Lieutenant JG Amelia Semara - A Little Bit Batty

[Max]

(( Peach Garden, Museum of Pomology and Orcharding, Dangan Prime, Alpha Isles ))

Amelia had come prepared to spoil both Talia and Statler Jr.  They were both going to be lavished with the affections of a woman who needed a moment away from her own brain and wanted nothing more than to squish the fuzzy derp of a fruit-loving bat against her face and tell him what a cute boy he was - yes he was!!  Her grey matter was becoming a crowded place.  Escaping it sounded like the best option.

Semara: :: Setting out a basket. :: Well, remember I promised to help find if there’s a way to clip little Statler’s nails without carnage?  I intend to do that.  :: Beat :: But I also intend to bribe the ever-livin’ daylights outta the cutie with as much fruit as he’ll have. They got cultivars from all over the quadrant here.  Figured if there’s anything he’s partial to, they’d have it. :: A little smile. :: Don’t worry, there’s plenty for us too.  It’s been too long since I’ve had fresh peaches.  :: Smile growing. :: And I brought a little cream, too.

With the basket opened revealing various snacks and tea to go with the feast of fresh fruit, Amelia finally breathed.  Sweet songs of birds were everywhere, and bees busily buzzed from stamen to stamen.  The smell of pollen and blossoms was everywhere, and right around the pond was a crowd of trees covered in ruffled pink flowers.  Peach trees!  It was why she booked this particular garden, but she’d forgotten until now.  Everywhere were brightly-colored shocks of home…  It was like a floral compress finally opening her lungs from the tightness that sat there ever since the sauna and only worsened in the prior museum.  Her eyes closed for a moment, just bathing in the sun-warmed smell of real bark and earth.

When they opened again, she could actually smile again, especially where there was an adorable big-eyed bat to play with.

Ohnari: Ooh thank the Gods. When we come to places like this, they give him the full treatment, and somehow he lets them trim his nails...but when we're out in the Isles and I've got to do a little maintenance...?

A little chuckle bubbled up, and Amelia sat down primly on the blanket.  Fruit wasn't the only thing in the basket.  It also contained a little pre-packed kit of various clippers and brushes and soft towels she meant to try out with the little fruit-lover.

Semara: Well, it's prolly simple then.  I just need to find out what helps 'im relax so he lets us un-sharpen 'im.  :: Beat :: What can you tell me 'bout him?  I've been studyin' up on Pytithian bats a little, but anything I know before will help.

The weird one-winged army crawl the bat now used to haul his little body to the basket was surprisingly agile and speedy.  Amelia reached out and scratched his fur, but Statler was completely oblivious to the touch, barely acknowledging it with little more than a passing vocalization that sounded like an "NYEH."

Ohnari: He was rescued from a trash heap on RAFT-One. Our former security chief brought him in. As far as we could tell, he had been orphaned, either by being separated from his mother too soon or by losing his grip, and being left behind. His wing is mildly deformed, but he's adapted.

Semara: Aww, poor baby!

Talia put a stop to Statler's single-minded quest for sucrose.  If he got into the basket, he'd just make a mess of its contents and Amelia wouldn't learn what she wanted to.  He made all manner of purrs and groans and clicks in response to the interruption.

Semara: He seems to move alright.  Any pain?

If there was, Amelia needed to know before experiencing it for herself.

Ohnari: No pain, the nerves were damaged. ::smoothing his fur:: The surgical interventions would be extensive, and besides, it's not like anyone would appreciate a flying bat aboard a starship. ::smirking:: Nolen still claims publicly that he disapproves.

Semara: :: A snort. :: 'Course he does... :: A sigh. :: For the record I would, but as long as he's gettin' good exercise crawlin' around and there's enough stimulus, it's probably okay.  Fruit bats usually gotta fly pretty far to collect enough food.  He seems happy, though, so that's a good sign!

Amelia smiled to herself, guessing there was something more to the former XO's relationship to the bat.  Fruit bats were social creatures.  It amused Amelia that there was a fuzzy little beast that probably thought of Hobart as just another bigger fuzzy beast that was part of its roost.

Ohnari: So...when do we start?

Talia was clearly charged with excitement, a counterpoint to Amelia's subdued exhaustion.  But that was part of why this was such a good idea.  It was always easier to smile around her.

Semara: :: A soft smile. :: How about now?

Animal minds were strange to Betazoid telepathy.  They were unmediated things, with instinct and impulse and desire and attention fighting and pulling strongly in ever-changeable and unpredictable directions.  Almost without exception, Betazoids were wary of becoming too close with animals: Amelia was a rare individual unabashed about putting her trust in a horse, for instance, or forming a close bond with the pets who lived on her family's estate as a child.  Where most of her culture kept other creatures at a distance, either out of fear or superiority or plain discomfort, Amelia had become fascinated with them.

