Star Trek: Starbase 777 - galaxygrill-smokehouse

Appetizers: 1. Grilled Vegetable Skewers - Assorted seasonal vegetables marinated and grilled to perfection. 2. BBQ Nachos - Crispy tortilla chips topped with melted cheese, black beans, salsa, guacamole, and a drizzle of BBQ sauce. 3. Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms - Portobello mushroom caps filled with a savory mixture of breadcrumbs, herbs, and cheese, then grilled until golden brown. 4. BBQ Tofu Bites - Crispy tofu bites tossed in a tangy BBQ sauce, served with a side of ranch dressing. 5. Smoked Chicken Wings - Tossed in your choice of BBQ sauce or dry rub. 6. Pulled Pork Sliders - Slow-cooked pulled pork served on mini buns with coleslaw. 7. BBQ Nachos - Crispy tortilla chips topped with melted cheese, pulled pork, jalapenos, and BBQ sauce. Main Courses: 1. St. Louis Ribs - Tender and juicy ribs, slow-smoked and glazed with BBQ sauce. 2. Brisket - Smoked low and slow until perfectly tender, served sliced or chopped. 3. Pulled Chicken Sandwich - Succulent pulled chicken piled high on a bun with pickles and slaw. 4. BBQ Sampler Platter - A combination of your choice of ribs, brisket, pulled pork, and chicken, served with your favorite sides. Salads: 1. Grilled Caesar Salad - Romaine lettuce lightly grilled and topped with Parmesan cheese, croutons, and a creamy Caesar dressing. 2. Watermelon Feta Salad - Fresh watermelon cubes, crumbled feta cheese, mint leaves, and a balsamic glaze. Vegetarian BBQ Platters: 1. BBQ Veggie Skewers - A combination of grilled bell peppers, zucchini, onions, and cherry tomatoes served with a choice of BBQ sauce. 2. Portobello Mushroom Burger - Grilled portobello mushroom cap served on a toasted bun with lettuce, tomato, onion, and a side of BBQ sauce. 3. Veggie BBQ Wrap - Grilled vegetables, black beans, corn, and rice wrapped in a tortilla and served with a choice of BBQ sauce. 4. BBQ Veggie Platter - A selection of grilled vegetables, including corn on the cob, bell peppers, zucchini, and onions, served with your choice o

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f bbq sauce.

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of BBQ sauce. Sides: 1. Grilled Corn on the Cob - Fresh corn on the cob grilled and served with a herb butter. 2. BBQ Baked Beans - Slow-cooked vegetarian baked beans in a tangy BBQ sauce. 3. Coleslaw - Classic coleslaw made with cabbage, carrots, and a creamy dressing. 4. Sweet Potato Fries - Crispy sweet potato fries served with a chipotle aioli dip. 5. Mac and Cheese - Creamy macaroni and cheese with a golden crust. 6. Cornbread - Moist and slightly sweet cornbread, served with honey butter. 7. Baked Beans - Slow-cooked baked beans with bacon and BBQ flavors. 8. Grilled Vegetables - Seasonal vegetables lightly seasoned and grilled to perfection. Desserts: 1. Grilled Pineapple Sundae - Grilled pineapple slices topped with vanilla ice cream, caramel sauce, and a sprinkle of cinnamon. 2. BBQ Banana Split - Grilled bananas served with scoops of chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry ice cream, topped with whipped cream, nuts, and a cherry. 3. Pecan Pie - Traditional pecan pie with a buttery crust and rich filling. 4. Banana Pudding - Layers of creamy vanilla pudding, fresh bananas, and vanilla wafers. 5. Chocolate Brownie Sundae - Warm chocolate brownie topped with vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce, and whipped cream. Beverages: A wide selection of refreshing soft drinks, iced teas, lemonades, and fruit juices, as well as a variety of local and craft beers, wines, and specialty cocktails.

[D] Sooo, Alizati had something about the Furberus... eating? And that was, well, confusing and intriguing as ever, so he'd suggested going to a new restaurant that had - quite literally - just opened up on the starbase. Now, he was standing in front of wherever the menu was displayed, reading all the items... It seemed to have a lot of - well, it seemed to have a lot on the menu in general, but it seemed to be a lot of... well, Allan actually wasn't sure what particular region of Earth this sort of food was from. It was a lot of what he had grown up with, but also was missing a lot of things that usually were had with said food... and it was a lot of what... well, a lot of which was completely new to him or stuff he'd heard of, but never had. So, in conclusion, this would be fun! Because if the Furberus could eat, or something - maybe Alizati had been talking figuratively, trying to use slang? Maybe he meant that the Furberus ate, like, was just doing a really great job? Whatever it was, Allan supposed he'd find out soon enough after they arrived.

[D] Walking up to the smokehouse (which was not a place where one inhaled mind altering substances, to his surprise), was Alizati along with The Furberus tagging right behind him in their hoverchair. The three headed beast sat upon their hovering throne, Bir looking up whilst Ikki steered, and as always Yuch appeared to be asleep. "Greetings, Allan, thank you for joining me at this... Smokehouse," Alizati said as he slowly read the name of the restaurant on the sign. To no surprise, he was clad in his full uniform, although the Furberus had their colour-coded bow ties, not that Allan didn't already know which head was which. "I look forward to showing you the Furberus' new ability and perhaps gain some feedback from a fellow engineer about ways to improve it," He said to Allan as he glanced at the menu. Lots of meat to be expected, but he saw they had some vegetable options which he was much more interested in. He took another step into the restaurant, ready to go inside with Allan and find a seat as it seemed like the type of restaurant one could just sit an available table.

Having eagerly awaited his first customers since relocating to the Starbase, Willy welcomed the two in and gestured to the dining room, which was dressed in a 19th century frontier saloon motif "Come on in y'all! Feel free ta' sit anywhere ya' please!"

"Hey - 'Galaxy grill' sure has a nice ring to it, too," Allan said as Alizati said the latter half of the restaurant's name, looking over at the other and then down at the Furberus with a smile. "New-" he was cut off when he noticed Willy gesturing to the dining room, looking up and over in that direction and - huh, it really was old school. Western, maybe? Something like that, he hadn't really ever paid too much attention in history class. Didn't they wear certain outfits? Or something? He was just sitting here in some dark grey, ripped jeans and a crop top, though, nothing special. "Thanks, place is really nice," he said as he followed Alizati inside to a table - it wasn't quite Surak Snacks, but it was a new experience, and that was always fun. Oh, speaking of new. "You said- you said 'new ability', it makes it sound... as if they're a superhero," the engineer said with a laugh as he looked at the Furberus again, giving the sleepy Yuch a pat on the head. "Although, at this point? Maybe they are. I can't know for sure, really."

"It does," Alizati said as they were greeted by the shop's human owner. When the owner greeted them, the Furberus chirped up with a, "Howdy!" in their best 'southern' accent. They were still working on accent mimicking, but they got pretty close for a Vulcan-created furby android. Alizati provided no visible reaction to this, it was a sign the Furberus was learning. He took a look around the restaurant, it certainly was 'wild west' vibes. He knew a little about the time period as it was a favourite amongst the crew on one of his last ships. It seemed to just be a trending theme with holonovels in general. "Yes, they can eat now," Alizati walked over to a free table with the Furberus following behind. Yuch lifted his head when Allan pet him, giving the young engineer a couple blinks followed by a quick open and close of the mouth. "A machine is only as intelligent as the code inside of it. The Furberus does have some machine learning capabilities, however they still have many limitations," Alizati opened his arms so the Furberus could crawl off their hoverchair and onto his lap. What a loving father! He said nothing about them being a superhero, they were far from it in his mind, although it was a nice idea to think they could be saving the universe or fighting evil. "But moreso. Yuch's condition has only worsened as his brothers have become more intelligent. I think I found the reason being that there is simply not enough power for all three heads and I have been considering separating them. I would like your opinion first though, as I trust that you can accurately evaluate their situation from an engineering and software perspective."

"Whoa." Allan's eyes widened when the Furberus said there little 'howdy', smiling in disbelief. "No way, they both recognized 'howdy' as the thing to say based on the environment and attempted to do an accent with it too? That is... so impressive," he said, nodding as Alizati continued to talk about the capabilities of the Furberus, watching as it climbed out of the hoverchair and into his lap to, assumedly, eat with them. The engineer frowned when Alizati mentioned Yuch's condition worsening. He knew Yuch wasn't like, totally sentient or anything, and that this was not by any means a life-threatening medical condition, but when Alizati talked about it like this, it almost sounded like it. "Have you uh... I mean, you probably have - but have you analyzed the performance of the system yet? Like, to identify how the distribution of processing is getting so... screwed?" He asked, thinking about how you would proceed from there... "and then we can probably work on adjusting how the computational resources are actually getting used among each of them and.. hopefully balance it out a little. We might need to do it a bit dynamically if you've got it set to not do that already?"

"Despite having quite advanced machine learning abilities myself, programming it into another 'creature' is surprisingly difficult. Although I understand that just because one has certain qualities doess not mean they can easily replicate them," Alizati said as he attempted to adjust the Furberus on his lap. It was a bit difficult when they had three long necks and Alizati had just two arms. Bir was quick to drape himself over Alizati's neck like a shawl, Ikki rested his head on the table, and as for Yuch, he had fallen back 'asleep' and was out of view on his father's lap. Bir looked up at Allan when they were complimented and said, "Thank you, Allan!" and then began to 'read' the menu. "I have energy readings and charging logs," He stated trying to move to grab his PADD from his pocket only to realise such a task would be impossible if he was holding the creature. "I can show you a little later," He added, not wanting to have to untangle the creature from his body at that very moment. He could see the concern in Allan's expression as he looked at Yuch and he had a feeling the two of them had equal concern for the shortest head (and the sleepiest head). "We can try to rebalance their resources, although in all of my tests it seems there is only power for two heads to function. I would like to increase their power output, but that would require a larger battery with a longer charging time. For a child who has a lot of energy, I think a heavier toy they could play with less is unfavourable," Alizati explained the dilemma further, liking Allan's idea about rebalancing the resources, but he was unsure if that alone could fix the problem.

Allan watched as Bir, Ikki, and Yuch found their various places to rest their heads. "No problem," he said with a chuckle to Bir in response, listening carefully as Alizati talked about the energy readings and charging logs he'd observed. "Yeah, I'll check them out, there's... I want to imagine there's a few things we could try before," he frowned as he looked at the Furberus and imagined it for a moment, "separating them." He got out his own PADD, as he was not occupied by holding the Furberus, and started typing out some notes. "For example, probably like... there's some more powerful and lighter power cells you could fit into them, or you could build a charging pad into the hoverchair to circumvent the charging longer issue..." he shrugged. "A lot of options, basically, both hardware and software wise, although it seems like it's more a hardware thing."

Ikki opened and closed his mouth before echoing Allan with a, "No problem." They repeated a lot, but it was how they learned. When the young engineer frowned and said the word 'separating', all three heads let out a collective sighing noise, including Yuch who still had his eyes shut. Alizati gently readjusted the three long necks so he could lean forward closer to Allan whilst he gave his ideas. The idea of building a charger into the hoverchair was something he had not thought of before. Considering the Furberus always used the hoverchair to get around, it seemed like a logical idea to also equip it with a charger. The weight wouldn't be an issue either since the hoverchair was well-- hovering, and it also had all the necessary safety feaetures as was required for such devices. It was also built by Allan, which was reassurance enough that it was safe. "We still need a more powerful energy source for them, but they have their original battery spots, AA Earth batteries to be exact. Alternatively, we could try other shapes of batteries if you have any suggestions for those," Alizati could tell the Furberus did not like the idea of being separated, they would surely be lonely. If they were to have a battery of a different shape it would probably require some surgery.

Allan couldn't help but smile as Ikki echoed him. It was genuinely very nice to see them do that, to see the learning process of them speaking in action - and sometimes, he would try and guess what their next move would be - but like in Kal-toh, it was never too easy. "Original battery spots.." he said quietly as he typed it down onto his PADD, but when Alizati mentioned the type of battery he simply looked up, his eyebrows raising as he spoke, "hold up, you- you put double-As in ... double-As, really?" As much as he liked the battery for matching with his names, he would have thought Alizati was joking if he didn't know that Alizati didn't really joke like this. It wasn't that AA batteries were completely out of style, but... the thought of using them in modern robotics baffled him just a little bit - then again, it was retro, and Alizati liked retro tech just as much or more as he did. "How.. how many of them do you have in there? It must be quite a few to power all of... all of their functions." How in the hell were double-A batteries powering a robot that could eat?

Alizati minicked Allan's eyebrow raise when he mentioned the batteries and held the expression for just a few moments before his face returned to the Vulcan stoic stare. "They are not double-A's, but they are the same size and shape. That is where the problem lies as double-A's are quite small," Alizati explained as he began to gently pet Bir who seemed to be intently into the menu. Not sure what he seemed to be feeling, but the Furby head's eyes blinked and his mouth opened and closed. "Each head has two battery slots, I have modified power cells to fill in the gaps but the size is much too small for the amount of power they use," He said as he gently pushed Ikki to the side so he could reach into his pocket to pull out his PADD. With a couple clicks he pulled up the creature's internal schematics and pushed the device over to Allan. It showed how the power was allotted to each head with Bir sucking up most of the energy, probably because he was the longest of his brothers and the most energetic. The modified power cells were nothing special-- just Federation standard cells, similar to the ones found in PADDs and tricorders because anything more powerful wouldn't fit in the socket. "Double-A almost sounds like a.. I believe the term is Rap alias," Alizati paused when he thought about Allan's name being Allan Allen. Fascinating. As soon as he said the name, Ikki chirped,"Double A!" echoing Alizati. This seemed to wake Yuch up as well and he made some eldritch horror noises in response.

