Cat Naps

Posted on Sun Nov 6th, 2016 @ 7:11am by Captain Charybdis MacGregor & Lieutenant Commander Selune
Edited on on Fri Nov 11th, 2016 @ 10:10pm

0 words; about a 1 minute read

Mission: Taking Chances
Location: USS Bonne Chance, Deck 3, Forward Observation Room
Timeline: 2265

Selune drifted listlessly in her recently acquired chair as the stars drifted past her half lidded eyes. The events of the day were slowly being forgotten and replaced with the soft silence of solitude as well as a spectacular view from the surprisingly large window. She had been exploring the ship when she had found it... observation room, deck three. Peaceful solitude and a glimpse into the majesty of space all in one.

This, she decided, is a comfortable chair. Her body slowly curled itself into a ball as she made herself comfortable, with her head resting easily on the arm before it was drowned in her hair. It only took several dreamy seconds before she escaped into a light nap that could easily last a few days. Her tail slowly switched back and forth, like a towel in a gentle breeze as her breathing became heavier and more rhythmic, and a mild purring escaped from deep within her chest as she drifted deeper and deeper into a satisfying slumber.



Internal debate was one of the science officer's defining points. Often she would second-guess her choices internally seeking some sort of rationalization to validate her actions, while externally she appeared to be decisive. This was one of those decisions.

In theory she was wondering where the Caitian helmsman had gotten off to... she was off duty and she could be practically anywhere aboard the ship, realistically. Apparently Patrick had assigned her to senior staff quarters, which meant that she should be moving her belongings from Deck Eight to Deck Five, but Char was a bit too busy to manage chasing all over the ship. So that moment of internal debate arrived and passed, and she took to the bridge, relieved Ensign Tyler for a break and used the lateral sensors to scan the Bonne Chance for Caitian life signs.

Deck Three, Forward Observation Room.

Curious and curiouser.

Her intuition flared, telling her that she was on the right track, and once she had double-checked some of the outputs of the sensor logs and made a recommendation or two, she waited for Ensign Tyler to return from his break, commended his work and then took the access ladders down to Deck Three.

As the door to the observation room wooshed open, there was a distinct purring sound coming from one of the chairs, and there was a pile of white hair resting on one of the arms. Charybdis walked in slowly, moving quietly to come around and observe. Sure enough, the white-furred Caitian was sleeping soundly, facing the stars, curled up in an orange overstuffed chair, her tail curled mostly about her sleeping form save for the occasional twitch at the end as she dreamed.

The scientist debated waking her or letting her sleep- in theory she was off duty, and this was a lounge, so the fact that she was lounging here wasn't a violation of protocol. Patrick might not see it that way... but then, he was not here. In her sleep the Caitian looked somehow much happier than when awake... the anxieties and stresses of the day did not seem to register on her face, and if anything she looked content. Charybdis resisted the urge to pet her like a cat... while her xenocultural knowledge was sorely lacking, she was reasonably sure that just fell under inappropriate behavior, despite the officer's uncanny resemblance to a large white housecat in a Starfleet gold uniform at the moment.

Easing herself into the chair next to Selune, Charybdis coughed gently to announce her presence, and give the helmsman a chance to rouse herself at her own pace.

The response was almost startlingly fast, despite being uncannily casual. Selune's eyes had begun to slowly open almost before Charybdis had finished the social cough, slowly shifting into focus as the Caitian lackadaisically stretched herself out. One hand paused before she rubbed it against her cheek, instead using it to push herself into a more upright position with an embarrassed grin.

Selune found herself almost surprised at not waking completely when Chary had entered the room, it showed that either she was becoming somewhat more familiar with the curvaceous commander than she had realised or she really needed the sleep. It took her a second to register that she had been staring blankly at the science officer, or maybe just in her direction. She managed a slight cough of her own to try cover the pause and carefully stretched it into a grin, "Here to admire the view?"

The voluptuous Vulcan reclined into her chair, crossed her legs and rested her elbow on the arm of the chair, bringing her fingertips up to rest against her temple. The double entendre was hard to pass up, but she didn't want to make Selune uncomfortable or confuse her... besides, she probably should work to have just a hint more decorum now that she was First Officer.