The way she could telepathically commune with animals was her one and only real secret.  She loved hearing what they had to say, but there was no saying how another Betazoid might treat her if they discovered.  Poorly, if history was any teacher.

As she'd explained to Talia once long ago, she had her papa to thank for her particular attitude and abilities.  An anthropologist, her papa had gained the trust of a lesser-known tribe of hunter-gatherer Betazoids who originally settled Nantahala Valley even before the first shepherds and ranchers.  Largely shunning technology (except to warp away from their homeworld to avoid being shunned themselves apparently), they still followed the ways of the wild.  They were the originators of the all-but-forgotten telepathic technique that allowed them to experience life around them as it experienced itself.  The theory was that it let them exploit all sorts of natural resources by deeply understanding how animals interacted with the ecosystem.  Her papa eventually learned the communion from them, and Amelia in turn learned it from him when she was still young - eventually surpassing even his skill.

Talia had seen it work once, in a pinch, when they rescued Baba Yaga from the pond aboard DS 33, but that was a rush job aimed at finding a way to gain the strange little dumbo octopus' trust quickly enough they could whisk it away.  This would take more time and more serious focus.  She couldn't think about Ras right now or what he might think of this feat.  She had to push aside her fury that the Betazoid Doctor Tram might be violating a much more sacred rule of telepathy and still look down on her for what she was about to do.  If anything, forgetting all of that for a moment and experiencing something entirely other was exactly what she needed right now.

Semara: So, this ain't gonna be like last time.  I'm gonna take a little time lettin' myself get to really understand little Statler's way a' seein' things.  I won't be very aware of 'me', so if I seem kinda gone... Well... I am, sorta.  Nothin' to worry about.  If it's an emergency, gimme a good smack or somethin'.  :: Beat :: When I start, all you gotta do is put out some a' each fruit, let him explore, crawl around, whatever he wants for a couple minutes.  Once he's had his fill, try holdin' him a couple different ways and strokin' his fur in a few spots for me.  Show him some a' the groomin' implements, but don't try usin' 'em just yet.  You can talk to him or whatever you normally do when you hold him.  :: A smile. :: Ready?

Ohnari: Response

Semara: Okay, just gimme a moment, then let him at it.

She rearranged her legs under her, rolling out her neck and shoulders until she was sitting comfortably, completely supported by the blanket-covered earth beneath her.  Emptying out everything inside of her took longer than normal, but soon enough her empathic self was starting to melt and spread like butter on a warm pan.  Each breath, a little more of her pooled beyond the boundaries of herself, and a little more of the world around her entered her mind.  She gave Talia a little nod when she was finally ready before closing her eyes.  Another exhale, another inhale; out, in; her person and the air in her lungs flowing as one, joining...

~~~

What in the great sky was that smell?

The world was always alive with scents great and small, sharp and soft, sweet and sour, but none quite like this one.

She reached out with one great webbed arm, the other just... There, along for the ride as ever.  Every pulling Kuh-thunk-Kuh-thunk-Kuh-thunk speedy swimming stroke that clunked her chest on the ground brought it closer.  She had to find the source.  Whatever it was, she could almost taste it: and it was perfection.

A strange skinny pale-colored wing hooked its finger-toes onto the a thicket of branches where the smell seemed to bud.  She protested.  "TRrrrrwrrr!  hhhRRRlrlrl!"  What the heck?  She wanted that!  More Kuh-thunk-Kuh-thunk-Kuh-thunk back the other direction.  "WyrrrRyEE!"  Give!

Finally, the big protector beast got it.  Its skinny-wing plucked out various smells from the twisted branch thicket.  "TrrtrtRR!"  Yes!  Yes Yes Yes!  The protector beast was big and kind, but not always the swiftest.

Couldn't the protector beast smell it?  It smelled like all the lights of the Great Sky were sugar and they had come down from their Roost Beyond to sing happy songs in her nose.

She wasted no time seeking for which of the twisted-thicket fruits were the source.  Kuh-thunk-Kuh-thunk-Kuh-thunk.  She sniffed one.  Not this one.  Kuh-thunk-Kuh-thunk-Kuh-thunk.  Nope.  Kuh-thunk-Kuh-thunk-Kuh-thunk.  "TrrtrtRR!"  Yes!  Yes Yes Yes!  This one.

She unhinged, and attacked the fruit.  Pure ecstasy danced in her mouth as she mashed away, her body giving way to happy manic purrs as juice ran down neck, with her face snout-deep in the star-sugar-fruit.  Her tongue lolled, lapping up the running droplets of heaven from the fur on her chin and cheeks.  Oh Great Sky!  Oh Roost Beyond!  What treasure was this she now gorged on?  She laid waste to the perfectly ripe fruit, staining her fur until her neck and jaws started to tire, leaving some hard thing in the center.

Finally, she laid there, ears catching the breeze and the world-song of a hundred leaves and branches and other small beasts.  The protector beast sang something, as pointlessly incomprehensible as ever, but she thought she understood.  Kuh-thunk-Kuh-thunk-Kuh-thunk back over to the beast.  "WrRRylRRlRrrrr!"  The spindly wing cradled her into the embrace of a uniquely protector-smell.

She preened, suffering herself to be groomed briefly - the juices would be sour later otherwise.  She briefly sniffed in the direction of another big beast - big and safe, like the protector, but not the protector.  In the same roost.  Something in the scent had a warmth vaguely like the perfect-star-fruit.  Connected in some fashion.  No matter.  She nestled down.

Tucked in the protector's wings and heat, a glint caught her eye, and she sat up.  Menacingly smelless, it sang a strange, evil clicking song in the past. "PrrRhtRh!!!!"  No!  No No No!  Absolutely no!  What was the protector thinking!?  For once, the protector seemed to understand, holding something else.  Curious, but nothing identifiable.  Whatever.  "LrRLRlREeERll."  With so much food in her belly, she just wanted warm wings over her.

The protector was more in tune today than some.  She stretched out in the strange but comfortable fur-over-fur in the protector's warmth and smell, jaw almost unhinging in a satisfied yawn.  A pleasant not-quite-grooming motion started up, the soft repetition over her fur soothing.  Soon, everything was right in the world.  She was full of the sweetest fruit she'd ever tasted.  The roost was together.  What else was there in life?...

