Evening Rendezvous...

Posted on Wed Oct 26th, 2022 @ 8:43am by Lieutenant Nicholas Reece [Reece] & Lieutenant Cassia Cavendish

Mission: MISSION 0 - History Speaks
Location: USS Ragnarok
Timeline: 2393
1995 words - 4 OF Standard Post Measure

Nicholas arrived a few minutes early, but did not see Cassia waiting. He briefly wondered if she had gone inside to wait for him, so he checked the terminal. The program was indeed running. He decided to go ahead and enter.

Reaching up, he entered his identification codes, and the computer recognized him as an authorised used. The massive doors slid apart, and he walked inside.

As he entered, he caught the wiff of sea and salt. A glance around showed that he was in an old sea side town in Greece. White Villas and stone walls and streets. He could glimpse the sea, sparkling blue through the gaps of the villas and to his left was a number of small shops and restaurants.

Cassia was standing further down the street, letting the locals flow around her as she looked in a window of a craft store. Dressed in white Capris and a flowing green shirt.

A grin spread across Nicholas' face as he walked towards Cassia. He glanced around the area as he approached her. The town looked like many others he had visited when he was a young boy, when his family took vacations all over Earth.

Stepping up next to Cassia, he looked at the shop she was looking into. "Hey, there," he gently grazed the back of her left hand with his right index finger. "I like your choice of locations."

She smiled at him. "I find Greece to be a lovely place to visit when I am on Earth. That and it's warm and I have had my fill of cold locals." She waved her right hand around. "The locals are always friendly."

He nodded as he listened. "Yes, they surely are. And if you like warm places, you should visit the beach I grew up on."

"A beach? Sounds lovely." She smiled and glanced around. "Theres a nice small family run restaurant on the cliffs a short walk away if you wish to go there."

Nicholas smiled and nodded. After turning in the direction she had indicated, he offered his left elbow for Cassia to hold. "I'd love to."

Taking the offered arm Cassia smiled and then they began to walk down the street. People mingled around, and spoke in a mix of English and Greek as they called out greetings to others in the crowd. Cassia's tension seemed to fade as they walked. She was just happy to be one of the crowd right now.

As the walked, Nicholas could feel Cassia start to relax. In a soft tone, he ask, "So, what made you join Starfleet?"

"I wanted adventure out in the stars." She said softly.. "I got it in spades."

Nicholas could pick up on her tone as she spoke. Clearly, she had been through a very difficult experience. He reached up and place his free hand over her hand that was wrapped around the inside of his elbow and, looking down at her, responded gently, "I'm sorry if I dredged up bad memories. We don't have to talk about that stuff if you'd rather not."

Cassia gave a slight shrug. She was trying to figure out how she felt comfortable around Nicholas when she barely knew him and she had never felt comfortable around strangers, even Jack had taken weeks and months before she was comfortable. But with Nicholas it had been instant. "Its not a secret" she said softly. "The Jean Luc was attacked by the Breen. We were, the survivors, taken captive. Two years on an ice world. Hence my liking for warmer places currently.

Nicholas nodded as he listened. He had never had any dealings with the Breen, though his grandfather often tells stories of what kind of warriors they are. That, coupled with what his instructors had taught him, he knew that he never wanted to become a Breen prisoner. "I'm sorry that you had to endure that hardship. If there is ever anything I can do, even if it's just a sympathetic ear and a warm shoulder you need, I'll be there."

She gave him a smile "A warm shoulder?" She said lightly. "Well they do say that men do run hotter than women."

Nicholas grinned again as he stopped walking and looked down into Cassia's beautiful dark eyes. He dipped his face down closer to hers, as he whispered just loud enough for her to hear, "Guess that depends on the man and woman. As far as I'm concerned, you are very hot." He wanted to kiss her very badly, however, respected her enough to wait until she was ready, if ever.

A soft laugh escaped Cassia as she glanced up at him. "Why thank you kind sir. I also think you are very hot as well."

Being so close, Nicholas couldn't help but breath in Cassia's sweet scent and feel her body temperature increase. He could see, and feel, her breathing rate increase. He felt the same way. Finally, after gazing into her eyes for what seemed like an eternity, he could no longer hold back. Pulling her to him a bit closer, he locked his lips upon hers and kissed her, deeply, and passionately.

-oh god, just go with it - Her brain whirrled, but she slid her arms around his neck and kissed him back, meeting his passion with her own. The warm sun beat down on them as they kissed amid the crowded street.

Feeling Cassia wrap her arms around his neck, Nicholas followed suit, though, instead of her neck, it was just below her waist, lifting her off the ground as he did so. He no longer felt alone in the world. He no longer felt anything, in fact, aside from Cassia. Nothing else existed, except her.

Normally she would have panicked at the feeling of loosing touch with the ground but she ignored it and wrapped her legs around his waist as she slid her hands into his hair and enjoyed the moment ignoring all around them.

