unwinding [[ota]]

[queenairlock]

Laura was beginning to think that the lack of stress with her job was making her a little stir crazy. It was easy to not think about being trapped on Colonial One or Galactica when the fleet needed you, or the Quorum was complaining, or the cylons were constantly at your throat

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[commander_spock]

Spock normally would not go into such an establishment, as they were usually a den of uncouth, rowdy, and insubordinate behavior. However, such places were usually a premier location if one endeavored to find Dr. McCoy or Captain Kirk.

Taking a seat next to Laura, he sat his folded hands on the bar. "I will have an orange juice."

"An orange juice?" The bartender said, brow knitting behind the 'H' on his forehead. But then he tilted to better look at Spock's ears, completely incredulous. "Ah. Of course. It would have to be an orange juice. One orange juice coming right up...."

Spock's brow climbed as he walked away, seemingly unphased. It wasn't as if he didn't encounter this sort of reaction frequently. "Curious," he muttered quietly, probably just to voice it.

[queenairlock]

Laura was amused by the man's request for orange juice at a bar, but who was she to question it? And really, as long as he was a paying customer, no one should.

When he spoke to himself, she chuckled softly and shook her head, sipping her own drink as she crossed her legs.

[commander_spock]

The fact she seemed to acknowledge him caught his interest. He sat up a little straighter, waiting for the bartender to retrieve his beverage.

"I am afraid I am still unfamiliar with many of the citizens of the station. Or rather, the ones that appear to be imported from external locations. I am Spock," he introduced civilly, offering her a hand.

[queenairlock]

Laura turned to him and smiled, taking his hand. "Laura Roslin. It's nice to meet you, Spock," she said warmly. "I think that most of us are in the same situation, not knowing what may be customary from one person to the next. I've found a handshake does translate well in most cultures."

[commander_spock]

"My mother was a human, therefore some Earth customs, such as handshakes, I am familiar with," Spock explained. Not that he looked overly disinterested, or hostile. He just didn't look... friendly. It was an unintentional way Vulcans had about them.

"I was fortuitous in arriving here with my Captain, Jim Kirk."

[queenairlock]

"I'm not even from Earth, so you have me beat there." She wanted to launch into asking questions about Earth, but that seemed too pushy.

The name he said, rang a bell with her. "Oh, Kirk! I met him very briefly while we were putting people in quarantine during the virus outbreak."

[commander_spock]

"There are many humans I am acquainted with not from Earth. Where might your birthworld be?"

There was a striking memory of the Captain writhing in pain... pleading not to be exposed for the horror happening to him. The... vaguely amusing horror when pain wasn't involved. "The Captain has a particularly hazardous sort of heroism, though it is a key component to his character."

[queenairlock]

"My birthworld is Caprica, one of the twelve colonies of Kobol. If you're familiar, that's in the star system Cyrannus," she explained.

[commander_spock]

"No, I have not. I am from the planet Vulcan. My father is the Ambassador to the Federation representing my planet." He looked keenly interested, that almost feline affronted demeanor he consistently wore giving way to curiosity.

[queenairlock]

"None of the people I've spoken to have ever heard of it." It gave her a sort of pause as she wondered why.

"Then again, we're so far away from Earth it's become a myth and no one knows exactly how to get there. I admit I've never heard of Vulcan, either."

[commander_spock]

"I wonder if a wormhole must have been involved in your location to an unknown part of space," he mused, steepling his fingers in front of his face. "Had their been records of your journey to the location then perhaps someone might have been able to triangulate the appropriate exit point. Unfortunately were it a wormhole it might be an area of high singularity activity, including the disappearance of investigating ships. I must say your store poses an interesting conundrum."

[queenairlock]

"The only thing we have getting us to Earth now is a map of constellations that would be visible if you were actually standing on Earth and looking up at the sky. That's been a bit tough, and there is a lot of guessing involved. I just hope that we're at least going in the right direction."

Traumatic day was traumatic yesterday and ate my brain meats. Back now, though.

[commander_spock]

"It could be. There are other ships here that should contain star charts that show similar systems from different angles, or even the position of the Earth in the Milky Way galaxy. Perhaps there is a way to receive some sort of directory from here."

His orange juice arrived, and the most thanks the bartender was given was a nod of inclination. Not that the bartender was expecting much from his pointy eared customer.

<3

[queenairlock]

Taking a sip of her own drink, Laura nodded thoughtfully. "I've been thinking of having the computer download different coordinates so that I can map them out. I hope that I can find some sort of landmark, a nebula maybe that could at least let us know we're on the right path."

And when she said 'she' would be mapping them out, she really meant Bill, but she would supervise.

[commander_spock]

"I am a science officer aboard my starship. If you need assistance in such matters, I am willing to offer it." Though he was lacking in suspicion. There could be any number of reasons a human from an unknown place would wish to find Earth, not all of them necessarily "good". Yet he trusted her, perhaps because she had a very authoritative demeanor.

[queenairlock]

"Thank you," she said graciously. "My home worlds were destroyed by an enemy known as the cylons. We knew them as they looked years ago: robots that couldn't even talk. When they left for their own world, they evolved to the point that they looked, felt, and sounded human. They infiltrated our government, our war ships...and they very nearly exterminated the human race."

Her voice had changed tone; soft but with a slight edge to it before she took a long sip of her drink.