Star Trek: Starbase 777

Submerged in the gentle blue light, the multiple bar stands were located not too far away from the buffet, forming a loose semi-circle and offering a great view of the ballroom. The bars were separated from each other via columns that projected tall forests of kelp, swaying gently in the invisible flow. The bar stands were made to look like large glass aquariums, with schools of small fish swimming and darting around the delicate and colorful coral reef. As for the shelves behind the stands, they had an almost rocky appearance on the outside frame, and coupled with the inky dark indigo light that was shining behind them, it created an illusion of depth - like an underwater cave, or a cliffside, leading to the abyss below. Besides your typical alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, there was also a list of Winter Ball specials.

Having left Vovvi after a short conversation that could not have lasted any longer for fear of absolutely losing his cool and saying something deeply, deeply embarrassing, Ev'kor made his way to the bar in hopes of taking some sort of an edge off before he went dancing (because with an outfit like this, he couldn't get away with not dancing). He took in the specials, not seeing anything he knew, but mulled wine seemed pleasant enough. He raised a hand to indicate to the bartender he was ready to order, resisting the urge to roll his eyes when he saw who it was, though he had a hard time being impassive on the best of days and so he was sure it showed on his face regardless. Of course. "I'll have a mulled wine," he said, no pleases or thank yous.

White and grey stared right back at him, their owner's face as deceptively impassive as the surface of a calm lake. Rojin came to the ball in a suit, though currently his jacket was taken off, and the sleeves of his shirt were rolled up for work. His whole outfit was black and white in a pattern closely resembling an orca - an Earth aquatic mammal, suggested to him by his nephew. ("Because they're killer whales?" he remembered himself asking, his intention a joke, but it didn't land - evident in a brief squirm of what almost looked like guilt in Saren's face. "Because they're intelligent and caring," came the reply. Hm.) "Will you now?" he inquires, angling his head to the side as his hands worked on a glass mug, wiping it with a towel until it shone as bright as a diamond. "I would charge you extra for this, if I didn't feel bad for making you tap out."

"Yes, I will," Ev said casually. "That spar truly is the one thing you can hold over my head, huh?" he asked, remembering the low expectations he'd set for himself to begin with then, and how despite Rojin going easy on him, he'd still subdued him in too short a time. It had been good exercise, if nothing else, and a reminder of why he carried a disruptor with him when within Romulan borders. He followed Jin's hands as the man worked, resisting the urge to crack his knuckles to deal with his own jitters, remembering that in a minute he would have something in hand and therefore no further issues. "You've got it rough, Lareth, working the bar in a venue like this. I don't envy your zeal."

"As of currently, yes," he shrugged, looking at the mug against one of the lights - squeaky clean, almost to an irritating degree. "At least until you give me something else to work with." Stationed to his left was a rather large, heated cannister, where the wine was poured in sometime before the ball had begun - just enough time for it to heat up. The rich, heated smell hit his nostrils as soon as he opened it, and Rojin was met with his scarred reflection staring right back at himself from the red surface. "I prefer to keep my hands and brains busy, and I enjoy people-watching. It's not a job of prestige, but it keeps people fed," he uttered as he ladled the wine into the mug in even, practiced motions, not giving the man even a second-hand glance. "People here are well-mannered and kind. Most of them, anyways." The filled mug was placed in front of Ev'kor, and finally his eyes shifted back to him, left eyebrow slightly lifted only because the right one, in that moment, refused to obey: "Anything else I can do for you, Khellian?"

"Don't count on it." Ev'kor had, generally speaking, enough self-control to not make a fool of himself; that time in the fitness suite had been a moment of weakness, and he wouldn't repeat it so easily. He wouldn't comment on jobs of prestige. He knew being a doctor was considered one by many, but the pairs of scrubs he'd gone through over the years stained in various colours of cool greens and purples painted a different picture; conversely, Rojin knew how to make bartending look like an elegant, precise craft. He did roll his eyes at the comment about his manners and kindness, unable to suppress it this time. "That will be all, for now," he simply confirmed, taking the mug (and it did help with his tremors, as expected) and turning on his heel, making his way out of the bar without another word. (Taking a sip of the wine, he noticed it was... pleasantly warm.)

