed (8) by the Post Ghost! 👻

Morale was a tricky thing and her own confidence here had been had had its shaky moments. Rand’s suggestion that she simply put out a call to people if she wanted a dance night seemed simple, but Leah had a fear she had never had before in her life: what if no one showed up? How sad and pathetic would that be?

But then she took a page out of her own therapist notebook and reframed it: if no one showed up, she would have one hell of a practice session after not having danced properly in awhile. And you know what? She was good with that.

So after some organizing with the galley, Leah put out the invitation on the ship’s internal network:

---

To: ALL CREW
From: Lieutenant (j.g) Hart, Leah (PhD, NP)

Re: Dance Party- Gym- Saturday night

---

Hey folks,

I love to go out dancing and find myself missing it. Come on out to the gym after 2000 hours and we’ll have the place set up for a little party. There will be beverages and small bites. We’ll play a variety of music depending on who attends and what people like. Come have fun and be social. You don’t even have to dance if you don’t want to. There will be conversation as well.

~Leah

---

Saturday night rolled around and Leah had the gym equipment tucked away and replaced with a couple tables along one wall for the food and drinks, plus a couple smaller tables with chairs in one corner in case people needed to sit for a bit. The gym could only fit 40 people in this set-up and that was more than planty in Leah’s mind. She didn’t need tons of people, but just enough to not feel alone here in her fun.

She had donned her favourite fitted green satin halter top that twisted in the front across her chest and was made of this awesome fabric that breathed amazingly well despite the shiny finish. She had a flouncy skirt that was black on top and white on the underside with an asymmetrical hem so it ended mid thigh on her left side and swept down to her shin on her right. There was a ruffle on the hem that meant when she moved you could see the different colour underneath. She completed this with gold high heeled sandals with a good heel base for dancing, and her hair was up in a high ponytail exposing the large gold hoops she wore. Dark makeup accented her eyes and accentuated a pale gold lipstick and dark mascara.

At 1955 the first attendees arrived and she had the music already going with an electronic dance selection. The lights were dimmed but not dark and she had brought in some bright coloured lanterns to cast some glow in spots. She twirled and gestured for people to come on in. She recognized one of her fellow nurses, and an engineer NCO. Leah flashed them a grin as they joined the fun, even as they chuckled at her antics. Someone had to get the party started and it might as well be her!

~Leah Hart, NP

Karl entered the gym and smiled widely at the changes, he’d never been much for dancing but he loved few things more than socialising. He wore simple dark slacks and a dark blue shirt and held an unmarked green bottle. He moved to the drinks table and placed the bottle down and grabbed a drink, greeting a few of his engineers with his usual warm smile.

Karl

Leah spied the new attendee and recognized the CE, even though they had not met. She had made it a priority to review the files of the senior staff, and so he was known to her in that way. However, the bottle made her brows like and her grin widen. She danced her way over, moving as if she had been born dancing (which wasn’t too far from reality). “Ohhh, you brought some fun to the party. What did you bring?” she asked.

~Leah Hart, NP

“The water of life, Aqua Vitae” Karl said with a smile then laughed “Brennivín from my hometown, burning wine if you will. Nordic spiced schnapps, chilled.” He spoke fondly of the alcohol “This was a gift from a cousin when I left Earth last time, just shy of 40%. Nice on its own but traditionally taken with fermented shark” He made an exaggerated look of disgust “We don’t hunt sharks anymore but someone managed to figure out how to synthesize the protein sequence for it, bastard”

“I might skip the shark, at least tonight, but you have me very much intrigued. You’ll have to pour me a glass.” Hart held out her hand. “I’m Leah, host of this evening.”

Karl shook her hand enthusiastically “Karl, Chief Grease Monkey” He said with a wide grin and started removing the wax seal from the bottle.

“It’s great to meet you, Karl,” Leah said with genuine enthusiasm.

