Another Dark Night (Part 2)

Posted on 18 Apr 2013 @ 7:32pm by Lieutenant Kiri Cho & Lieutenant Dawn Meridian

2,471 words; about a 12 minute read

Mission: Episode 03 - Frontier
Location: USS Galileo - Deck 3, Dawn's Office
Timeline: MD3 2400

[Continued]

Kiri was enthralled by the music, it was something brand new, to have live music as well. Remaining completely still she watched, eyes wide with her hands in her lap. Until the end where she gave a small polite clap and a smile, "That was amazing," She wished she knew more about music so she could say more than that. Looking hesitant for a moment Kiri added, "You play really well."

"It... took a lot of practice," she said, setting the violin down on her desk. She was amazed that she'd been able to play at all, given how nervous she'd been. It was strange to actually be anxious about something for once. "I've been playing since I was ten. It always helped me feel better whenever I was worried or afraid." Dawn tucked a loose strand of hair behind an ear. "I forgot what it was like to play for someone. It's completely different. Like I'm sharing a bit of myself."

Kiri didn't really have a way of sharing herself with others, to see the culmination of so much effort though. Regardless of that it was something impressive, for a person to be so coordinated as to be able to play something so well. All she could do was smile and place her hands in her lap, "Do you not play for other people?" Did that make her special?

"I..." Dawn bit her lip. She was still a bit off-balance. She'd forgotten how personal playing for people really was. It was like baring a little bit of her... soul, if that was the right word. Nothing else bothered her, so why this? "Not really," she finally admitted. "Not for years, now." She let out a breath, planting a hand on her desk to steady herself. "I got wrapped up in other things. I never really had the chance."

Her grey eyes watched Kiri, a bit wider than usual. She... didn't regret it, she decided. "It felt like you needed it, though," she said. "It always helped me when I was feeling unsure or alone." A hint of a smile touched her lips. "I did what I could."

"Th, thank you," Kiri blinked and smiled, she smiled properly. Blushing slightly with embarrassment she quickly turned her eyes to the ground, "I think I should listen to happy music more." It had been so long since she just listened that she forgot the effect it could have, that it might help her deal with things.

Kiri was really very pretty when she smiled. Dawn beamed back. Smiles were one of the little things she lived for. They meant she was doing the right thing - as Dawn, not just a counsellor. Was that why Lucian had tried so hard to make her happy all those years ago? She could understand why, now. Smiles - real smiles - filled her with a feeling nothing else did.

That was part of why Stone and Liyar frustrated her so much. There was never anything so simple to go on, to know she was on the right path. It was hard to tell if she was even helping them at all.

"I can always play for you when you need it. Apparently it's a bit scary when you haven't played in front of anyone in a while, so it'll help me practice, too. Don't be afraid to ask." She tilted her head. "Smiling suits you, you know."

The slightly younger woman blushed. Most people looked better when they smiled but she hadn't been able to do that much of it lately, definitely not real smiles. Not really sure what her actions might lead to Kiri nodded, "I'd like to listen to you, if you would like to play again, when you are free." Frowning for a second she took a deep breath, "Would, is it, do you think we could be friends?"

Dawn tilted her head, still smiling. "Of course," she said. "If you'll put up with me, anyway. I can be a bit strange." She tended to just say and do what she thought when she wasn't counselling - maybe she had to hold back when she was. "And I don't play for people I don't like," she added.

Looking extremely tense for a moment Kiri slowly started to smile, "I'd like it if we could do something together, maybe?" Brayden had been completely against the idea until he brought her to breakfast that time. Dawn seemed much more open and it filled her with hope for a little while.

"Sure!" Dawn replied. "Did you have anything in mind?" She had a general idea of the kinds of things Kiri liked now, but it wasn't a good enough idea that she could just suggest anything.

"Well, um, we could have dinner together, or do something on the holodeck," Then after a moments pause, "I also have started exercising in the mornings." It might have to be moved to a bit earlier if Dawn was on Alpha shift but it wasn't that much of a problem. If she could play any musical instrument at all then maybe they could do that, but she didn't. The only thing musical she could do was sing and that wasn't exactly good enough, at least in her eyes.

Those all sounded like good ideas. Maybe exercise would make her hate mornings less. Then again, maybe it would make her hate them more. It had also been a long time since she'd been on... any holodeck, for that matter. A few months, at least. "Those all work for me. I haven't used the Galileo's holodeck yet, and I mostly just have dinner in the mess hall." She paused thoughtfully. "What kind of exercise do you do? I don't usually do much of anything in the morning."

"I do a few different times, some running, some weights and I'll do more when I'm ready," Kiri shifted slightly, "I'm not very good yet though." She didn't know how long it would take to get better, she'd only done it once so far. It might be nice to have dinner rather than run together, but couldn't they do everything? If they all worked then why not?

"We'll probably get around to them all eventually," Dawn said. "I've never been much good at running, but I'll give it a try one of these mornings. I've always fond of swimming, but that's a lot harder on a ship without a pool." She let out a measured breath. "Best to start with dinner, then. Although I suppose that's easier said than done." She hadn't done anything like that since the Washington. There was a lot of planning that went into that sort of thing: where, what, when. It was a bit at odds with her spontaneous nature.

Kiri wasn't very good at swimming but she wasn't exactly good at any of the other things either. Dinner sounded like a good option, "When are you normally free?" Kiri had gotten it into her head that she would be cooking for Dawn. It might take a day or two before there was time but she didn't want to wait too long. The idea of spending time with Dawn was, exciting.

