Star Trek: Starbase 777 - lt-tr’hara﹢family

Having headed directly to the quarters from the transfer ship with his son,Vara'l had arrived at his quarters and hit the ground running as was his want. He'd helped Telim unpack, gotten him settled and sorted out what was left to be sorted out with Telim's school. His own readiness for work not thought about until Telim was safely situated and all was ready for the lad to start school. With Telim safely situated and gaming on a PAD, Vara'l finished off getting himself unpacked before getting his uniform pristine looking. His uniform being subjected to being smoothed out and dusted off before it was finally mentally pronounced by the internal voice of his, one that sounded remarkably like a instructor of his from basic, as work ready. With his uniform in a ready state, Vara'l settled onto the couch next to his adoptive son and looked over his own pad. His work rota and details about who he was report to being the first things he pulled up before he'd checked how long he'd got until he was off to work. The time, once he'd compared it mentally to the ETA on Telim's starting school, being something that Had left him smiling. The lad had a hour gaming if that's what he really wanted, Vara'l reckoned, an advantage of the lad completing his homework during the flight to the Starbase. Smart kid. Given he had the time to do so, Vara'l resolved to see Telim off on his way to classes before he headed to his first work related port of call. (edited)

Getting unpacked with his adoptive fathers help, Telim had throughout the process and when he'd began gaming, taken the time to process things as he'd worked. His young mind's thoughts darkened by a grief still keen and felt he suspected, by his uncle too, a whirl as the future loomed large before him. A new home.. a new school a new life without his mom. With his uncle and adoptive Clan-family. To say he'd felt anxious on the way here and as he'd moved about his room.. and then had gotten his teeth into a good PAD game, would have been a understatement. It wouldn't have been a surprise to observers, if they'd been party to his thoughts, that his hand wandered to the nearest of his adoptive fathers. The hand grabbed carefully, a source of comfort in a sense as he'd felt the calm steadiness of the grip. It wasn't that long into level three of the game he was playing when he scooted closer to his adoptive father and allowed himself to lean against them a bit. They had a bit of time before school and he resolved to spend it with his uncle.

3

As his adoptive son leant against him after taking hold of a hand, Vara'l squeezed the hand holding his and after he switched hands holding his sons hand, gently wrapped a comforting arm around his son as they gamed. That'd be how he remained until Telim broke from that, if that's what Telim needed.

When Telim finally slipped off into a quiet nap, Vara'l had allowed himself a small smile as he watched the person he'd sworn to protect for a moment. A Life he found he cared for, a life he worried for as he imagined how the future must loom fearfully large for a lad deprived of his mother far too soon. He'd picked up his adoptive son then, careful to not wake the lad as he'd walked with slow care toward Telim's room. The lad carefully deposited in bed for a short while. He'd have to wake him for school when the time came, but he might as well give the kid some time to claw back lost hours he had reckoned. Telim left to sleep in the bed as he'd settled into a chair and had started to catch up on some work reading. When the time had arrived, Vara'l had gently woken up Telim and left the quarters with him as they'd walked together at least part of the way to Telim's new school.

[D] Vara'l and Telim entered their quarters and proceeded to unpack what had been purchased or otherwise had previously been carried by them both. The duo chatted as they did so. A chat that while mostly benign resulted in a line of questioning, a specific line of questioning, being pursued.

"Uncle Vara'l, y'know.. the metal bits you have?" The kid asked. "Do they..hurt?" His voice coloured with concern "A-and.. d-did the Borg give you that metal?"

As he stiffened, something he rapidly forced himself to relax out of, Vara'l turned to Telim. This would be a hard conversation he reckoned but it'd be one that he'd have to have. Though he'd resolved to be careful to give.. a 'sanitised version'. "...They did give me these, yes." He said as he commenced his explanation "And...they don't hurt now." He said as he guided his adoptive son to a seat. [D] There the duo remained as...they started to chat.

By the time the chat finished, Telim had hugged and continued to hug his adoptive father.

After his father departed for a bit and he'd come round from his nap, Telim proceeded into the communal area of the quarters and located the notebook gift. Once he'd grabbed the gift the kid replicated a pen. With it replicated, he proceeded to write a bit.

Vara'l entered the quarters and after a hug with his adoptive son, proceeded to fix Telim a Dinner. The dinner being followed by a order from his adoptive son of all people to go sleep.