Upon feeling her legs wrap around his waist, Nicholas moved his left hand to cup her pert bottom, supporting her weight as he did so, and slid his right hand up, along her spine, and into her long, flowing hair, hold the back of her head in his large hand. He continued to kiss her, completely ignoring their surroundings.

It was the first time in years that Cassia had thrown herself into her passionate side, and she was rather enjoying the sensations that their actions were invoking in her and she knew because of her limited abilities, that he was enoying it as well.

They were so engrossed that they didn't pay attention to the people around them and frankly the people around them were not paying attention either, and so one bumped into the back of them. Jolting them back to reality. Cassia opened her partially closed eyes and stared into Nicholas's.

Nicholas kept his balance easily after the holographic person bumped him. Looking back, his eyes locked with Cassia's and after a beat, he started to smile. "Hi." He whispered to her, still trying to catch his breath.

She laughed softly "Hi yourself." She grinned at him warmly. "Look where we ended up, huh?" She was still in his arms, legs around his waist, arms resting on his shoulders as her right hand toyed with his hair.

Nicholas closed his eyes as he relished the feeling of Cassia's fingers moving through his hair. When he reopened his eyes, he responded. "Yeah," a light chuckle. "Never imagined this is where I'd be when I woke up this morning."

"Life is full of surprises." She gnawed on her lower lip for a moment. "Shall we continue walking?" She asked a bit uncertain.

Nicholas nodded slowly, his eyes locked on her lower lip. Slowly, he lowered Cassia back down to the ground. Once she was back on her feet, he took her hands into his and gently kissed the backs of her fingers.

With a shy smile, Cassia fell into step beside him and they continued their walk.

They walked for a little while, in comfortable silence, just enjoying the recreation of the village. After a short while, they reached the shoreline. Nicholas bent down and removed his shoes and socks, then rolled up his pant legs two folds. He then waited for Cassia to do the same, if she wanted to, that is.

Cassia kicked off her shoes and picked them up, glad to be wearing sandals. She scrunched her toes in the sand. And closed her eyes briefly. "Sand may be a problem for some, but it beats snow."

Nicholas chuckled again. "Yeah, I think one of my favorite feelings, is the sand squishing under my feet." Holding his shoes in one hand, and Cassia's hand in the other, Nicholas led her out onto the beach, near where the sand became harder, due to the water saturation from the ocean. "I used to spend every day of my summer breaks from school on my beach with my family." He smiled as he remembered the happy memories. "Kyle, my twin brother, Liam, our younger brother and Alexandria, our sister and baby of the family, used to run up and down the boardwalk at Jones Beach when we were kids. Then, we'd head out to our favorite spot and just spend the day on tbe sand, enjoying ourselves and each other."

She gave him a impish look and waded out into ankle deep water. "You are lucky to have such good memories of them. You sound like you are close to them."

Nodding, Nicholas joined Cassia in the water. "Yeah, we are all very deep into each other's lives." He paused for a beat, and then asked. "What about you? How close is your family?"

"Oh they are close. To each other." She commented and looked out over the ocean. "I am not close to them. But I have family that I chose to have." She slanted him a smile. "Its like the old earth movie Lilo and Stitch. The character Stitch finds a family and says 'This is my family. I found it, all on my own. Is little, and broken, but still good. Ya. Still good.' And that is what I consider my family that I found. Friends from my Academy days. And they are my family. Biology be damned."

Nicholas nodded as he listened. He had had no idea about her family history. And now, he felt a little stupid from yammering on about his family. "I'm...I'm sorry if I what I said brought up old pain. I didn't know."

"Its ok. Family is what you make it." She replied with a smile. "I came to terms with it years ago." She was about to say more when her comm beeped. She sighed and hit it. "Cavendish here. Go ahead."

[["Ah its Ensign Hallows. We have a problem with the shuttles down here."]]

-And you couldn't look after it yourself?- She thought but sighed "I will be there shortly." Severing the connection Cassia turned to Nick. "I am sorry." she said honestly. "If I don't go they may blow something up."

Nicholas smiled again, giving Cassia his best boyish, lopsided, grin he had. "No problem. When duty calls, and all that." He looked up and called out. "Computer, exit." The large, orange, double doors siddenly appeared abput four feet behind Cassia. "Can I see you again?" He asked, hopeful.

Stepping up to him she kissed his lips lightly. "Bet on it." She said softly and then left the holodeck.

Nicholas watched Cassia leave, admiring the view the whole time. After she left, he decided to strip down a take a quick dip in the holographic ocean. About an hour later, he finished, got dressed, and left the holodeck, heading for his quarters.

=/\=
Lt. Cassia Cavendish
Flight Control Chief
USS Ragnarok

Lt. Nicholas J. Reece
Chief Strategic Operations Officer
USS Ragnarök