We Shall Dance Again

Posted on 03 Feb 2015 @ 12:13am by Lieutenant JG Drusilla McCarthy & Captain Jonathan Holliday

1,254 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Episode 07 - Sojourn
Location: USS Galileo: Holiday's Quarters
Timeline: MD44 20:28 hours

[ON]

Pola chewed nervously on her lower lip, of all of the people who would probably threw her back off of the ship, she'd choose to visit him first. It had been easy to get onboard but she wasn't quiet sure how easy it would be to stay onboard.

Pressing her hand against the chime, she looked up and smiled as she read the plague over his door. Who'd have ever thought that they'd see the day that Mister Tough Guy himself would be Captain of her old haunting grounds. Nobody deserved it more...she just hoped that the move up in the world might have actually softened him abit.

John had finished his duty shift on the Bridge, and after a handful of comm meetings with his superiors, had retreated to a place of sanctuary in the form of his quarters. Having decided to spend the rest of the evening pursuing personal endeavours, he had stripped off the outer tunic of his uniform, and was instead wearing only his blue undershirt, and uniform trousers. His commbadge rested comfortably on the side of his desk, otherwise shut down. A few textbooks made of paper were spread on his desk, along with a PADD showing similar reference materials.

"Enter." He called, before turning back to the text book he was examining.

As the doors slid open, Pola took just a moment before stepping inside. As the doors closed with a hiss behind her, she couldn't help the thought passing through her head that her only means of escape had been shut off. As her eyes landed on the commanding officer, she couldn't help the smile that formed as it threw her back to a previous encounter.

"Another time and another place your quarters were a little small than this. I believe we ended up dancing that night."

Had John been stood up he would have probably needed to sit down - luckily his chair was doing his job. It had been a while since he had met another officer he had served with from the very beginning of his ship's travels in space.

"Commander. I wasn't aware you were aboard?"

"Um...ye...about that..." Coughing, Pola smiled a little weakly as she tried to explain, "I figured I'd have a look around the old girl, especially given that ye ship out tomorrow. I've been on the base a few days now but it always seemed that opportunity was never there."

Moving a hand to rub the back of her neck, Pola tried to smile a little more, "Seems some of the guys from my time onboard remembered me and so got me a ticket onboard. I figured I couldn't let you leave without catching up on old times first."

The Captain grinned for a moment as he remembered how the ship looked when she first left spacedock. The ship's crew had changed substantially since those early days and were much more hardened than perhaps the green team that left dock.

"Ahh....very convenient timing in that case. Where are you assigned now?"

As she saw Jonathan smile, Pola couldn't help but feel a pang for the friendship they'd been building....well she had been building and dragging the officer kicking and screaming with her. Glancing at the floor for a moment, the Doctor tried to not allow the smile to grow even broader.

"USS Olympses, she's just a smiggen bigger than the USS Galileo but at least it means I get bigger quarters. I still miss this girl though...and the friendships forged behind the bulk heads."

"What can I say? She's a good ship. I'm proud to be her Captain" John replied, putting a hand against one of the nearby walls with a resounding thud - the ship felt solid, even if she had been shot at more than once.

"Even if she is a little on the small size. Good things come in small packages is the old addage I believe?"

This brought a smile to Pola's lips as a little laugh escaped her lips. Tilting her head slightly to the side, she looked the officer from head to toe as memories of him holding her came to her mind. "I guess that it depends on the package in question, sometimes bigger can be better when it comes to defense and reassurance."

Galileo wasn't exactly built for a fight - Holliday was painfully aware of that, and it had almost been the downfall of the ship on several of her previous missions. Sometimes he had wished for the firepower of a Galaxy class or the shield strength of a Sovereign, but the Galileo was nippy, and gave herself an edge.

"How long are you planning to remain on board for?"

Leaning her back against the door behind her, Pola watched Jonathan closely as she choose her next words, "Long enough to persuade you to finish that previous dance with me? Failing that...I need to check in on Kohl. I got a copy of his file following the injuries he sustained in a previous mission and I want to check in on him before ye leave."

Holliday laughed at the idea of such a long break in a simple dance. He had enjoyed it at the time, to an extent, but now he was a commanding officer, and not simply the Lieutenant Commander he had been at the time. With a polite shake of his head, he declined.

"I don't think so. Not at the moment anyway. Thank you for the offer however. Our sickbay on the other hand, I'm sure you will remember your way around - Mr Kohl should be more than trusting of you in that respect."

Nodding her head, Pola studied Holiday for a moment. "Keep an eye on him for me will you....I know crew isn't your direct responsibility anymore but consider it a request from a friend. Kohl has always had a soft and vunerable disposition...these injuries hide more then is being let on. Your sickbay have done a good job physically piecing him back together but the psychological won't be as easy."

"Noted. I won't keep you from your plans - I'd say dismissed but I dont think that really applies to social visits."

John felt himself stiffen up slightly. He wasn't used to entertaining, least of all in his quarters, but sometimes it was required of him. The information regarding one of his crew however would be useful - in order to be an effective leader he had to be in command of not just his ship, but all of the facts.

"I'll keep an eye on Mr Kohl in the meantime."

Studying Jonathan for a brief moment, Pola moved from the door to the couch in a few short steps before leaning down to kiss Jonathan's cheek softly. "You're not as bad a person as you try to make people believe. You're genuinely a good person Jonathan."

Knowing she's pushed limits, the Doctor turned quickly on her heel as she made for the door. She didn't think Holliday would call security but she wasn't taking chances. As the doors slid back open, she looked briefly over her shoulder, "I'm still holding you to the end of that dance."

Quickly moving through the doors, Pola headed for deck 2 for the last of her visits.

[OFF]


Lieutenant Commander Pola NI Dhuinn
Chief Medical Officer
USS Olympius
(PNPC Drusilla McCarthy)

&

CAPT Jonathan Holliday
Commanding Officer
USS Galileo

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