Sometime later, Vara'l snapped awake. Not slowly coming too like he'd done since the dreams had stopped. He'd snapped awake. Fully awake as his heart raced. Memories of dark corridors, of disruptor rifles aimed down a hallway waiting for those terrifying red lasers, fled from as he roared into consciousness.

As he looked around and sweated, yes...sweated in the cool of his room, Vara'l forced his pulse to slow and tried to recover. Hoped he'd not yelled or anything..not alerted Telim to his state.

Oh. Telim was aware, he'd worked it out a while ago that his adoptive dad had nasty things in his mind that hurt him like he hurt for mom. He knew as well that the nasty Vara'l experienced was far and a way more horrid than his had been. So.. it hadn't at all been hard for him, in the common area gaming, to put two and two together as he had heard Vara'l as their nightmare commenced. He'd agonized about going in earlier to try and wake up his dad, but had remembered something his mom had said about nightmares. Remembered enough to hold off..as he instead waited for his adoptive dad's nightmare to end before he proceeded to open the door and move in. A plushie clutched in his hands as he moved in, Telim offered it to his father and proceeded to softly ask. "Hug?"

2

Vara'l, initially mortified at the fact Telim had indeed discovered him and his nightmare, didn't respond at first to their query. Eyes blinked once then twice before his mind caught up with reality and he mustered asoft smile and open his arms as he accepted both plushie and the request for a hug. Telim enveloped in a careful hug. "...I'm sorry if I worried you."

Having spent the time since the hug and the nap and his dad going off to do something revising and then gaming, Telim was in all honesty not in the best of spots. He'd proceeded to, after he'd finished off building a cathedral on Minecraft, turn his mind to thinking about his adoptive dad, that hadn't been wise. After all, while his mind was well young, D'uh, he wasn't exactly stupid. No, if there was anything he wasn't, it was that. He could see, when he turned his mind to it, all the signs his father presented without presenting it. After all, he had experience with that sort of thing he reckoned, cause if there was something his mom hadn't wanted to do, it had been to worry him about her. She couldn't have helped the fact the pain of it screamed out from behind her eyes, a worry he couldn't quite understand as more than that one in your chest, that 'I don't wanna loose you' pain that had you internally screaming out while you just tried to let someone know you were there. You couldn't hide that. It made eyes change affected that thing with the body talking too. No, it hadn't been wise to let his young and all grow-y mind have time to look at what he had seen, too compare it to his mom. To his adoptive wider family. To allow his mind to hum and hrrr as it worried over signs it observed. More of the hand worrying thing here, paler skin, the nightmare dreams again. He could feel that hurty spot of his own as it sang pain in his heart thingy as he started to worry. Dad was hurting and dad wasn't talking. Even to a kid that screamed out about pain He briefly looked to a corked bottle of 'soda' he'd replicated and remembered something his adoptive granddad had told him after a sulk. Remembered and hugged his plushie as his young mind worried about things it understood and hurt as he once again realized he didn't know enough to help. He wanted to help, after all, he loved his adoptive dad. They loved him too. (edited)

It was around this time that Vara'l entered and proceeded to, after apologising for being late, move toward the replicator as he started to set about sorting tea.

His move interrupted by being intercepted by a rapidly moving small person wanting a hug.

[D] After some time in which they talked and Vara'l yet again resisted the prospect of going to the sickbay, the two decided to go see the butterflies

13:58

Kid perched hugging him and sat on a shoulder, the two departed.

[D] Once Vara'l arrived home at the end of the day and saw the distressed look on his sons face, Vara'l did exactly as he planned. Firstly he confirmed his son had indeed seen the news report. ..Then, he talked to his son about people, about belief and about hate. And told his son what his parents had told him. That differences between species are to be valued, that synth life was and is life. That while these people are allowed to talk, cause that's the right thing to do, it doesnt mean the people they might hate have to let what's said stick with them. His words picked as best as he could pick them, to be something a kid could understand. He reminded them he was here for them and Telim could tell him if anyone said anything hurtful to him and advised him as a parent might about how to respond. Hell..he even gave him a childs explaination of the Federations old ban. Explained that and launched from there into chatting about Telims father. The fact he had been Liberated Borg confirmed. The memory of the snatch talked over. A conversation that when the end of it arrived, lasted it felt,for a hour. A hour after which Telim surprised him again.

