81011.1830
The Morning After Reduced to This
-=The Afterthought Café; USS Serendipity=-
Lair Kellyn groaned, rubbing her eyes as she stumbled into the Afterthought Cafe'.
She was traveling on automatic pilot, the promise of hot coffee and fresh bakery the only thing motivating her to keep moving.
She had gotten very little sleep last night.
She'd even relented and tried meditating as Salvek had taught her to try to calm down, but even after their pint-sized house guests had settled in for the night, every time she closed her eyes she could think of only one thing.
The Alchemy was soon going to be, at least temporarily, in the hands of people who had a long history of very bad judgment.
What if they took the technology that Salvek had designed and they had all built together, and used it for a dark purpose?
She couldn't stop thinking about what Lassiter had said, that all along, 'their' agenda had been to achieve time travel.
Kellyn knew that had never been Salvek's plan, and she wondered what it would do to her husband if the good that he'd created were taken out of his hands and turned into something that he never would have wished for.
Out of the corner of her tired eyes, Kellyn saw a woman in a white apron disappear around the corner into the kitchen and spoke without thinking.
"Good morning, Fleur. How are you this fine Monday morning?"
Wren Elton came back through the swinging doors a moment later. Only then did Kellyn remember that Fleur was not here, and realize that the woman running the café in her place the Betazoid who was so mysterious- and so important to Rada Dengar.
Kellyn began to apologise “Sorry, I forgot…” but Wren cut her off with a wave of her hand “Don’t worry about it. What can I get you?”
“A Mocha Latte would be a life saver right about now,” Kellyn said gratefully as she plunked herself down at the table which was nearest to the source of the caffeine.
“I know the feeling,” said Wren as she hurried to grab the milk, of course as a Betazoid she knew the feeling just from being in the same room as Kellyn but she also knew it from experience. That’s why she was bringing in a very strict policy that no one got their first cup of the day until after she had. Not just for herself but also for the safety of this ship, letting her anywhere near half the equipment in here when her body was just running on its own power was dangerous for all concerned. Luckily for Kellyn, Wren had already had more than her first coffee of the day.
Kellyn studied every move that Wren made intensely as she went about the sophisticated but vital procedure that was coffee preparation. She was still trying to figure out exactly how she felt about this woman. Part of her said that Rada cared for Wren and that as his friend she should try to like her but a much larger part of her said that she really didn’t even know anything about the woman who held, and could potentially break, Rada’s heart.
Wren’s demeanour was up beat. Not in a never-stop-smiling-Jamie Halliday-kind of way, which, after awhile made Kellyn wonder with irritation just what the hell he had to be so happy about all the time.
Wren's optimism was much more understated and elegant, like the woman herself.
It pleased Kellyn that she did genuinely look like she was happy to be here.
She conducted herself with a natural confidence, even if her movements as she worked the machines did lack some of the grace that Fleur’s had. *The tables aren’t as clean as usual,* Kellyn noted as she saw that whilst her table did appear to have been wiped down that it didn’t shine like she was used to.
Wren started to hear Kellyn’s thought but stopped herself. She’d always thought that using her telepathic abilities on her customers had been a major reason that the tavern hadn’t ended up with many of them. Well, she and several of the customers thought that. She was determined now that she would only listen in on people’s thoughts when she absolutely had to know something.
Wren added the final chocolate sprinkles to the cup although a lot of them ended up on the bench instead. She moved quickly to set it down in front of Kellyn. With what she was sensing from the woman she was worried that if she didn’t hurry then she may just fall asleep at her table and that’s just not the type of thing which instils confidence in a caffeine provider.
“Thank you.” Kellyn said as she brought the cup to her lips and took a sip to get a taste and to judge if the temperature was safe for her tongue. She smiled politely and said “Mmm. Very nice.” She was sincere although Wren sensed something else.
“But it’s not Fleur’s,” Wren replied simply. Kellyn started to say something but Wren cut her off again. “Don’t worry, I know it’s going to take people some time to get used to the little differences.”
*Perhaps a little blunt but straight to the point.* Kellyn thought.
“Want to know a secret? I think at some point Fleur started doubling the chocolate without telling me, and that's why I like her Mocha Lattes so much."
Wren laughed softly, making a note to add a double shot of chocolate syrup to Lair's cup next time.
Kellyn decided that this was as good an opportunity as any to direct the discussion to Wren.
"So," she began again, feeling much more clear-headed and awake. "How are you getting used to the little differences of life on board a starship? Are you settling in okay?”
“Yes, I think I’ve started to figure out those strange laws which govern the organisation of this kitchen and with the exception of what I can only assume was an escaped mental patient taking over the comm system and declaring his championship of the world I can generally figure out the meaning behind the various ship wide announcements."