Rende wasn’t sure she was really feeling up to dancing much, or that she should subject the crew to seeing that. However, she had encouraged Leah to promote and arrange social activities, so she was at least going to show up. Maybe, just maybe she’d meet a certain someone there who would make it an exceptional evening. She dressed in a pair of dark capri pants, tight snuggly below her knees and a sleeveless button down in deep burgundy. Her hair was loose rather than the tight bun or braid she used to keep her hair out of her way while on duty.

Rende entered the gym and scanned the area and then made her way toward the refreshment table to get a drink. She spoke to each person she passed, as long as they weren’t otherwise engaged. She knew them all. That was one thing that Rende had had Rand help her with. Reviewing the entire crew and being able to recognize them by face, know their name, and their work. She didn’t know many personally yet, but it was a start.

Cpt. Asam, CO

Leah caught the surprising presence out of the corner of her eye and waved with a wide smile at Rende, though she quickly returned her attention to Karl.

~Leah Hart, NP

Rende smiled and waved back to Leah. After she got a drink she’d make her way over. She’d enjoyed her chat with Chief Karl previously and hadn’t had a chance to really speak with him since.

Cpt. Asam, CO

Karl turned to face the Captain “Ma’am, you a big dancer?” he asked cheerfully.

Master Chief Karl - CE

Rende laughed, “Well, I have been known to take a turn or two on the floor. I’m not sure I’m quite ready to embarrass myself that publicly yet.”

Cpt. Asam, CO

“Nah, we’ll save that for me,” Leah said with a wide grin. “I can dance quite well, but I’m not sure if this crew can handle the fullness that is me in dance mode.” She was teasing, of course, but there was also that tiny part of her that wondered what people would make of the former championship dancer. It different without a partner, but she still always had fun out on the floor. It could be just her and music, even if she was surrounded by people.

~Leah Hart, NP

Rende smiled, “Well no time like the present to begin acclimating the crew to the fullness that is you in dance mode. This is a off duty social function. The point is to relax and have fun.”

Leah just flashed the captain a wide grin.

Rand took a breath, moving slightly closer to Roman’s side. Her hand was tucked into the crook of his arm. It was a party, like any other after party. The after parties were never her thing, but she had managed and this was smaller. She would be fine. She knew everyone that might be there. No strangers, no surprises.

Rand had many ball gowns for dancing. She wouldn’t wear a gown, tonight was too casual for that, but she did pick a dress. A simple green a-line with drop shoulders and a full skirt. Her hair was out of the normal bun and instead pinned up just on the sides with two rhinestone clips.

She glanced around for Hart. She didn’t want Roman to have to spend too much time worrying over others perceptions tonight. However etiquette dictated that they must great her. She was the hostess for the evening.

Yeoman Rand

Roman wore a nice suit, not over the top, but just right for the event. He wore a light blue button down, black slacks, and a black blazer, no tie. He kept his arm in Rand’s as he glanced around the room to see who had arrived already.

~ Cmdr Alden, XO/CSO

More people were arriving and Leah was doing her best to try to greet people while also paying attention to the conversation she was a part of. Catching two familiar figures out of the corner of her eye, Leah waved to Rand and Roman and returned her attention to Rende and the CE she knew only by his file.

~Leah Hart, NP

Karl finally managed to remove the wax seal of the bottle and grabbed a few shot glasses from the table and poured a few of the chilled drink “It works as both a sipping and as a shot but it has a bit of a kick, not unlike Vodka with a herby flavour” He took two shots up and carefully handed one to Hart “Care for a try Captain?” He asked.

Master Chief Karl - CE

“I’d be delighted Chief.” Rende took the second glass and sipped it first, getting a feel for the drink. Then she knocked back the entire thing. The kick raced down her spine and she grinned. “Now that’s dangerous. I like it. What is it?”

Cpt. Asam, CO

“Brennivín, burning wine. The Icelandic version of the Nordic schnapps.” Karl explained with his usual enthusiastic smile. He himself sipped the shotglass.

