Random Beginnings

Posted on Wed Mar 6th, 2013 @ 7:49am by Ensign Anthony La Baron & Lieutenant Anandra Delair
Edited on on Wed Mar 6th, 2013 @ 7:19pm

2,534 words; about a 13 minute read

Mission: Mission 82 - The Aggressor
Location: Promenade
Timeline: Present (Following 'Visiting')

Lt. Anandra Delair had lofty plans for adventure on this second day off of hers - at least that was until the computer woke her at 0600 and she cursed it to silence, abandoning her sense of adventure and sleeping a good few hours later than planned. The sleep was well needed after the previous day full of activities had left her worn out. At the end of the day yesterday, one of her girlfriends had even teased Anandra about 'feeling her age', and the two of them talked late into the night after that.

She awoke after noon and got her workout and breakfast out of the way before packing her usual essentials into a small shoulder bag - she intended to begin her exploration on the promenade today. Her off-duty attire was modest, yet form-fitting, in subtle shades of grey and lavender with no adornments or buttons of any kind. She let her unruly hair down, it's dark and wavy strands extending well below her shoulders.

From her seat on the upper level of the promenade, Anan could eavesdrop on the bustling action of the lower level as she sipped her tea and idly browsed some text on her PADD. In the far distance, she could hear musicians playing stringed instruments somewhere down below. "Look at yourself," she sighed, "Staring at a PADD on your day off?" she thought. There was only a momentary hesitation before she put the PADD back into her shoulder bag and reminded herself (mentally, of course) that "today isn't about sitting around, today is about adventure!"

Her inner pep-talk had apparently gotten her so gung-ho that she didn't even see the man whom she immediately crashed into as she stood resolutely from her seat and turned in the direction of that distant music. "OH-oh my god," she gasped, taking an immediate step backward, and a good look at her innocent bystander. She was instantly embarrassed, but managed to hide it behind a sheepish kind of giggle. "Oh I am so sorry," her skin flushed rather obviously, but she still attempted to salvage her pride with a warm smile and move on. "I guess I was a little distracted." If she didn't know herself any better, she'd say she was about to have an inward struggle over whether to introduce or excuse herself from this somewhat awkward situation.

Anthony, too excited about being getting some early work done aboard Princeton paid no attention to where he was walking. It was only a matter of time before he collided with somebody. Luckily the woman he ran into was uninjured and found the situation amusing.

"No worries," Anthony said with a smile, "I was distracted as well. Besides on a promenade of this size, somebody is bound to crash into somebody else."

"No kidding," she said, eyes sweeping over their surroundings. "I've been spending every free moment exploring this place. I've only been on the base for about a week," she said, finding her manners and offering a hand. "Lieutenant Anandra Delair," she introduced herself formally, then added. "But my friends call me Anan."

"Ensign Anthony La Baron" Anthony said with a subtle bow, "I go by Anthony. Only my father calls me Tony and even that I can't stand."

Anthony knew the joke about his name was a lame one, but he knew no other way to break the ice than a touch of self-depreciative humor.

Anan smiled wide at the joke, pleased that this new friend seemed to have a sense of humor. "Well Anthony, if you haven't got any plans how would you feel about wandering in the general direction of that lovely music while we become more acquainted?"

Charmed by Anan's smile and enraptured by the subtle sound of music Anthony forgot about his current orders, "It sounds likes a piece by Rachmaninoff, one of his Piano Concertos if I'm not mistaken. Count me in."

"Oh, so you like music?" she rhetorically asked, brow arched to match the angle of her wry grin. "Then we'll have plenty to talk about." She lead them at a leisurely pace, matching his stride and falling in directly beside him, looking him over in subtle glances as they weaved through others who were going about their day just the same as these two. "I've always adored music. Someone once told me that a person's tastes in music can say a lot about them - I'll be picking your brain all about yours, but tell me about yourself first." she implored. "Where do you fit into Starfleet's grand scheme here?"

Anthony matched her subtle glances with his own each time she took a moment to look away. There was no denying that he found her attractive, and, with each quick glance, he grew more enticed.

