Various - Day 41 [private/unfinished]

[miss_gaila]

Gaila hummed to herself as she finished her engineering reports. She was overjoyed to be back on full and active duty; she hated sitting around and doing nothing, and she loved getting to work with the Enterprise's spectacular engines. After she submitted the reports, she decided to go visit David and ask him when they could hang out again. She

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[green_psyd]

"It's probably a good idea," he agreed. "You have to give me limitations. I may be charming, well-adjusted, good looking, clever with a good sense of humor, but you can't let me know that. See, like with that last sentence? You should have stopped me halfway through." He laughed.

He made a sound as she pointed out the spot he'd missed only to find that she was making a joke. But, nonetheless, he found a spot on his ring finger and took care of it.

He put the plate down and listened to the information she had making it a point to pass the knowledge to his dad the next chance he got. He'd actually be really excited that David had met Gaila. But David felt he had to restrain himself because his father's enthusiasm usually surpassed his manners in things like this. He could just see the list of questions that his father would give him to ask Gaila at some point.

"Well," he said and covered his mouth with his fist for a silent burp, excusing himself afterward. See? He had manners. "My father said that one of the reasons I could have been abandoned was because--well it might have been a tactic of--" he gestured ambiguously, "getting rid of a male child because the society favored female children. Historically, in male dominated tribes on earth, female children were left out in the woods. Some were left because they were thought to have been possessed by evil spirits. So it's possible that I was expected to be a female child and when I wasn't...it's kind of a shot in the dark. My dad likes to make assumptions," he said, covering up quickly. "Besides, why would an advanced society abandon a child when if they no longer wanted them--there's much more effective ways of...y'know--wow, for a psychologist who's supposed to have a great deal of experience in sharing coherent ideas I'm kind of bad at this."

He laughed and smiled apologetically.

[miss_gaila]

She laughed along. “I thought humans considered it rude to interrupt people,” she countered, “but if you need someone to tell you afterwards that you’re being a bit too self-amorous, then I can certainly do that.”

His father’s theory brought a frown to her face. She listened carefully and then considered for a moment. A part of her was concerned about what it must be like for him to wonder if he was abandoned. Another part was wondering what she could tell him, and another was considering the truth. She felt a pang of guilt that the later two were not one in the same, but there was still a limit to what she could say about Orion. “It is unlikely that you were abandoned,” she said slowly. “Although female children are more highly valued than males, males are not considered valueless. Abandoning children is not unheard of, but generally only happens when a child born to an extremely poor family is deemed…” defective. “too ill to survive.” Suddenly she felt sick. It didn’t matter that child abandonment was rare. She was still explaining a society - her society -that put a higher value on one gender than the other. She fought down the feeling and forced herself to continue, hoping her voice sounded calm. “It is more likely that you ended up there as a result of… attempts to rescue male Orion infants.”

[green_psyd]

"I'll hold you to that," he replied with a smile.

He listened to her talking and took in what she was saying. He found his hand wandering to her arm and hoped it was okay that his hand now covered her wrist. This wasn't easy for her to talk about. It wasn't necessarily easy for him to hear. Not that he had any emotional ties to Orion society aside from the ties he'd given to himself. But, of course, he was Orion, he reminded himself. This was part of his...people's culture.

His thumb worked in circles on the joint of her wrist. He knew she was taking no pleasure in discussing this. Still, curiosity ached after she finished her last sentence.

"To...rescue them?" he said, frowning and not understanding. He shook his head. "From what?"

[miss_gaila]

What had ever possessed her to think that she was ready to talk about this? What had ever made her think that she could explain, in a detached manner, the terrible rules that governed her society? His hand strayed to her wrist to rub it comfortingly. She didn't deserve such a kindness, but she didn't pull away; she couldn't bring herself to do anything that he might see as a rejection.

"From a life of slavery," she said softly, tonelessly. "There was an underground movement. Is an underground movement, but it has little power now. Its leaders are, for the most part, no longer alive." ...Thanks to me. She had played a vital role in crushing the movement, which now existed only in small, limited factions. They might grow powerful again, but they wouldn't be a force to be reckoned with for some time. I crushed the chance for so many to escape... It was small comfort that she was a child herself when David was found. At least she couldn't be held responsible for what had happened to him, but the same could not be said for so many like him...

[green_psyd]

"Hey," David said softly, putting his hand on her shoulder and trying to catch her eyes with his to bring her back to the moment.

He didn't want to subdue her with platitudes like it will be okay or it wasn't your fault or well apparently something good came out of all of that, I'm here for several reasons. Mostly it was because he was unsure how to think of this new information himself. He didn't know if Gaila had had a hand in the destruction of the underground movement. And while the last platitude was true, it was also not what he was feeling. And the last thing he wanted to do was to convey something simply for the sake of making her feel better.

In fact, what she had revealed made him a little angry and frustrated. He had an illogical desire to meet the members of the underground movement for himself. See if he could help. Free his people, so to say. But expressing those emotions wasn't an option. So he tried to bring her back to the present.