They were talking about batteries, right? What did the size and shape of double-A batteries have to do with - oh, the slots. Right. "Hmm, I think I'm following," Allan said, taking out the PADD's pen and sketching on the screen: two battery slots, three times - as close to scale as he could, trying to match Alizati's schematics. "I think..." he bit his lip as he held up the PADD next to the Furberus, determining how close his scale had actually been. A little off, but not bad for a few seconds' effort technical sketch. "I'll have to look into the type of power cells we could use specifically, I think you have just a little room to expand it..." he tilted the PADD diagonally and his head along with it, "in a different direction, there's - the option of more fluidic power cells, too... they've gotten a lot more advanced with the casings for those in the past few years... could also just try rerouting a different slot, for example a larger battery set at the base rather than a small one in each head?" He set his own PADD down, saved the sketch, and slid Alizati's PADD back over to him. "Double-A sounds like- wait, what?" Nope, was not expecting that at all. Laughing, he looked up and to the side and shrugged. "I mean, I did tell Rennie I could have a neat stage name for when I feature on his tracks solo..." as opposed to the Starlots features, "double A. I'll have to think about it, look into other meanings of the term... make sure it's not something crazy outside the Standard." He said with a soft smile in the Furberus's direction as Ikki chirped and Yuch made those horrifying noises. The engineer had come around to like those, he supposed. Was that weird?

Alizati watched closely as Allan sketched on the screen. He didn't express it, but it was comforting to know that this issue also stumped his fellow engineer. When Allan finished his sketch and tilted his PADD and head, Alizati and the Furberus mirrored his action-- all four of their heads tilting like some synchronised routine. After a few seconds of pondering the younger engineer's words, Alizati spoke up to comment. "We can certainly see if that would be possible. I just want to ensure that the modifications would not make them any more dangerous to T'Lhai. Although she is still quite young, I would like the repairability of them to be easy for a young engineer if she should so choose to attempt upgrades on her own when she is old enough," Alizati said, always thinking towards the future. The Furberus was intended to be a toy, but also a learning device that could stay with T'Lhai through her teenaged years. "My father said T'Lhai is interested in calculus, although I am unsure if that is her genuine interest or if that is the only subject she does not fall asleep to when he attempts to read her bedtime stories," He stated, still very much amused that his father was very set on raising T'Lhai similarly to how he 'raised' Alizati. An organic Vulcan child and a fully grown android were very different, but he did everything with love so it would surely turn out well. x_divider

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"I am glad you found my suggestion humorous," Alizati looked at Allan, not laughing at all and giving him the most deadpan look. He was amused too, although it was hard to tell. Rennie-- there was that name again. Ah, that OPS officer Renakir. "I look forward to your future musical endeavours," Even if he wasn't very fond of many genres of music, he respected and supported Allan's interests. He grabbed the PADD from the table when it was slid back to him and placed it off to the side. "And thank you for your input. Perhaps a larger battery set at their base would be best. Oh and we may order food now, I apologise for the delay."

"Mmm, yeah, fluidic power cells and a child wouldn't work too well, no... especially not for a beginner to attempt repairs," Allan nodded as Alizati pointed that out, scratching out the idea on his PADD note and underlining the other ideas, like the battery at the base, instead. "Something easily repairable - or easy to learn how to repair, that is - but more powerful than what we have now... yeah, I'll have some ideas for you soon, and we can go from there," he said, a confident smile on his face as he turned the screen off on his PADD and set it to the side. "My musical- aw, really, boss, you mean it? If you want I can like, totally keep you updated- I know you're not like, a social media type of guy, so like, I'm not gonna ask you to follow me or anything, but, like, I can totally just send you the tracks if you want! I could even -" the engineer looked away from Alizati for a second and at the Furberus - "yooo, wait, this is-" he looked back at Alizati, grinning, "gonna sound craaazy, buuut.. what if... what if we featured the Furberus on a track? Like.... I dunno, I think it'd be kinda fire, y'feel me?" It seemed he'd completely forgotten he was at a restaurant for a second beforee Alizati mentioned ordering food. "Oh! Yeah, uhhh, no need to apologize, dude, um- I dunno, what sounds good to you?"

Alizati nodded, agreeing that it was quite a conundrum they were in. He gave Allan a nod when his friend said he would brainstorm more ideas. "That is a good idea. In the worst cast scenario we could always limit power to each head so they wouldn't be able to 'steal' power from their brothers. I would hate to force Bir to settle down though, he is very happy as he is," Alizati said, not sure how else to describe the very energetic furby head. Bir laid his head on the table and began to rub the side of his face against the menu. Alizati quickly identified it as a sign he wanted ear scratches? So he did just that. "I do mean it," Alizati looked at Allan with the most unemotional deadpan Vulcan expression. "You are always free to send me your music, I will also share it with Men," Alizati was pretty sure Men would have a similar feeling towards the Starlot's genre of music as he did, but Men was equally supportive of his friends, which was another reason Alizati was so in love with him. "... I want to support you Allan, but I would not be comfortable exposing the Furberus to fire," He said, completely serious and also unaware this was another slang term. Allan also said calling Alizati 'the bomb' was also a slang term. "Also I think I will try the Bee.. Bee... Qew Tofu bites. And share it with the Furberus," Alizati gently pushed Bir's head to the side so he could read the menu item.

"Yeah, nah, we gotta come up with a good solution for all of 'em," Allan agreed, smiling as he watched Alizati give Bir some ear scratches. He briefly thought about Bandit, which in turn led him to think about Mephistopheles, which in turn led him to think about- "oh? You, um - wait, Men?" he asked, catching on only to the last bit of what Alizati had said. He was pretty sure he said he'd share it with men - oh, Men. Capital M. Right. 'I want to support you, Allan' was just another phrase preceding some misunderstood language, but it hit the young engineer harder than he thought it would. "Mmhm," he hummed, nodding as he started reading every word on this menu again as if he didn't already know what he wanted. "Um- I meant fire, like, if something goes real hard, it's fire, right? It's very similar to - you remember 'lit'? It's very similar to that, if something's lit, it can usually be considered fire, too - fire is just normally more often the one used for music, I guess." He explained, and as he did he looked like he was about to cry. But he wasn't. Totally not. Not in the fucking Galaxy Grill and Smokehouse he wasn't. Not when he was about to order- "Porto... portobello..." said 'portobeyo' more like, "...mushroom burger, I think, is what I'll try? Sounds interesting enough, one of the few things on here I haven't had."

When Allan paused upon hearing the word Men, Alizati looked as if he was about to laugh. Of course he did not, but for a split second his eyes widened and the corners of his lips stiffened as if he was stifling a laugh, He was well aware that 'Men' could also mean all men and not specially his fiance Men, and the thought about sharing Allan's music with every man in the galaxy was... Amusing. And quite an undertaking. "Yes, I will show my fiance, Men," He assumed Allan had noticed the slight mix up, but he thought to clarify it as well. "Oh, so all these slang terms involve heat? I suppose that is why an attractive person is 'hot'," He stated as the words were starting to click in his mechanical brain. "I am sure the Furberus would 'go real hard' on any musical track," Alizati said, not entirely sure what he was saying, but from all the information he gathered, that was a compliment. Ikki lifted his head up and made happy chirping noises, clearly in agreement. "Mushroom burger? Tell me how that is. My father is a mushroom farmer, I am sure he would be interested in such a food item. I shall call a waiter," Alizati said as he raised his hand to call a waiter.

Noting that the two seemed ready to order, the kindly older gentleman made his way over to their table, PADD in hand, ready to take orders. “Y’all fine folks ready ta’ order?” He said happily, excited to see what his first customers would order.

"We are fine folks? Oh, it is slang. I will have the bee bee cue tofu bits," Alizati gave his order to the waiter. A little confused by the other's greeting, but he soon remembered they were in an old-western style restaurant and such words were common in the wild west. Clearly Alizati did not have much experience with the setting, but he was slowly learning more of the slang.

“Y’all are indeed!” He said with a light chuckle, before noting down Alizati’s order, and turning to look at Allan inquisitively. “And you partner?”

Allan almost noticed the subtle change in Alizati's expression, but he couldn't quite tell if he was correct in his head. "Yeah, I guess they all do involve heat," he laughed, and laughed harder when Alizati said he was sure the Furberus would go hard on any musical track. There were the tears, too, actually, crying laughing, always a positive thing. "Oh, man -" he took a breath, wiping the corner of his eye- "fuck yeah, the Furberus would fuck sooo hard on any track, for sure, for sure," and even Ikki agreed! Excellent. "Never had a mushroom burger before, so I'll definitely let you know," he smiled at the waiter again as he made his way over to their table and called them fine folks. "Oh, hell yeah, we are," he said with a laugh in response to Alizati's question, "'y'all' meaning, all of us," it was a statement that they were all fine, but also a bit of a question - that is what the term meant, right? Even in that context? "I'll have, uh, the mushroom burger, please, with..." he looked over the sides again. No greens, no plantains, but there was... sure, it was a classic- "cornbread as a side."

He nodded as he jotted down the orders, giving the two a double thumbs up. “Will do! I’ll get all that out to ya’ in a jiffy!” He said, before making his way back to the kitchen.

"Thank you," Alizati thanked the waiter with a bow of his head after giving his order. In response to the laughter. Alizati did not join his friend, but the Furberus attempted to. Bir and Ikki opened their beaks and made strange croaking noises and Yuch made his typical eldritch horror noises. The reaction did not seem to bother Alizati in the slightest, in fact he seemed proud that the Furberus was joining Allan in laughter. The laughter continued for a few more seconds before Alizati gently clenched Bir's neck when he heard--, "They would not do explicit things on any track." To that phrase, Alizati looked visibly concerned, brows furrowed with his eyes narrowed. ".. Yes, I await your review of the mushroom burger and I am glad we are fine folks. Also, please explain cornbread and what you meant about the Furberus doing something explicit," Now Alizati knew why he didn't look up slang on Space Urban Dictionary, there were so many obscure words, one could never be entirely sure of the context or usage.

Allan gave a small nod to the waiter as he left. 'Jiffy' was such an interesting word, wasn't it? What did it even mean? It could be assumed it could mean, like, a bit, but what if it didn't? Speaking of unusual words and sounds, though, the Furberus laughing along was much welcomed. Maybe it was a little weird, as he'd thought earlier, but it was a completely normal - and dare he say it, enjoyable - noise to be around now. When Alizati mentioned the Furberus not doing explicit things on any track, he also squinted - out of confusion, not concern, however. "My review-" he tilted his head, wondering why - oh, he just meant it like - right... right. "Yeah, I'll let you know how it is, um... what do you mean, 'explain' cornbread? Like, what it is? It's quite literally bread made with corn, I'm pretty sure." And he had no idea what to say to the last one. When did he ever say the Furberus was doing something explicit? Allan looked at the Furberus, confused still, and back at Alizati again, trying not to laugh. "I'm- I'm sorry, what... what do you mean by explicit? Like, will they feature on an explicit track...? They don't have to, no." He had no idea it had to do with slang - well, for him, it was hardly slang. It was just part of his vocabulary, the dialect in which he grew up speaking it in.

"Bread made with corn. It sounds interesting, although I think I will wait to let the Furberus try that one," Alizati said in response to the explanation of corn bread. When he said he would wait to let the Furberus try, Bir let out a pained whine, clearly unhappy with the decision. Alizati attempted to calm the long Furby head down with some full-neck pets where his hand went from the top of Bir's head, all the way down to where he was fused with his brothers-- aka. the best type of pets. "You said 'the Furberus would fuck so hard'," Alizati attempted to copy Allan's inflection on the phrase, but he just sounded like he was reading off of a script. "I am aware that the Standard word 'fuck' means to have sexual intercourse, is that not the meaning of the word in this context?" Alizati asked, very confused how Standard vulgarities worked. They certianly had vulgarities in Vulcan and Rihannsu, although such words were exclusively used as insults. One would not casually use the word veruul (fool) or similar terms in casual conversation.

"Yeah, kinda a classic, not gonna lie," Allan agreed it did sound interesting as a term. Blunt, but interesting nonetheless. "But the -" It suddenly clicked. Mostly because Alizati quoted it back to him and said the words 'to have sexual intercourse'. "Ohhhh... um," he took a deep breath as he tried to think of how to explain the term 'fucks hard' to the chief engineer. Hm. "I already said - yeah, 'cause you repeated it back to me - that the Furberus would go hard on the track, right? It's the exact same thing, meaning- you can say something goes hard, it fucks, it's sick, it's crazy good. All means the same, really. Dunno why, maybe we could ask a linguist or something." He smiled, shrugging. His brain to words flow was a straight line, he never thought too much about the particular words he said.

"A classic, I see," Alizati would have to do more research into cornbread to see if it would be possible for the Furberus to eat. Since they had started their eating journey, they were eager to try out a variety of textures, but Alizati needed to be mindful of what they consumed as he also needed to make sure their internal recycling system could handle whatever foods they ate. As Allen explained the meaning of 'fuck', Alizati stared at him with his eyes slightly narrowed in concentration. He had stopped petting Bir so he could focus on the topic at hand. "Interesting. Then I believe they would 'go hard' on any music track," Alizati was still not fully confident in the slang, but he trusted Allan's explanation. "I would like to hear from a linguist. I actually met one at the social mixer the other week, perhaps I can ask her about the ethmology of the varied definitions for 'fuck'," Alizati said with a completely serious face. Ikki lifted his head and attemped to slither closer to Allan's side of the table, clearly wanting pets from the engineer. "So... Given your information, would it be appropriate to say, in a casual setting, the compliment, 'Allan is a great engineer, he fucks hard.. .The computers?' That does not sound right," Alizati was attempting to understand the slang but instead he feared he incriminated his friend and colleague by implying he was in violation of workplace safety regulations.

