Still having fun

Posted on Thu Aug 8th, 2024 @ 2:38am by Commander Kevin Lance & Captain Mira Rodale
Edited on on Thu Aug 8th, 2024 @ 4:15am

Mission: Vacation on Amri V
Location: Amar V, wilderness zone
Timeline: Present

on:
{Amri V Wilderness}

Mira waited patiently for the Norris to send Kolar back down to the planet. Ok, so maybe it wasn't patiently. She worn a trail into the dirt beside the cabin. It was late afternoon, and she wanted to take him swimming before the air got too cool.

"They will send him back... he is a handful, so no one is keeping him from you deliberately." Kevin told her as he wrapped his arms around.

Mira chuckled as she returned the embrace. "I know. I know, and he is our handful but.... I can't believe a year and a half ago I let my brother in law take him. I had to be out of my mind. Now I can't go a few hours without seeing him."

“You did what you thought was the right thing by him,” Kevin kissed her on the forehead, “We only learned later that being with his parents, regardless of the environment, is the best thing. For him and for us.”

"Well, you two look cozy." Montgomery chuckled as he put a squirming Kolar on the ground.

Mira huffed at him. "We would have been far more cozy if you hadn't pulled that stunt. Don't think you're off the hook for that, mister." she gave him a stern look.

Kolar giggled, then shook a finger at Montgomery, "bad, bad, bad bad. Mama say so." Kolar took off running to her. Mira picked him up and swung him in a circle as Kolar squealed in delight.

"I missed you!" She gave him a hug. Vaytoc huffed at her.

"Oh, I missed you too fur ball, you were right about those people not being real." Mira told him. Vaytoc purred happy.

"Yes, I know I should always trust you. You are never wrong." Mira replied with a laugh. it was a long-running argument between the two of them. “you know you're very smug even for a cat.” Mira told him with a smile.

“You and I are going to talk later,” Kevin threatened.

Montgomery returned the executive officer’s glare with an air of unconcern. “I look forward to it!” the second officer replied cheerily before disappearing in a transporter beam.

{Amri V Lake}

After swimming and enjoying a picnic lunch, Mira had suggested taking a boat out onto the lake. There were sailboats available but Kevin rejected those. Sailing using the power of the wind was something that he had never been able to get the feel for. Instead, he chose a rowboat. Using his own muscles to power the craft was much more dependable than the capricious air currents and it was the exercise was similar to rowing the Odinkus longboats.

Mira sat in the stern of the boat, trailing one hand in the water while holding on to Kolar’s life jacket with the other as the boy peered over the edge of the boat into the dark blue depths. She was wearing her favorite blue one-piece bathing suit, an unbuttoned long sleeved shirt and a large floppy hat to protect her from the sun. She rested her feet teasingly between Kevin’s legs on the plank he was seated on. He was dressed only in his swim trunks, much more modest then the one that Q had given him on Risa, and a broad brimmed hat. His muscles tensed and relaxed as he operated the oars.

Kolar was grinning. "We go far!" He looked from the cabin to where they were now.

Mira nodded. "We are on a rowboat." Kolar tried saying the new name a few times until he got it right.

Then he said "no go emerg Bye-bye again."

Mira cocked her head to the side as she watched him. "Do you mean emergency?"

At his nod, she sighed "Sometimes things happen, and we need to be safe."

"I be careful, Mama." Kolar told her like he was a big boy and could do anything. He wasn't. She knew that, but at his age, he didn't. "Mommy and Daddy will do whatever we have to in order to keep you safe." Mira told him before she caressed his little spots on the side of his forehead.

He nodded. "So no, go bye byes again." he nodded like that answered everything, and finished his discussion of his parents sending him away again like they had. Mira smirked as he looked out over the water. Mira turned her attention to Kevin. "There is a village not far from us. What do you think about having dinner there?"

“It would save us from each other’s cooking skills,” Kevin smiled.

"Yeah, I thought my cooking was good? But I do get tired of food on the grill all the time. I think that oven works with wood like the grill. I'll try something on that, " Mira said with a laugh.

He looked to the shore and thought that he saw a black shape pacing the waterline. Vaytoc had turned a feline nose up at the watercraft, and no coaxing from either Mira or Kolar was sufficient to get him off the dock. I guess it shows a measure of trust that the cat has in me, Kevin thought, that he would allow me to take the family out on the water.

