A Little Break

Posted on Tue Nov 1st, 2022 @ 5:40pm by Warrant Officer Ahira Kasamoto & Callie Marshall
Edited on on Wed Dec 7th, 2022 @ 3:59am

Mission: In-Between (S1:E3-S1:E4)
Location: Ship's lounge
Timeline: Mission Day 25 at 1940
1514 words - 3 OF Standard Post Measure

Ahira had had a full day; working out, meeting with the Security Chief, given a great new assignment, a full duty shift, and dinner before returning to his quarters where had first painted, then worked on his latest bonsai creation. Being busy was good, it kept his mind off of other things, like the nightmare he'd had the night before. But, he was growing restless, and staying in his cabin, alone, wasn't going to change that. He needed to get out and be around others. The ship's lounge seemed like the perfect place for that.

So, he changed out of his uniform and into a pair of black pants and a teal short-sleeve shirt. He didn't take a phaser with him, he hoped he didn't need it. He could take care of himself without one, especially since he never went anywhere without his double-edged knife.

He slipped through the doors noticing it was crowded as usual and he found a place at the end of the bar where he ordered a glass of sake.

By now Callie would normally have been back aboard the Rynall with Troy, enjoying their evening time together. Tonight Troy was dealing with a backlog of problems, he’d promised not to be too late. As such, she’d decided to remain onboard the Vengeance for baby John’s early evening feed. Sitting alone in a far corner seat she sat bottle feeding John, she would have breastfed but sitting where she was it didn’t feel comfortable.

Ahira's eyes scanned the room as he leaned against the bar. It was an automatic, intuitive gesture, that he did whenever he entered a room. It was something he had started when he was a teenager and was by now so ingrained it was muscle memory, even when he was in friendly territory.

There was of course nothing dangerous or out of the ordinary taking place, which caused him to relax a little bit more than he already was. He did notice a friendly, or relatively friendly face and he decided to go see if she were open to a conversation. Besides, she was holding her son and babies had always been a weakness for him.

After taking a sip of his drink, he approached her table, cleared his throat, and asked, "Pardon me, mind if I sit?"

Callie offered her visitor a warm smile. “Please..” She motioned for him to join her as she gently sat her son up to wind him. “I don’t believe we’ve met before, though I’ve seen you on the bridge. I’m Callie Marshall, Chief Counsellor.”

He nodded, "I'm Ahira Kasamoto," he replied, "I'm in security, I was doing mostly investigations, but was just asked to be the captain's bodyguard today. So, in a way, I'm celebrating. I know I've gotten a few notices from you and should schedule something official, but given our situation, a routine evaluation just seems, I don't know fruitless."

"I just came over to check on you and see the baby."

Callie smiled. “Congratulations on your new role. Captain’s bodyguard is quite an honour and quite a high-risk role too. As for the baby... this is John.” She gently wiped her son’s mouth. “Do you have any children?”

There was more than one reason Ahira didn't have children, but he really didn't want to go into that at the moment. So, he simply shook his head and said, "No, not currently. No real plans in the future either."

"But, that doesn't mean I don't like them." He bent down to get a closer look at the boy, "Hello John, how are you?" He knew the infant couldn't really respond, but that didn't matter. "How old is he?"

Callie smiled at her son as she looked down at him. “John is a month old, he was born earlier than planned. It’s a long story! You’re lucky to have caught us here actually, I’m normally home aboard the Rynall by now, but my husband is working late.”

"I'm glad I did catch you," he replied shifting slightly to take in her appearance. He was aware of who her husband was, though he had only seen him once or twice.

"And thanks, In my last assignment I was the XO's bodyguard, so I'm glad to be given the chance to do what I do best. This time for the CO instead of the Executive Officer."

“You must be pretty dedicated to want to be a bodyguard” Callie offered a warm smile. “It’s an unforgiving job whether it’s protecting the CO or Exec.”

He nodded his head. He almost asked if he could hold the infant, but that would have been too forward, and it had been years since he had held a child.

"Thanks, I'd like to think I'm dedicated. And I have a sense of honor. Besides, it's an opportunity for advancement, as long as I do my job right, and I fully intend on doing that. How do you like your job?"

Callie smiled. “To be honest I find it much easier than my last job, I was Chief Ops Officer until I fell pregnant. I requested a change of department so I could integrate more easily with parenthood.” She couldn’t help but notice his curiosity. “I take it you like children?”

"I do. My childhood was, em, let's say less than perfect. So, I enjoy seeing children who do have things normal. Or as normal as things can be so far from home."

Callie nodded and smiled. “Would you... like to hold John? He’s pretty well-behaved, and I’m trying to get him used to being held by others.”

"I would like that," he offered. "I know I need to support his head and neck. is there anything else I should know?"

“Just cradle him in the crook of your arm” Callie smiled as she passed her son gently over. “He’s just had a feed, but I winded him so just be aware of that.”

It had been a long time since Ahira had held an infant, he'd been a teenager at the time, but he managed to hold the boy just as she had instructed. It even seemed natural to him.

John smiled at him, or at least the hybrid officer assumed it was a smile. "He seems like he's a happy child. How much sleep are you getting?"

“Just about enough” Callie smiled. “Thankfully I have a wonderful husband who helps with John. I’ve also got good friends and members of the crew here aboard ship who look after John when I’m working.”

"I'm glad you have that kind of support, especially so far from home."

The infant, still with a contented smile on his face closed his eyes. "Speaking of sleeping," Ahira said as he reached over the table still cradling John, "I think he's conked out."

Callie couldn’t help but grin. “Looks like you’ve got the magic touch.” She smiled as she gently took her son back. “I know who to call if I have any problems getting John to sleep!”

Ahira dipped his head, then raised it again as she took the child out of his hands. "I'll watch him anytime, but that was probably a fluke. I'm not sure I can reproduce those results."

He took a sip of his drink, "Can I get you something, now that your little one is asleep?"

“Mmm, why not!” Callie grinned. “I would love a knickerbocker glory with chocolate sauce please.” She gently moved to place John down in his pushchair to free up her hands so she could eat.

Ahira nodded briefly once and stood to his feet. He'd never had a knickerbocker glory before and had never heard of one until the senior officer had mentioned it. He didn't mention that to her, lack of knowledge, was a sign of weakness to him and he hated showing weakness, even though she might not have viewed it as such. Besides, he figured the person behind the bar would know.

A few more crewmen had arrived since he had sat down, but the lounge was still only half full. When got to the bar, the woman, who was older with hair that had once been blonde, but was now almost white, asked him for his order. He licked his lips when he saw what it was, then ordered a second for himself.

He returned with both dishes and handed one to Callie. "Here you go, I hope you don't mind, I got one for myself."

“Why would I mind?” Callie offered a curious gaze before grinning. “Dig in and enjoy! I do love indulging in an ice cream sundae for a treat.”

Ahira shrugged. There were a number of reasons she might object; his not being a full-blood Terran, his not being an officer, and probably half a dozen more. But he didn't voice any of those potential reasons. Instead, he just stayed silent and ate his sundae.

{OFF}