"I'm the Station's new Chief Science Officer," Anthony said with a certain degree of authority and poise, "Originally I was going to be a simple Stellar Cartographer but, Starfleet as usual had other plans."

The music in the distance steadily grew louder. The nuances of embellishing notes could finally be heard over the roar of the crowd on the Promenade making the piece richer with each step they took.

"Judging by your interrogation skills, I'd wager that you are a Counselor." Anthony said with a sly smile as he picked at her brain.

"Very accurate, I'm impressed!" she said with a hint of astonishment before narrowing her eyes playfully. "Unless I'm just that transparent." But the faux look of scrutiny was quickly replaced with her warm usual expression, alight with the wonder of their surroundings as her gaze soaked it all up. "I am a counselor, and if your powers of deduction are any indication, I'd say Starfleet made you Chief Science Officer with good reason, Mister La Baron." Just as the smells of the nearby restaurants and cafe's began to tickle her senses, Anan spotted the musicians seated on a platform surrounded by what appeared to be a large seating area to accompany the nearby eateries. "Come on," she said, gently taking him by the arm and leading him to a spot where they could listen, and more importantly talk uninterrupted. "Stellar cartography," she said thoughtfully as they settled at a small table. "You have the mind of a scientist and the heart of an explorer. Of course that's only conjecture," she propped her chin on her palm, looking across the table at him, squinting slightly as if she were trying to read him. She noted that his hair situation was not exactly the clean-cut Starfleet standard, but that seemed a promising note in her eyes. There was a lot to be said about non-conformity, she thought.

Anthony found the squinting charming, he knew that she was trying to read him. He figured it was best to answer her questions instead of hold his cards close to his chest.

"The La Baron men have always been Captains," Anthony took a moment to listen to the music, "It's been that way since Kirk was captain of the Enterprise. Of course, I've tried to do things my own way so I chose a career in Stellar Cartography. Besides, I could never get the Kobayashi Maru test quite right."

Truth be told there was more than a simulated test keeping him from going the Command Route, childhood memories of the USS Atlanta being chief among them. Anthony could never fathom making the life and death decisions that his father did as Captain. He could never cope with such loss.

For a moment a trace look of loss came over Anthony's face which he promptly shook off not wanting to explore that path with his impromptu date.

"What about you Anan?" Anthony asked as he looked into her stunning blue eyes, "What brings you to this exciting corner of space?"

Anan remained poised and attentive as he spoke - not just because she came from a people of legendary listeners, but more so because she was genuinely interested. She was often fascinated by the stories of people she met in her travels - and every single person did have a story to tell - but this was slightly different. She sensed something about this man - nothing substantial, just a feeling that there was a lot more to the face than meets the eye. She looked forward to unraveling the mystery. She'd laughed softly, little more than a chuckle, when he mentioned the Kobayashi Maru. She could think of only a handful of people who got the test anything remotely close to right, and three of them were Vulcan. She made a mental note to mention that to him the next time that subject came up. She noted a slight change in him after that, though the moment was fleeting and hardly allowed her anything to hypothesize over before he turned the conversation over to her.

"Well, I.." she began, sinking back against her chair and offering a shrug. There really was no exciting way to tell the story. "I was serving as Chief Counselor aboard the USS Vincennes while it was stationed just outside the neutral zone, and when that service ended I got promoted to Lieutenant and Starfleet shipped me out here." She sat up, placing a hand on his forearm as she leaned in to talk quietly. "And to let you in on a secret - I was terrified of the idea at first." She grinned sheepishly. "I just imagined..isolation." she gestured at their surroundings. "Imagine that." And laughed. "Anyway, now I can't even contain the excitement, this is all so much!" and her excitement was evident, though it sobered slightly when in her usual pragmatic caution she added. "Of course, it's only been seven days.." Her gaze met his again and her smile widened - he was cute - and any hint of caution seemed to float away. "But I think I'm thinking too much..I think I'm going to like it here."

