PNPC Crewman Jozial Renirs – The Dragonfly Effect
Jovenan
((Promenade, Cait Spacedock))
Gelataia: Welcome! What would you like to have?
Jozial turned to Kliss. Her Andorian date had let her choose first in the bistro, so it was the time to return the favour. With a simple nod and a wave of hand, she indicated the opening for Kliss to approach the Kantare girl behind the desk. Kliss understood the message and spoke to the gelato saleswoman.
Kliss’lai: May I please have a scoop of banana and a scoop of chocolate?
Renirs: Cantucci for me, please!
Her parents, like all nouveaux riches had an obsession on all the big and small luxuries of life, and while gelato was hardly a food of opulence in certain parts of the galaxy, it sure was on M’talas Prime. So were the Roquefort mussels she had earlier, for that matter. She might not have picked up a lot from her progenitors, and ignored the most things she did learn, but naming some of those little luxuries was one of those skills she wouldn’t mind utilising when in her favour.
Gelataia: Sure thing! Coming right in!
The smiley, annoyingly enthusiastic girl scooped them their requested flavours and handed them to the Jozial and Kliss. Kliss thanked the gelateria girl, and they stepped outside into the hustle and bustle of the Promenade. They began to walk along the line of shops, both holding their respective gelato servings. Jozial was about to dig into her biscuit-flavoured dessert, when she turned to Kliss to ask the same, serious question she had been posed earlier.
Renirs: So, what about you? What’s your favourite thing there is?
Kliss’lai: Ymr eees?
Unlike Jozial, Kliss hadn’t waited around with starting her gelato and had a spoonful – and the spoon itself – in her mouth as she had responded. Jeez, the officers really do drop all that gentlemanly fakery when out of uniform. Did they all revert back to their bad habits at times when being pretentious pricks was not required of them? Did Gabe pick his nose, and did Talos wipe his hands to his clothes? Those guys were even worse than she was!
Renirs: What was that you said? Imreese?
Her eyes could be fooling her, but Kliss seemed bluer right now. Now to speak of it, it had been almost as if she had been changing her exact skin tone all day. Andorians could do that? That’s kinda cool. Her antennae were also doing… something. She wondered what they felt like… Stop! Don’t think touching her body parts, concentrate!
Kliss'lai: I ... uh, said ... I said ... dragonflies.
Renirs: Dragon… flies?
That had been a somewhat unexpected answer. Why had she rambled about something serious like freedom when she could have also said something like jumja sticks. But no, she had had to make the date unnecessarily sombre. Why she couldn’t be more like Kliss, always so jovial and confident? Her answer had been so random, but not in a bad way.
Dragonflies. Wait, what even are dragonflies?
Renirs: I’m not sure what those are but they sound… awesome! Like, please tell me they’re like, shuttlepod-sized insects that breathe fire and hoard gold and eat maidens or something.
She realised she had her excitable character slip through her barely working attempt of a cool exterior. What a dork. Pretty girls don’t like girls who get passioned about random stuff, they want a cool, suave girls. Then be like one!
Kliss’lai: Response
Renirs: ::shrugs:: Never been there. Kinda weird name if they don’t do any of that, but you make them sound pretty cool anyway. Maybe you could show me one day.
Kliss’lai: Response
They had been walking along the Promenade, eating their gelatos at the same time, but they hadn’t been really heading anywhere. Were they heading back towards the Artemis? She couldn’t tell. They had come here with the intention to eat some food together, but as the gelato slowly vanished from their cups, the nominal purpose of the meeting was running out. Jozial began to worry the date might be running towards the end. What did people do at this point? Try and spot some random activity to do together, or accept that they had done everything they had planned and escorted their date to their homes, hoping they could agree to do it again someday?
Jozial didn’t want to bring it up, for in case that Kliss would say this one time was enough. Couldn’t they just keep walking around the Promenade until the day that they die?
Renirs: Kliss, uh, do you have plans for the rest of the shoreleave? Or, a lot of work when we leave the Spacedock?
Kliss’lai: Response
Renirs: I have work, but I can be flexible with it. What I really wanted to ask was, umm, if you and I, we, could go and have food… again, someday. And maybe do something else too. If… If you have the time, and if you want, of course.
Kliss’lai: Response
TAG/TBC
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Crewman Third Class Jozial Renirs
Enlisted technician
USS Artemis-A
E239911J11