It would probably be quite amusing for the Furberus to try cornbread, given the amount of crumbiness it had to it. One had to wonder how a creature without hands would eat something like soup as well. Actually - maybe they'd take turns holding the spoon to eachother's heads...? Maybe. "Hey, believing in them's the best thing you can do," Allan said with a grin as Alizati again confirmed that he believed the Furberus would go hard on any track. "Please ask her about the meanings, it'd be so cool to learn, I think. Plus, I'd have word knowledge to share with Eshen, soo..." well, given that Eshen didn't already know the etymology of the different meanings of 'fuck', which perhaps he did. In a casual setting, as a compliment... "No-" He immediately said when he heard 'he fucks hard', laughing as the other finished the phrase with 'the computers'. "Oh, no, um - you usually wouldn't... put any sort of ... um," shit, yeah, maybe they should get the linguist in here, because this was so confusing to try and explain. "Like, that's not... something has to fuck hard, I think 'fuck hard' is usually used for things? 'The Furberus would fuck hard' kinda implies it's the Furberus's feature on the track that would fuck hard, not the actual Furberus, meanwhile you could prooobably say.. I dunno, maybe it's mostly used about music, or cool tricks and things- it's gotta be something really cool?" Yeah, he had no idea. None at all. Someone call the linguist.

"I do grow concerned that one day their intelligence will surpass their hardware. The last thing I want is for them to feel as if they are unable to live up to their true potential. Maybe by that time, T'Lhai will be able to do upgrades herself," Alizati was slightly worried about the ethics of creating a fully sentient being, although at this stage the Furberus was pretty close to sentience. They could communicate, had likes and dislikes, and were aware of their environment. "Once I ask her I will be sure to share the information with you and you can pass it onto Eshen or anyone else," Alizati stated, eager to pass on the origins of 'fuck' to his friends. To Allan's laughter, the Furberus laughed, all three heads did! Even Yuch, even if the noise that came out of his mouth was not a 'laugh' in the traditional sense. "Hm, so I can just say Allan is a great musical artist, he fucks hard...?" Alizati tried the phrase once again, still unsure of the proper usage but learning about slang was an interesting exercise. It was slightly frustrating that he could technically learn any language in the universe, yet slang was something he struggle with. "I think you are very good, Allan, and the Furberus thinks so too," Alizati said as he lifted up the long creature so they could slither across the table to greet Allan.

With that, Willy arrived carrying a tray full of their orders, before carefully placing the two trays on food on the table and spreading his arms wide, a genial smile on his mustache'd face. "Soups' on! Anything else y'all need?"

Allan was thrilled about both of those things, honestly- the Furberus living up to their true potential and the future information from the linguist. And wow, yeah, once again- all three heads laughing in unison was admittedly a truly amazing sound. To be honest, Allan could hardly stop laughing when Alizati started to talk again, but he managed it somehow. Well, until his friend said he fucks hard. Then the laughter resumed. "You know what? Yeah, y-you know? That works. Sure, sure, that works," in one way or the other, at least, Allan considered either meaning to be true, so... "I do-" he stopped talking mid-sentence when he processed the rest of just what Alizati had said. Having said that after 'he fucks hard' didn't exactly do much good, but Allan was left speechless for a brief moment, a small blush coming across his face before he looked nervously off to the side, smiling and muttering a small 't-thanks' and noticing- ah, what perfect timing! "Thanks, I think that's everyth- um- Soup? Did we get soup?" He evidently was not familiar with that phrase.

"I did not order soup? Thank you though," Alizati thought the waiter's phrasing was odd considering that neither of them had ordered soup. Perhaps the tofu bits could have been mistaken as soup as they were much gooeier than meat. Either way, he bowed his head to the nice waiter and turned to look back at his friend. It also just occured to him that with the introduction to food to the table the Furberus was in danger so he quickly grabbed the furry creature by its body and pulled it back. As much as they wanted to get pets from Allan, he didn't want to risk their pure white fur to get dirtied from the BBQ sauces. He noticed the bit of blush that crept across his friend's face when he complimented him. "And I meant it, Allan, I enjoy all of your creative endeavours," Alizati added, before looking down at his food, the little tofu cubes were a weird brown colour and there was a mysterious side of white cream, which Alizati could only assume was the ranch,

At the two’s confuddled expressions, the older man let out a deep belly laugh and shook his head. “Oh, nah it ain’t soup! Jus’ an expression meanin’ that tha’ food is ready! Sorry for any confusion folks!” He said genially, before shaking his head incredulously at himself. “Y’know, I should getta’ UT put in here for times like this! I heard from a buddy that his kids made one jus’ for people from my region on Earth!” He said with a chuckle. “Well, is there anything else I can do for ya?”

Damn... right when Allan was about to pet the Furberus, Alizati had pulled them away. Which was like, totally justified, but like... he had to remember to pet them later. "Ohhhh, I think that's all, thanks... thanks for turning the soup on, then?" Because if 'soup's on' meant the food was ready, turning in the soup was the act of getting the food ready, right? Oh, and now Alizati was doubling down on his compliment. Cool. Swell. Excellent. "All of my creative-" no, actually. He wasn't about to ask a clarifying question to his boss like that. "Um- thank you, sir, I- I appreciate that. I do." Why was he still like this. Why was he. Why was. Why. "Um- for the food, you got like, tofu, right?" Anything, and really, anything to distract from whatever else he was trying to think of right now. He picked up a piece of cornbread and it sort of crumbled in his hand. Which was typical of cornbread.

The Furberus let out a little whine when they were pulled away. It seems they were just as eager for pets by Allan as Allan was to pet them. The three headed creature was then placed back on their hover chair a comfortable distance away from the plate of BBQ tofu. The sauce was brown and their fur was very white so Alizati needed to be careful while feeding them. "I wonder if it is possible to turn the soup off, or perhaps that would be when you eat it," Alizati thought aloud, finding the phrase to be quite fascinating. "I mean it, Allan," Alizati shot the young engineer a serious gaze. He then turned his focus to his food, the bits of tofu covered in BBQ sauce. "I did. Because I do not eat meat. How is the cornbread? It looks.. Difficult to eat," Alizati said, commenting on the way the bread seemed to crumble in Allan's hand. He picked up his fork and gently slice off a piece of tofu that had less sauce on it and held it up to Bir to eat. The long head extended towards the fork and nipped at it, eating the piece of tofu. Despite their similarities to cats, the Furberus ate like a bird, pecking at the food to eat it.

Allan was in the middle of eating his cornbread when Alizati posed the question of turning the soup off. "Wow, that's..." he took a sip of his drink and then held his chin in his hand, deep in thought. "That's a great question. Have no fucking idea what the answer would be, though, so uh- let's say the answer is yes, right? Language is fake, anyways." It definitely was not, but to Allan, it sort of was. Alizati meant it? Well, fuck, there went everything Allan was trying to avoid. Wait, no. Back to the cornbread. Good. "Supposed to be like that, I think. Stays mostly together, especially when you put stuff on it and all, but..." he watched as Alizati so gently and carefully held out the tofu to Bir, eyes widening slightly as he watched the whole process. "Holy shit, you... you weren't kidding about them eating shit. Wow. Okay. Damn."

"If language was fake then we would not be communicating now," Alizati stated, taking Allan's statement seriously. "But about the soup, perhaps I will try to use that phrase in my daily life. I would like to see more... Hm, I suppose the word is 'friendly'. I get the feeling many junior officers are intimidated by me and I think speaking more casually would help alleviate some tension," Alizati may not have been the most expressive person, but the care he had for his fellow officers was clear. He glanced up at Allan once before his focus turned back to his food. He still wanted to know more about cornbread, but the conversation quickly shifted to the sight of Bir eating. "Yes, they can eat a little," Alizati told Allan as he demonstrated the Furberus' ability once again, this time feeding Ikki. "Yuch can also eat, but it seems he has fallen asleep again," Just like Alizati said, the shortest of the three heads seemed to be fast asleep on the chair. "I was thinking such a feature may be useful for T'Lhai. I was doing research and children enjoy baby dolls. It seems to be a quality of sentient life, the desire to care for and help others," He stated as he now began to eat his tofu bites. The Furberus could not eat that much so after just two small bites they were done. "I am taking suggestions for other features, I would like T'Lhai to be able to care for the Furberus too, like a baby doll I suppose."

Allan tilted his head, confused, as the senior officer explained how he wanted to speak more casually because he felt many junior officers were.. "Intimidated by you? Really?" He was genuinely puzzled. Alizati was many things, but intimidating was not even in the top 10 things he considered the other. Although, if he went back a year prior, he supposed he did find him rather intimidating - by the sheer fact of him being his boss, though. "Dunno what kind of tension you mean, either, the only kind of tension I'd ever read from you would be -" no, not even. "Nah, nothing, actually. You're pretty good at the whole not-intimidating-boss thing." As Ikki ate the tofu as well, he was even more enthralled in the newfound ability the creature had gained. "Sleepy boy, who can blame him?" He laughed, reaching forwards and attempting to pat Yuch lovingly on the head. "I've actually never thought about it like that, but yeah- just gotta make sure she doesn't end up feeding it all her vegetables or something. Other features, uh... maybe something like if its fur grew? Give it haircuts or something?"

"I think people see 'Vulcan Romulan Android' on the roster and assume I will be a... I think the term in 'hard ass'. Although I do not think it is appropriate to comment on the texture of someone else's rear end, but the term is supposed to mean a strict person," Alizati said with a completely straight face as he repeated the term he had heard a few times. Not directed at him (at least not to his knowledge), but the term did stand out to him. He slowly took a few nibbles of his tofu bites, trying not to get sauce everywhere as there was.. A lot of sauce. "I feel relieved that you do not see me as intimidating. Perhaps this could be all in my head and I simply need to talk to more of my junior officers," Speaking to every engineer was impossible, but Alizati recognised he could be more outgoing and try to interact with his other officers more. Bir nudged the joystick that controlled the hover chair so they could move forward and Allan's hand could reach Yuch. The third head briefly opened and closed its eyes, but nothing more. "I hope we can balance the power distribution to give him more energy," Alizati ate another bit of tofu and watched Allan pet Yuch. "Hmm, hair growth is something I have been experimenting with. If you remember Elwyn's father gave me Elwyn's hair growth details. I could try to give it to them before attempting it on myself," Alizati said thoughtfully, watching the Furberus move. Bir extended his head towards Allan, clearly looking for pets too. "My current hairstyle is practical, but I wonder what I would look like with longer hair, I like your hair, Allan, perhaps I can grow mine to be a little longer like yours? It does not impede your work, does it?"

"I mean, talking more is always great to get more comfortable with people," Allan said, chuckling at the whole 'hard ass' commentary and petting Yuch when Bir so kindly moved themselves closer to him. "I hope so too- nah, nah. I know so. We're damn good engineers, right? And if we can't do it, we get help from everyone else. Have an engineering department game night or some shit, you know?" Maybe even tie in OPS somehow, although the department heads of OPS sort of intimidated him just a bit. Just a bit!! But that's perhaps because the only times he'd met either of them in person have been less than ideal circumstances. "Oh, dude, why-" the engineer reached up to touch his own hair as if to check how long it was. "Nah, there's plenty of people with way longer hair than me, they're still fine - although, dude, if you don't wanna like, grow it out, you can just wear a wig, try out some different styles that way - my uncle does that alllll the time." And he rocked every single style, too. Absolutely wild shit. Such was the Allen family. "Plus, 25th century wig technology is absolutely killer, like, nobody would even know if it was a more realistic style."

"I believe we can arrange that. I was thinking of inviting everyone to Kal-toh night at Surak Snacks, maybe we can have a night specifically for our department? Or we could rent out the events hall depending on how many people want to attend, I am sure I could ask Men to cater it," Alizati thought a game night was a great suggestion, although he would probably need to speak with OPS about coordinating the whole thing. And Men, if he was to help as well. The Furberus purred softly at Allan's touch. All three heads were so fond of the young engineer, even Yuch, despite his seemingly nonchalantness towards the pets. "A wig, perhaps I will consider that option as well," Alizati was never one to be too into fashion, not beyond Hawaiin shirts at least. And those were easy, it was always the same style of shirt but with different patterns so he knew it would be comfortable. "I will also consult Men on his opinion as well," Alizati said before taking a few more bites of tofu. The BBQ sauce may have seemed excessive at first, but the tofu really soaked it up and it wasn't as overpowering as he had thought at first. "For the bill, I will pay, you do not have to worry about it. I appreciate you joining me to consult about the Furberus and to talk."

"Hmm, events hall might be better, not gonna lie- I'd be pretty afraid of being too loud if we brought the entire department there for Kal-toh night," not to say he himself didn't go most times it occurred. Allan simply kept eating his food before an idea suddenly came to his head and he quickly swallowed and looked at Alizati as if he'd just made a major breakthrough. "How about uhhhh, night of the 24th? Just a uh, suggestion, obviously you'd still have to clear it with OPS and all, but." It would, after all, cause it to line up perfectly with his and Eshen's birthday bonanza and all that, which - honestly, what a way to pregame, having a game night with your engineering buds. Sounded pretty great to him. "Sure thing boss, let me know if yo- wait, wait," he paused, squinted, and then looked very confused for a second or two, pointing at Alizati without saying a word before moving his finger back and in a sort of circular motion, "Nah, like... shouldn't I pay?" And before Alizati could say much, he was already pulling out some latinum, unfortunately having to stop petting Yuch to do so. Allowance and shit, also he was about to get free lodging for all of shore leave so like, it wasn't like he'd be spending much this month anyways... "But yeah, no problem man, always happy to talk with you guys, and, uh- remind me to talk to you after shore leave about something, okay? Kinda unrelated, uh- oh, but like, totally feel free to come by if you're on Mol'Rihan, Chadrix could fix you and the Furberus up some real good..." [D] And, then Allan probably rambled for a good while longer before the two eventually summed up the conversation, and one of them won the who-will-pay battle, and regardless of who it was, the two - well, really, the three - or was it five? - friends had a great time together, as always.

