Personal Log - Dani, Zett, Andrea - Revelations - Earth, Pt VI

Posted on Sun Aug 31st, 2014 @ 1:32am by Commodore Andrea Levine PhD & Danielle Atarah

1,433 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: Are You Touched?

They spoke for a while, Dani explaining, Zett chipping in with smartsy comments, and Andrea listening, quietly, her fingers covering her mouth, obscuring whatever reactions she may have had. She listened patiently to Dani's story; having to leave half her belongings behind at Utopia Planetia, looking for Starfleet contacts unsuccessfully, contacting Earth, and then, finally, leaving the Vindicator and making her way to Earth.

Andrea nodded finally, looking at Dani through thoughtful eyes, ignoring Zett's comments as much as her patience allowed.

"So you ran out of the fleet," she finally noted, but it wasn't judgment that flooded her tone. It was concern. "Can't say it's a surprise. You've been thinking about that a while."

Dani nodded slowly, the last couple of years, it was getting harder and harder to stay a fleet officer. After her adventures with Starfleet Intelligence, and then the New Eden mines, and the terrorist attacks on the Whydah -- they were all signs, poking at her mind, reminding her she didn't really belong in that system. Not truly.

"I wish that choice wasn't made during a war." Andrea commented, and Zett scoffed.

"Don't we all?"

Dani gave her a look, but Andrea examined the woman silently, her mouth showing a trace of a smile. It was like looking at a mirror version of Dani from an alternative universe where Dani didn't join Starfleet at all.

"Well, that was fun," Zett smiled and patted her thighs, "I need to refresh myself. I assume you have a bathroom in this house?"

For a brief moment, Andrea wanted to say no, to keep the stranger away from her family, especially her children, but she thought better of it. Beyond the fact that had they wanted to, they could have killed them all within minutes, the woman in front of her was Dani's friend, and Dani clearly trusted her, despite the intriguing banter that passed between them.

Andrea nodded and gestured towards the guest bedroom at the other end of the hallway. "Two doors to your left."

Zett picked herself up, ruffled Dani's red-spiked hair, and sauntered off. Dani leaned forward to put her elbows on her thighs and look at Andrea.

"Did you get the messages from Logan?"

Andrea nodded, thankful. "Yes. He's okay, he was doing a lecture in the beta quadrant, he's far away from all this trouble. Probably being restrained by the ship's captain, or he'd be here," she smiled, "like you."

"Oh, I was almost restrained," Dani smiled. "I snuck out without Ivanova knowing." She didn't tell about Pond letting her go; that story would be Pond's choice to share, for better or worse.

Andrea's smile widenned. "How is Rochelle? Is she still the XO of the Vindicator? I heard she accepted the post a few months ago under Captain Neyes."

Dani shook her head, "she's the Captain now. They've lost Captain Neyes just before I came aboard."

"Oh," Andrea frowned, thinking how hard this must have been for her friend, once again, to be put in that position, only this time... this time for real. "She deserves the command," she nodded, "though I wish it was under different circumstances."

"Yeah, I think she wishes that too."

Andrea nodded and then jumped, startled, at a shriek from the other room. She gave Dani a panicked look and jumped to her feet, opening the play room's door like a hurricane, looking for her children and the source of the shriek.

Kalina Zett sat cross legged on the floor, her back hunched to let baby Cooper continue his attempts to examine her colorful hair. Madison wobbled in front of her, holding on to a strong hand, reaching to touch the spots on the woman's face. Cooper shrieked laughter again, as Zett crouched further, bumping him onto her back and lifting him, sideways, up towards her shoulders. "OH, THEY'RE STORMING THE CASTLE!"

Andrea's hand shifted from her heart -- where it was resting, momentarily, as the breath caught in her chest with the first shriek -- and to her mouth, covering a smile.

Dani simply stared, with a gape she couldn't quite manage to hide.