"Why don't I go get that ice cream?" he said with a smile. "Seems like a good time for it."

The statement accomplished another goal he'd had, saving his manhood by getting the ice cream himself. And thus was the balance between being an Orion male who just learned the extent of his gender's captivity in his own species and being a human male by trying to be the hero of the moment and get the ice cream for the distressed lady.

[miss_gaila]

He put a hand on her shoulder and she glanced at him for a moment, made eye contact, looked away again. This was too much. She wanted to run away from the conversation, but it wasn't in her nature, and she didn't want to do anything that might upset him. Of course, he was probably already upset by what she'd just said, but he brushed it off, suggesting that he get the ice cream.

She nodded, trying to smile. "Ice cream sounds wonderful," she said, hating that her voice sounded so small. It wasn't like her to feel so... weak, but her guilt was debilitating. She tried to shake it off. "I'm sorry," she said. Her voice didn't sound as sad anymore. It just sounded... toneless. "I guess I wasn't as ready to talk about Orion as I thought." That wasn't what she really should be apologizing over, but any further apologies would require explanations she wasn't ready to give.

Maybe this isn't going to work. Maybe we would both be better off if I just left him alone, she thought, but she remained perched on the counter, waiting for ice cream. She should be the one to go into the cold freezer to get it, but she got the sense that an offer to help wouldn't be appreciated at the moment.

[green_psyd]

"It's okay," he said with a breath. "I don't think I was ready to hear about it, yet." He squeezed her shoulder one more time and smiled, glad that she wasn't running away. "Sometimes I'm too curious." He laughed under his breath.

But, nonetheless, it did make him want to do some research. He wondered if he was the only infant found on the planet. What if there had been others? He dragged himself out of thought and smiled again, hopping off the counter.

He made for the freezer, the initial change in temperature actually feeling good before it bit at him. He let the door close behind him and took a few moments to himself to breathe, take in what he'd learned. He didn't let himself wonder about Gaila's past further than her knowledge of Orion history. Besides, whoever she was then was inconsequential to the person he was getting to know.

It almost seemed like a joke, women ruling over men. He felt so separate from his gender as defined by his species. It was incomprehensible. But the way in which Gaila related the facts was so chilling. The initial anger that had flared quietly had faded with additional thought, more analytical than reactionary.

He sneezed suddenly, four times in a row as he always had before. The involuntary action brought him out of his reverie and made him realize he was still standing in a freezer. He rolled his eyes at himself and grabbed the icecream from where he'd put it. It was high on a shelf so Gaila probably wouldn't have been able to reach it if she had insisted on retrieving it.

He exited the freezer with a sheepish look on his face. "Must've gotten lost," he said. "But, I think the icecream will make up for it!" He grinned, easily finding that place inside of him that could find the funner parts of a moment. He let the shivers come and go as his body regulated back to its normal temperature as he opened the top, enthusiastically.

[miss_gaila]

She didn't respond, just shot him a quick, grateful look when he let the subject drop. Despite the fact that she'd said yet, she was fairly certain there would never be a good time to actually talk about her past. Perhaps she could eventually say more about the resistance movement, but even that was doubtful. It seemed she couldn't separate the conversation from the memory of her own actions... And if she ever told him what she'd done, who she used to be, that would be the end of it. He wouldn't want to be her friend. He wouldn't want anything to do with her. Her heart sunk a little as she realized that this didn't just apply to David; any of the Enterprise crew who knew about her past would despise her.

As things were, they could imagine that she might have somehow been a slave, or that she had no true influence over Orion society. If they knew that she used to hold a position of power, that she had a host of her own slaves, that she'd manipulated and hurt whoever she needed to get what she wanted... How could they help hating her? Starfleet didn't even know the extent of her past actions. She could lose her position... or worse.

What is taking him so long? she wondered as she realized that David was still in the freezer. Just at that moment he walked out, looking a little embarrassed. She laughed softly at his comment, trying to pull herself back to the present. If I am to live here, I will not deny myself what happiness I can find. "Well, I'm glad you found your way out again. I was about to send out a search party." Another human expression. Of course, the comment didn't actually imply a real search party. She didn't mention that he looked cold, and simply smiled and hopped off the counter to retrieve bowls, spoons, and what appeared to be an ice cream scooper.

[green_psyd]

"I guess that's the one thing I can say for being Orion. Unless I'm ever lost on Orion it probably won't take long for any search party to find the 'bald green guy in a great suit,'" he said with a smirk. "Added that last part. I'm a suit guy." He snorted. He sneezed again, four times into his arm, and shook his head clear of it.

"What are those? Bowls? Pshh. We don't need bowls!" he said with a furrowed brow and plucked a spoon from her hand. Ice cream had a bit of a magical ability with him. Chocolate ice cream upped the ante. Chocolate homemade ice cream with a fudge swirl? If he could he'd prescribe it to all of his patients dealing with depression, he would. An innocent part of him was sure that any ailment was curable with the right amount of this particular ice cream. Of course, the common sense portion of his brain was quick to correct.

