A Chance to Breathe

Posted on Fri Nov 24th, 2017 @ 7:42pm by

4,341 words; about a 22 minute read

Mission: Unknown Life, Unknown Dangers
Location: Starbase

Vash came out of the bedroom wearing a blue edged white dress that was embroidered in with a fine mesh which barely covered the parts of her body that would make most men stop in the tracks. She had a diamond and gold Mobius anklet on each ankle, her hair was word loose and brushed out and a pair of white high heels covered her feet.

William had spent all day being grilled by the Admiralty over the incidents that took place on the ship. From the moment they encountered the vessel containing the organism, events while it infested the ship and every action after that. It was obvious they were unhappy at seeing an Ascension class ship being towed into a shipyard with such obvious damage because it painted Starfleet in a bad public light but Will's ploy to document everything had been perhaps his one saving grace.

By the time Vash exited the bedroom Will had just finished putting on a suit jacket with matching pants but no tie, going for the smart yet not too formal look. Said look however was outdone by Vash's visage. "Wow, and who is the lucky fella taking you out tonight hmm?"

She approached him and slid her right hand over his right cheek with a smile. "That would be you, William," she said. "A very handsome man whom I quite enjoy being with."

"Well I have to have some other skills should being a starship Captain not work out in the long run." William grinned as his hand whisped ever so lightly across her side as she stroked his cheek feeling the soft material under his fingertips.

"I'm more than certain that you have a number of skills which got you to where you are today, Will," Vash said as she leaned against him.

"Well yes I do, but I can't go around showing all of them to you at once otherwise there would be no mystery, even though considering what you were, I do find you so....exhilarating." He leaned forward and placed a kiss on her cheek. "Empress."

At the word Empress, she turned away from him and went to the window to stare at the base they were going to. "No longer," she said almost too quiet to be heard. "Now, I am simply Vashkele and a owner of a club that's no longer in operation."

Will knew instantly that had backfired. "For the moment, but that will change, the ship is being repaired as speak." Will felt bad now for ruining the moment, already missing her closeness.

Vash turned to face him, any trace of what she was feeling gone from her face. "Are you ready, my handsome Commodore?" she asked him.

Will knew just how bad, from William to Commodore, he'd paid a price for that one word. "Lets." His arm out to her as he turned towards the door ready to leave. He couldn't help but feel pride, a dashingly good looking woman on his arm, together, her presence a comfort, her touch soothing and her intimacies all his to enjoy as were his to her.

She put her arm in his and headed out of the quarters. "Have you decided where we are going?" she asked conversationally. "Or are you playing it as a mystery until we arrive?"

"There is this pleasant little place on the upper promenade, grand views, excellent food I hear and a very wide range of drinks. I thought sampling some might tempt you to import some for the club." Will had clearly done some homework with his selection, a good night out and a potential business avenue for later.

"Perhaps," Vash said. "It all depends on the generosity of the Admiral who supports my business endeavor. I was surprised to learn that I wasn't under investigation for the weapons I had there. Was that you pulling strings?"

"I would suspect you have Commander Reign to thank for that one." He would have heard from her long before now otherwise. Escorting Vash through the corridors and passages of the station they arrived at the venue. A very well decorated place, clearly a mix of some cultures but it looked very pleasant. Music was soft and smiles all round but it didn't take long for Vash to garner some attention from those present with her sexy appearance.

"Do you have a reservation?" The Waitress asked.

"We do, for two under William Hood." Will replied and within moments they found themselves escorted to a booth box, one of 9 in a line all private from the others with an unobstructed view of the outside, a solid one piece window, no beams to be seen for all the booths.

"Here are the menus, there is a button here on the table for you to press when you are ready to order."

"Thank you." Letting Vash take her seat first.

"This is a lovely place," Vash said as she took her seat. "I have to say, I'm very impressed. Do you think I should remodel the club after this place to give people more discretion while they ogle me and my employees?" She had taken note of the looks she was getting and scrutinized a few of them back in turn and made certain that no one paid her more attention than she was worth.

"They can look but not touch." Will replied, knowing that was a rule in the club. "But yes I think it would be a great idea, add some privacy maybe up profits as people try to book them." He sat next to her and his hand rested on her thigh while he gazed out to the stars. "Worth trying at least i think."

"Although it would put a dampener on lap dances," she added. "Still, it's an idea. Now to put business aside and enjoy the evening. Did you want to order something to drink for us?"

Will looked through the menu to the drinks section and selected a chilled bottle of Chateau Cleon for them to share. "What would you like to eat?" His hand still on her thigh yet the other holding the menu open for them to read upon.

Vash smiled at him and put her hand on top of his as she looked at the menu. "This Khinkali with Khachapuri sounds interesting," she said as she pointed it out on the menu.