Vovvi narrowly missed Ev'kor's exit, ducking in once the flood of ballgoers had slowed to a steady trickle. Sharp eyes scanned each bar carefully, until they landed on a familiar figure and lit up. "Still bruised?" she mused, sliding up to get a look at her good friend. The black and white did suit him well, she noted, and it was a pleasant contrast to her colorful disorder. "You look perfectly alright to me, but I didn't bring a bandage. I hope you won't spit in my mermaid punch for it." She hummed, idly brushing her hair back and off her shoulder, moving to stand with hands on her side of the bar. "I don't want to stagger around on the ballroom floor later." And, with a thoughtful smile that turned those eyes up at the corners, "I told you I'd find you. You look good, Rojin." (edited)

There was a slight twitch to his grey eye as soon as the words "for now" left Ev'kor's mouth. His steady, if not burning, gaze was kept on the man's broad back until he left for the ballroom, as if to make sure that the Romulan really did not plan on pestering him for any time longer. At least, for now. He closed the lid and wiped the ladle, before hanging it on a tiny hook situated on the wine cannister's side. Behind him, he could hear the build-up of sound - of people coming in, filling the vast space with noise and life. Perhaps paradoxically for a Romulan, but Rojin preferred the busy places over empty ones. In his experience, the quiet almost always was a harbinger of trouble. Soon, the pleasant background buzz got breached by a familiar voice. The bartender's mouth curled into a tiny, fond smirk as he turned to face her - and Rojin paused before he spoke, because suddenly... there was a lot to take in. "And here I was hoping..." he sighed, shaking his head theatrically. "Oh well. I might have to be the better person and let it go, until it's convenient to be brought up again." He leans on his elbows against the bar - a rare luxury, but people were only just coming in, and he does it close enough to his friend so that they didn't have to raise their voices to chat. "Thank you, Vovvi. You look stunning. Is there a ball outfit competition I wasn't aware of?" (edited)

Cheeks flushing green, Vovvi shook off the compliment with a playful roll of her eyes and slid into the stool directly in front of him. "Not a competition. I just haven't done one of these before, and I didn't know how much was too much," she admitted, tugging once again self consciously at the side of her dress, before folding her hands in her lap to keep them still. "Thank you all the same. I had to sit in my quarters and talk myself into going for almost twenty minutes." With some help from her lovely children. "Ah, even so.." Her gaze dropped from his, and a playful smile tugged at the corner of her lips as she reached out. "You can't be expected to win any sort of competition with a loose tie, hm?" She playfully tutted, untucking the offending fabric from his vest and giving it a light tug to bring him down a little closer. Swift, but gentle, double checking that it wouldn't choke the poor man and that it wasn't crooked before tucking it back into his vest. "There we are." she said, giving his shoulder a little pat-pat, nodding affirmatively at her handiwork. "Really, Rojin, I—" and faltered only for a moment when she looked back up at him, sitting up a little straighter— "expected you to be at least a bit more careful. Unless you were flirting with another patron before I came in?"

He angled his head just enough for a little shadow to settle between his eyebrows when he creased them: "I don't think that it's too much. Events like this one are tailor-made for people to have an excuse to dress all excessive and fancy - not that everyone needs one to begin with, but you get my point. I understand where you come from, don't get me wrong - this is me trying to reassure you that there is nothing to be worried about, and you're doing great." Loose tie? He was about to shift his weight back and check for himself, but she was quicker, and so, he freezes. He feels her manipulate the piece of cloth like it was his own skin and nerves. Those hands were awfully close to his neck - the one spot no one even in his resistance cell dared to touch, all too fond of their fingers and not too keen on finding out just how many of them and how fast the Shepherd could bring out of commission. Yet there was no feeling of danger - even after the tug that brought him closer. It takes a few seconds, but it felt like eons. He realizes his fall into silence only after Vovvi stutters and straightens out, as if she just realized what happened. Slowly, he straightened out as well. Her question brings back the irk he felt before Vovvi's arrival, and he eagerly grabs onto that - even lets his mask slip and perhaps for the first time ever since their friendship started, the Intel officer could witness Rojin tr'Lareth roll his eyes: "Flirting. Sure. Perhaps to some species. No, the only previous patron was an annoying aristocrat's boy. A great start for this whole evening, if you ask me."