"Looking for you, truth to tell. You're better at finding hiding places than Teague, the Galley Cat... although yours at least does have this panorama," she said, gesturing to the stars drifting by as the Bonaventure warped through space.

Tilting her head, Selune pondered her companions words even has her mouth took it upon itself to reply for her, "I wasn't trying to play hard to get, just wanted a quiet place with a good view..." She turned slightly towards the window again, watching the stars from the corner of her eye before she dragged herself away from the distraction, "So what did you want me for?"

Internally the scientist chuckled. And here I was trying to avoid the entendre... was that two or three in that sentence?

"Just checking up on you... I saw that the Captain had a chat with you today so I wanted to touch base with you and make sure that it went fine and that you might feel a little better about working with him is all." Charybdis spread her hands openly as she spoke, keeping it casual.

Selune's suddenly eyes teared up as her entire body tensed. A small whimper escaped her throat as her lip began to quiver before she launched herself across the small gap and into Charybdis' arms, a barely controlled shudder running through her as she nuzzled her face into Charys shoulder. A small sob preceded a sudden verbal torrent "I... I just... a...and then he... It was so..." she stalled, then pushed herself away with a laugh, "Oh well... you know, it was fine... nothing really exciting or anything. He reminded me a lot of my last CO, nothing like some of the horror stories I heard in the academy that's for sure."

Charybdis considered her reaction for all of a second before batting the feline on the top of the head. "YOU! Augh, you completely had me there. Don't do that," she said, dissolving into laughter. "I genuinely thought you were having a breakdown there, you tribble!"

Selune had least had the decency and ability to look suitably abashed, "I'm sorry," she murmured. Her face downcast looking up at Char with wide eyes as her ears wilted slightly before she broke into a broad grin and waved irritably at a suddenly offensive strand of hair. "The look on your face was worth it though... Sorry about that, I'll try to avoid it in the future. Poor impulse control and a sometimes odd sense of humour, this is one of the reasons my instructors made me meditate every day you know," she said finishing with a nod.

"I'm beginning to understand. So it went well, no problems obviously... good, good. So what are you doing for socialization... to get to know your shipmates better and be a part of the crew in your off time?" The curious Vulcan cocked an eyebrow and a half-smile played at her lips.

"Mostly I've been luring unsuspecting senior officers into private rooms and isolated viewing platforms," Selune chirped dismissively before letting out a small sigh, "Ok, ok, so I should probably be more proactive but..." she waved her hand in the general direction of the bridge before letting it sink back to rub at the back of her neck self-consciously, "Actually, I don't really have an excuse."

"Your choices and your time are your own Selune... all I can do is make recommendations when you are off duty. But I think you might have a bit more of an enjoyable experience aboard this ship if you put yourself out there and give folks a chance to get to know you." The cheerful commander rose smoothly out of the chair and brushed some of the errant white fur off of her uniform.

"We've got some shore leave coming, and I'm going to be putting a senior staff girl's night out together. I'd like for you to come with us... it will give you a chance to meet some of the others in a more casual setting and give them a chance to know you. What do you say?"

A deep sense of apprehension began to build within Selune even before Charybdis asked the question that was obviously coming. Even while two parts of her mind scrambled to find an excuse she knew she had already burnt her own bridges by admitting to not having an excuse. Not that it made the idea of spending several hours surrounded by what would probably be drunken aliens any more appealing. She had heard about this kind of thing before.

She began to chew her lip as her eyes idly drifted around the room, "I suppose... I didn't exactly have anything else planned," and it would be rude to say no when Chary's been so nice to you, her mind finished for her.

"Oh, relax, I'm sure it'll be fun... just you, me, Yuna and Fiona," Charybdis pointed out, obviously assuming that Selune would know who the people those names indicated were aboard the Bonaventure. "We're possibly three of the most dangerous women in Starfleet before we add you into the mix, and we're going nightclubbing on a resort plant. What could possibly go wrong?"

 

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