Family Therapy

Posted on Sat Jun 25th, 2016 @ 10:42pm by Master Warrant Officer Gaius Aquila & Lieutenant Commander Holly Gillo

893 words; about a 4 minute read

Mission: Episode 91 - Bremer vs Bremer
Location: Aquila's Quarters
Timeline: MD2, 1600 hrs

It now has been some time since Holly connected Giaus with the Base Councilor, and between the councilor and her, Giaus has made marked improvements in dealing with his PTSD, despite his refusal to take medication. Titus and Octavian decided to stay on the starbase, and receive their education there. Neither of them were willing to return to Magna Roma after seeing their father's mental state following that battle. Quintus, the family servant who accompanied the boys from Magna Roma was enjoying the exotic sights on the base, and did not mind sticking around longer than planned. He also managed to get a job at one of the various shops on the promenade section of the base. Giaus was even nice enough to arrange permanent housing for Quintus.

Giaus has grown used to everyone's company when off duty. He has been more his talkative old self in the last few weeks, something that made the boys happy. A family dinner with included Giaus, Holly, and the boys was in the works, with Giaus practicing his young culinary skills.

Holly was getting more and more use to having Giaus around her with the boys as they were together every hour outside of duty. Seamed to do him good and the boys were very accepting of her now. Getting out of duty and changing into something more comfortable she was preparing for dinner as Giaus was cooking this evening. She could only guess what he was up to.

Giaus has gotten some experience in cooking since his first date with Holly. This was something he was proud of. He has even gotten imaginative as well, combining elements of Betazoid and Roman dishes. He "procured" some more vegetables from Betazed, and combined them with garum, a popular condiment back home. He did, however, use the replicator to produce raw Roman mutton which he cooked with a Betazoid inspired sauce. The kitchen creativity was very therapeutic to him as well.

Titus was playing with a VR headset as he waited for dinner. Octavian was glued to the Federation News circuit, keeping up with current events. Both their hunger inspired attention spans shifted to the diner table when Giaus announced that dinner was served.

Holly couldn't help but giggle a bit at the boys as they went from their adventures to the table in a matter of minutes of being told that dinner was ready. She was naturally the last one to arrive as she was one to never leave a mess anywhere and it was a habit of her's she tried to break only to find it getting worse the more comfortable she was in a place. Entering the dinning area she greeted him with a kiss and then softly spoke words, "You have become quite the chief, and it shall be interesting what you came up with this evening. Always is a pleasant gift when you cook like this." After that she took up a seat at the table and waited to see what Giaus had cooked up for the evening.

Giaus started bringing out the serving dished full of Roman-Betazoid fusion. The meals either consisted of betazoid vegetables with Roman sauces, or vice versa. The boys really like the aroma. Before taking a seat, he had the room's audio system play music typical to Magna Roman banquets. The presentation was finished off with wine straight from home.

A smile on her face was there due to the fact that she recognized some of the food on the table and the rest that she didn't she had read about when trying to learn more about his culture. So much care and attention was given to each dish that she couldn't help but be even more impressed with Giaus. Her silence was due to Holly just taking everything in. Had been a long time since she had food from home. Sitting like a proper lady in her chair she waited for him to make the first move as she was unclear still on how to start a meal with him and the boys.

Out of respect for Holly, the boys closed their eyes, and said a silent prayer to themselves like they have always done when dining with non-Romans. When they looked up, Giaus spoke. "To most people, this is a simple dinner. It is much more than that to me. At this table sits the woman I love, and my sons, my family. As we should do every day, we celebrate life." He raised his cup, "To Life."

When he raised up his cup she did the same and spoke, "To Life." It was then she took a drink out of her glass to complete the toast.

After the toast, the boys started to eat. Giaus looked at Holly with a smile, waiting for her to take her first bites before he started to eat.

Holly could feel Giaus's gaze on her and made the conclusion that he was waiting for her to start eating before eating himself. That is why she didn't waste any time and got into the meal taking a bite and rolling it around in her mouth to enjoy it.

Dinner, including desert, went smoothly, with Giaus gazing at Holly more than his food. Both Titus and Octavian noticed their father's new eating habits, but decided to let love take its course.

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