Anthony found her her excitement attractive. He felt his heart melt when she placed her hand on his arm. Despite the fact that Anthony just met her, she gave him very nice vibes.

"I think I'll enjoy it here too," Anthony said with a warm smile, "Now that I ran int-"

And then Anthony's face turned completely pale as if all the blood had escaped from his body.

Anan's smile slowly faded as she looked at Anthony's face in confusion. "What?" she asked, looking left and right, then again more urgently. "What is it?"

Anthony had caught a glimpse of the wall and knew that he was going to be in a heap of trouble, "I was supposed to be aboard the Princeton fifteen minutes ago."

"What?" she whispered in a gasp as if she might blow his cover if she spoke too loudly; then she had a thought and her posture straightened. She was a counselor, she could cover for him if it were necessary - using a little well-timed diplomacy with only a sprinkling of little white lies. She'd done worse. "Well Ensign, you should get right over there." she said dutifully, but with a smirk as she stood from her seat. "Shall I walk with you?"

"That would be lovely, Lieutenant." Said Anthony as he stood and gestured towards the turbolift across the promenade.

On any other day Anthony would crucify himself for being late, but under the circumstances he could certainly live with it. After all, how often does one simply run into a beautiful woman amongst a space filled with hundreds of people? Still, He'd probably have to put on a show for his fellow officers, something to assure them it wouldn't happen again. It was a price Anthony was willing to pay.

"My pleasure, sir." she assured him as she took the lead and began weaving through the crowd at a less leisurely pace than they'd begun their journey. "I'm curious," she spoke at him with a sideways glance as they strode. "Is it often that you're so late for a duty assignment?" She arched a brow speculatively over that bright, flirtatious smile of hers; and she didn't necessarily expect an answer.

"Normally I don't collide with my fellow officers on the way to work" Anthony said with a chuckle as they walked through the crowd, "Especially attractive ones." He added.

Anthony and Anan approached the Turbolift shaft. Anthony pressed the button to summon the turbolift. As they waited for the lift to arrive, Anthony continued to take quick glances at her as they waited patiently.

"Anan," The Door opened and he gestured for her to enter first, "I planned on taking a runabout out to Kaleb V and conduct a quick survey after my shift is over. I planned on bringing a bottle of Chateau Picard to celebrate my first assignment and I'd hate to drink it alone."

Anan bit back a smile at his compliment and walked on in silence, turning to look out at the promenade as the two of them stopped at the turbolift doors. Anthony's voice drew her gaze back, and she stepped directly through the open door of the turbolift just as Anthony's question registered on her mind. "I would love to." she smiled, pleased with the new course for the evening. She'd been playing it by ear all day, which left her with no solid plans for the evening until now. "I have no idea where the shuttle bays are." she admitted with a bit of a laugh. "So we'll have to meet somewhere more familiar - and from there you can be my guide."

"Don't feel bad," Said Anthony, "I don't know where the shuttle bay is either. It'll just be another adventure for us to share."

The turbolift came to a halt on the Docking deck. The doors opened and Anthony could see the old Princeton waiting for his arrival.

"This is where I get off." Anthony said with a sigh, "It was wonderful meeting you."

"Thanks for bumping into me," she teased, giving him a playful nudge. "I had a great time."

"As did I." Said Anthony as he nudged back.

Anthony then did something unexpected, even by his standards. He gently pecked Anan on the cheek before exiting the turbo lift.

"I'll see you after my shift is over." He said with a giant smile before the turbolift doors shut.

Anan stared ponderously in Anthony's direction for a moment even after the doors closed, amused and perplexed and elated. The gesture was sweet, respectful, modestly suggestive of the type of guy he was. What was interesting about it was the fact that he could have -really- kissed her there, and she wouldn't have been surprised or perplexed..or particularly moved as she was right now. It'd been a while since she dabbled in romance, and she was now experiencing a glimpse of the elated feelings that come from the mutual presence of 'chemistry'; the feelings she'd been missing for a long time. She commanded the turbolift to take her to the residential decks, reminding herself not to get too attached to the feelings of today - though she was absolutely looking forward to tonight.

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