Lt. Robin Hopper: Celebrate Good Times, Come On! (Part 1)
Robin Hopper
((Amity Outpost – Habitat Ring, Beijing District, Chief of Mission’s Accommodations))
Accepting had, of course, been a no-brainer when the question of helping with the preparations for Commander Ukinix’s surprise promotion party had been raised. “Of course,” she had said – insistently… After all, she only lived around the corner from the Vataixs and, since her first evening at their home had proven so inspirational in the ongoing mission to decorate her own abode, she relished the opportunity to have a proper ‘poke around’ the Vataix household.
Aside from that, Robin had already grown very fond of Rivi – and was still slightly miffed at the Commander for having forgot her after his ‘rejoining’. The thought of simultaneously helping the Ambassador and pulling the wool over Ukinix’s eyes delighted her.
Hopper: Did you and Rivi throw many parties back on Betazed?
Tidrid: Response
Robin looked across the room with a wide grin as she tied the string of a red balloon with three silver circles on it – one for each pip the Commander would be earning that night – around the arm of a chair.
Hopper: Actually, I almost feel like I should be thanking you two! I love parties – and there’s something so special about holding this one here. This kind of event could never happen on a ship.
Tidrid: Response
Robin happily grabbed another balloon – the last one – and looked around for a spot to tie it. Nobody was even there yet, and already it had begun to feel like the party had begun. Hopefully that spirit and energy would remain during the takedown at the end of the celebration… oO I do hope Wil is happy about all of this… Oo
Hopper: Did Rivi tell you what exactly was happening? I know we’ll get a heads up from the Kitty Hawk when the man of the hour is inbound, but did she drop any clues about what they’re doing with him? ::Smirking:: She was pretty secretive about it beforehand.
oO Aha! There we go! Oo She made her way to an embarrassingly balloon-less statuette and tied the balloon’s ribbon around its wrist. She glanced at Tidrid to gauge his reaction – oO Hopefully this isn’t some sort of sacred idol or something. Oo
Tidrid: Response
Hopper: Well, whatever he thinks is happening – I’m sure it isn’t going to be this!
((Several Hours Later))
After the decor, food, drinks, playlist, and the long list of other minor tasks had all been taken care of – then checked and re-checked – Robin had at last darted home to change. An occasion like this was the perfect opportunity to pull out one of her more daring outfits. A lifelong fan of vintage clothing (she liked to jokingly say ‘from the 60s to the 60s’, in reference to her love of both mid-20th and mid-23rd century fashions), she occasionally liked to push the boundaries of what the average person would consider ‘stylish’.
Now, with the impending arrival of their astonished guest of honour mere moments away, she stood amongst the crowd in her mint-green “space girl” number, practically vibrating with excitement. Looking around the assembled crowd, she could also make out a lot of familiar faces and any time she caught the eye of a friend or colleague, she offered them a little enthusiastic wave.
Suddenly, the unmistakable twinkling sound of a transporter beam filled the room and everyone went silent. As a flash filled the room, and a befuddled Australian Commander was deposited on the floor, the room erupted in excitement.
Everyone: SURPRISE!
Ukinix: ::Quizzical tone:: What?
Moments later, as he scrambled to his feet, Rivi and Captain Rahman appeared, followed shortly thereafter by three other distinguished guests. Robin recognized Commander MacKenzie – whose published work on remote subspace prosthetic limb control she had found fascinating (herself having lived with a prosthetic left leg her whole life) – but the other two faces were unfamiliar. She guessed that, per the subject of tonight’s hoodwink, they must all three be familiar faces from Ukinix’s past. Her eyes floated – seemingly with a mind of their own – to the man at the end of the trio, a tall dark and handsome.. Commodore?! oO Woah! Oo She hadn’t expected that… oO And is he wearing a skant?! Oo
She began to stand on her tip-toes, trying to get a better look, when she suddenly recalled she was at a gathering with several telepaths in attendance… Including one who she had accidentally had very similar thoughts about at their first meeting. She gave Tidrid a sheepish smile before turning back to the proceedings and doing her best to keep her mind clear.