[D] Having heard through ‘the grapevine’, otherwise known as the massive gossip network that pervaded throughout the station that his favorite eating/drinking establishment had installed a genuine mechanical bull, not a holographic recreation of one, Randy had immediately made plans to see and hopefully ride it for himself, an activity that he had once prided himself for his skill at back home in Texas. Having made a quick pit stop after his shift to his quarters to shower and change, Randy was now stood in front of the establishment clad in a cropped, cutoff pearlsnap roping shirt, a tight pair of faded wrangler blue jeans, a pair of worn leather cowboy boots, and his beloved cowboy hat, his face freshly-shaven and cologne put on just in case he were to come across a strapping cowpoke to talk up. With a last doublecheck of his appearance in a nearby reflective surface, Randy made his way to the bar inside GalaxyGrill and quickly ordered himself a glass of real, non-replicated Texas bourbon, needing a drink to take the edge off and calm his nerves before jumping back on the bull for the first time in quite some time.

Now, Ace wasn’t a cowpoke, nor was he strapping, but he sure was handsome! He was wearing skinny jeans, leather boots, and a small black tank top. His curly hair framed his face and he had a bright smile. He looked at the bull. “Damn, it’s real!”

Randy jumped slightly at the sound of someone’s voice, before turning around on his stool and leveling the newcomer with a bright smile, quickly recuperating from the slight spook. “I reckon’ it sure it somethin’! I ain’t seen one of em’ in too long nna’ half!” He said with a light chuckle, eyeing the device excitedly. “You ever ridden one of those suckers? It’s onna’ tha’ only activities I know thats as fun tuh’ do as it is tuh’ watch!”

“I mean, I’ve never seen one of these things let alone ridden one. Maybe you could show me how it’s done?” Ace did want to see the pretty guy fail. That way it’d be less embarrassing when he inevitably failed. Unless Randy succeeded- then it would be more embarrassing. But Ace was a risk-taker, so he would take that risk. Maybe he’d have a drink too. He ordered a lemon-lime margarita, wondering what he should get for actual food. “I’m Ace, you?”

Randy grinned from ear to ear and nodded emphatically, excited that there was someone else that was as interested in bull riding as he was, even if they had never seen one before. “Oh hell yeah! I’ve been purty’ much vibratin’ outta’ ma’ skin tuh’ do this all day!” He said happily, before taking a generous pull from his drink, letting the bourbon burn down his throat, invigorating him enough to want to take on just about anything. He raised his glass in greeting, before pushing himself off of the stool and pulling himself up to his full height, throwing Ace an exaggerated introductory wave. “A’m Randy! Good tuh’ meet ya’ Ace! Are ya’ named after tha’ typa’ pilots from the old timey days?” He asked with friendly curiosity, eyeing the mechanical bull as one of the overzealous bar patrons decided to try their luck on it.

Ace had to appreciate both the outfit and the enthusiasm. Plus he liked the cowboy vibe! He’d never watched any of those old western type movies, he was more of a horror man. He loved the oldies from the 21st century. There were some gems in there. But Ace certainly wasn’t a cowboy. He hadn’t ever rode a horse. He did hang out with rorses in a holodeck once, that was cool. He was a big fan of rorses. When he received his drink, the first thing he did was take a sip of it before he spoke. “Nice to meet you, too. Yep, I’m named after the old pilots. What’s the funny part is that I’m also asexual and a helmsman. I’m an ace ace named Ace.” He chuckled. “Also, I absolutely love the outfit, you look gorgeous in it.” He meant that in the flirty way, but also in the admiration of fashion sense way. Ace contained multitudes like that.

Randy grinned, throwing up teasing finger phasers. “Well, I reckon’ ur’ a certified triple threat then! In ma’ case wacha’ see is wacha’ get, a’m just Randy!” He said with a chuckle, shaking his head amusedly. At the compliment from Ace, Randy brightened, a wide, indulgent grin on his face. The giant of a man tried to wipe the smirk off of his face as he took a sip of his bourbon, utterly failing as he did. “This ol’ thing?” He said, grabbing the front of his shirt in a half-teasing gesture. “Thank ya’! I preciate’ how you kept to tha’ theme a’ this joint!” He said, nodding toward Ace’s outfit. “So, how long you think you’ll be able tuh’ stay on that beastie over thur’?”

“Well Randy, what I’m seeing is a cute guy with a fitting name, so you got lucky. Randy kinda seems like a cowboy name to me. Though you can’t make name jokes, that’s a bit sad.” He said in response to the “just Randy” comment. Being just Randy certainly wasn’t a bad thing to be. Name jokes were a large part of Ace’s joke portfolio, but he couldn’t think of a joke for Randy. It did seem like a cowboy name though. He watched the failure at covering up that smirk, he chuckled a bit and took a sip from his margarita. “Oh, I’m always on theme as best as I can. Hopefully I can ride in these pants. But I’m not very hopeful honestly about staying on very long, I’m not particularly strong. But you’ve got your fair share of muscle, I think you’ll do good. I’ll buy you another drink if you stay on for three minutes.” Ace had money to spare and he wanted to see how long Randy could really handle being thrown around. Ace would give his all, too, though. He was no quitter.

“There ain’t no name jokes for me, but trust me I’ve made mighty plenty bout’ my brother’s name!” He said with a chuckle, thinking of all the puns and jokes he’d made about Parker’s name over the years, and in a way he found himself lucky that Parker hadn’t been able to do the same to him. “Oh, I reckon you’ll do fine ridin’ in those! One of tha’ tricks tuh’ stayin’ on tha’ thing is good grip for ur’ thighs, thas’ why all the cowfolk’ you’ll see back on Earth wear britches tight like these suckers!” He said, gesturing to his own pair of pants which his legs seem to be close to busting out of due to their tightness. Feigning surprise, Randy held back the smirk, not losing an opportunity for a free drink. “Three whole minutes? Wellll shit, I reckon’ a’ll give it ma’ best shot! If a’ don’t you gotta let me buy you one flyboy!” He said with a wide grin and a chuckle, before finishing the rest of his drink, setting the glass down on the bar and running full-chat over to the mechanical bull, throwing Ace a cheeky wink as it activated as soon as he got on. Like the absolute pro he was as mechanical bull riding, Randy held on with the grace of a dancer, even taking a few moments to pretend to doze off as the machine spun and rocked, trying desperately to throw off the expert rider on top of it. After five minutes the device automatically shut off and Randy leapt from it with practiced ease, swaggering his way back over to his new friend with a smarmy grin, lightly clapping the much smaller man on the shoulder. “A’ll take that drink now, please and thank ya’!”

“I’m on the other end of that story, my siblings made all the name jokes about me. Now I have my own though.” He wondered what Randy’s brother’s name was, though. Must be good enough to be joked about. He did look at Randy’s legs though. Damn those pants were tight. That seemed uncomfortable but he looked good in them. And if cowboys wore them out riding horses and whatnot they couldn’t be that bad. Maybe Ace’s skinny jeans could help him. He needed all the help he could get. “Plus, you look good in them too.” Ace smiled, knowing he’d lose but he was happy to buy Randy a drink. He liked that Randy was going along with it instead of being rude about it. It was better this way, he thought. He watched Randy absolutely demolish the bull riding, not faltering once. Damn did men look cuter being thrown around or what! Ace wondered how he’d do. He clapped as the man leapt off of it. “You got me! When my turn’s over I’ll get you whatever you want. I got the money.” So, he walked over to the mechanical bull, taking a deep breath before getting on. It activated, and Ace actually held on! He was getting tossed around left and right, sometimes being tossed into the air, only his hands on the handles holding on for dear life. The man was light and easily thrown around. He managed to hold on for a minute and roughly 45 seconds before being thrown off, but by a lucky miracle, landed on his feet. He took a bow before walking back over to Randy. “You looked much cuter up there than I probably did, I’ll tell you that. That thing was powerful.”

Randy raised a brow in half-teasing curiosity. “Oh, you been savin’ up your stipend for drinks? Thas’ one helluva’ worth while pursuit I say!” He said with a grin, watching as his tenacious new friend made his way over to the bull and putting up a pretty impressive fight! In his time watching new people try their luck on the bulls, he never once saw someone last more than thirty seconds, a time that Ace handedly smashed to pieces. “Hell! Tha’ fact you didn’t get bucked off onto your rear in five seconds is one helluva’ impressive feat! For someun’ ur’ size, you sure know how tuh’ stick when ya’ want to!” He said with an amused look, a teasing lilt to his voice as he spoke. “You sure you ain’t from Texas?” He said, eyeing the smaller man with an indulgent smirk.

“That, plus my birthday’s coming up so my parents sent me a little money to have some fun and buy things I want. There’s the Starline Diner opening up here in a few days and I’ll probably be going there for my birthday if you’d wanna come party.” The RPer hadn’t transferred it over yet, but it’d be here soon. But as for Ace, that diner was his favorite place to go. He went back to the bar to finish his margarita and watch other people try and fail at the bull, sitting next to Randy. “I’m just as surprised as you that my twink ass managed to stay there. I watertube though, so I got the grip strength already. Is there much difference between a boat trying to throw you off and a mechanical bull trying to throw you off?” He laughed. “Nope, I’m from the Deneva colony and most of my family that’s from Earth is from Mexico. I’ve been to Texas though, the sunsets are really beautiful.” Damn, that smirk. Why did men have to be so beautiful! Ace was blushing a little.

“Well happy early birthday then ma’ friend! Lemme’ get tha’ next round for yuh’ then!” He exclaimed, tapping the bar to get the bartender’s attention, and putting in their respective orders for the next round. “A’d love tuh’ join! A’m big on partyin’! Ain’t been to a diner inna’ minute!” He said, nodding happily. “I couldn’t tell ya! I’ve only been on a boat twice in ma’ whole life! I can imagine they’re purty similar though!” He said, trying to imagine what watertubing would be like, other than absolutely terrifying. “Deneva! Wha’ one of ma’ roommates durin’ tha’ Academy was from Tucker City! Whatta’ small word!” Randy paused at the mention of the sunsets, momentarily having a bout of homesickness at the thought of the huge skies and pastel sunsets of his homeland. “They really are somethin’! Mexico is super purty too, I’m a huge fan of Mexico City, I went there pretty often as a kid cuz’ one of ma’ best friends lived there half tha’ year!”

“Thank ya! I still owe you a drink, so don’t let me forget that.” Ace was a man of his word, after all. He was excited for the diner’s return, though. He missed the neon pink and purple and his surfer bro friend Dylan in his life. Plus he always got to use the ovens in there for his own purposes. He missed getting to do that. “Oh, the Starline Diner’s so good. The OG one is in San Francisco, it’s from the 20th century and it’s still running.“ Only twice? He had to change that. Good times on boats was Ace’s specialty. Watertubing wasn’t that bad though. Less terrifying, more fun. But Ace was biased. “Only twice? Now I gotta change that. Come to the holodeck with me sometime, I have a few ocean programs with some boats.” What a coincidence! Ace was from Tucker City as well. Beautiful place, it got real chilly in the winter though sometimes. “I’m from Tucker City too! Definitely a small world. But yeah most of my family that lives on earth lives in Mexico City. I absolutely love the street food there. Whenever I got to earth I gotta visit my abuela there, plus my cousins. I absolutely love space but nothing beats the sunsets on Earth.”

“Sure as shit thas’ old!” He exclaimed, amazed that there was a restaurant from before WW3 that was still operating, though if he thought about it, since San Francisco was one of the only cities left intact after the war, it makes sense that an establishment that old would still be open there of all places. “Hell yeah! I’d love tuh’ join! I just gotta’ make sure tuh’ stop by sickbay afore’ n’ get some anti-nausea meds, I get sick as a dog when I’m out on tha’ water.” He said with a slight flush of embarrassment, not typically one to enjoy admitting his shortcomings. “Small world! I heard it’s a gorgeous place, just chilly as a snowman’s rump in tha’ winter!” He said, taking a long pull of his bourbon. “Woo Wee! Man, do I ever love street food! Lenga tacos and a ice cold pop is justa’bout tha’ best meal a sucker can eat! Mmm!” He exclaimed, momentarily caught up thinking about tacos, before shaking his head slightly and leveling Ace with a bright smile. “Next time ur’ down on Earth, gimme’ a holler, I’ll show yuh’ round’ ma’ family’s ranch!”

“Yeah, it’s ancient. Still has the same aesthetic from back then too!” Lots of chrome, neon, and old pop music. In other words, his favorite place to be. Plus Dylan told him he was adding a bar to the 777 version, so Ace was excited. “Plus, it’s got a nice island, I’m a romantic kinda guy so I just kinda made the date location of my dreams. I pretty much gave my friends access for all their dates, I’m the ultimate wingman. Also for throwing parties, it’s good for that too. Also did anyone tell you you look cute when you’re embarrassed?” Ace meant it! He blushed all the time so he was always glad he wasn’t the only one. But he remembered the beach party! He wasn’t using it all too much after that so he just made copies of the program and gave them to all his friends, the place was too romantic and date-worthy to keep to himself. “Oh, it’s freezing in the winter. Below zero Celsius all the time. But I loved making snowmen and sledding and just collapsing in the snow. I’m out there wearing shorts in 3 degrees Celsius, I’m used to it! There’s also an indoor waterpark I used to go to all the time in the winter.” It was a big waterpark, too! With a long lazy river and everything. He loved floating in the lazy river and riding all the waterslides. “Mm, elotes are my favorite. They’re everywhere in Mexico City. Though I’m always down for tacos, too.” Ace was just as guilty of thinking about tacos. They were delicious, what could he say. But he was definitely interested in seeing a ranch! He had been to the holodeck version with the rorses but he wanted to see it for real. “Totally! I’ll definitely come see it. I love horses.”