Vovvi pushes past it after that momentary stutter, feeling a distinct warmth in her face (it's the ball, it's the people, it's the alcohol even though she hasn't had a drink, it's something else, has to be) and doing her best to dispel it. She did incline her head curiously at the mention of the aristocrat's son, though did not press on the matter. "Well, in that case, I promise to be a better patron. Do you think I could get a mermaid punch?" Mocktails only for her, she decides, not wanting to stumble over herself if she musters up the courage to dance. "Oh, do you get some time to yourself during these sorts of things, or are you at the bar the whole time? They have the cutest little fishing game set up. I might give it a try later on."

"Of course," he's all too eager to get his hands busy and go through the familiar motions, because having something to do prevented him from thinking about things. He knows that, he feels it when he grabs the tulip glass and the lemonade bottle as soon as she uttered the word "mermaid". "I am free to walk out and explore the event whenever I want, as long as a couple of other bar stands are still working. Same goes to the rest of them. A benefit of having multiple bars in one place at once," he explained, giving the drink a stir to dissolve the blue food coloring. "I heard something about that fishing game - and the touch pools. The latter intel, unsurprisingly, was provided to me by my nephew. What are you planning to do before that?"

"I should probably get out onto the floor at some point. My father made my brother and I learn how to dance when we were younger," she mentioned off-handedly, eyes following Rojin's. Steady, practiced, falling into familiar motions. If she looked closely enough, she could see the smallest faded scars there against the backs of his palms. She focused on tracing those with her gaze rather than meeting his. "But that would mean I have to subject myself to the horrifying ordeal of finding a dance partner in a stranger, which I am not exactly keen on doing." Vovvi was curious about the touch pools. Marine life from all across galaxies getting along, huh. It wasn't uncommon in aquariums and such, but still felt so .. odd, compared to her relatively isolated upbringing. It wasn't a bad thing by any means. Just new. "My nephew is the only reason I knew a thing about the fish that inspired my dress," she chuckled.

"The childhood bane of many, if not all major Romulan Houses," he replied with a teasing note in his voice, sliding the full glass towards Vovvi, without spilling any of the liquid - almost like a little magic trick of his. Steady hands. "Even we couldn't escape it - not all the time, at least, but we damn well tried. The teacher was a bit of a bore." Her shared concern was met with a thoughtful hum, as he gave the bar stand's surface a quick wipe with a towel - just to keep it clean, even if there was nothing on it. "You don't have to dance with a stranger. You could find a friend. Hell, if you're really keen on going, I can join you."

Vovvi took her punch with a grateful smile and quiet thanks, admiring the color and fizz as she nodded in agreement. A part of her wondered if that Khellian doctor had to learn as well, but that was swiftly dismissed from her mind as a wandering thought. "Ugh. 'Stand up straight, keep your eyes forward, and look me in the eyes when I am talking to you, Miss Rei'nak, quit stepping on your brother's shoes,'" she parroted the voice of a high-pitched older woman, finger-wagging exaggeratedly. "I used to sneak handfuls of dirt and bugs into her bag. Once, I hid a bit of raw meat in her shuttle, so she didn't smell it until it started rotting." Awful little prankster Vovvi aside, she visibly perked up at the offer, having already downed a considerable portion of her punch. "Would you? You're a hero, Rojin, truly, I can't stand the idea of dancing with anyone else." Something about it just made her so uncomfortable. Was it that wicked old bat hammering it into her head, or something else entirely? The idea of dancing with a good friend just felt right.