“Hmmm, it’s very good. I’ll take a bit more, but think I’ll stop after that. I have a feeling this will challenge even my tolerance,” Rende laughed.

Leah eyed the shot and decided to jus go for it. She knocked it back and shok her head briefly, eyes wide. Then she laughed. “That’s amazing! Burning wine indeed. I’ll take another, Karl, if you don’t mind.”

Rand’s hand squeezed his just barely. “We should say hello,” she whispered quietly. The captain was there too. Rand scanned the area. Was there anything out of place, that needed attention, or any task that needed to be handled? There wasn’t of course. They could get their greetings out of the way, and then maybe they could dance a bit.

Yeoman Rand

Roman really did not want to. Hesitantly, he nodded. It would seem odd if he didn’t. He moved towards Leah and the Captain, still holding Rand’s hand. “Lieutenant. Captain.” He greeted.

~ Cmdr Alden, XO/CSO

“Hey! Glad you two could make it,” Leah said, surprised to see Roman here and wondering how much Rand had to convince him to come. “There’s plenty of beverages- including non-alcoholic- and food. And the music type changes frequently and I’m happy t let people change it to something they want to dance to.”

The truth was Rand hadn’t had to convince Roman at all. He’d volunteered to come with her because he knew how much she hated it. She would have come alone if he hadn’t. It was expected that she be there. “Captain,” she smiled at Rende who smiled back at her. She hid a knowing grin as she saw their newest crew member enter the gym. Rand didn’t know yet and thought it would be a nice surprise. “Chief,” Rand smiled at Karl. He was always polite to her and never treated her like a glorified maid or worse. She liked him and thought his promotion to CE had been long overdue, not that her opinion mattered there. “Lieutenant Hart. This is lovely. Everyone is enjoying themselves.”

Truthfully, Rand wanted to just focus on dancing with Roman, but certain social niceties had to be observed first.

Leah smiled. “Thanks! I’m glad it’s working out as well as I had hoped. An I really appreciate all the help with the organization.”

Rand smiled quietly. “I’m glad I could help.”

Randy entered the gym and exhaled slowly seeing that it was fairly popular today. He knew the rules and regulations surrounding required gym hours per week for officers and crew. He had intended to practice some Fesarian calisthenics and follow it up with a glass of ice cold tranya afterwards. The problem with that exact exercise was that they could be rather… suggestive? Exceptionally little was known about the First Federation and it was highly unlikely that the ‘Fesarian calisthenics’ Randy had read about in a back issue of Fleet Gossip, the premier tabloid in all of Federation space. Oh well…

He leaned on the wall and sighed; looking towards the treadmills to see if one were open.

—Randy, JOAT—

All the gym equipment was cleared away and the lighting dimmer. The music switched to a something with a swing beat that seemed a fusion of different styles.

~Leah Hart, NP

It dawned on Randy that a treadmill he would not find. He hadn’t paid too much attention to what folks were doing when he entered and the energy of the dance floor was infectious. He blushed a little as embarrassment set in, how could he attend an event dressed in his gym gear? Randy after all, lived for a party! He let out a shallow breath before he realized that it was about networking, having fun, and enjoying himself. He threw on a smile and headed towards the punch bowl, excited to loosen up and enjoy the time.

—Randy, JOAT—

Rand knew that Randy was coming back of course. She knew everything that happened on the ship. She had seen the request that had passed through Cpt Asam’s desk. She wasn’t aware of his arrival however. He wasn’t expected for 3 more weeks. She had been glad when Randy had gone back to the Academy for engineering. He’d always had a way with his hands, like their Da. He also had a way with people, but she had always known Randy had gone into psychology because of her. She had hated it because she felt like she had ruined his choices. She’d been excited when he had decided to pursue something she knew he had always been interested in. She had been nervous when he decided to return to the Sentinel though. She didn’t want him to do that if he was just coming to look out for her. Then again, Randy had a lot of friends on board. Everyone liked him, even Roman. Though he wouldn’t admit it.

