Joint Personal Log | Capt Ivanova & Cmdr PontBrillant - "All Kinds of Roses"

Posted on Thu Oct 2nd, 2014 @ 10:50pm by Admiral Rochelle Ivanova & Vlimar PontBrillant

1,806 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Are You Touched?
Location: Holodeck Two

It had been a difficult time revolving around Vlimar bartering with his transporter staff in order to have something beamed somewhere on the ship discreetly. His intentions had been to transport an envelope onto the Captain's pillow for her to find upon return to the room. After a day of negotiations, ultimately ending with him granting an officer an extra day off, he'd managed to pull it off. Happy, he went on about his business and worked to prepare the end result of his little plan, a fact he found quite appealing - even if it had to be secret.

The early duty shift was always enlightening, alpha shift always on their toes and response. Given the mess of things being made on the planet below, there was no doubt in Rochelle's mind that they were all thinking the same thing; how the Hell the nightmare below would be remedied. Noah Waterhouse had destroyed the natural order of things for an entire race. Evolution would never be the same and there was nothing she, nor Starfleet, could do to stop or fix it. The little bastard and his band of morons weren't governed by the federation, the laws of the Prime Directive simply didn't apply. Oh the frustration.

The first thing she did when she returned home was get rid of her tunic followed by freeing her hair from its usual French twist. It wasn't until she stopped shaking it out with her fingers that she noticed the envelope sitting on her pillow. At first the sight of something out of place in her quarters was the cold press of concern for who had dared enter without her permission. The handwriting on it, spelling out her first name, answered that question and soothed her worries all at the same time.

He wouldn't give up.

Taking it up, she opened it and read the message within it with a sigh. It was set back down while she changed out of her uniform and once again took to the halls. Holodeck two was her ultimate destination.

It had been Vlimar's intention to send the woman on an entertaining, routine-changing quest. He'd planned it ship-wide by way of subterfuge to get what he wanted. In holo-deck two he'd prepared a program for Rochelle where she'd be swept off her feet prior to being sent elsewhere all while he, hidden, would be watching her reactions.

Entering the holodeck, Rochelle simply sighed as the program quickly snapped to focus all around her, the arch disappearing into the scenery as Vlimar's quest began.

A man, dressed in 1960's Earth clothing approached Rochelle, tipping his hat as a salutation. The room was a post-prohibition club where music was obviously the center stage, having cocktail tables surrounding a round stage with two bars on each side of the room. The music was jazzy instrumental club songs. The man, approaching Rochelle, was met by a woman carrying a tray with two crystal glasses and a bottle of wine. The bottle was quite a rustic French wine, being corked with an oversize cork with wax dripping from the top of it. The man opened the bottle by biting the cork and spitting it behind him, then serving wine in both glasses. The waitress, waiting a black short cocktail dress and head piece kept smiling at Rochelle in a manner that was almost robotic. The man poured the wine, set the bottle back onto the tray and extended a glass to Rochelle.

"Bienvenue à La Rochelle, mademoiselle." said the man, smiling. "Je suis Henri Dourville, votre hôte pour ce soir. J'assume que vous êtes mademoiselle Ivanova?" he asked, offering his hand to Rochelle.

"Bonsoir." Rochelle nodded to him, an eyebrow quirking at the name of the club she'd found herself in. "Oui, je suis Ivanova." She replied, taking his hand in hers for a greeting. The entire situation and setting was oh so very Vlimar.

The man smiled and lead her towards a small table near the stage. The band nodded, acknowledging Rochelle's presence and changed the song, drawing up the lilting notes of "La Quête".

"Rêver, d'un impossible rêve.
Porter, les chagrins du départ.
Brûler, d'une impossible fièvre.
Partir, où personne ne ne part..."

The singer crooned and Henri smiled at Rochelle, hands behind his back, as she settled into her chair. "This song was requested by one of our good patrons, here. He said that the chorus refers to a star, an unreachable star that sets somewhere you can only see it, but never reach." he stated, with a significant french accent.

"... Aimer, jusqu'à la déchirure.
Aimer, même trop, même mal.
Tenter, à s'en écarteler...
Pour atteindre: L'inaccessible étoile..."

Setting her glass on the table, Rochelle watched the dark red wine shimmy against its confines. She'd never had much need for alcohol, but suddenly immersed in Vlimar's world she'd found herself with a glass of wine in her hand more often. A single glass never made a difference, never hurt anyone -- but it was a change. "To dream the impossible dream." She nodded, looking up at Henri with a smile. "The quest he sings of is more or less about the forbidden fruit, about temptation and not being allowed to quench that desire. I know it well."