“Ultimate wingman! Ha! Ain’t that funny! Ace tha’ wingman!” Randy exclaimed, caught up in a gigglefit at the wordplay, something he had always found funny regardless of how cheesy or unintentional the joke might have been. “Oh an island! Is it one of them fancy sandy ones? Or somethin’ like a jungle?” He asked, curious as to what it was like, having always been fascinated by island life, he supposed because it was so different to the environment that he grew up in. “Wow, I don’t know if I have tha’ chops for that kinda’ weather, Texas is hotter n’ hell, so anything colder than bout’ 25 degrees is chilly for me!” He said with a chuckle, taking another long pull from his drink. “A’m a big shorts fan maself’, don’t get to wear em’ much cuz’ a’ work though.”

“Hah! Yep, that’s me. Though most dates I go on are spontaneous. You could say I wing it!” Keep the flight puns going, Ace was on a roll! He wondered what Randy would think of his collection of model starships and fighter jets. He was very proud of them, they took a long time to put back together again after taking them to 777. It was a pain to do! “It’s got a beach, and a jungle! And a crystal cave with a beautiful little pool of water. I made everything so it’d be like the perfect vacation.” 25 degrees? Weakling. Ace was happiest when it was below zero. The downside of Mexico City was that it was hot. He would also like to explore deserts during the day, but they got too hot. Deserts at night were good though, since deserts got cold at night. “That explains why you’re also hot as hell! Must be a Texas thing.” He just had to take the opportunity. He took another sip of his drink. “Hey, you heard about the people who converted their Starfleet uniforms into shorts? Starfleet shorts! I gotta get a pair for myself.”

"Wing it!" He said through a fit of laughs, shaking his head amusedly. "Shooot! Ain't it got ever'thin! Though I reckon it bein' a holodeck program, it really could have justa'bout anything you want in it!" Randy flushed slightly at the compliment, not used to being the one that was flirted at, rather than the flirter. "Shorts huh? I ain't heard of that, but I tell yuh' it does sound mighty nice! I've been wantin' tuh try tha' skant variant too!"

“You can pretty much make whatever environment you want in a holodeck, if you’ve got the skills. And I’ve got the skills.” He was proud of his talents! It took a long time to get that good at programming. Plus- his programming skills had saved the Rapture! So that was a good use too. “Yeah, they’re supposed to be really comfy. I also just look great in shorts. Plus I’m a helmsman, is there a safer job to wear shorts in? I’ve worn the skants before. Not a huge fan of the look of skirts on me though so I don’t wear it much.” Damn, Ace really didn’t think he was THAT good at flirting. Maybe he wasn’t useless at this after all.

“Good on you then partner! Ma’ brother an’ I programmed tha’ ranch when we had that party back when, its fun gettin’ your hands dirty and doin’ some programmin’!” Even though he definitely considered himself a novice programmer, the holodeck made it easy as you please to get something together relatively quick. “I suppose sittin’ all day will make ya’ want somethin’ with breathability in mind. I’m still figurin’ out what I wanna’ do, so I’m up n’ around all day, gotta’ have somethin’ for it…shooot, I might just replicate ma’self some later on!”

“Oh yea, takes practice. But hey it’s useful when you need to save a ship from a computer virus!” He still wasn’t a fan of Starfleet cybersecurity. He was of the opinion that they were negligent and that negligence almost killed him and all his friends. Ace didn’t think he could let such a bug go past his nose. Plus there was the fact that he thought there was someone who sabotaged the code to cause that damage. “I think you’d look good in anything, but I’d try both the shorts and the skant on and see which one you like better.”

“Goodness gracious wasn’t all that a faf! Specially’ since when all got tha’ boot over tuh’ this place right after! Though, I can’t say I mind tha’ change a’ scenery, I’m startin’ tuh ‘ like this place a helluva’ lot!” He said happily, taking a pull from his drink as he took a moment to reflect on his time aboard 777. “Good idea! I’m thinkin’ why not both, or atleast whatever one makes ma’ buns look better!” He said, delving into a small laughing fit, knowing how ridiculous he’s gonna feel standing in front of his mirror staring at his backside to check which version of the uniform fit best.

“I miss the Rapture. It’s weird not being able to listen to the warp core anymore when I walk through Engineering. I did look around the Eventide though, I’ll have a fun time flying her around, that’s for sure.” Of course he’d be more professional when ACTUALLY flying it. He was just very nonchalant about his job when he wasn’t actually doing said job. That was how he was. He wasn’t too fond of being serious when he was off duty. “Both, both is good. Mainly I just only have outfits that I know I look good in, I can’t have the stress of picking out what looks best while also messing around with my hair and makeup and nails and shit.”

"Eventide? Oh right! I ain't took tha' time tuh' check it out yet, from what I heard she seems tah' be a screamer!" He said, unsure of the ship's flight characteristics, but he could say it from what he had seen it was atleast a beautiful ship. "Fair 'nuff! I'm usually tha' same way, seein' as this ahere' is purty much all a' wear off-duty, unless a'm swimmin'. Though, changin' it up sometimes sounds like a fun time! Who knows, maybe I'll find I love skirts or somethin'!"

“Oh yeah. Definitely excited for any missions, I’m itching to be at the helm again. I hope the Rapture’s new crew appreciates it like we did.” He knew a bit about the Eventide. Not too much, not as much as he knew about Rapture. But soon he’d know everything about the Eventide too. As for 777 itself, he just did have the same passion for starbases that he had for starships. Maybe it was because starbases couldn’t move. But anyway, he didn’t have the drive to learn all the tiny details and intricate aspects of 777’s systems like he had with the Eventide. “Well, you do look great in that outfit, so if it’s all you wear I’m sure people don’t mind one bit. But yeah, skirts are definitely really comfy. I like twirling around in them and watching it spin.”

"Thats fair! When its somethin' yuh' love doin', it makes sense why you'd wanna' be doin' it all tha' time! I'm tha' same dang way 'bout dancin'!" He said with a bright smile and a nod, thinking fondly about the neat Romulan dance his friend Rilek taught him while they were on Luna during shore leave. "Wha' thank ya', your outfit sure is somethin' too!" He said, grinning softly at Ace talking about doing something so carefree, Randy could relate.

“Dancing, huh? I can do salsa and merengue but those are the only two actual dances I know. Otherwise I’m just twirling around on the dance floor with no cohesive dance in mine.” Ace had learned merengue from a childhood friend whose family had moved to Deneva from Santo Domingo, and he had learned salsa in the Academy. He was fond of both dances. But those were all the actual dances he knew. “Aw, you’re too nice! Thanks!”

“Oh salsa is a fun ‘un! I like how fast tha’ music is! Kinda like square dancin’ music!” He said, chuckling slightly at the thought of just twirling around aimlessly to some loud club music, it would be quite the sight he supposed. With a slight yawn, Randy leaned back onto the bar, downing the rest of his drink and laying out a few strips of latinum to pay for the drinks. With a soft smile to Ace, Randy patted the bar twice. “Well, it was good meetin’ ya, but I think I’m gonna hafta’ turn in, I’m on holodeck biofilter cleanin’ duty in tha’ ‘morrow! Hope tuh’ see yuh’ ‘round sometime!” He said, throwing Ace and wink and swaggering out of the bar, only a slight wobble in his steps from the drink.

[D] Upon Telims return from school, Vara'l and Telim decided for a change to eat out. More specifically, to eat out somewhere they'd not eaten out before. The duo using their time having well, look of a list of restaurants on the station and to discount all they happened to have eaten at before. This effort resulting in a slightly reduced in size list from which the grill was picked. The duo crossing the threshold of the place as they both stepped in together, the older Romulan's hand clutched gently by the younger as they stopped at the wait here to be seated sign. Stopped there for a time before a waiter then conveyed them to their table. Once there, the duo settled down and started to converse as they looked over a menu together.

[D] Lente had been wandering the station for a while now, exploring everything before her work started. She'd seen her quarters, though her roommate sadly wasn't there when she was, and the Medical and Engineering levels. After a while though, she got quite hungry, not having eaten in a while. She went to the food court, and entered the nearest restaurant that looked even slightly appealing. She'd never been difficult about food, and wasn't embarrassed about eating alone, but entering the restaurant she immediately realised she was out of her depth. The restaurant was decently lively, chatter from the filled tables rising from all over, and she'd not really been to a restaurant like this since she left Trill over four years ago. She stood around, a bit lost, waiting for a waiter to notice and seat her, or someone else to take pity on her and show her where to sit. This really showed her just how much she relied on the social skills of her friends at the Academy.

After been alerted to the presence of the slightly lost looking Ensign by his son, who argued strongly for going to see if they were okay. The offer of joining them at their table something both Vara'l and Telim agreed was something that should be offered if the Ensign turned out to be as lost as they happened to look in the smokehouse and grill. Their agreement in regards to such what preceded Vara'ls getting up from his own seat as he ruffled his sons hair lovingly and as he smiled, started to walk toward the Ensign. The Liberated Borg pausing part way through his walk toward them as he checked with one of the waiters if it'd be okay if the duo were joined by another. The confirmation that it was fine met with a thank you and a smile as he resumed his move. Once close enough to the lost looking Ensign, Vara'l proceeded to clear his throat as he attempted to gain their attention before he then greeted them. "Hello, I hope you dont mind my approaching you but my son saw you looking for a table and we both wanted to ask if you'd like to join us at our table." He informed the other before he added. "There's a good few free seats at our table and we thought it only propper to offer.

Lente managed to stifle her jump of shock as someone cleared their throat near her. She turned around to find a slightly older-looking officer standing next to her. Upon hearing his offer, she relaxed visibly, glad to have someone approach her so she wouldn't have to do so. "I would love to, thank you for the offer," she said, not quite managing to keep the sigh of relief out of her voice entirely. She followed Vara'l to the table, waving politely, if a bit shyly, at his son as she approached. "I'm Lente," she said, introducing herself. "Lente Summer. I'm new on the station. Thank you for allowing me to eat with you."

The Lieutenant, when the ensign turned around after their initial reaction, smiled a bit as the other relaxed like that. Vara'l reckoning as he observed her that he'd probably just saved her some anxiety. 'Fairly new on the station?' he wondered idly as watched them. Watched and continued to smile. "You're very welcome." The Lieutenant responded as he suppressed any response to the sigh of relief he detected in her voice as he started to lead them over to the table. "Pleasure to meet you Lente." Vara'l responded as they introduced themselves. "I'm Vara'l Tr'Hara, I'm a Lieutenant in Tactical and the young lad over here is my adoptive son Telim Tr'Hara, I feel we should thank you for accepting our offer to come and join us." The Liberated Borg smiled warmly then as he guided the other to the table and moved a chair out for them as was only polite before he settled into his own chair next to his son.

Telim waved back at the lady as she and his dad approached before, as they approached and then introduced themselves, he proceeded to speak too. Well, proceeded to speak as soon as his father had finished. "Heya Ms Summer!" The kid smiled "As dad said, I'm Telim and thank you for coming to join us!"

Lente gladly sat down, really starting to feel hungry now. She nodded as Vara'l and Telim introduced themselves. "Oh, please, just Lente is fine," she told Telim, never having been great with formal address. "It's very nice to meet you both. I'm a biomedical engineer, I just recently graduated from the Academy," she shared, a little bashful. Talking about work or her interests had always come easy to her, but introducing and talking about herself remained a personal hell she would never be able to escape from. She tried to hide her shyness at least a little by studying the menu, though not too closely so as not to give the other two the idea that she was uninterested in them or checking out of the conversation. She'd found that most people couldn't really tell the difference between when she was multitasking and when she was really engrossed in something, so she had had to learn to nonverbally signal the difference the hard way. "Have you been on the station for a long time?" she asked the two, to try and keep the conversation going.

The kid nodded in acknowledgement when Lente proceeded to say that just their first name was fine, a smile having crossed his face as he did so. "Okay!" The kid smiled as he then continued. "Its nice to meet you too." Telim commented before he allowed his father to do the rest of the talking, shy at the moment faced as he was by someone who happened to not be known to him. A brand new officer, one of Starfleet so probably nice enough, though that wasn't always the case he knew. Something which, not at all helped by experiences in the state, fostered a degree of shyness that came and went around people. Shyness that strongly advanced into his mind now as he turned his focus to fidgeting.

"Indeed Lente, it's good to meet you too." The Romulan responded softly "Congratulations by the way on your recent posting." Vara'l began before, as the other asked if they'd been on the station for a while, he bobbed his head from side to side noncommittally. "Nearing on a year now" The man smiled. "So not that long but not that short a amount of time in some eyes either." He partly mused as he watched the other a moment before he turned to a waiter as they past and asked for a jug of water and cups for the table. His request followed by another comment directed to the Ensign. "We transferred here from the Scion B after a brief visit to Mol'Rihan and have been here since, before that I served in the Republic's navy."

Lente nodded, showing that she was listening as Vara'l spoke. She'd never been to the Romulan Republic, hadn't even been close to it until being stationed here, having always lived on Trill and then Earth. "Is life very different in the Republic? I've never been outside of the Federation, though my mom has always wanted to take us to travel the galaxy." She noticed that Telim seemed more withdrawn than before, but tried not to call too much attention to it. She knew what it was like to suddenly feel a lot less comfortable with a social interaction than previously anticipated, and the last thing she usually wanted was to be dragged back into the conversation before she was ready. So she turned her attention to Vara'l, and listened to what he had to say.

"There are some differences though its still a beautiful place and I'd recommend the visit if you find yourself with the time at some point." Vara'l responded with a smile. "Its a younger state though, I should say, lots of green spaces around the cities and the like." He added as he waited for the jug of water to arrive and looked over his menu. "So there's differences there from Earth and other more heavier developed worlds to Mol'Rihan." Vara'l then turned his focus to his son as he softly asked the kid. "Telim, you got a idea on what you'd like to order?" He asked the kid as he placed a calming hand on their shoulder. Placed it there and gently squeezed as he watched them, spotted the indications of shyness as it danced over his sons features, showed itself through their body language. " Want your headphones?" He asked more quietly as he kept his hand there, supportive.