~~~

With the very first breath fully back in her own body, Amelia awakened back to the dullness of smell and sound around her compared to what Statler perceived.  What a world he saw!  Her eyes opened, and immediately she was giggling.

Semara: Oh my gosh, which fruit was that?  Heavens!  The way it smelled, Talia...  I couldn't even begin to describe it!

Ohnari: Response

Amelia shifted from her position, checking the label.  A little gasp slipped her lips.  A Nantahala Peach.  For a moment, she just grinned wordlessly, stunned.

Semara: Well, the little guy has good taste. :: A giggle. :: Lucky for you, I happen to know where to get more.

Taking a second blanket, she stood up and rubbed it on the bark of the tree that shaded the little spot.

Semara: May I have Statler for a moment?  I think I know what to do.

Ohnari: Response

She sat back down, and lifted the clumsy fur ball into the naturally-perfumed blanket, and then the whole unit went into her lap.  She lightly helped Statler with his lame wing, helping him get comfortable.  Her fingers went to his neck and forehead, stroking the fur evenly.

Semara: :: Voice softening. :: So, first off, little Statler here has an incredibly strong sense a' smell.  Replicators tend to make towels too clean or with a bit a' detergent smell.  I think he doesn't like that.  Look for somethin' that smells more natural, or maybe somethin' that smells like you or anyone else he likes.  :: Beat :: Next...  Pass me the second pair a' trimmers?  Do the trimmers you normally use squeak or click funny or make some other kinda sound?

Ohnari: Response

Semara: :: Nodding :: That could be it.  Or part of it.  He's almost hears as well as he smells, and sharp noises might sound like somethin' scary.  He doesn't like it, either way.  :: Beat :: Finally, I'm gonna pet him like this to signal it's chill relaxin' time while I work on his nails.  See how soft he's gettin?

Amelia smiled, the bat starting to go practically catatonic under the rhythmic head and neck massage she was giving him.  The tongue started to loll out as she lightly moved into the overworked muscles from one-wing crawling everywhere, knowing just how tight it felt for the poor bat.  She almost half-lost herself again grinning at the total squinty-eyed bliss on the bat's face, totally unaware she was clipping his nails under a little hummed country tune.  Before he knew what was happening, it was done.

Semara: :: A proud smile. :: There!  See how easy that was?

Statler stirred at the slightly over-zealous celebration, and made a funny whiney chirrup.

Semara: :: Responding as if Statler was a little nephew. :: Oh!  I'm so sorry.  I'll give you back to Talia!

Ohnari: Response

Amelia was already passing the bat back, and her eyebrows pinched in.  Statler had seemed perfectly content with her, but Amelia knew better.  After smelling life through his nose, she knew what the vocalization meant.  It was richer in his own ears, of course, but still unmistakeable.

Semara: He called for you.  :: Beat ::  That was his name for you.  :: Beat :: You didn't know he's got a name for you?

Ohnari: Response

Tag / TBC...

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Lieutenant Junior Grade Amelia Magnolia Semara

Science Officer - Special Projects

USS Khitomer - NCC-62400

A239710MA0