"If you climb any higher, little man, you'll reach the ceiling." Zett bumped the little boy up to her shoulders and held him there firmly, rocking her shoulders from side to side. Both children laughed, though Madison seemed to be more interested at the delicate patterns of spots than at her shifting brother. Zett poked her tongue out at the little girl and blew a raspberry. The girl seemed momentarily startled, blinked, then tried to grab the woman's poking tongue, giggling.

"Interesting friend," Andrea smiled at Dani, and Dani, her mouth still open in surprise, blinked, trying to come out of her daze.

"Oh, I'm more than interesting," Zett grinned, talking to Andrea but making faces at Madison. "I'm faaaascinating." she blew a raspberry again and quickly slipped her tongue away before the girl reaches it.

The entire day was fascinating, Andrea thought. Fascinating, and very -- very -- telling. She learned quite a lot today, and not all of it was facts about her situation. Danielle Atarah, her stubborn, wayward protege', made a choice, and that choice will affect more people than she possibly considered.

And she's also grown up, Andrea reflected, she could see it in her mannerism, in the way she spoke, and moved, and walked. In the way she looked at that woman on the floor right now, in her eyes.

Dani crouched, smiling slightly, finally absorbing the scene, and Andrea, finally getting more at ease, decided, firmly, that Dani will be okay. Whatever happens, whenever the Fleet regains control over this mad world and mad political body calling itself "Federation", she will make sure to repay the debts, she will make sure Dani, at least, is not paying for this adventure dearly.

She just hoped she could deliver.

* * *

"So," Zett smirked and slid into the shuttle's pilot seat. "That was Captain Gorgeous."

Dani glanced up at her and smiled. 'Captain Gorgeous' was Pond's nickname to Andrea, which started, she thought, during the New Eden mines, when Amelia was undercover.

"I guess I can see some reason for the nickname," Zett's smirk continued as she tapped the buttons to activate the vehicle, "if I look hard enough."

Dani looked at her, amused. "That was Pond's nickname. I never really used it."

"Didn't you?" Zett nodded and the shuttle bounced upwards. "I wouldn't have guessed."

Dani's look turned to a stare, her eyes narrowing slightly.

Zett glanced. "What?"

Dani smirked. "Are you jealous?"

Zett scoffed. "Of that? No, thank you."

"You are." Dani smiled, "You're jealous." She straightened in her seat and grinned. "Really, that's cute Kal."

Zett opened her mouth to speak and closed it. They rode in silence for a moment, until Zett shook her head.

"You left everything you had behind, paid half your soul to Cardello -- and don't deny it, little girl, I'm not stupid, I know how many deals you had to make for this -- to come back for her." she noted, her eyes on the controls.

Dani blinked. "It wasn't just for her. You know that."

"Right," the Trill nodded, then took a breath. "I know. I know. It's just..." she glanced at Dani and returned her gaze to the controls. "I just realized I don't know that side of you. The... the Lieutenant side. The Starfleet officer," she made a mock 'official' gesture, straightening her shoulders with a mock salute, "the engineer Dani. The way she looked at you..." she shrugged. "You really had something there, didn't you?"

Dani looked out the window silently. "Yeah. I eventually did."

Zett nodded quietly and pushed the buttons to control their descent. Dani turned to face her, but the Trill's attention was focused on the instruments. Dani smiled.

Yes, she had something in Starfleet. She had friends, she even had a family, of sorts, one she grew to care about, even deeply. That was the only thing that kept her there for so long. The only thing. Otherwise, she'd have come back here much -- much -- sooner.

Still silent, she smiled, and put her hand on Zett's thigh. "I didn't just come back for her, Kal."

The woman smiled, the ship lurching forward to land.

"Yeah," she nodded, and looked at Dani sideways, smiling softly. "Yeah. I know."

* * *

Danielle Atarah
Grifter / Thief
Earth

Kalina Zett
Captain
Bristol Supply ship
The Cardello Syndicate

Commodore Andrea Levine
Professor, Starfleet Academy
(Tenured Researcher, R&D, Starfleet Command)
Federation-controlled Earth

Madison and Cooper Levine-Grant

(All NPCs played by Mooey)

 

RSS Feed