Telim leant against the hand as he extracted support from it, pulled himself out of that shy rut with its help. "Gonna look at the menu now pa...and yes please" The kid requested as his mind briefly chewed on another fact. He'd started to call Vara'l his pa, not that long ago either but he'd started to. Why had he started that, when had dad stopped being his only dad and Vara'l had become his dad as well? He loved Vara'l his uncle. But it had only been a year since he'd lost mom. Since they'd both lost mom. Was a year enough for Vara'l to stop being Uncle Vara'l, oathed to be his guardian if ...or well when his mother lost her fight and he ended up a Orphan. He mulled that question and why...well, why he was fine with it, so he realized. Why he realized, his mom probably had considered herself fine with it too. He leant into his dads hand and then hugged him.

23:39

"...Love you." He whispered in Rihannsu.

"I suppose now that I live on this station I should make time at some point. It'd be a waste not to go now that I'm so close to it, right?" she said, genuinely thinking about it. Maybe she'd invite her parents over to celebrate her first assignment. In her mother's opinion, it was always worth it to travel, so she'd definitely appreciate the excursion. "Do you have a recommendation for what's good here? I don't think I've been to this style of restaurant before." She made sure to ask the question to both Vara'l and Telim so as not to exclude the boy, though he seemed to be doing a little better now already. And sure, she'd had grilled foods before, but that was on Trill, with Trill foods. These weren't Trill foods!

Surprised at first by the hug as he withdrew Telims headphones from his bag and moved to hand it over to Telim and started to reply, Vara'l gently returned the hug. The older Romulan wrapping an arm around the kid as they hugged him as he gently placed the headphones around his sons neck. Did so and then ruffled their hair in a distinctly parental manner, the older Romulan allowing his son to dictate the length of the hug as he slipped open a menu where they both happened to be able to see it. "It is a rather short trip, aye." Vara'l agreed softly before he continued. "If you do go, I'd suggest after visiting the main city, you see if you can visit the plains, the views there are utterly beautiful." He told the other before he turned his focus to their other question. "I'm afraid we dont really have any recommendation of what's good specifically here, though ah." The lieutenant smiled a tad. "Telim and I have both respectively enjoyed a number of items that they do versions of, so that might be of help." "Though past that, I'm afraid we'll be learning how the food is, together."

"The food does smell so good though." The kid softly added as he slipped his headphones on and triggered the noise dampening before he then relaxed a bit in the hug.

Lente nodded, making a mental note of what Vara'l was saying. If she was taking her parents there it would be good to show them all the best sights. "I'll take that into account if I ever get to planning my trip. I wouldn't want to miss a beautiful view if I can help it," she replied. She then half-turned to Telim. "It does smell really nice... The mushroom burger looked good, but maybe I'll have to order the BBQ platter instead so that I'll get to try more things..." This genuinely seemed like decision that needed to be considered properly, to Lente.

Vara'l smiled then as the other proceeded to say that they'd take that into account. "If you do find the time to undertake the trip, its well worth it." He turned his focus fully to the menu as the other commented about the mushroom burger. "The burgers all look good." Vara'l mused after he finished reading the relevant section of the menu before he then turned his focus to the platters "Oh..that BBQ menu is quite nice looking aye." The man turned his focus then to Telim as he checked to see if the kid had arrived at their own decision regarding the food. The really good smelling food. "That is quite the smell."

"It really does." The kid softly agreed before he then fell silent. It was a bit of time after that when, having perused the menu carefully, the kid then declared. "I really wanna try the BBQ Platter myself da.." As he looked up to his parent. "Can we share one and a burger?" He asked. "Pleaaasseee?"

Vara'l chuckled at that and, nodded. "Sounds like a plan Telim, what burger would you like to share?" He asked softly as he gently hugged them again. When his son then indicated the burger he wanted to share, Vara'l ruffled his sons hair and then proceeded to say. "That'll be the one we go for then" "It'd seem we're ready to order"

"It would seem so," she concurred, trying to see if she could flag down a waiter. As she was waiting for one to come over, she turned to Telim, trying to see if she could make polite conversation with the kid as well. She'd never been good with children by any means, but she tried not to make them feel upset if she could help it. Now that Telim had drawn out of his shell just a little bit, she felt that she could try to at least ask a small question. "Say, Telim, you went to Mol'Rihan with your dad, right? Do you maybe know something that I absolutely have to go see, if I do go?" she asked in a calm, soft voice. Not too personal a question, but showing that she both had been paying attention and was interested in the kid's perspective. She just hoped it wouldn't scare Telim back into his shell.

"Uh huh!" The kid responded before a look from his dad told him that he probably should elaborate that on adults do instead of restricting himself to grunted or uh huhed single word replies. The sort of replies his mother had claimed would magically turn him into a Terran goat when he was still small enough he'd believed that his mom could magic the world right. "Was going to visit home." The kid then hummed a bit as he subconsciously bounced a leg as his mind attempted to deal with the hubbub of the smokehouse. So noisey. "But...if I'd been going there for the first time uhh.." He moved his head from side to side as he seemed to really put his mind to the question, which he did cause it was a important adult question and he wanted to give the nice lady a really good answer cause she was nice. "I'd go to that museum place, the place with all the art stuff in it, in the capital!" The kid declared, sure of his answer as his expression blossomed from shyness to a warm smile, at least for now. "It had loads of really nice stuff to see, was really loud too but like, it was so good!" The kid cocked his head a moment then as he was briefly distraced by a signed conversation at another table before he twitched his focus back to them. "But like, if you're gonna go there, you gotta go to a place with loads of green and nature too!"

22:50

After he'd declared that, Telim proceeded to add. "Its cause theres more than just the stone stuff and all the paint stuff, theres also the green and the rorses and the Epohh and all the views!"

22:51

He then turned to his dad as he softly asked. "Was that okay dad?"

The storms that darkened the grey of his eyes dissipated under the weight of a depth of love for ones child that melted all ice and calmed any storm. "It was your answer Telim, that's for you to decide." He smiled softly. "Though personally... I cant dispute your logic." He smiled. "Cant go to a planet just for a city if there's more too it than that and Mol'Rihan has indeed got alot of views to enjoy"

"Hmmm, museums are always important to get some context for what you see outside. Thank you for your suggestion Telim, I will take that into consideration," Lente replied genuinely, watching the interaction between father and son with a small smile on her face. Then, when a waiter finally arrived, she relayed her order and patiently waited for Vara'l and Telim to give theirs as well. It was only when the waiter left again that she pulled a dubious face, and slowly asked a question. "Wait, what is- what are rorses? I've heard of Epohh before, but..."

"You're welcome a-a-and they really are, it really helped us!" The kid declared before he then, after a moments glance at the incoming waiter, then added. "And even if it doesn't help o-on the Context thingy it's just..a really good place to visit!" Telim grinned at that before he turned to the waiter once they'd finished their approach and proceeded to make his order once Vara'l finished making their own order. The ten year old, when he made his order, careful to ensure that his spoken request was accompanied by one in sign language as he grabbed at an attempt to practise his sign again. After all, his dad wasn't the only Tr'Haran clan-family member who happened to be hard of hearing when their implants were off or just hard of hearing full stop. Something he happened to understand was something that came with the fact his dads family was a military one. "A rorse is like a Romulan horse but its sometimes scarier and with more teeth!" He responded then before he then added. "They're liiiikeee meat eating horses that bite you if they get really scared of you!"

Having made his own order before this point, Vara'l allowed himself a moment to simply listen to his son as he allowed them to lead the conversation before he then spoke. "Depending on the rorse, it's sometimes been said around where we live on Mol'Rihan that Rorses are best given their space and enjoyed from afar." He paused. "They're beautiful to look at."

Lente still looked a little uncertain. "Horses on earth are already quite big... with prominent teeth..." She didn't sound scared per se, but she certainly didn't sound as sure about the rorses as she did the museum. Luckily Vara'l came to her rescue quite easily. "Yes, maybe I'll enjoy those from a distance. My mom would probably love them, though. She's always been harder to scare, and with a weird fascination for funny-looking animals. If my dad didn't stop her all the time, my childhood home would probably have been more like a petting zoo," she shared, laughing a little. Her mom would probably have had no trouble maintaining said petting zoo either, she was dedicated enough. But she didn't blame her dad either for not wanting an array of goats and mice and lizards in the house.

"Its not...exactly the same." The kid responded softly before a glance from his father informed him that it might not be the best of comment to be making. The whole of what he'd intended to say happening to be that they weren't exactly the same on account of being more like predators teeth. That was something that might well put them off them when not presented in a setting of a sort this wasn't. His dads comment that followed that look, one he followed with one of his own. "Dads right, they're beautiful to look at!" He then listened to the adults speak.

"There are a few companies in the capital that know the best places to go to see animals like Roses at their best. " The older Romulan smiled before, as he softly chuckled he continued to speak. "And... your mother sounds a tad like mine in a way, though we lived on a farm when I was young so she translated her love for animals funny looking or not into a love for those on the farm and on the sanctuary she constructed alongside it." Vara'l finished, his tone something that might have betrayed a suppressed smile at the fond memories of a childhood amongst family who tried their best to protect their sons from the full rigors of living in one of the worst police states to have ever marred the galaxy with its presence. Having ordered his food during their conversation, Vara'l paused a moment to gain the attention of a waiter as he requested a jug of water for the table.

Lente nodded, listening to Vara'l speak. She found she enjoyed interacting with the two Romulans; Vara'l seemed wise and kind, making a sure effort to listen to her even though they barely knew each other. And Telim was a sweet kid, clearly leaning on his dad a lot for support but certainly making an effort to contribute to the best of his abilities, too. They were... warm. "I've never been good with taking care of living things... I tend to kill even the hardiest of plants, even though I do try my best not to. Circuitboards and copper wire are much kinder to me, in that regard." She got a bit of a half-smile on her face as she thought of her own skills compared to her mother's. She watched for a second as the waiter returned with water and three glasses, and resumed once they'd left again. "My mother could bring dying birds back to life. We had a large backyard at home, and occasionally something would fall out of a tree. My mother would always nurse it back to health before delivering the thing to a wild animal rescue centre. On one occasion, she'd found a mouse with a broken paw, and by the time the mouse was let go, it only had a slight limp. My father used to joke that if she wanted to, my mom could have saved the world, but instead she chose to go into mathematics and rescue small animals in her backyard." Lente could only hope that the help she provided with her work could inspire others to lend a hand the way her mother had inspired her. But that was a dream for the future, she'd need to work her way up to things like that, hone her skills and refine her expertise. And maybe live life a little along the way, become a bit more worldly, a little more wise.

"You sound like dad with plants ...though he just works metal he doesn't do the stuff with fancy tech things!" The kid declared with a smile before he looked to his father as he spotted the waiter as they approached with a jug of water. The kid then signing as he proceeded to inform his father about the incoming waiter, his sign smooth with the skill of someone who happened to be fluent. Fluent in his case due to the realisation of a strong wish to know how to speak with his father even when his ears happened to be off. As the other then proceeded to speak about their mother, Telim afforded them his full attention. The adults mom, with how she helped everyone and how she helped small things and worked with numbers someone who sounded amazing to the kid. Much better than a load of adults he'd encountered through his life. Encountered before they were safe, when he had to be very careful with his words, figments of memories of that time something that happened to still haunt him even now.

"Your mother sounds like quite the lady." Vara'l responded, his tone tinted with a certain degree of respect for the mothers choices there. "Though Telim's right there, as far as living things are concerned I am just as deadly to the hardiest of plants as yourself despite doing the same, though.. I've been reasonably good at looking after some animals about the farm." He chuckled at that. "Always seemed to understand how to care for them better."

"Oh, metalworking is cool! I don't think I know anyone else who does that, do you do more weaponsmithing, or like is it more like detailwork?" Lente realised when speaking to Telim that he was signing things to his dad, and that she should probably pick up a sign language sometime... before realising further that there were probably millions of sign languages in the universe and she probably wouldn't be able to learn enough to accommodate everyone. Still, maybe some basic phrases in different kinds of sign languages? Much to consider. "I don't mind animals, personally? I even like them, if they're cute. But I've never been good with them, I'm definitely not any sort of pet person. I do biomedical engineering, though, so I understand a lot about medicine. I could theoretically keep most people alive, probably? Probably." Lente nodded to herself as she considered her words. She did know a lot about medicine, and she'd fixed and improved enough medical implements that she knew what each one did. She just also mostly knew a lot of really random things about stuff like... synthesising nerve tissue, that probably wouldn't come up in an emergency situation. Or like, how to create functional proteins from only partial RNA. Probably not useful information to consider when trying to stem bleeding from a chest wound or something, but she had it!

"Weapon smithing, detail work and some other projects depending on what takes my fancy and where the need is." Vara'l responded with a slight smile before he decided to add. "I come from a reasonably long line of weapon smiths and metal workers, learned quite a lot about it from a young age." His tone one that he hoped would indicate that that in itself was a memory he treasured. Something that at least for a time had happened to be a brief shelter from the rigors of life as a Tr'Hara in a empire that the family might be described as not being quite suited to in some respects. Even if they had departed the empire a rich family. "These days I make bookmarks, though I'm planning another sword." "That's fair enough.. and that's also a rather useful skill to have under your belt so to speak." He mused as he ruffled his sons hair and smoothly responded to their sign with a confirmation that he'd picked up on the waiters approach accompanied by a thank you for their alerting him to that. Something then followed by a signed greeting to the waiter as they approached and a request for them to pop the jug of water between the trio instead of off to one side as a waiter had happened to do on one of the other tables. "I myself have some training in that department, enough to keep people alive under a number of circumstances."

