Row row row your boat~

[hippocraticly]

[McCoy, minus eight days, has Sickbay on this accursed Starbase and can be found in the holodeck on one of the Decks today. Place may be a damn computer center to him, but he needs somewhere else other than the Sickbay and all the remaining Tribbles

Comments

[canyonsiniowa]

[Kirk pauses on his way through the hall to see the holodeck is active. For once it isn't him using it. He pauses and pokes his head in to see the Chattahoochee River and... Bones. He half steps in but then has a moment where he hesitates. This was somewhere Bones wanted to be alone, and the last time he had tried to interrupt it ended badly.

He mutters under his breath before stepping into the holodeck and the door disappearing behind him. Might as well tell him the news. Kirk makes his way over and stands behind bones with his arms at his side, still dressed in his Federation uniform.]

[hippocraticly]

[McCoy stares at the Chattahoochee river impassively as he takes another draught from the bottle. He keeps his back pointedly to the door, but his ears do pick up the second of another person entering the Holodeck and a soft murmur. Bones shifts slightly where he is sitting as the footfalls approach him from behind and he averts his eyes from the currents glistening in the artificial sunlight and they flicker up to who it is who has decided to join him in the simulation.]

Captain.

[canyonsiniowa]

Bones.

[This was awkward. They were best friends, but now they seemed even farther apart. Kirk put his hands on his hips as he stared at the dirt in front of him. Bones sounded calm, maybe even happy? No way. He never did well in awkward situations.]

Right. I'll just... leave to whatever.

[He turns to head back towards the door.]

[hippocraticly]

[McCoy can hear the tension in his voice behind that strained endearment and feels well aware of the uncomfortable silence that followed it. Bones turns his attention back to the river, unsure of what to say, but finds something to say when Kirk makes a feeble excuse to leave him alone, and he looks back over at him again.]

Jim.

[jimeeena]

[ Jimena's managed to find her way to the holodeck her counterpart led her to the other day. She was in need of a place to think and the comforting, if fake, image of the Enterprise was a place she felt comfortable. So she'd wandered around until she found the holodeck again.

Only one problem.

She walks in and stops, looking at the programmed scenery before her eyes stop on Bones. ]

Oh, Bones. Sorry. I wasn't sure if anyone would be in here...

[hippocraticly]

[McCoy looks up from his latest draught of whiskey and looks at the unfamiliar woman closely. He has not seen her before today, but something seems... well, familiar about her. Plus she knows the nickname Jim saddled him with at the Academy.]

Have we met?

[He has a feeling he already knows the answer.]

[jimeeena]

[ She walks over to him and plops down on the grass beside him. ]

Must've been an alternate version of you I met, then.

[ She holds out a hand to him with a small, amused smile. She can't wait for his reaction. ] I'm Jimena. Jimena T. Kirk.

[hippocraticly]

[McCoy raises an eyebrow at the introduction, but he holds out his own hand in welcoming regardless. The mental capability Spock from Spock allows him to accept this pretty straightforwardly today.]

Welcome to Starbase Infinity, Captain.

[aviophobic]

*Lenore has been trying not to lose her grip on reality dealing with tribbles all day. She might not be much of an explorer, but when she realized that she really hadn't seen that much of the starbase to begin with, she decided maybe doing some more investigating was not out of the question.

Besides, the more she knows and sees about this place, the fewer surprises, right?

Which is how she finds this holodeck. She hasn't come across one before, only heard of it from one of her other selves, and it doesn't hit her at first that the whole scene is just an illusion. Because it seems so real, like stepping back in time, back to Earth, like waking up from a nightmare. For a few moments, it's a river in the middle of a starbase, and it's a river she's familiar with herself upon closer inspection.

She takes half a step out, startled, partly standing dumbfoundedly in the hallway, partly standing by the river. It's not really there--and she knows it's not unless she's finally gone crazy--but she can't help her reaction.*

My god.

[hippocraticly]

[McCoy should have expected this reaction from one of his other self's here. He holds up the whiskey bottle in greeting with a curt nod. He seems relaxed considering the simulation.]

Doctor.

[aviophobic]

*She did not, in fact, even notice one of herselves already there, and even that startles her, too. But...she relaxes a little more. Of course. Who else would want a place like this--just like this? At last she steps all the way in to let the door shut behind her.*

Leo. I didn't...

*Mean to intrude? Know this was here? She's a little at a loss, and she lets out an awkward little chuckle, brushing a hand back through her hair.*

I can leave, if you want.

[hippocraticly]

[McCoy looks back at the river.]

You don't have to leave. It'll be nice to have some company.

[icanhaslogic]

[His curiosity never really sated about these things, Spock steps inside the holodeck to unfamiliar scenery. He glances around for a moment before locating Bones, and takes something of a tentative step towards the other.]

Doctor.

[hippocraticly]

[McCoy is silent as he surveys the river. This one called his name in his usual clipped tone. It must be another Spock. He looks over his shoulder and raises a hand in greeting to the Half-Vulcan.]

Didn't expect to see you here, Spock.

[icanhaslogic]

Would you prefer if I left?

[hippocraticly]

No, I was just surprised. I didn't think you Vulcans enjoyed recreational stuff like this.

[sickbay]

[ he's really giving himself the run-around. no matter where mccoy goes, he's incapable of running into his counterpart. the last place he'd checked the night before, after meeting marlena, was the bar... and he wound up spending a little extra time there. now he's on the holodeck, and there's not a doubt in his mind he's found him, judging by his familiar surroundings.

the atmosphere is serene and though he can't help but let it seep into him, he's reminded this isn't real when he sees himself, casually dressed and sitting near a campfire. god, he really has no idea how to handle this - he's not sure if he should be angry at him for running away or feel sympathy for him for even needing an escape. in the end, though, when mccoy's got something to say, there's not much that'll stop him from saying it. ]

I need to talk to you.

[hippocraticly]

[Oh dear. He glances at his other self.]

What is it?

[sickbay]

I spoke with Dax - Jadzia yesterday. [ he nods at their surroundings. ] She's in worse shape than you.

[hippocraticly]

[McCoy pauses before he stands up and faces his other self.]

Do you know where she is now?