"And for dessert?" Will asked as he flicked the page with his thumb since he only had one hand to use. "Do we want icecream, an old classic or something more....extravagant?" Her choices looked good from the pictures, especially the Khachapuri.

"Why not a Ktarian chocolate puff with ice cream?" she asked him.

Will smiled, a rare treat indeed. "Alright." With choices made Will pressed the button and seconds later a waiter arrived. Placing the order and the menu's taken away they were left alone to enjoy the view. The booth was actually good for screening off the couple from the eyes of others, explained the price tag that came with them. "Good to actually have some down time for a change, not be the Commodore."

"Do I really get downtime?" Vash asked him with a mischievous gleam in her eyes. "When I wake up, I'm me. When I go to sleep, I'm me. But...I do appreciate being away from the ship and having you all to myself. If I find out you brought a combadge with you, I'll give it to the waiter to cook."

He smiled lifting a hand. "On my honour I swear I left it at home." Vash was right though, was was good to get away from the ship, break out of the norm and relax in the unknown or never visited. "It is nice to be just us isn't it? Alone, no uniforms or the like." Will felt a totally different person, even a civilian without a hint of anything to mark his rank or profession.

"It is," she agreed. "In fact, if you hadn't suggested getting off the ship, I was planning on kidnapping you and dragging you off of it myself."

"Abduction by an Orion woman. Good way to go." Will smirked though glad it didn't have to come to it. Moments later drinks arrived, poured and the bottle left in a bucket of ice. "To us." He lifted his glass towards her with a warm, affectionate smile.

"To us," Vash said as she touched her glass to his. "Although you wouldn't be my first, you're going to be my last."

"I'll take that." Will smiled as he sipped his glass. A pleasant taste, smooth almost a hint of floral in there but a very good drink. His glass had not touched the table top more than a few seconds before the meal was brought out, his hand lifted from her leg to move plates around for spacing and ease.

She looked up as the food arrived before they had finished their first glass of wine. "Did they even have time to cook it or is it replicated?" she asked the waiter with a look of disdain.

"Replicated." He spoke. "Unless you are prepared to wait for the real thing." It was an option but would require time, time most didn't want to waste.

"Rep...licated," Vash repeated slowly and looked at Will. "Well...we can't win them all, can we?"

"We will wait for the real thing thank you." Will knew that was time spent waiting for food but they had a view to enjoy and each others company.

Apologetically the waiter took the replicated food away and left the two alone again. "First time off the ship in a while, that calls for real food thats hand prepared."

"I'll have to agree with you on that point," Vash said. "I wouldn't have expected that a place like would serve replicated food. Still, I'm willing to wait because I get to spend time with you."

"So true." Will replied, his hand returning to her thigh. "I don't mind waiting honestly, we spend too much time planning and preparing, not enjoying the moment here and now." Considering the dedication he'd put into his career, he'd paid a price for it in other ways.

She took another sip of her drink. "I don't, either," she said. "When I was just running the club, it was just me and the employees and then I'd go to sleep in the back of it. It was all I knew until you came in that fateful night."

"I still remember the dancing on the stage and someone hooking both legs around my waist and leaning back." A smile on Wills face as he pictured it even now. "Can't say that was a bad way to end the night too." Of what he could remember of it, his body sure could from the aches the following morning.

"It was a night to remember, but it wasn't your fault you didn't remember much of it," Vash said. "That was my fault, but I evened the playing field after that. I'm glad you chose to stay with me."

"Totally worth it." Will sipped his drink again. An ever present smile on his face in the company of Vash and a stellar view before them. "

After a while food arrived, real food, hand prepared and cooked to perfection. "Sorry for earlier." Each plate laid down, extra cutlery and napkins too.

"Hmmm looking good." A smiled look at Vash as the aromas hit them.

"Very good," Vash said. "Thank you." She waited until the waiter was gone, then looked at Will. "At least we'll have something real to give us the energy we'll need later."

Having been with Vash for a while, acclimatised to her personality somewhat and her sexual nature Will smiled at her comment. "Hmmm." But the grin held more of an answer than the sound. "Does look good, shall we tuck in?"

"We shall," she said as she cut into a Khinkali and tore a piece of the Khachapuri off, dripping cheese and egg onto her plate before she took a bite. She washed it down with a sip of wine and smiled. "Now that is well worth the wait. Can you see if you can steal the recipe for us?"

"I'm sure I can work some magic for you." Just the smell was mouthwatering as he looked at it. He took a piece for himself and ate it, savoured it, the tastes exploding in his mouth also finished off with a sip from his drink. It was good, really good in fact and made him glad they waited for the real thing. "We should do this more often."

A smile on his face as he looked at Vash, a beauty in her own right and a smile on her face from the meal she was sharing with him.