The kid, as he hugged his father, having softly uttered a comment of. "Feel sorry for them, cause difference is nice and didnt mr Samekir say about that thingy...IDIC"

[D] The two talked for some time about the protest and eventually, about Telims bio father and what Vara'l remembered of him. Vara'l for the first time in well...forever, being a tad more open about the past with the kid. Well, as open as one can be with a 10 year old.

1

[D] The chance seized while he was home alone, Vara'l started the process after some inquiries, to adopt a Epohh.

[D] Paperwork completed and arrangements made for the Epohh to be sent to the starbase, Vara'l waited again for a good time to head down and get the Epohh. This being a time, if one arrived, where a certain young romulan was otherwise occupied

Vara'l, once he arrived with the Epohh, turned and started to move some of the furniture as he prepared for his sons return to quarters. The Epohh secreted carefully in concealment for a moment before he settled in next to its hiding spot. "Here we go." The Romulan, as he queued up something to watch, moved some of the Epohh's hiding place so the epohh could peak out...which it did and settled in to watch and wait.

When Telim finally arrived after school he first greeted his adoptive father before he settled into the seat next to them. "Jolan'tru Uncle Vara'l." The kid commented before he leant on his dad. "..Had a good day?"

Vara'l pulled his son into a hug before he responded to that. "Jolan'tru, I did, shift was good." The Liberated Borg commented. "And... we've had a good time after shift watching stuff." ...He then waited for Telim to cotton on to the ...we before he moved one of the cushions that had concealed the other being in the room.

"..Dad, you did the we thing again... you oka-" When he saw the Epohh and realized after a glance at his adoptive father's face that this was their epohh, Telim proceeded to let out a happy yell. One rapidly reigned in to a happy bounce before he offered the small being that watched him from it's cushion fort a hand. A hand the Epohh proceeded to push its head into for a pet.

21:31

[D] A long period of petting later, a child set right into the task of getting the Epohh its dinner. Then after that , he found out something new. It liked to sit on his head or to snuggle into his arms when it wanted closeness but not petting. He found that very very cute..

1

As another spell in the hallway from hell had surged him firmly out of a dream of the corridor again, Vara'l first forced his heartrate back under control. Then, after a moment as he allowed his mind to well, boot up, he proceeded to pull on his uniform and boots before he blocked out some free time and checked to see if a holodeck was free. All this therapy stuff had helped alot, but this was getting to be too much. This dream. He needed, no he wanted desperately to face it where he had control. He knew he had a program for that, from a darker time for him. Now it'd serve a good purpose. Or at least, he hoped it would.

With swift steps Vara'l departed his quarters and then hurried on down the corridor toward the turbolift with a carefully calculated posture and expression aimed at deterring questions.

[D] After a long series of shifts, Vara'l walked into his quarters with a smile on his face. His initial sleep marred expression worn up to the door banished in the moments before it opened as he walked inside and greeted his son with a warm smile. Greeted him, conversed with him about his day and then after that proceeded to sort out his meal all as he warmly smiled.

Once Telim was safely situated inside their quarters and placed somewhere quiet to recover from the madness, Vara'l proceeded to check the chatroom again.

When the message arrived through the chatroom from someone higher up in the tactical department, Vara'l proceeded to sit down next to Telim and started to talk. The Tactical officer informed Telim he intended to go out and see if he could help, that is if the kid was alright being on his own with the pets for a bit. After he secured his sons permission to go out and see if he could help, Vara'l hugged his son and was hugged in return before he retrieved his tricorder from his go bag. Once he'd retrieved it, Vara'l proceeded stood next to his door and proceeded to open it as he scanned to check to see if it was safe to open the door, that is he checked to see if there were tribbles in the corridor.

Yep. A small wave of tribbles, rapidly multiplying, though their pattern was strange - short bursts of growth instead of a constant surge.

Vara'l stored the data from this scan on his tricorder and proceeded to scan for any other deviations from recorded data for standard tribbles.

22:00

As Vara'l proceeded to do this, the Romulan decided that the transporter would probably be his best way out of the room. Something which if anything probably meant, he reckoned that he needed to com someone after he'd completed his scan.