MacKenzie: Surely you didn’t think the galaxy would keep us away… Congratulations on not mucking this one up.
del Vedova: Hear, hear! (with a wink) I never doubted you for a second.
Kells: Congratulations, Wil. You brought us all out here, and that's no mean feat.
Blake: Response
Rahman: As much as I'd like to protest, the Ambassador is correct that she is your commanding officer now, so the honor is hers. Still... ::looking over at Rivi and nodding:: ...I must thank her for allowing me to take some part in the occasion.
Vataix: Oh, I'm so sorry I was so mean to you, Wil! Captain Rahman said you'd understand and that it was... "your thing." ::looking back at Roshanara:: Something like that? ::looks back at Wil:: It was okay?
Ukinix: “It was all in the name of liberty.”
Robin tried to piece together what Ukinix had meant – but the pieces didn’t fit together in her brain, and she assumed it must be some sort of Australian slang. The Commander seemed to be a neverending source of puzzling sayings. But there was no time to dwell on the non-sequitor.
Vataix: So you didn't suspect? I knew from the beginning! Blake and I *conspired* to get you "kidnapped."
Blake: Response
Ukinix: ::smiling:: No Ambassador, Blake, you both got me.
Vataix: Anyway, now that we're back on Amity, we can do the rest of this a little more my style... which as I'm sure you can guess, involves a party!
Rivi raised her voice to address the rest of the crowd and Robin listened in as the general din of the crowd hushed.
Vataix: Distinguished colleagues and honored friends, as you know, we have completed our first year of Amity Outpost's operation.
Robin joined in the applause that murmured through the room before Rivi continued.
Vataix: Running this station requires so many talented and dedicated people, and today, we honor one individual in particular: Wil Ukinix, Son of... ::She paused for a moment, not sure if it was appropriate to name the Ninth House since they wouldn't hear back from Keehani for a while and calling him out as a forsaken son seemed inappropriate:: ...Fremantle.
She looked over at Wil for a brief moment before looking back at the crowd.
Vataix: Starfleet Command has approved your promotion to the rank of Commander.
Another rush of applause filled the room and three of the senior officers moved forward to hand the newly appointed Commander his pips. Ukinix looked floored. Robin turned to Tidrid, standing to her left, with a grin.
((OOC – Leaving out tags that wouldn’t have been overheard by Robin here))
Hopper: Guess he didn’t see it coming!
Tidrid: Response
She glanced back, watching for a moment as their guests placed his shiny new pips onto Ukinix’s uniform jacket.
Hopper: So far so good. The real test is going to be seeing how long people stick around for the party.
Tidrid: Response?
((OOC – Back to the ‘main’ event))
As a shrill whistle brought everyone’s attention back to the proceedings, Robin clasped her hands in front of her and listened in as Wil spoke.
Ukinix: Wow
A general hush filled the room.
Ukinix: I just want to thank each and every one of you here. ::To Blake, Addison, Del, Kells:: My old friends, who came all this way, you have made my day, and have helped forged me into the officer I am today. This is a wonderful surprise. ::To Rest of the crew:: Amity crew, you’re all amazing and you impress me and Rivi every day with everything you do. ::To Rivi:: Ambassador, your leadership and exuberance defines this wonderful Outpost we live on. And finally, Captain Rahman…
Ukinix: I have no words that describe how grateful I am to you. Instead, I’m just going to give you a big hug at some point in the next ten minutes. I’ve given you fair warning.
Suddenly some old Earth dance music began playing through hidden speakers.
Vataix: Let's have a good time, everyone!
As the music erupted and the crowd began to move to the beat of the party, Robin raised her hands in the air and cheered.
Hopper: Woooo!!!
A loud pop indicated that someone had found the champagne – or else, one of the balloons had met its untimely demise. Either way, Robin took it as a sign that the celebration had officially begun.
Ukinix: It’s party time!
TBC in Part 2
((OOC – Part 2 is probably coming in a day or two!))