"I agree," Vash said as she bit into the dumpling and chewed it thoughtfully. "These are very good."

Off at the bar, the waiter stopped to have a conversation with several patrons and pointed towards the booth where Will and Vash was, then shook his head before he continued about his duties.

Oblivious to what was going on around them, content with the view and company he ate the meal. "Would you like a refill?" Will offered as he reached for the bottle.

"Please," she said as she held out her glass. "I could get used to this, you know. In fact, I may redo The Pink Kitty entirely and make it a classier place."

"Why not, nothing wrong with a bit of class and this place was packed when we walked in. Something like this on a ship of over a thousand could be the go to spot over Ten Forward and you'd rake in a fortune for it." Will poured the glass then his own after. "I think it's a great idea personally."

"You do?" Vash asked as she cut another dumpling up and dipped it in the gooey cheese and egg.

"Of course. You have a business to run, nothing wrong with change and you saw this place when we walked in. This beats Ten Forward for sure and there is nothing wrong with picking up some ideas from others like this place to enhance what you can do with what you have." Will spoke as he ate another bite. "The ship will be in refit for a while, you could even draw up a new design lay out and i'll have it to the engineers to fabricate if you really wanted."

"You don't have to do that," she said after a sip of her wine. "The Admiral in charge has an open account for me to use. I'll pay engineers to do it."

"Oh really, an open account." Will played. "Guess my money is safe then." He smirked at her taking another bite of the meal careful not to let the cheese drip on him. "Maybe you can squeeze him for a rush job on the repairs too."

"Different Admiral," Vash said. "I doubt Intelligence could rush a ship refit. So what do you want to do later since we have nothing to do on the ship other than sit in our quarters?"

"Well, I have reserved a Holodeck should you want or..." A smile on his face. "I have booked one of the outer hull view points all to ourselves for the night. Its like a hotel room but one entire wall, like this place, is window, full length too, with a bed and furniture and we can get room service, a proper shower with water, a bath or if your feeling for a proper soak a Jacuzzi."

"Ohhhhh," she said after taking a bite of the cheesy egg bread. "Now that sounds like a lovely plan. We can get naked and lounge around like wantons for the night and enjoy each other as much as the view."

At the bar, two men looked towards the booth where Will and Vash were at, then got up and left the place after settling their tab.

"See, I know what the lady likes." Will smiled feeling proud of himself. "Does sound grand though. A welcome change from the ship and confines of its bulkheads. The reviews were good, most commenting on the amazing unobstructed view." Will sipped his drink and sat back, it really was good to get off the ship.

"Maybe we should run away together and live on starbase to starbase before we settle on a nice little planet where no one knows what clothing is and teach the natives how to be our servants," she suggested.

Will chuckled to himself. "Waited on hand and foot, I could live with that." A broad smile graced his face as he considered that sometimes just packing and leaving did have a certain appeal to it. Starting off somewhere new, fresh, where the past remained the past and a new future could be forged.

"You already are," Vash said. "That's why you're the commanding officer of a starship."

"Yes but crew and servants are two distinct differences. As Captain I am required to care for, protect and support the development of my crew. As ruler, I don't." Will mused with a smile as the thought rolled around in his head.

"Ruler, huh?" she asked as she finished her Khinkali. "So what would that make me?"

"Well, every ruler needs a Queen, a companion, someone by his side preferably not rolling her eyes when he's not looking." Will replied smiling, it was good to just be himself, not the Commodore, not the duty bound leader, just Will.

"A Queen? I could get used to such treatment," Vash said. "Does that come with perks from the King?"

"To be determined, can't have her getting spoiled now can we? Kingdom to rule, slaves to command, minions to oversee. Its a busy position." Will winked at Vash. "Why, interested?"

"No slaves, servants," she corrected. "I don't need broken people serving me."

"Oh I see, setting the standards already. Fair enough." Will chuckled. "Did we want something for dessert? He asked, unsure if he did but was happy to look at the menu.

"I always have standards to set," Vash said. "I thought we agreed on the Ktarian chocolate puff with ice cream."

"Oh yes, so we did." Will smiled at a memory. "Old age, memory is the first to go after the hair turns grey." He joked sometimes feeling his age when he forgot things.

"You're not old at all," she said. "You're in your prime. All the talk of being a King has made you forget the more mundane things."

"True." Just as he finished the waiter arrived with dessert and to take the empty plates away. "You know this isn't good for my commanding, leadership image right." He joked as he handed a spoon and fork to Vash.

Vasj set the fork down and reached for the dessert with the spoon. "Of course it is," she said. "You're here with me."

"Flatterer." Will joined in sampling the chocolate delight knowing he'd have to hit the Gym later for this little luxury. He knew he'd been putting the Gym off alot of late because of what had happened and no doubt Dr Patrovski would mention something about it on his next physical.