Kellyn couldn't help but laugh. "That was the resident mad scientist. I assure you, he may be mental but we keep Reece under close supervision." She had herself wondered what had brought on Reece's exuberant performance, but she hadn't had a chance to ask him yet.
"I'm not sure yet what his little serenade was all about, but I'm sure that there's a great story that goes with it." She helped herself to another sip of latte. "I'm glad to hear you're finding your way around the Sera without any trouble."
"But that’s not really what you want to ask me, is it?” Wren said knowingly as she pulled out the chair across from Kellyn and sat down.
*Somewhere out there right now, Tues K'Raye is laughing her ass off though is probably unsure as to why.* Kellyn thought, experiencing a sinking, all too familiar sense of defeat. One she had, by this point, not felt in years.
It was a feeling that she suffered often in the presence of the ship's counselor aboard the first ship she had ever served on; another willowy, full-blood Betazoid female from whom Kellyn could not hide her feelings no matter how she tried. So she learned she had to accept early on that trying was only a waste of her energy.
"Wren," Lair hemmed, slowly dragging her name out to buy another moment to consider her words. For once in her life, she was determined to put into action that seldom used portion of her brain which employed a little something called 'tact'. "I know that you already have a sense of how I, how my family and really this entire crew feels about Rada."
Wren smiled in confirmation. It was clear that Rada was important to Lair, Salvek, and even little Arie as well as loved and respected by everyone on the ship she'd met so far.
"This is a huge step for him, taking on a family. Don't get me wrong, I am certain that he is up to the challenge and has thought it through. I'm also sure that you don't rush into this kind of thing every day..." Kellyn looked at the younger woman and sighed. "I'm sorry. I know this really isn't any of my business. He's an adult, and you're a grown woman who is clearly responsible, you're raising a fine boy in Tam,"
"Kellyn," Wren leaned a little closer, "If I may call you Kellyn,"
The Bajoran raised her coffee cup to signal agreement as she took in several more gulps of liquid energy.
"I am staying here for one reason and one only, and that is I love Rada. I want to build a life with him here, and yes that will benefit me and my son but," She put a reassuring hand on Kellyn's arm, and all Kellyn could do was stare down at it. She really didn't like being touched, least of all by people she hardly knew.
She waited to see if Wren would pick up on this and release her, thinking that would be the litmus test to see just how far into her thoughts and emotions the Betazoid was digging telepathically in this moment.
Interestingly, Wren did not let go but kept right on talking. "I'm staying because it makes me happy to be with him, and I think that being with me makes him happy as well," She looked at Lair sideways, "You've been married to Commander Salvek a long time, but I'm sure you remember how it feels to fall in love."
Kellyn laughed again, and Wren finally let go of her arm as the Bajoran leaned back, clearly amused by the thought she would have to try that hard to recall such emotions.
"Remember what it was like?" She shook her head, "I fall in love with him every day, all over again."
Wren smiled broadly, because it didn't take a Betazoid to know from the look on Lair's face that she was being entirely truthful.
"Okay. So, you love him, and you want only good things for him," Kellyn continued, turning her focus back to Wren and Rada. "In that case, I have a favor to ask of you,"
Wren was instantly concerned and sat upright focusing as intensely as possible on Kellyn to make sure that she didn’t miss a word she had to say; sometimes when someone asked you to do a favour regarding someone you care about it was an insincere, jovial moment where they’d suggest something like keeping them out of trouble or making sure they laid off the coffee, but this didn’t seem like such a time. She sensed that Kellyn was not about to joke around.
"If any trouble should present itself...any threats to you, or your son that could also pose a danger for Rada," Lair's smile was gone and her eyes were clear and piercing.
"Please, come to me or Salvek, if you don't feel you can go to anyone else. If you should find yourself facing something that you don't know how to get out of, we may be able to help."
For a second Wren’s mind turned from concern to offence as she considered the fact that this woman was suggesting that she would stay here with Rada if she thought she were putting him in danger by doing so.
She inhaled sharply, preparing herself to chastise Kellyn for her attitude but then the second passed. She reminded herself that she couldn’t expect someone she barely knew to trust her automatically and that there was nothing wrong with trust that had to be earned, in fact it was the most valuable kind. With a sigh she fought back against her natural response, something she rarely felt the need for and instead offered Kellyn a brief smile.
She leant back in her chair and said in a voice which was deadly sincere “I promise you; if ever I think that anything from my own past will place Rada or anyone on this ship in danger then I will inform you.”
Kellyn studied Wren’s expression for a moment. She saw no hint that Wren was being anything but honest.
“Thank you,” Lair said gratefully, “I really appreciate that.”
Wren Elton
Manager, Afterthought Café
USS Serendipity NCC-2012
and
Commander Lair Kellyn
Engineering Research and Development
The Alchemy Project