He laughed - couldn't help it, the mental image of both the teacher and the tiny, young Vovvi t'Rei'nak causing havoc being all too entertaining. It's a warm, deep sound, one he muffles and stifles when Rojin turns his head away and covers his smile with his fist, coughing into it. When he turns back to face Vovvi, his eyes were still squinted, humor still present in there. "Wow," he breathed out, biting back a sharp-toothed grin. "I am sure she appreciated those gifts. You ever got caught or no? Talai never let me pull shit like that on our teachers." He went to grab a water bottle from under his bar stand, taking a sip and nodding to her words: "Mm. Wouldn't suggest it if I wasn't up to it. Trust me, I don't tend to do things that make me uncomfortable."

The sound of his laughter tied Vovvi on the end of a string, pulling her focus back up and in instead of off to the side. Her mischievous smirk widened to something more genuine, cheeks weary from smiling so much in the past hour or so, but she couldn't help it. It felt like the last bit of that mask had crumbled, leaving something softer behind, before Rojin sealed it away once more. Blinking from her daze, she realized she should probably answer. "I never got caught. She never found the meat, actually. I think she just got a new shuttle." Vovvi snickered. She decided then and there that she absolutely Had to dance with him, and, finishing off her punch a little too quickly, slid off the stool. "Well, then, whenever you're ready," she said, smoothing out her dress around her waist and hips, nerves fluttering.

"One moment..." he couldn't leave a dirty glass like that, the damn thing would stick to his conscience like a flea to a dog until he came back, so into the replicator it went, disintegrated into useful little atoms for later. Next he let the nearest of his colleagues know that he was leaving, and dimmed the lights of his station - just to indicate to people that they were better off going to the other ones. With that done, he took his suit jacket and put it on, revealing the decorative flaps on the elbows - almost like an orca's pectoral fins. He squited his eyes at her words, a smile threatening to breach his normally impassive face again: "You were truly talented, huh? Or maybe she just had a bit too much money. Either way, I am glad that your little scheme never got uncovered. And, we're good to go. Shall we?.." And with that, off they were to the #ballroom...

With a huff, Maxson sat down at one of the empty barstools and set the plate he’d put together onto the bar. He drummed his fingers gently against the countertop as he dipped shrimp into cocktail sauce and idly munched away. He wasn’t in much of a mood for a drink at the moment, though who knows, that might change. Out of curiosity, Maxson lifted up one of the lists of special cocktails and scanned it. He wouldn’t be upset about a mug of eggnog, nor a mug of hot cocoa. Jell-O shots were not piquing his interest… “Hrm…” He hummed, looking at the food he’d gathered for himself. Maybe a sweet drink would be in order after he ate. He wasn’t too sure about how well those flavors would end up mixing.

The Trill, in the meantime, had wandered away from the ballroom after dancing alone for a little bit and thinking about what all she might be getting up to this evening post-ball. Could you blame her? Nevertheless, dancing worked up a sweat, an appetite, and a thirst, the most latter of which she could remedy quickly before contending with the buffet line. Sliding next to where Maxson was seated, Kiadras stayed standing and leaned against the countertop, “I’ll just have a water!” He grinned, before turning back to the dance floor and propping his arms against the bar. He noticed Maxson out of this corner of his eye and nodded toward him, “You clean up nice!”

Konstantin entered the bar area eager to try one of the drinks, it had been quite a while since he drank alcohol not because he couldn't moderate his intake but because it usually reminded him of old and bad memories and because he couldn't tolerate it that good, he had a low tolerance, very low. Nonetheless he decided to order a drink after having looked through the drink list. "Hadal abyss please." He said short and simple, then he noticed the other people present at the bar and smiled. "Hello! Sorry if I'm interrupting something here but mind if I join you?" He said with an awfully enthusiastic smile and tone, he was quite eager to get to know more people, the more the merrier he thought.

The security officer glanced in Kiadras' direction with a raised eyebrow, not quite expecting the compliment from a stranger, nor really expecting any company from where he was seated. Not like he was really making himself known, but then again a lot of people seemed to come up with him and start talking often. Was he just a magnet for social butterflies? Was that his burden to bear? "...thanks."