"Only because you're worth it, Will," Vash said after savoring a mouthful of the decadent dessert. "This stuff should be illegal."

"It should." Another mouthful, another guilty feeling as he knew this was so wrong yet so tasty. Another mouthful followed then washed down with his drink. "We really should take the time to do this more often, no uniforms, no titles, just two people free to choose."

"You know there isn't much time to do that on the ship," she said as she dug into another bite of the dessert. Movement caught the corner of her eye and she frowned before she took her time stretching to the left and saw two men and several women come into the place. They approached the same waiter who once more pointed to where the Commodore and Orion woman were seated. "Will, I think we may have some guests soon."

"Guests are frequent, its the unwelcome ones that are troublesome and in this moment in time, all guests are." Will spoke knowing that if Vash had noticed it, he didn't need to draw attention himself by seeing. "Anyone you know?"

"No, but that doesn't mean anything," Vash said. "The waiter was pointing at our booth."

"That is probably my fault, I'm probably one of a handful of flag officers on board. That of itself is bound to attract some attention, especially since the ship came back missing a nacelle. Difficult to hide that." Will was painfully aware of the publicity slash the arrival of the Dreadnought had caused.

She looked at the table and frowned. "Why did we order food that didn't require a knife?" she asked. She picked up the container that held the puff and weighed it before she set it down again. "And I just had to insist you not bring your combadge."

"Want to call security?" Will spoke as he looked at her face and seeing that what was going on was bothering her deeply. "We can go back to the Avaya if you wanted, nobody could get on board without medical clearance."

A man came out from behind the bar and approached the five people who pointed at the booth where Will and Vash were, then shook his head and pointed to another booth. A moment later, the group came to an agreement of some sort and went to the other booth.

Vash sighed. "I'm just paranoid," she said as she watched the others go. "I think they just wanted our booth. Do you want to go to that suite you mentioned now? I could use some stress relief."

"Possibly they do, I mean I may of had to pull some tiny strings for this." Which meant someone lost out. Will wiped his mouth with a napkin, folded it and tucked it under the rim of the plate before shuffling out. His hand out to her to assist as he waited.

She came to her feet with a reluctant glance at the now abandoned dessert, but shrugged it off as she took his hand. "Shall we?"

"Sure." Will walked her through the large dining area and no surprise that most glances were towards Vash. He was used to it ever since they started on the Dreadnought heads were turned by her, including his own. Will had taken a route that would take them up a different pathway out of the venue than the one they came in, it put distance between themselves and the interested party. He'd already set up the account to be settled so as soon as they walked through the exit they headed towards a Turbolift.

It worried him a little that what happened bothered Vash so much, it felt beyond normal worry, that it was focused, a genuine cause. They were in the heart of Federation space on board a Starbase no less and most would feel secure with such measures embracing them.

The entire way through the restaurant, Vash looked at every person who cast so much as a glance her way and fought to keep the feeling of paranoia away from her. She had lived a lifetime of it and wasn't feeling safe in the least by being on a starbase, but she trusted will.

Once they were in a turbolift, she turned and threw her arms around him and planted her lips on his. "That was a thank you, by the way," she said.

His arms went around her, his breath slightly held as his lips felt her own. His hand slipped along the side of her neck lacing fingers into her flowing red hair. His other arm holding her close to him, feeling her frame against him, the heat of her body seeping through the clothing they wore. When the kiss broke and she spoke her thanks he smiled and looked down at her. "You are most welcome Vash."

Without a care in the world he kissed her again determined not to let what happened ruin the night as it was about them, no Commodore, no club owner, just two people who care for each other in each others arms as the lift rode ever higher to the upper levels where the suite awaited.

She kissed him again and when the turbolift came to a halt, she was far more relaxed and less worried than she had been in the restaurant. Her small hand found his and gave a squeeze before she looked up at him in adoration. "I may not have said it, but I consider myself very lucky to be with you, Will."

"You are not the only one Vash." When the doors opened Will walked a casual pace to the suit having remembered the route. It would have been silly to forget and have to ask for directions. His hand gently held her own as they walked with a smile on his face and a growing warm feeling within. He hoped she'd like the treat he had in store for her, the view was flawless and rivalled only by a childhood memory of staying at the zoo overnight in a house within the lion enclosure to sleep with the lions and wake up to them on the other side of the glass.

When they reached the apartment Will entered the code and the doors opened. The view was everything he'd hoped for and even the little extras such as flowers lined the windows, a pleasant fragrance on the air with a small table with two bottles and glasses awaited them. It even had petals on the floor and bed for decorations. "And this, is where we are spending the night and the view...well it speaks for itself."

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