The rendition of the song was peaceful, lovely, a crooning ballad filled with emotion. Vlimar wouldn't give up, wouldn't quit. "It's a beautiful piece of music, don't you think? Your fine patron has good taste." She said to Henri.

Henri smiled kindly and nodded. "I can agree with your statement, madame, just by looking at you." he stated, obviously referring to Vlimar's taste in women more so than the song itself.

Rochelle chuckled softly at the French flair, her eyes rolling ever so slightly as she took a sip of her wine.

"Monsieur has requested that I provide you with instructions for your next stop, madame. Please, let me know when you are ready." Henri declared and smiled as he walked away from the table, leaving Rochelle by herself.

She nodded to the man and relaxed, enjoying the music and applauding when the band finished their set. It was only then that she got to her feet and sought out Henri, finding him leaning against the bar and watching the customers in his club. "So about that next stop?" Rochelle asked with a small smile.

Henri smiled back at Rochelle and reached in his pocket to produce and extend to her a folded up card that looked like a 1940's style 1-fold card. Inside, Vlimar had written: "Come watch the Inaccessible Star".

"Merci." She slid the note into her pocket and gave Henri one last parting grin before she ended the program and took to the halls once again.

Vlimar was a strange creature of habit, one that was cursed with an insatiable pride and thirst for romance. It could be blamed on his heritage or his age demanding him to be sentimental. It could have been an early onset of insanity that drove him to play with fire and reach for that so called 'inaccessible star' that burned so bright and dangerous. The more she said no, the harder he tried and the game continued on.

The ride to the observation lounge was quick and painless, the later it became on the ship the less likely she was to run into other people. That rule held especially true with the situation the ship was now facing.

Vlimar had carefully locked out other officers from being able to access the observation lounge. The entire space had been re-worked so that all the tables had been removed. All but one square table, that is, that had been set in the center of the observation window, with a bouquet of red roses in the middle of it. On one side, a steaming hot pot of tea was laid, a cup and saucer sitting next to it and a single card rested between the flowers and the tea pot. As Rochelle entered a smooth piece of classical music began to play soft and low. The entire ambiance had been refit to be relaxing.

She'd been right. He wouldn't quit no matter how emphatically she said 'no'. The roses and the tea, the table near the stars -- all of it seemed so alien to the woman who hadn't ever received flowers aside from a condolence arrangement when her mother had disappeared. Her aunts had taken that one, setting it as their own small trophy and Rochelle had never seen it again. "Smooth." Rochelle whispered as she stood beside the table, taking the card in her hand.

On the card Vlimar had written: "Time is too slow for those who wait, too swift for those who fear, too long for those who grieve, too short for those who rejoice, but for those who love, time is eternity." - Henry Van Dyke. Under it, in slightly smaller writing, he added "With hope of eternity, V". She'd reached the end of her quest.

Refolding the card, she slid it into her pockets and sighed softly, her eyes glittering with both good humor and mild irritation alight within them. Eternity was one of those words that seemed so daunting in use. It had to be considered, weighed, measured and used with extreme prejudice and care.

Eternity had seemed so easy for her as she'd gone about her daily tasks as the ship's XO. Landon would come in unannounced, they'd talk about the tasks at hand, exchange some degree of witty banter and the day would go on. But now? Now the prospect of eternity without him scared the Hell out of the redhead... And yet she was forging ahead, blazing a brilliant path and somehow coming out on top. She wondered if he was proud, watching from wherever it was that Trill hold holy.

Rochelle reached for a rose, caressing the soft vermilion satin of its petals as she cupped the blossom and brought it to her nose. The quiet of the lounge was a welcomed reprieve, as was the warmth of the tea he'd left for her -- the entirety of it so delicately planned with all of its intricacies. For a moment, perhaps a long moment, she could put a pause in her hectic schedule to stop and enjoy life's softer things regardless of their origin.

Thought, however, was a powerful thing... The night wouldn't end with just the symphony of roses and idle memories. The night would end with an epiphany -- one that would send her running for Tristan.

-=- END LOG -=-

Captain Rochelle Ivanova
Commanding Officer
USS VINDICATOR, NCC-78213-E

&

Commander Vlimar PontBrillant
Strategic Operations Commander
USS Vindicator

(Reference : http://youtu.be/ycTgyrAN8Cs )

 

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