So when she saw her ginger haired brother out of the corner of her eye, approaching the punch bowl, her hand stilled on Roman’s arm and she bounced on her toes a little as she made sure it was really Randy. (Of course it was, she would never mistake her twin.) Then she let out a cute but very unladylike squeal of delight, let go of Roman’s arm and threw herself into her brother’s arms. “RANDY!”

Yeoman Rand

Karl leaned against the table and grinned at the greeting “I always wondered if I had siblings if we’d act like that” He said jovially still sipping his shot glass “But my kinsmen are far more stoic and reserved than I” He said with a chuckle”

Master Chief Karl - CE

Leah grinned and was warmed by the sight, and if she were honest with herself, perhaps a little envious as well. Certainly there was none of this exuberant joy between her and her own sister. Sure, Leah wished it was different, but she also knew what was and wasn’t possible and had accepted where things were a long time ago. “It is lovely to see for sure.”

And then Leah remember that this was Randy, the former, well, her of the ship. Interesting.

~Leah Hart, NP

Rende laughed softly watching the pair. Seeing the usually very quiet, almost invisible yeoman act so uninhibited made the captain glad she had approved Randy’s request to return to the Sentinel. “My yeoman tells me they are twins, and that is a rather unique bond, No Matter What culture you come from.”

Randy turned just in time after hearing the telltale squeal of his ‘little’ sister before she threw herself into him resulting in the oh so freshly poured punch being sent from his cup to the wall behind him. “Aye, could ye be any mair mortifying? Guid tae see ya, sis! How’ve ye been? How’s that lad o’ yours?” Randy said as he embraced Rand joyfully and earnestly. He poured himself another glass and held it low as he leaned on the tables and said, “It’s grand tae be back aboard, I’ve found that solid ground dinnae feel right anymore, and I’m sure ye heard aboot how I riled up Uncle Sean when I was home for ma studies?”

–Randy, JoAT–

Cpt. Asam, CO

Rand laughed with delight, “Ah, I’m fair chuffed ye’re here. Missed ye a load. Roman’s a right gem, he is, just over there.” She turned and smiled at the man in qurstion and waved him over. “Ye always get Uncle Sean’s dander up, ye do. Just so long as ye dinnae upset Seanmhair.” Rand’s control of her voice was always superb. So for anyone but Roman and Randy, they would be surprised by the sudden very thick Scottish lilt in her voice.

Yeoman Rand

Randy had seen the gentle care the Englishman had shown his twin sister over their relationship and had grown to respect the man. Of course some not-so-gentle ribbing at his expense was always in order. “Aye, I’ve missed ye too, lass. And I’m glad he’s treatin’ ye weel. He’d better, ye ken. And o’ course, I never meant tae upset Uncle. It’s jist when I go back tae the farm and I think that I can take a wee break frae the wark, o’ course he’s right mad wi’ me for no’ bein’ up at the crack o’ dawn!” Randy said as he was always happy to speak with her in his thick, unrestrained accent.

Rand laughed, “He is wonderful to me, and you know it. Ya wouldn’a gotten him gran’s ring otherwise.” Rand kissed his cheek and then slipped into Roman’s arm.

He approached an officer he didn’t recognize and put two and two together. That must have been the new counselor who organized this little shindig that he heard about from Rand. He nodded to his sister and moved to approach to introduce himself, “Are ye Leah? How’s the counsellor role treatin’ ye aboard? Rand’s told me ye’re doin’ leaps and bounds aboot what I wis able tae dae for the crew. Did ye organise this? I thocht I saw a notice come through but I maist hae gotten my dates wrang. It’s lovely this! I’m Randy by the way.” He said offering a hand and a smile.

–Randy, JoAT–

Leah flashed a grin at the warm welcome. She wasn’t sure why she was surprised by it, but she was. And delighted. She shook Randy’s hand. “It’s really nice to meet you Randy. I am indeed Leah Hart, and yes these shenanigans are my fault. I was missing going out and dancing at the clubs. Given this is my first starship assignment, I needed a little help finding something similar,” she said, flashing Rand an appreciative smile.