"Dads taught me a bunch of stuff about metal working and about fixing stuff and people like he knows how." Telim then added softly as he watched the waiters approach, curious if they'd accede to his fathers request or not and if they actually happened to know sign as his father had guessed. "He says I'm too young to learn some stuff, that I've gotta wait until I'm older, but I know how to do that thing humans call C.P.R!"

01:28

After he declared that, Telim then proceeded to turn to look at the lady as he added. "Biomedical en-gin-eering sounds really cool and interesting though, better than some of the history of the archer presidency, got to learn that for school." His tone a half grumble as he considered the subject he presently most despised at school

Lente hummed as she listened to Vara'l explain. She didn't have any grand family tradition like that, but it was interesting to hear that Vara'l did, and was apparently actively keeping it alive with his son. "Metal bookmarks! That sounds like complicated work, to work with thin metal like that," she said, recounting her own steep learning curve when it came to learning to solder small componets together. Metal was finicky! Then she turned to Telim. "Honestly, that's probably the most important one, CPR is for when things are really very bad. I understand that your dad wants to keep you away from most of it, though. It can get pretty gross, and he doesn't want you to get nightmares." She listened as he complained about history, and then laughed kindly at his plight. "I hated history too when I was in school. I liked science classes where the teachers made things explode! But my dad told me, that if you don't remember what people have always been like, then you won't think to imagine how they could be. So you have to pay attention in history class so that you can help change the future. And also, President Archer had a cute dog. So that makes him pretty cool, in my opinion."

"Very complicated work, a joy to do though, always used to help me calm after long days." Vara'l indicated as he smiled, fully in agreement with their comment about it being complicated, the complicated nature of the work something that if anything added in his eyes to its calming effect. After all, you had to, with the more complicated metalworking projects, devote so much of your focus you at least in his in his mind..denied dark thoughts any space in which have staked claim. "Also have always preferred the projects that involve.. kinder end results." *Vara'l added as he looked over to the waiter and smiled in polite response to a signed indication that they'd do as requested, one rapidly followed by the arrival of a jug of water and three glasses at the table, carefully set in place by a silent waiter.

"Dad said that cause I know C.P.R I can help when a lot of people my age might not be able to, if some adult that's around doesn't know it!" Telim decided against telling the other that those were something his dad happened to have anyway but for other reasons. He knew even at his age that stuff like that happened to be stuff that adults wanted to keep to themselves or at least to themselves and the people the adults called counsellors. People who wanted you to talk about stuff that made you all hurtie inside like you'd poked and prodded the bruises you got from a fall a whole lot until they really really throbbed. "I like dogs but the books we have to read for that bit of history is so boring and I dont get how it'd help us change anything they're all about how he worked as presidenct, what about when he did stuff before then and helped make stuff?" Telim pouted a bit as he started to pour water into each of the cups without having been prompted too. "Like, don't Romulans like me in the Re-pu-blic need to know more about the history of new nations and making stuff work before the big presidency stuff?"

Lente nodded, listening to Vara'l as he spoke of his hobby. She did relate, sort of. Working on new machines was much the same way for her, from the research to the blueprints to the actual building itself. No time to be sad or regretful when your head was full of complicated equations! "That's very true, although chest compressions might be more difficult for you, since you're not that big yet. And I'm pretty sure your dad is keeping you out of all the trouble he can, so that you won't be in a situation like that. Us adults are supposed to look after you kids, right?" Honestly, Lente did not want to think about a, what? Ten year old? Doing chest compressions, so she tried to change the subject. Telim seemed attached enough to his dad that he might bite. "Honestly, Telim, I'm like, a really bad teacher, so I have never thought about what is important to teach to kids, or in what order. I am going to tell you very sternly right now that you should pay attention in your classes, even if they're boring, okay?" She held a cup closer to where Telim was pouring as she looked to his face for confirmation, pausing for a second before continuing. "And then I'm going to tell you that there's hundreds of films and holodeck adventures and books and audio files from or about that era, and that if you wanna know the cool stuff about someone like President Archer, you might wanna ask your dad for help in picking some of those for you to watch or read or listen to." She gave him a friendly smile, trying to signal both that she meant it well, and that she did exactly the same thing when she hated particular classes. Just find a dramatised version of the things you do find interesting, and play those. In addition to studying, of course. Just studying a little less intensely than for subjects she did care about, that's all.

"They taught us how to do it and said that its only for if things are really bad and" The kid paused then as he briefly hugged his father. "...Feel way better knowing how, specially for if I ever have gotta look after someone else." His tone something that perhaps in part betrayed memories of past events that had for the kid been.. traumatic to a degree. Ones that had left a resolve in his eyes to never be caught again without the knowledge to help somehow. Eyes that belonged to a child who considered there being no such thing as too young a age for one to have learned how to save a life. After all.. if he'd happened to have known more about how to, there were things that wouldn't have ..happened how they happened. Not that he hadn't accepted that mom.. hadn't been going to leave the hospital even before she'd...passed. No.. he wasn't going to think about that now, food food and a adult telling him to pay attention in classes after being pretty truthful instead of being all like 'I know best' were better things to focus on he reckoned. After all, part of his young mind sensed that the other had a point there. His momma had always said that someone you needed to focus on more than just the things you liked, so had both his dads though his momma had been the one who hinted that the information you gathered could be useful sometimes in more than just a 'oh look that thing was cool' taught at school information thing. She'd been a matriarch, his mom. You were meant to listen to them, least that was what he'd been taught. Something of a thought he very briefly quirked a smile at as the other then talked about holodecks and the like. As they talked about that and he turned to his dad as the prospect of a holodeck adventure presented a way of learning that appealed quite a lot more than just sitting lipreading a teacher in a loud classroom. "Can we?" He asked his dad before he turned back to her. "I'm gonna do that, thank you!"

12:53

Telim then briefly, after he turned and caught the eye of the waiter who'd delivered the drinks and smoothly switched sign languages to thank them for the water, turned as he finished pouring both the adults their drinks to pour water for himself. Doing so before he then softly commented. "Just wish I could just likeeee talk to someone from that time." He humphed. "People are so much more interesting than books even if places are loud alot, my momma taught me you can learn a lot by sitting with someone and asking questions, if they wanna answer em that is."

Vara'l, his eyes having briefly darkened in pain at his sons tone, had gently rubbed his sons back slightly in a supportive 'I'm here' gesture as he'd continued to simply allow the two to talk. The older Romulan having little wish to interrupt his son as they conversed in a way they'd sometimes struggled to do since they'd lost one of those final bastions of stability in their close family, their mother. Conversed with a confidence, edged with a tinge of shyness yes, that he hoped would help them at least to some degree with conversations in louder environs. Even if they happened to occur with the help of noise cancelling equipment as had happened here. With a nodded confirmation when his son queried if they could go on a holodeck adventure to learn some of the stuff he'd struggled with, Vara'l smiled and simply said. "Of course we can, Lente's suggestion is a very good one, if you struggle with classroom learning about this those programs and the like might well be alot easier.. after all.. you already read quite well for your age." He decided to leave out the fact Telim did so in two languages, a product of a bi-lingual upbringing, tri lingual if you included sign come to think of it. His response all that he managed in the way of verbalized reply for a moment as Telims stated stance on learning, how he wished to be able to talk to someone from that time, caused him to look at the kid thoughtfully. Look at him as he wondered if the lad might one day end up a diplomat or something. "You know, some of those programs might well allow you to do that, if I'm not mistaken." He mused as he looked to Lente and hoped that they.. might know a tad more about Terran holodeck programs than he happened to.

Lente nodded at Telim, trying not to let her empathy show too much on her face lest it be intepreted as pity, but she recognised that the kid had had a difficult life and yet was making the best of it. She admired that, not sure she would have been as strong he is when she was ten. "Sure," she said instead when the conversation turned back to... alternative methods of studying, "there's holoprograms for all kinds of things like that, and really anything made about the information age and after seems to be incredibly accurate. As long as there's video footage of it, there's probably a holoprogram made about it. You could probably find decently accurate programs about Zephram Cochrane, even, and back then humans didn't even have reliable space travel yet, let alone holodecks!" she explained, glad to have been able to help with something. She wasn't sure if getting some of her worse studying habits to rub off on someone else's kid was the best idea in the world, but honestly, she'd take it. "There should be several like that, I know of at least two that just let you hang out on the first Enterprise. When I was a kid I always tried to hang out with Commander Tucker, but he'd be doing things so inefficiently in Engineering that I'd end up getting frustrated. I guess two hundred years of technological advancements are pretty noticeable that way," she chuckled, remembering how much she'd end up trying to fix in those holoprograms, entirely anachronistically of course, before giving up and going to find Phlox instead.

Telim watched the other as they proceeded to regail him with all the alternative methods of studying that his teacher happened to seemingly have never considered, at least as far as he knew. PADD learning and the boredom it entailed to the kid placed by their words into the context of a wider array of learning tools that to the almost eleven year old happened to boggle the mind no end. So many ways to learn history, why couldn't they have learned about this stuff in a program where everything happened to seem physical and the people within it answered the questions you wanted to ask instead of declining to answer as they instead looked at you as if the question was bad? Weren't teachers meant to be smart adults? "That sounds amazing!" He declared at the first part of what they happened to say before he lapsed into enraptured silent attention as the other proceeded to talk about the program they'd experienced when they were a kid. Talked about someone from that period like they'd happened to have been around then but hadn't, holodeck programs that dealt with history sounded way more interesting than just having to read it from the PADD! It also amazed him that travel through space way back then happened to be like that. It sounded...dangerous and in a way exhilarating to the kid. So much to discover, so many things still yet to be seen for the first time by their people, even to his young mind that sounded.. so cool. He wanted to find something new one day or to explore like they'd explored, going out to new places finding new peoples as they learned and experienced. "Its likeee, a really long time!" The kid commented after a moment. "Sooo I bet some of what we can do now would be really amazing to them!" Telim then paused. "Wish our teacher would let us use programs like that, I learn waaay better when I get to ask questions and see what's talked about in the book!"

Vara'ls storm grey hues briefly seemed to loose that cloudy aspect to them as he listened to the others words and how his son responded. A air of curiousity mixed with interest something that crossed his face as he wondered about something. That turning of the cogs of the mind something that briefly sketched out its patterns over his normally hard to read features before his face smoothed a tad again and he smiled softly. "You know, if you'd like to go to the holodeck with me more to see stuff from bits of history you're learning about, I'm happy to do that Telim, if it'd help."

At this, Telim hugged his father and just about managed to not do so with enough force to knock the older romulan off of of his chair. No he instead slightly rocked the chair as he hugged them tightly and softly uttered a "Thank you!" As he looked up at them and then snapped to focus on what looked to be food as it approached their table held by a waiter. "Fooood!" He declared happily and grinned.

Vara'l looked to the other officer then as his son said that and he smiled in a 'seems he's got his priorities in order' sort of way. Smiled and then ruffled his sons hair as he briefly returned the hug. "Yes indeed Telim, food." He softly chuckled.

Lente listened in turn as Telim and Vara'l decided to take her suggestion. Honestly, creating field trips for History classes should be more widespread, she didn't know why they weren't. If you had an educational program specifically for certain subjects, that should work, right? But, again, she wasn't a teacher, and likely never would become one. She couldn't really say why that wasn't more widespread. And she grew up on Trill, too, so most of her earlier education was a little different from the rest of the Federation. She really wasn't an expert here at all. When the food came, she looked at her platter and saw a bunch of things she'd never had before. "It smells really good," she commented, excited to try something new.

Vara'l proceeded to lean forward a tad as he looked over the food he'd been presented with as it arrived. Looked it over and smiled as he considered the food and well.. also considered the conversation that had just been had between the Ensign and Telim. A conversation that had rather highlighted some things that he'd not considered before.. and also pointed out to him again that the lad happened to know his own mind.. or seemed to when it came to the best way for him to learn... or a better way for him to learn than what had happened to be.. less than good for him. Especially if one considered each report Telim happened to get from his history class at the moment. Reports that to Vara'l, with this in mind, happened to create one after another additional point that supported what she'd suggested. * "The food does smell brilliant, Aye." *Came his comment as he mulled this over and considered the food he'd ordered with the senses of one who happened to be deaf without what had been implanted. ...Senses that happened to include a better sense of smell as a result. "Completely different to what I've tried before myself." Vara'l added then as he looked to his son.

Telim at this point, as food arrived and was placed before him, had quite forgotten a chunk of what he'd previously considered. Not completely no, more forgotten in the sense that something else happened to be more important right now. That being food. He happened to be hungry, which was something that helped this process along. "It really does smell good!" The child Romulan declared happily before he experimentally tried some of the sauce of what'd been placed before him. This experimental taste of the sauce something that was followed by a happy gasp as he turned to his father, signed that the sauce amazed him. Then verbally added. "It tastes so different and so...so good, the sauce!"

Lente ate quietly, preferring to enjoy her food in silence. She got that from her dad, the perfect representation of what her mom called "muizende katjes", which came from an old dutch proverb about cats being quiet when they're eating. She watched Telim enthusiastically relay what he thought of the food, and hummed in agreement. "I might need to come back here more often, this is really nice," she added after swallowing a bite.

Having also like his son had, started to eat, Vara'l nodded slightly in agreement with the others assertion about the food being really nice. "It really rather is, aye." He mused to himself as he proceeded to down another bite of food. "I suspect I and Telim will also be back at some point as well." The Old Romulan added as he proceeded go take a sip of his drink, something that was followed down then by a bite of food.

[D] They all continued eating, making the occasional small talk whenever something new came to mind. Eventually, the plates were empty and the bellies were full, and Lente and the tr'Haras parted ways with one last emphatic thank you from Lente, for eating with her, and the request to reach out if they ever needed help with finding holoprograms to try.