He shoved the spoon into the frozen concoction and tried to lever a bit out. The spoon's neck bent dramatically. With a sigh he left the spoon at the awkward angle and turned to her with a shrug. The ice cream was frozen solid.

[miss_gaila]

She raised an eyebrow at the first comment. "A suit guy?" she asked. "Ah! Aren't suits... an archaic form of human clothing? Or am I mistaken?" She tilted her head, trying to recall. Perhaps they weren't archaic... She couldn't quite seem to remember.

When he stuck the spoon into the ice cream and nearly broke it in half, she couldn't help it: she burst out laughing, putting her hand on the counter to support her. As the giggles subsided, she looked up at him, then down at the spoon, and then burst into laughter again. She doubled over, laughing so hard it almost hurt. It felt almost desperate, but it was just so ridiculous. She finally regained herself and looked up at him, still grinning and giggling a little. "I have an idea," she said, walking back over to the drawer and pulling out another ice cream scooper. "Spoons for the impatient. It won't be easy, but at least these won't bend in half," she said, handing him one and attempting to dig her own into the frozen ice cream. It would be a little awkward to eat with ice cream scoopers, but suddenly everything felt ridiculous, and she was more than okay with that.

Laughter seemed to chase away the demons that were haunting her. They'd never be gone, but if she could still laugh like this, then surely things would be all right... somehow.

[green_psyd]

David scoffed. "There are modern equivalents of suits." He tugged at his collar pointedly. It wasn't obvious he was wearing a suit as he'd left the jacket in his office. He liked it, it was a plum suit with matching pants. It wasn't the same material that suits used to be made of, but it was fashionable. And, alright, he liked fashion. Granted, all she'd seen him in before was sweatpants in a t-shirt. She obviously didn't know what a great suit looked like.

"Archaic," he mocked, scoffing again. Okay, so maybe he was a little behind the trend curve, but archaic? "C'mooon," he said drawing the word out.

And as if that wasn't enough, her laughter filled the room at his failed attempt to get ice cream. He stifled a smile and laugh in order to give her a look once she'd relented her giggling spree. He crosses his arms and raised an eyebrow, "Are you do--no then," he said as she started the whole process over again, echoing laughter filling the kitchen.

He chuckled and straightened the spoon, rubbing the back of his head until she stopped.

"First you insult my fashion choices, and then you laugh at my obvious distress. If I had sense enough to be insulted, I might give it some consideration," he said, faking a hurt look, then smiling. "Oh, she has an idea..."

He took a moment to consider the scoop, turning it around in his hands. His fingers were still ice cold and that gave him an idea of his own. He stood next to her, admiring the scoop, then nodded. "I think it just might work," he said, and casually slid the tips of his frozen fingers down her collar for a few seconds before leaping away with an impish look on his face.

[miss_gaila]

She blinked as he pulled on his collar, and then looked over his clothing carefully. "This is a suit?" she asked, and then grinned. "It appears I was misinformed. Very fashionable." There was a hint of teasing in her voice, but she meant it. "Do you not have to dress in uniform while on duty?" she asked, suddenly remembered that she'd found him in his office. She had changed into jeans and a purple shirt after her shift; Orion women never liked to be unfashionable, and this trait had stuck with her more firmly than some of the arguably more significant ones. She didn't mind the uniform, but only because it confirmed her place as a Starfleet officer.

She laughed at his mock hurt. "Sorry," she said, although she wasn't sorry at all. "I couldn't help it." Her eyes gleamed mischievously as she looked at him. "If you don't want me to laugh at you, stop doing ridiculous things." She didn't actually want him to, of course. Humor seemed to be the one thing that could really lift her out of her sad thoughts.

It struck her completely by surprise when the cold fingers slid down her neck. She gasped and jumped backwards. "H-hey!" she cried, momentarily indignant before she laughed and her expression turned devious again. "I see," she said, and then quickly turned on the sink and passed her hand through the water, tossing water droplets at him.

[green_psyd]

He put his chin up to her teasing, huffing as if it didn't hold any clout. Feigning hurt but putting on a brave face despite it.

"To be honest," he said, "I have no idea if I have to wear a uniform. So far, no one's said anything. I think wearing what I do gives a more relateable appearance, though. I don't want to intimidate anyone by wearing a rank higher than them, or force them into a social paradigm of treating me as a superior or someone they have to lead. I'd like to think that I can hold neutral ground with my very nice and sensible suits. And you're not sorry in the least, you're cruel. But I'll forgive you."

Oh, and he recognized the revenge face as soon as he saw it. He flinched as the water hit his face and smirked. "You have no idea who you're messing with, Gaila. Two brothers, ten food fights, and an uncountable number of wrestling matches."

He was quick, grabbing a collapsible colander and unfurling it in front of his face like a hockey mask. He immediately ran to the sink and threw a towel into the basin, running water over it. When he was done, he had a suitable weapon to contend with! The wet towel hung from his hand, dripping, as he smiled through the colander.