“What are you up to with your return. I’m not going to have to duel for my job, am I?” Hart said with a wink, happy to tease him since she knew he was here for other purposes.

~Leah Hart, NP

Randy smiled as they spoke, he found Leah a pleasant person to talk to right from the get-go and replied, “Aye, I must say, it’s a rather nice shindig. Is this yer first post? Glad it could be here. I ken I’ve found solid ground tae feel funny now, how are ye findin’ it?” He said as he shifted his pose to a more relaxed one. Even if he had given up the counsellorship to a more suited person, he still knew the tricks of the trade and how to read body language. He let out a jolly laugh as he took the tease in stide, “Naw naw, I’m too much of a gossip tae be a good counselor. Happy tae talk and listen over drinks, but the paperwork killed me. I’m thinkin’ I’ll give engineering a go, just got back after takin’ a few courses and brushin’ up on warp theory.”

–Randy, JoAT–

Leah flashed him a grin. “That I totally get, though I did keep roughly in the same field, just different topics. But yes, this is my first starship posting and it’s… taking some getting used to for sure.”

Roman seemed to perk up a little at the arrival of a familiar face. “Randy. It was difficult to keep your return a secret” He said. He turned to Leah, “Don’t worry, Randy won’t be taking your job. Not even the parts you don’t want.” He was referring to himself, somewhat jokingly, and smiling awkwardly. A squeeze to Rand’s hand told her he wanted to go.

~ Cmdr Alden, XO/CSO

“I’m gladja did Commander. Thank ye” Randy replied with an extended hand as he chuckled at the reply, “Na, it’s all yers” he finished as he patted Roman on the back in a more brotherly way.

Rand was glad to see Roman happy to see Randy. They didn’t always get along, but she had an idea why now. She turned to look up at him, “Oh this song is one of my favorites.” It wasn’t really, but it was said so convincingly that everyone would believe it. It just gave Roman an excuse to escape by dancing with her.

Yeoman Rand

Leah smiled as she took in the group that had come out and it seemed to be growing. “I’m waiting for a particular song and then I’ll be definitely on the dance floor. Though I think I want another shot of that burning win, Karl. I think it’s my new favourite thing,” she added, speaking to the CE.

~Leah Hart, NP

Karl smiled at that “Feel free, it’s usually fifty-fifty if you like it or not” He said still sipping his shot.

“I’d like to give it a go if ye don’t mind” Randy said, referencing the drink from his new boss. He winked at his twin, knowing she didn’t care too much for the song but recognizing her need to get Roman some distance from others. He seemed off, but Randy couldn’t place it.

—Randy, JoAT—

Roman gave Randy a look he might recognize: We’ll talk later. Then he followed Rand away from the group. He set an arm on her shoulder and pulled her close to him. In her ear, his whispered, “Just focus on the dance, right?”

~ Cmdr Alden, XO/CSO

Rand nodded, her long hair brushing over his arm. “Right,” she sounded slightly nervous. When they reached an open spot, Rand twirled around in his arm. Her full skirt flared, and she stopped directly in front of him, her hands resting lightly on his shoulders. “Not that it is possible for me to think of anything else when you dance with me.” She blushed at the admission and the bold truth of it.

Rand moved effortlessly with him. It was clear they were both classically trained to a great degree. But there was a magic and passion that couldn’t be taught.

Yeoman Rand

Karl cocked his head watching the two officers dancing together. Well one officer and one Yeoman, he himself wasn’t an officer although most people had been trying to call him Sir for close to a decade now. He smiled then reached for the green bottle, poured another shot of the clear liquid and passed it to Randy “Funny, Back on the Celeborn any and all celebrations were held either in the mess or the quarters or junior officers. Or those lower deck sleeping decks for the Non-Comms but we don’t speak about those to Officers” He said with a grin towards both Hart and the Captain.

Master Chief Karl - CE