Vara'l adjusted his tricorder and after he'd called up information on tribbles on a PADD, proceeded to scan the tribbles again as he looked for other abnormalities that could be spotted.

Telim peaked over his fathers shoulder a bit as Vara'l scanned the tribbles outside of the door, the kid curious about what had his father so interested in what looked to him like a blank door.

After he attempted the scan and decided to leave it after he'd gathered what he could and then reasoned he wasn't exactly qualified to do more than find the occasional difference, Vara'l proceeded to respond to his kid. Once he'd spoken with Telim for a moment, Vara'l stepped away from his kid and tapped his combadge. "Lieutenant Tr'Hara to Security base, request permission to beam directly to the security base from my current location."

After he'd made the request over the Com, Vara'l waited patiently for the response as he stood there and monitored his tricorder.

The scan would find the tribbles' reproductive hormones were elevated, but nothing else.

Vara'l noted this as he waited for transport, stood off to one side away from his kid as he watched his tricorder. The data, once it came through, marked to be saved onto the tricorder as he waited for their response

With the transported okayed by the ACTO, Vara'l tapped his com badge again and after he informed the transporter room that permission had been granted for him to transport from his location to the security room. With that information provided to the transporter room personnel, Vara'l disappeared in a shower of sparks as the transport commenced.

Sat cross legged in his room after his father departed via transport, Telim allowed himself to ignore all outside concerns as he leant on the closed door to his own room and continued work on the castle he was making in his world. He'd almost completed the keep area of it and reckoned it looked quite good! Never mind being stuck in their quarters for a bit, this was fun!

03:12

Well it was fun until a enderman made off with a really important part of his keeps wall, drat!

03:14

"This means war mister enderman." The kid muttered to himself as he proceeded to set upon the task of tracking down the thief, resolved to recover the lost block as he shifted his headphones a bit as he worked gamely to ignore the outside world.

Blissfully unaware of what had just occurred thanks to noise cancelling and a game he was rivited too, that being the old terran game of Mine craft, Telim initially reacted not to the red alert alarm but to his demise at the hands of the enderman. "Oh ...crackers."

2

The Romulan child continued to play his game, unaware of what had occurred and that they'd been ordered to evacuate the area. "Come back here Mr Enderman!" Telim happily exclaimed as he sat there cross legged.

1

Having not initially heard the announcement, Telim was utterly shocked when his game froze and a evacuation warning flashed up on the PADD. After a surprisingly brief period of shocked immobility, he checked his messages from his dad, tapped on his PADD and sent a message as he replied and then requested a transport to the shuttlebay. All proceeded on well though Mid transport he gasped in distress as he realized he left his plushie, the shower of transporter sparks the conveyed him off to his destination, the plush rabbit left alone in the silence of the room that settled upon the now vacated quarters.

17:09

As soon as the Romulan kid arrived back on the station, Telim hurtled back down the corridors to his quarters. Then, once he entered, he commenced a search of the entirety of the quarters for his plush rabbit and once he located it proceeded to hug it for half a hour safely ensconced in the corner of the living space.

Sometime after it had all ended, Vara'l arrived at their shared quarters and proceeded to set down what stuff he'd had on him as he smiled tiredly and uttered "I'm Home, Telim" By way of a greeting to his son as the door closed behind him.

Before Vara'l managed to do anything else, a blurred ball of red shirted motion bowled them over in a tackle hug with a joyously yelled. "DAD!" That likely sounded more like 'DAAAAAA-' given he connected with his father around the second A before the final D in the yelled word.

As Telim connected with Vara'l, Vara'l embraced his son and fell to the floor as he smiled and warmly laughed. "Hello to you too Telim, how are you?"

"Was a bit scared, Pa but am okay now you're back!" Telim declared as he hugged them tightly and enjoyed the calming pressure as they hugged him back. "An enderman stole stuff from my castle though!" He then added with a humph

"Oh?" Vara'l responded as he picked up Telim and started to move. "We cant have that, shall we see if we can..get that all sorted?" He inquired [D] Vara'l and Telim conversed for a while longer before they both started to play minecraft and started to hunt a enderman. The duo eventually then succeeded in this and proceeded to spend time on the castle, father and son gaming as the young romulan leaned on his father.

After all, his father happened to make a good head rest sometimes, the kid reckoned.