Captain Roshanara Rahman: In Veritas, there is wine

[richyulin]

((Captain’s Ready Room, USS Veritas))

::Though Teller had returned to work, busy in preparing the ship for the installation of the warp XV engine, Roshanara quickly found herself buried in more PADDwork. It seemed Starfleet Command had decided to launch a revision of the first contact protocols and wanted every CO to acknowledge the changes--along with complete a 30-page evaluation. Meanwhile, there were personnel evaluations she needed to approve of that Commander Delano had left her weeks ago, *and* there was still the matter of finalizing the service ribbons list for their past two missions.::

::The chime from her door reminded her that there was a world beyond her ready room still going by.::

Rahman: Enter.

::The doors parted, and Roshanara’s green eyes looked above her PADD to see Ensign Ukinix standing there, holding a large box. As he moved forward, she could hear the distinct clanging of bottles. She rose her eyebrow, curious at its contents.::

Ukinix: Hi Captain!  Good to see you again.  Gotta gift for you.  Well for you and the senior crew.  Or visitors.  Or whoever you like.

::He placed the box on the chair across from her and opened it, pulling out a bottle of wine. With Teller’s earlier mention of having a stash of Romulan ale aboard somewhere, she half-wondered if she should dare ask where the ensign had procured so much alcohol.::

Ukinix:  My grandparents own a vineyard, and they make a small amount of their own wine.  They’ve been experimenting with a blend for a few years, and two years ago they finally got it right.  So they’ve started bottling it, but they didn’t have a name for it. 

::He glanced down at the label for a moment.::

Ukinix: Until a few days ago.

::Upon handing her the bottle, she smiled as she read the label.::

Ukinix: I thought it’d look good in your ready room as an “ornament” of sorts.  I’ve also got ::reaching into box:: bottle “0005” in here as well, in case someone wants to drink one in a few years - because it would be a shame to ever open that “triple-zero one” bottle.

::She held the bottle with both hands, as if she were cradling a baby.::

Rahman: I’ll make sure this one stays safe.

Ukinix: ::Nodding, smiling:: In here is a selection of their other wines. ::pulling out bottles randomly:: “Nutbush” Cab Sav, “Flower” Shiraz – that’s their most popular one – “Milky Way” Chardonnay, and ::surprised:: Grandpa even packed a “Purple Haze” Rosé in here.  Nice.

Rahman: Ah…

::She nodded politely, although she honestly wasn’t sure what the words meant. She had heard of them of course. “Shiraz.” “Chardonnay.” But being as she didn’t drink herself, she was a bit ignorant about the differences. Perhaps Del would enjoy one of the bottles.::

Rahman: I’ll take your word for it. I can’t say I’m much of a connoisseur.

::The ensign dove back into the box and pulled out a specific bottle.::

Ukinix:  Non-alcoholic sparkling red wine.  There’s 4 of them in there for you.

::To this, her smile broadened as he handed it over to her.::

Ukinix:  Got it from one of the nearby vineyards that makes it.  Because, ::smirking:: well honestly I can’t imagine my family making it.

Rahman: I’m impressed by the thoroughness of your research! And thoughtfulness.

Ukinix:  There y’are, compliments of the Ukinix family.  Do with them what you like, but ::smiling:: don’t let anyone drink that “triple-zero one”.

Rahman: I’ll have security station a guard immediately.

Ukinix: Response

::She really was appreciative of the thoughtful—and entirely unexpected—gift that Ukinix had just presented her. She took one of the PADDs on her desk and pulled up a file.::

Rahman: Unfortunately, I don’t have any wine for you, ensign, but judging by Lieutenant Teller’s reaction, I’m hoping you find this just as exciting of a “gift.”

::She handed the PADD over the desk to the engineer.::

Rahman: Veritas has been selected as one of the starships to trial the Warp XV engine. The refit will still take the rest of shore leave, but Lieutenant Teller and I have begun some of the initial work.

Ukinix: Response

::She nodded.::

Rahman: Now, you *are* still on shore leave, ensign, and I don’t want you to be picking up any bad habits from your department chief…

Ukinix: Response

Rahman: I just mean I know how restless Mr. Teller gets with idle hands. oO And arms. Oo

Ukinix: Response

Rahman: Don’t feel the need to end your shore leave early. I want to make sure you enjoy your time off.

::She gave him a knowing look, tilting her chin down a bit.::

Rahman: I’m sure Lieutenant G’var might agree.

Ukinix: Response

TAG! TBC…

Captain Roshanara Rahman

CO, USS Veritas

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