Graham entered the establishment, still overwhelmed by the size of the station. And the people, there were so many! He never imagined someone could build a structure so large in space, and it would take some time for him to adapt to this new environment. He sighed as he looked around, seeing that many people chose this place to spend their time, so it must be good. He eyed an empty table he could sit at and walked over. He grabbed a menu on his way there, looking through it as he sat down. The food variety was certainly something, and he most definitely wanted to try something new, and he considered grilled food to be an interesting choice.

Samantha had been exploring the food court, completely stunned by the variety on offer. There looked to be restaurants, cafes, bars and diners of ever kind selling cuisines from countless federation worlds, several she didn't even recognise. "Okay. This is gonna be a fun time checking all these places out when during my off-duty time." She chuckled to herself as she walked on. It was then that a particular sign caught her attention. "The Galaxy Grill Smokehouse? Oh I've got to try that place first." She headed inside and quickly noticed how busy the place was, which told her it must be a popular restaurant on the station. She glanced around and couldn't see any empty tables, but she did spot a young man sat at a table with an empty seat. She hesitated for a moment as she decided whether or not to sit with the stranger, but then she figured she still only knew a small handful of people on the station. Technically *everyone was still a stranger to her. May as well get to know more of the crew onboard.* Samantha carefully weaved between the other busy tables until she was stood before the young man, who was currently focused on the menu in his hands. "I'm sorry to interrupt but, there's no other seats. Do you mind if I sit here?" She asked politely

Graham was still looking through the menu when she approached him, so he got a bit startled when he was asked the question. He put down the menu, a bit harsher than he expected, before looking at her. "Oh, yeah, of course." He said, nodding. It was better after all to talk to someone and, hell, he'd even get to know some people on here, so that was nice. He pushed those thoughts away, deciding it was better to introduce himself first. "I'm Graham. Graham Thoran." He said, before focusing back to the menu, listening with half an ear while trying to figure out what to eat. He was really tempted to try out the smoked chicken wings, but he wasn't really sure yet. He took a look around the establishment, noticing that more people made their way in. "Quite a busy place. Food must be great." He said, turning his attention back to the person sitting on the other side of the table.

"That's what I'm hoping. I'm Samantha Berrett, but feel free to call me Sam." Samantha chuckled as she sat down opposite Graham, noticing the single pip on his collar. "Is this your first assignment out of the academy?" She asked as she read the back of the menu the ensign was still reading, noticing some interesting side options which she decided to try out when they ordered.

"Nice to meet you, Sam." Graham said, smiling, before following Sam's gaze and looking down at his pip. "Ah, yes. Well technically no, since I don't know if the cadet cruise counts, but if you don't count that in, then yes. Ensign Thoran, reporting for duty." He said, giving a slight salute, before picking up the menu again. "But yeah, I'm... really excited to be here. A bit further away from home than expected, but it's so good to know that I finally made it." He said, quickly adding. "What about you? I can tell you've been here for quite some time, unless you've been recently transferred?" He asked, looking at her pip.

"Recent transfer. This is my second official assignment actually." Samantha smiled back at Graham as she returned his slight salute. "I only arrived a today, so I'm still getting used to this station. It's a lot bigger than my previous posting, but It is exciting. I've heard from a few people I've met that there's been all kinds of weird and interesting things happen here in the past."

"I know, I never expected a starbase could be so large. I honestly thought it would be more cramped, since stations usually require more power to run, have those ship maintenance spaces and so on. But it's a nice surprise. As for the interesting activities, I haven't heard of them, but I guess it's expected from such a location. I mean, it really is a culturally diverse station. Very diverse." He said, before putting down the menu. "But on the bright side, at least I'm not the only one that's new here, kind of a relief, to be honest. Wouldn't really want to be the odd one." He admitted, scratching the back of his neck, more out of embarassment.

"Oh don't worry, I felt the same way when I first arrived. Thankfully it turns out quite a few new people have arrived as well, so we're far from the odd ones out" She chuckled as she brushed a stray hair form her face, tucking it over her ear. "Honestly, I can't wait to meet my new department head and get started. That and find the gymnasium."

"Well that's honestly splendid. Means I probably won't be the only one that gets yelled at for being late." Graham chuckled. "Speaking of departments, I should probably check in with mine too. What department are you in, if I may ask?" He asked. Now that Sam brought up departments, Graham noted to himself mentally that he had to check in with the chief engineer as soon as possible. After all, making a bad impression on what would be for the foreseeable future his boss wasn't something he wished, so he'd have to get that done as soon as possible, provided he didn't get lost among the many decks, corridors and rooms on the starbase. But at least he could check his PADD if he got really lost.

"I'm in Engineering. Junior warp technician." Samantha replied as she wondered if Graham might also be in engineering or ops. it was hard to tell from uniform colour alone, after all. But she hoped she'd be working with the few people she'd already met.

"Oh, well it's my lucky day then! I'm in engineering too, warp core engineer." Graham said, a tone of excitement clear in his tone. After all, what was the chance he'd meet someone not only from the same department as him, but with the same posting as him. It must've been really low! How low exactly he couldn't tell, he wasn't a mathematician. "It's so cool to finally meet someone from my own department!" He exclaimed. "Oh, since you're a lieutenant, and I'm guessing you served as a warp technician there as well, tell me everything about your previous posting! What ship did they use? What warp core model? Did you meet anyone interesting?" Graham asked, going on and on with his questions. It's clear Sam reached a topic he was passionate about and which he had a lot to ask and talk about in exchange.

Samantha couldn't help but get caught up in the ensign's excitement "My previous posting was the USS Autumn. It was a Miranda class ship still in service from the Dominion war. Class seventeen warp core, if my memory serves me." *She chuckled as she settled back into her seat, thinking back to her time aboard the Autumn. She loved telling people her old ship, given that it had such a long and fascinating history starting long before the Dominion War too. "She was a real work horse of a ship, but she could be temperamental in her senior years. I think over the three years I spend there, I helped perform maintenance or repairs of just about ever part of that ship. Of course it's hardly surprising given she was commissioned in 2276, spent twenty-five years in service before she was mothballed. And then she was pulled from mothballs in 2374 to join the Dominion War efforts as a support ship, and after that she ran supplies for the various planets affected by the Dominion war and ever other conflict since. She was a good ship... and I'm going to miss her."

"Wow! That really is a long history for such a ship. I'm honestly surprised Mirandas have such a long lifespan." Graham said, nodding as she spoke, trying not to interrupt her while absorbing as much information as he could at the same time. It was fascinating to him, Starfleet ships, although sturdy, aren't usually designed to serve such a long time, let alone participate in a war almost a century after she was constructed. "Must mean it had an awesome corps of engineers maintaining her!" He exclaimed after she finished. He wasn't lying, or trying to compliment her and her crewmates. He was stating the truth. After all, if they managed to keep a ship together even if she tried her hardest to fall apart, it means they worked a miracle on her! He did feel a little anxious though, considering he'd have a coworker that was far more experienced than him and probably very competitive in her work, which meant he had to work really hard if he wished to be considered competent enough to serve by his superiors. Hell, he didn't plan on getting a note in his records that said that he was doing a bad job, that would really suck, to say the least. "I'm really glad you shared this story with me. I don't really have a lot of experience, well other than a short cadet cruise, so it's really cool to hear other people's stories of their previous postings. Is the Autumn still in service today?" He eventually asked, after a couple moments of silence.

Samantha chuckled, smiling at the ensign's enthusiasm. "Experience takes time. I was lucky enough to have been able to chose the Autumn after my graduation. But no, sadly she was decommissioned over a month ago. In the last year, the maintenance just became too intensive to keep her running, so Starfleet chose to finally retire her." *She sighed sadly but continued to smile to herself. she was definitely going to miss that ship, but she knew there would be countless more assignments ahead of her, including 777. "It's why I transferred to 777. where the Autumn was old and reliable, a starbase is well...a different scale all together, so it brings all new lessons and challenges to learn and face. As my grandfather says; If you're not being challenged as an engineer, then you're doing something wrong."

"Well, she had a really good run. I'm sorry to hear about her fate." Graham nodded, letting her finish. "Honestly, at first I felt overwhelmed when I found out I was assigned here. Maintaining a ship is already quite difficult at times, but starbases are like a hundred times larger. I thought, and still do, actually, that it'd be much more difficult to complete even the most mundane of tasks. But I hope it turns out to be more relaxed than in my expectations, otherwise we'll be having a hell of a run." He chuckled for a bit, before continuing. "Was your grandfather an engineer? Must be nice to have someone pass the wisdom down the family line, means you get an edge when it comes to first assignments. I think that when it comes to engineering experience is the most valuable resource. The first time you step in front of a warp core and hear it's vibrations, it was quite exciting for me, to be completely honest, and a bit scary. I mean, at some point, the thought of doing something that'd break the core crossed my mind and I almost froze in panic. Didn't really want to screw up on my first day on the job, even if it was a cadet cruise." Graham confessed.

Samantha chuckled as she listened to Graham speak, both pleased at his attitude towards his work but also excited for what they would both be learning on 777. "Yeah, I remember feeling the same way when i set foot in the Autumn's main engineering. That mix of excitment and terror all at once is one something you ever forget. But I'll say this; on a starship, the engineering crews are much smaller. The Autumn only had a crew of two-hundred compared to a starbase which has about nine-thousand officers and crewmen on average." At that moment, a server approached and asked if they were ready to order. "Yes, could I get the starter of Grilled Vegetable Skewers, then for main can I get the Brisket. Oh and a glass of sparkling Lemonade, please." Samantha smiled politely to the server who, having noted her order, turned to Graham.

"True, but a starship is much much smaller than a starbase. I mean, starbases are capable of storing ships in them!" Graham exclaimed after a short time. "Just think about all the poor engineers that have to maintain its infrastructure, all the Jefferies Tubes must form a maze inside a maze, maybe in another maze! A crew of nine-thousand seems like a bunch of insects trying to pilot a shuttle in comparison." Graham smiled, finding his last remark quite humorous. After Sam finished her order, he turned his gaze towards the waiter. "Oh, I'd like a Pulled Chicken Sandwich and a glass of water, please." He said, then watched as the waiter walked away before finally turning his attention back to Sam. "Anyways, as I was saying. I think, given the immense amount of energy required to power this monstrosity, I'm expecting the core itself to be gigantic. That, or just a bunch of smaller starship-grade cores placed close together, but I think that'd take up way too much space, so I'm inclined to pick the first option. But honestly that's really exciting! I mean, it may be harder to maintain, but think of all the awesome marvels of engineering that allowed it to be built! I, for one, can't wait to get down there. Nothing beats the feeling of walking on the engineering deck for the first time."

"Oh trust me, I feel the same way." Samantha grinned at the ensign. She was still awaiting her first official duty roster and to meet her new department head, but most of all she couldn't wait to see engineering for the first time. "Oh and you're quite correct. Jefferies Tubes are a rabbit warren that you do need to be careful of. I got lost just on the Autumn many times, so I dread to think how easy it would be to get lost on a station this big." she laughed, "Just remember to bring snacks and a water battle in-case you do get lost and have to make camp."

Graham giggled. "Snacks and water bottles? You better set up a whole replicator system down there. I'm sure they have maps somewhere, but I really feel bad for the poor soul that had to map the entire system." He said, some time after his laughter calmed down enough so he could talk. "But hey, maybe the entire engineering level is a maze, that way everyone gets to experience the feeling of getting lost on your first day on the job. If we're lucky we might get little cards glued to our uniforms that says we're new so the maze veterans can guide us around." He said, smiling a bit.

Samantha laughed, listening to Thoran speak. He certainly had a sense of humour, which was always a bonus with potential colleagues. "Hehe more likely it was mapped prior to construction, but who knows. maybe that's our first task as engineers: to navigate our way out of the maze. The ultimate problem solving test." She chuckled more just as their drinks were brought over

Jaroth had heard about the ‘mechanical bull’ from many colleagues who insisted that given his background, he’d be well suited to beat the station’s record, and figured that as he’d been given the day off, he might as well get around to trying it. Well..that and he was very curious about something called ‘corn-bread’, and desperately wanted to try. The tall Romulan strode into the joint wearing what could only be described as an outfit for a cowboy rave; being a black leather cowboy hat, an open leather vest, a mesh tank top, a pair of tight leather pants, and a ridiculous pair of bright green cowboy boots, a decidedly un-Romulan outfit, but one he felt very comfortable in nevertheless. Before hopping onto the very not animal looking device, he wandered up to the bar, wanting a shot or two to get him in the mood for it.

Ceedar had heard about this thing called BBQ from a friend and he was like, so curious to try it. Sure, they had it where he grew up, but not often, and apparently, this stuff was like, 'the real deal'. He was having some of the 'St. Louis Ribs' that had been on the menu, and damn, he had to admit - they were super good. And like, a super great way to get some protein, too! Not as good as other things, but like - for the taste? It definitely paid off. The tactical officer was sat at the bar, continually asking the bartender about different things that the place offered, just to get a general idea of everything he should try. For example, he hadn't yet tried any of the sides, but they looked interesting enough. Something else that looked super interesting, though, was an extremely tall (well, compared to everyone else - he looked maybe what, a half foot taller than him? Something like that?) man walking into the restaurant with a pair of bright green cowboy boots and... wow, that was a very fun outfit, wasn't it? He suddenly felt quite underdressed, in just some light grey sweatpants and a red, low-cut baggy tank top. Still, he turned to face the Romulan with a grin to introduce himself. "Hey there! I'm Ceedar," a very normal introduction, "bartender's been telling me alllllll about the drinks and stuff here! I've been having the ribs, though - highly reccomend, bro," he said, not even realizing that, like... his mouth still had barbecue sauce all over it. Fantastic first impression.