Lieutenant Amelia Semara - The Pronoun Game

[Max]

(( OOC: After chatting with Bill, I'm going to write for Dex Lyr and fill his tags, but write him from Semara's perspective. ))

(( Ventral Ring Beta Module, No Leaf Unturned Tea Shop, Deep Space 33 ))

There was something strangely wonderful about finally sitting down in a place like this - a tea shop so foreign yet familiar - and talking with someone she felt she knew a long time, only to find how foreign yet familiar her friend was.  There were still so many discoveries to make about the people closest.  Like how this one, apparently, knew a little more Vulcan that the spots and lack of pointed ears might suggest.

Zerva: Everyone knows those. One of my personal favorites is ::beat:: Nash-veh ma vesh' — heh kwon-sum dungau nam-tor — ish-veh katravahsu. Which translates into, I have been — and always shall be — your friend. ::smiles::

Amelia mirrored the big smile, understanding, and nodding her agreement with the sentiment.  Yet - after another sip of slightly-too-hot tea - she softly turned back to something Ezra said that had made her wonder....

Semara: If you don't mind my askin'...  Was your mama how you ended up in Starfleet?

She plucked another small piece of thoughtfully-buttered muffin and politely savored the flavor while he responded.  A number of clues to a complicated relationship tickled at her empathic senses like feathers, telling her to inquire carefully even if she couldn't help her interest.

Zerva: Yes. And no. It’s complicated.

The sigh felt like it gave birth to an entire family's worth of history and dramatic woes.  Amelia waited quietly, letting him pick apart his thoughts with equal fussiness as he picked apart the muffin top.  Not everyone was as lucky as she was when it came to home life growing up.

Zerva: My mother was always going on about the ::making quotations with his fingers:: The safety and security of the Federation and Starfleet ::rolling his eyes:: It’s important to be sure, that one would feel a sense of duty in their job to be the best at what they do. She drilled that into our minds as kids. Like I had no choice in the matter.

She nodded, taking a sip of her tea.  It was cooler now, hot enough to warm her up from the inside and steeped enough to carry the rich blend of flavor.

Semara: Now that I understand. :: Beat :: Not the bit about the Federation, the bit about livin' up to your family's plan. :: A bittersweet twist of the lips. :: I promise you, it ain't worth it.

Had her grandparents lived to see it, they'd be mortified to see a Semara in Starfleet.  Worse, they were probably rolling over in their graves right this moment with the way Amelia felt about Ras.  Not that it mattered.  She'd tried being the perfect heiress up until they passed, and it still wasn't enough for them to write her into their will to take the family estates the way her mama had hoped.

Semara: How'd she take it when you joined?

Her fingers tore another piece off of the perfectly moist and fluffy muffin with its delicately crisp top.  The spicy, sugary blend landed perfectly with tea's afternotes.

Zerva: I remember the day like it was yesterday when I told my family I made the decision to go to Starfleet Academy. I broke it to my brother and sister first to soften the blow. I made everyone’s favorite food for breakfast. ::beat:: It almost worked, except for my mother. Can you believe she tried to talk me out of it? Warning me about the dangers and what I might face and see out here?

Amelia gave a low chuckle and shook her head sympathetically, appreciating the irony of the story.

Semara: Been there too.  :: Beat :: Starfleet recruiters don't really prepare you for that conversation.  Everyone knows the stories of what we face out here.  How does anyone tell their family they might not be comin' back, or not they way they were?

Her mama and papa were both so supportive of Amelia's decision, they way they always were, and understood why she was doing it even before she did.  Still, there were a lot of tears when it was finally time to leave home for good.  No wonder they looked so relieved to see her face every time she called home.  Who knew?  Maybe her mama might be happy she finally found a boy.

The real irony, though, was that Ezra's mother - an officer in her own right - should have known what that conversation looked like.  She must have had one of her own.

Semara: Still, I reckon it should'a been easier with a mama who's in Starfleet herself...

Zerva: She did her best, but I was determined to show her just how much her constantly going on about work was driving me to follow her. I wanted to prove to myself and her that I’d be better at it then she was in her own job. ::takes a nibble of his muffin:: My siblings thought I was crazy to follow in her footsteps. They didn’t want to be a part of that after hearing about her work all their life. It’s how she used it as an excuse to always be at work and never there like most mothers. We couldn’t even have a dog, much less, any… other…

Once upon a time, Amelia studied solar system formation and dynamics.  One of the more fascinating topics was the concept of rogue planets.  The sudden trailing-off of words and shift of Ezra's eyes reminded her of one of the theories around their formation: how close encounters with stars could steal planets away, and how the planets could fly off into the void if the orbital mechanics were unstable.