"I'm on Beta, but I usually don't have any appointments around dinner time, since people tend to be eating. There's a lot of wiggle room between appointments, too." She folded her hands. "I should be able to make any time work... I think."

"Okay I don't know when I'll be free yet, but as soon as I do, I can let you know?" Looking slightly startled she tried to think of what she could do. What could she cook, what, "What sort of food do you like?"

"Sure." She put a finger to her chin thoughtfully. "There's not really anything I hate... not from Earth, anyway." Nothing on Earth could compare to Gak, and she wasn't about to try that again. A lot of her favourites were just things she'd had as a child. "Coq au vin was always one of my favourites." Her dad had always made that to cheer her up. "Overall, French and Italian food, I suppose."

Italian was closer to what she was used to cooking, Still it wasn't something she really knew how to do already, so she'd have to learn. Coq au vin sounded a little bit too out of her comfort zone, mixing wine with things was rather, um, adult? Well she didn't know but it didn't really seem right. For a chance to be friends though, maybe, "I could try that, if you like."

Wait. Kiri was going to cook for her? She... hadn't been expecting that, although it was a pleasant surprise. There was something about cooked meals that the replicator couldn't quite... replicate. She smiled to herself; she was actually looking forward to it quite a bit now. "It's fine if you're more comfortable with something else," she said. "I don't think it's too hard, though." She'd made it before a few times. It was a lot of effort, though. "I don't want to be too much of a pain."

"No, it's fine," Kiri was still working from the premise that she needed to be valuable to her friends, to buy their friendship. "I'll try my best to get it right." Recipes she could follow being creative was where she fell down when it came to cooking. If something didn't go just as it was meant then she could get rather stuck.

"Tell you what," Dawn said with a little smile. "We can make it together, if you like. That way you don't need to worry about getting anything wrong, and I think it'll be a lot of fun." She tucked some of her dark hair behind an ear, her grey eyes practically sparkling. She hadn't cooked with anyone before, and the thought was really exciting.

Kiri caught the look, that seemed good, "Yes, it would be." It was strange to cook with someone that wasn't her mother but, that was always fun. Uncertainty started to drift away, "I will ask mister Pawlak when we can use the mess-hall kitchen."

If she remembered right, Mr. Pawlak was the ship's cook. Dawn didn't get the impression that he'd have much a problem with them using the kitchen, although she'd been wrong before about people. Rarely. "Sure," she said. She hadn't really thought about that. Most people just replicated food, so there wasn't really any need to have kitchens on board. "As long as we don't set anything on fire, the mess's kitchen should work." She grinned. "Not that I think we will."

Thinking about that possibility for a moment Kiri accounted for what she thought they were using. They weren't frying anything so the fire risk should be quite low, though the alcohol might be a problem? Regardless she nodded, "Yes, it shouldn't be dangerous." It would take a little bit of organising but maybe in a day or two?

"What kind of food are you used to cooking?" Dawn asked. "Parts of it might be similar, so it should be easy to work through it, especially with both of us there." She clasped her hands together. "It's going to be great."

"Chinese cooking mostly," Kiri had done a few other things with her mother but those were rare occasions. What she really knew how to do was what she was taught, learning to cook new things on her own wasn't easy.

Dawn gave a slow nod. There was probably enough of a similarity there to work with, although she hadn't made a whole lot of Chinese dishes. Not many used alcohol - that she knew of, anyway - but stir fry wasn't all that different from what they'd be doing. It had similar ingredients, for the most part. "Good enough!" she said. "The kitchen won't know what hit it." For better or for worse, she thought with a little smile. She stifled a yawn with her hand. She had no idea what time it was... she'd gotten a bit carried away with trying to cheer Kiri up. Still, she didn't really mind.

"Sorry, it's late," Kiri didn't exactly want to go to bed but part of her knew she should. Keeping Dawn up all night just because of her problems wasn't fair either. Looking guilty for a moment she forced a smile, "I look forward to cooking with you."

"Don't worry about it," Dawn said. "I'm here because I want to be." Her smile was reflected in her grey eyes. "Plus, I had fun. I hope I helped a bit, at least. Nights are always so quiet. It's nice to fill them with something other than silence. And help sort out your thoughts." She paused. "I hate going to bed with something gnawing at me. It makes it even harder to sleep."

Kiri nodded but more that she was finding it hard to sleep in general, "Thank you for being nice." Somewhere along the way it had started to feel like the conversations she might have back home with her friends. Before everyone started going their own directions. It wasn't hard to talk to Dawn, why couldn't more of her interpersonal relations be like this?

Dawn gave a little shrug. "It's not like being nice is something I just decided to do. You don't need to thank me for it." She tilted her head. "But... for what it's worth, you're welcome." It was nice to have someone to talk to for a change, especially when the alternative was lying in bed hoping that the rest of the crew wouldn't disappear in her sleep.

"Good night," Kiri didn't really want to leave but knew she must, taking a breath she stepped towards the door. Looking back once more before leaving. She'd changed in the time with Dawn, not a huge amount but she was happier than before, slightly more confident and comfortable. Things weren't as bad, it still felt like she needed to cry though, not that she wanted to.

"Good night," Dawn said, giving a small wave of her hand. It was nice to feel like she was actually making a difference. And, somehow, it felt like Kiri was helping her, as well. Kiri was the first real friend she'd made outside of medical. Sure, she knew Liyar and Stone, but they were obstinate and hard to read. And grumpy. They were grumpy, even if they wouldn't admit it.

[OFF]

Lieutenant (JG) Dawn Meridian
Counsellor
USS Galileo

Lieutenant (JG) Kiri Cho
Assistant Chief Science Officer
USS Galileo

RSS Feed