Mira cocked her head to one side and asked, “What are you thinking about?"

Kevin turned his attention back to her and, with a crooked leer, said, “All the things I want to do to you after Kolar is asleep. Provided I can get Vaytoc out of the bedroom.”

Mira laughed. Her cheeks, turning pink.

Kolar watched Dada, then Mama. "No go to sleep." he told them with his lip puckered out.

Mira nodded. "That's right, you are never going to go to sleep again. You want to be tiny little, not very big like dada is. "

Kolar frowned. "I get big like Dada?"
Mira nodded at him with her eyebrow raised, "Only if you eat your food and sleep when you should."

Kolar nodded and then looked at her. "You not sleep?"

Mira blinked her eyes. " Are you telling Mama she is short?"

Kolar broke out laughing. Then, he nodded his head.

Mira grinned "no I guess I didn't. " He was too young to explain how she was just short like her mom had been. Her eyes caught sight of the village. "There is the village."

Kevin looked over his shoulder in the direction that Mira had pointed and maneuver the rowboat to beach close to where she had indicated. Idle speculation on what sort of cuisine that the village would offer occupied their discussion until the boat pushed onto the shore. Kevin stored the oars and jumped out to pull the craft further out of the water while Mira collected Kolar.

Once ashore, Mira slipped into a pair of khahi shorts when Kevin donned a short-shelved button down shirt. Kevin removed Kolar’s life jacket to reveal a dark colored t-shirt with the caption “There Can Be Only One” emblazoned on the front. It was not a shirt that either Mira or Kevin recognized. He thought that, like the bikini and the bonding exercise, it was another thing that he had to “thank” the second officer for.

As they walked into the village, Mira observed a pointed-ear humanoid seated on a bench completely motionless. Romulan, she guessed based on the clothing. The Romulan had on a curious device that covered its ears with only the pointed ends sticking out. The device also sported a visor that went over the eyes. “What is that?” Mira asked.

Kevin looked towards the device on the Romulan and replied, “No idea. Not our problem.”

“No ar pa-bum,” Kolar parroted. Then he grinned, "Not our monkeys.." Then he did a little frown, "Mama me want a monkey?"

Mira raised an eyebrow, then laughed "Sorry little man, but our quarters are too small for any pets." she ruffled his blonde waves.

"We got Toc." Kolar told her with wide eyes.

Mira nodded. "Vaytoc is more a companion than a pet, and when Vaytoc joined me, I lived on a base."

"Me to Mama. We on base too." Kolar was still trying to justify a monkey. He nodded his head like that made all the difference.

Mira hid her smirk behind her hand. "But we are not always on the base, and it would be all by itself. It's better to leave the monkey play with its friends here. "

That just put a frown on her little boy's face.

Mira smelled the air. "By all that is holy, I want whatever that amazing smell is."

An old lady smiled at Mira. "That is my beef stew and cherry turnovers." Then she grinned "and my special chocolate coffee. There are other things on the menu, like pizza." The old woman laughed "its a long list. Come in and sit down. It's nice to see a family, and you don't have one of those horrible headsets on. People are going crazy for them. I don't understand why." She look disapprovingly at a Caitian couple sitting at a table across the restaurant. The male had on a headset and was as still as a statue.

"Probably fulfills some need," Kevin shrugged, "What is in the stew?"

"Fish from the lake, local tuberous vegetables and imported spices," the old lady announced proudly. Kevin's mouth watered at the mention and the smell. The workout from swimming and rowing had left him with quite the appetite.

Mira, Kevin and Kolar were swiftly seated at a table and food began appearing in rapid succession. The stew was as delicious as it smelled and the bread was straight out of the oven. Kolar had little trouble devouring the slice of pizza in front of him.

Kolar leaned over to Mira. "Want some pleze." I asked with an adorable smile.

Mira raised an eyebrow at him. "I thought you wanted only pizza?"

His grin got bigger, "all gone now. More pleze?"

Mira laughed "fine" she poured some of her stew to his plate and gave him a slice of buttered bread. " There are times like this. I can see why they don't have replicators. Some of these flavors I have never tasted before." Mira told Kevin.