Whatever Ezra just saw or thought of did almost precisely the same to him in empathic terms.  He was suddenly careening off, away from her, their conversation, the tea, the muffin...  Instinctually, Amelia turned to look for whatever suddenly had his attention.

Semara: :: Turning back :: What's wrong?

Ezra stood up, pulled by this highly gravitationally attractive new information he perceived that she didn't.

Zerva: ::standing up:: I saw him. I know I did. I…I could feel it. ::whispering:: Like he was here in the room. ::sharp whisper:: It’s got to be him!

Amelia stood, a little slower, straightening out her dress as she did.  She shot a little look at the waitress to signal there was nothing to worry about, then circled around a little closer to Ezra.

Semara: :: In a low tone. :: Him who, Ezra?  Bein' Betazoid doesn't make me any better at the pronoun game, sadly.

Ezra was already moving again, his orbit completely broken and set onto an escape trajectory away from the table and out the shop.  Momentarily unsure what to do or think about the strange development that Ezra had yet to expand on, she stood there a second, watching him go.

Zerva: ::whispering back to Semara:: Dex ::beat, voice raised:: Dex Lyr!!

If there was one thing Amelia was an expert at, it was remembering details about every person she met and the names that went with them.  In this case, Dex Lyr was the Trill from Tori's timeline who died and passed the Lyr symbiote on to Ezra.  In this timeline, he was still a transporter operator on DS33.  And Ezra had just called out the man's name.

Semara: Oh, dear...

She quickly shot the waitress another look of acknowledgement that yes, this was a little weird, and yes, they'd be back (sooner rather than later, hopefully), then sprang into action.  To be precise, she didn't spring so much as trot daintily in her heels with a hurried "clop - clop - clop - clop..." after the taller Trill, her dress's skirt swishing mightily with the effort.

Semara: Ezra!  Slow down!  I'm comin'!

Zerva: Response

(( Outside No Leaf Unturned Tea Shop, Ventral Ring Beta Module, Deep Space 33 ))

Outside the tea shop, Amelia bobbed and weaved through the slowly-building crowds of the pre-dinner rush with an empath's fluid intuition of where people were, and the space they'd soon occupy.  Normally, Amelia was anything but slow, but she'd planned for tea, not a chase, and her footwear was superbly ill-suited for catching up with the long-legged security officer.  That she even came close to keeping up was a testament to her practice and the long, grueling hours she'd been spending in the holodeck with B'Ella forcing her to keep up with much bigger and stronger people.

Semara: :: Calling out :: Ezra!  Wait up!

Zerva: Response

She muttered an, "Oh, Heavens..." under her breath, stopped, removed her heels, tucked a stray strand of hair behind and ear, promptly hiked her skirt up all the way to mobile indecency for most non-Betazoids, and proceeded to scamper off bare-footed at full-speed after Ezra.  Only, she'd barely started when Ezra stopped not far ahead...

And facing him: Dex Lyr.

Amelia skid to a stop next to Ezra, feet making a little squeaky "eep!" on the floors.  They formed a merry isosceles triangle of two Trill men, and one bare-footed Betazoid with her very fashionable underthings attempting to peek out from beneath a bunched-up skirt.

Lyr: And just who are the two of you?

Zerva: Response

Being pursued was probably already enough to create skin-creasing confusion on the poor spotted man's face, so Amelia hastily unfurled her dress skirt and gave a polite (if barefooted) curtsy with a bright beaming smile and heels in her hand.  On second thought, the curtsy probably didn't help the confusion.

Semara: Amelia Semara, how d'you do, Mister Lyr?  :: Beat :: Ezra here, uh... :: Another beat to think :: must just be so thrilled... :: Another beat :: with the quality of y'all's transporter work!  Here at DS33!  :: Smiling brighter :: I'm sure he was thinkin' a' askin' 'bout your security protocols for some ideas to implement on Khitomer.  :: Beat :: Y'know. :: Beat :: The ship in dry dock.  :: A weird chuckle. :: The one with the naked nacelles hangin' out for everyone to see.

The improvised cover was quickly running out of steam (if it had any to begin with), and she looked from a rather squinty and concerned-seeming Lyr over to Ezra, hoping he would pile onto the awkward but adorkable transporter-security-nerd shuttle pulling out of the crazy-bay rather than make this weird.  Or weirdER.  She looked at him with big hopeful eyes.

Then again, who was she to criticize if he hadn't thought this through?  She was the one who'd thrown her beau into drag in a panic.  People did ridiculous things when emotions were high, including herself.

Zerva: Response

Tag / TBC...

---------- ●● ----------

Lieutenant Amelia Magnolia Semara

Intelligence Officer

USS Khitomer - NCC-62400

A239710MA0