Kevin nodded and between bites said, "Far superior to anything we got on the Dorcas James."

Looked down at Kolar, she gave him a little help getting the food in his mouth. "Mmm, yummy." He told her.

The old lady returned to check up on them. "How was everything? Are you ready for dessert."

"it was amazing, and yes, I think we are."

Mira had ordered I few different kinds just to sample a few of the old woman's dishes.

Mira had thought the cherry turnover was fantastic until she tried the pastry with honey and nuts. "I think I have a new favorite." Then there was a coffee cream with cinnamon. "Oh, by all that is holy," she said after savoring a sip.

"It isn't Kona blend," Kevin said of his own chocolate coffee, "but I definitely like it."

Kolar giggled. "Want more pleze."

"I don't think so. You have had a lot of food and sugar." Mira told him.

The old woman just smiled, happy to see them enjoying themselves. this was why her people had opened up their world to feel all the joy their visitors had.

Kolar pout then moved closer to his Dada on the bench. " More plez?" he asked hopefully.

"You heard your mother," Kevin said ruefully, "and I really don't want to make her angry. Do you?"

Kolar vigorously shook his head in the negative.

"What did you do that for?" Kevin's comm badge translated the male Caitian's shouted accusation.

Kevin and Mira turned to look at the couple. The female had the headset in her paws and was returning her male's angry stare in equal measure. "It's my turn," she said.

"I wasn't done yet," the male yelled as he tried to grab the headset back.

Kevin gave Mira a glance, then stood and walked over to the couple. "Is there a problem," he asked politely.

The male started at the appearance of Kevin, as if the presence of another individual was a complete surprise. His eyes looked a little unfocused and his pupils were dilated. "Nothing's wrong as long as she gives that back to me," he answered while his eyes shot daggers at his companion.

"You've had it for an hour now it is my turn," the female shot back, "I said that we should buy two but you insisted that we could share this one."

The male tried to stand but Kevin placed a hand on his shoulder and pushed the Caitian back into his seat. "If you agreed to share," he said reasonably, "then you are obligated to give her her turn. Besides, you are inferring with the peace of the other diners. Especially my...fiancee," he smiled slightly at getting to use the word, "and you wouldn't want her to get angry. She has a nasty temper."

The Caitian looked over at Mira, who gave him a suitably cross look over the rim of her coffee cup.

Whether it was Mira's stare or Kevin's imposing presence or both, the male sat back in his chair in angry resignation. "Fine," was his only comment.

"What is that thing?" Kevin asked. The female had already placed the device over her ears and eyes. She too entered a rigid immobile state.

"It's a neuro-holo transmitter," the male hissed, "It provides sensory input to the brain for all five senses."

"Where did you get it?" Kevin continued.

"At a toy shop in town." The picked dejectedly at the food on his plate.

Sensing that he wouldn't get anything more from the Caitian, Kevin said, "I trust there won't be any additional outburst for the next hour." Then he returned to the table with Mira and Kolar

Mira raised an eyebrow at Kevin when he sat down. She smirked as she put her coffee down. " I don't know how that bluff worked. I am over a foot shorter than he is, and maybe 130 lbs less than he is. You used me as a deterrent?" Mira laughed, shaking her head.

"I think I remember hearing that Caitian females were more vicious than their males," Kevin admitted, "I hoped that he wouldn't know the Trill females were any different."

"So those things are neuro-holo transmitters. Why? this whole world is practically a holodeck. That reminds me there are a few different zones in this world. We don't need to stay in one place. We could also do a themed trip for a few days if you have anything interesting you want to try. I was thinking I would like to show Kolar what snow is." She grinned.

"I will need to check any clothes sent down by Montgomery to ensure that yours aren't too tight or revealing," Kevin replied dryly.

Mira tossed a piece of sweet roll at Kevin which he had to lean to one side to avoid.

"I think Kolar will be fascinated by snow," he continued, then to Kolar he sang, "Do you want to build a snowman?"

"Snowman?" Kolar asked with a giggled but he nodded his head yes. If dada wanted to do it he did to.

:off

Commander Kevin Lance
Executive Officer
USS Chuck Norris

And

Captain Mira Rodale
CO USS Chuck Norris