Kiadras once again smiled, a bright expression to contrast Maxson's flat nothing of an emotion as the two sat (well, stood in her case) across from each other. She wasn't too sure who the guy was, though she'd definitely seen him during some of the more heavy emergencies throughout the base. He's security, right? Certainly not tactical. She knew a fair majority of the tactical officers. Well, knew of, "No problem! I like the blue, it's very..." She waved her hand, "...ocean-y. Heh!" Speaking of tactical officers, a face Kiadras at least recognized in passing arrived at the bar next to the two of them. He gave a wave toward Konstatntin, "By all means! We're not doing much, just talking." Well, Kiadras was talking.

Konstantin smiled at the invitation he was eager to meet new people and very excited about it to, you could just tell by looking at him that he was excited. He made his way over to them when he got his drink, he instantly took a sip- Oh, oh my this Hadal abyss was very good, very good indeed. He just had to make sure to not drink so many of these as he didn't want to get drunk and embarrass himself especially infront of people he didn't know, he could do that in his free time in his quarters away from people. "Pleasure to meet the both you, I'm Konstantin by the way, new squadron pilot if you're wondering by the way. And you are?" He said rapidly but not so fast it came out inaudible, he was excited to say the least. He took another sip of his drink eagerly awaiting their response.

T'She had arrived at the bar! And quickly found a nice place to stand while they thought of what they wanted to do next. They were enjoying the ambience, however, as they wondered whether they should actually talk to someone. They never were the most social of people.

Vara was in a deep sea blue suit as she took a long sip from her drink as she looked out towards the sea of party goers dancing (including the bartender? What da heck man). Vara hummed as she took a drink. “Nice to be at a party without casing the joint.”

It was at this point that Vara'l headed to the bar area. His plate, loaded with the foods that interested him and the Lobster stew clasped carefully as he arrived. Arrived, looked around and quickly headed toward one of the bar stools that remained unoccupied. The lack of the bartender noted but not sufficient in his eyes to cause him to depart elsewhere. It seemed like people were still getting drinks and he wanted somewhere to sit. So well. All he needed was still present in the place he'd selected so there he headed. Settling down once he reached the seat he selected, Vara'l placed his plate down before him, did so and then attempted to gain the attention of whoever was behind the bar. Once he secured their attention he requested. "One orange juice and a glass of water please." Before he started to dig into his food. Did so until he noticed one of the officers present appeared to be the ACSO then noticed that another he spotted happened to be a member of Tactical. "Jolan tru." He proceeded to say then in greeting to the ACSO and the wait.. two Tactical officers present. When Vara'l noticed Vara, he just inclined his head in a greeting.

The andorian looked to Vara’l trying to place where she knew him from, she had seen him in the files she looked over every now and again. Then she realized. “Oh! You’re the guy who stole my name!” She said, blinking, shit. She turned to Vovvi dancing with the bartender almost like she said a magic spell to summon her. “Oh I mean, hi, sir.” She said respectfully.

Grey eyes fixed upon the Andorian who initially spoke as they did. Their initial comment one that caused his proverbial hackles to rise slightly before the 'Hi sir' that followed calmed things a tad. Vara'l had learned to never really care what someone said about him, that is unless it was feedback that could be used to further his efficiency as a officer or as a parent and individual, but well. Yeah. Names. Designations for individuals. He liked his name, it was his. It wasn't a number, like his designation and it seemed to better fit the individual he was now, even if reckoned he wasn't entirely Vara'l or Three of Ten anymore. Not that he ever would have openly voiced any of that. Especially not to someone he didn't recognize. His memory might be better than many on account of what had been done to him but even a good memory wouldn't have managed to maintain the tactical knowledge he had and to also remember someone he'd likely not encountered at all recently. That is if he'd encountered them at all. "Hello." He started as he then nodded his thanks to whoever arrived with the drinks he ordered. "I admit, I'm unable to comment on the name element of what you said." Vara'l commenced then as he turned and fixed them with those steel grey hued eyes. "If we have met before, I apologise as I'm unable to remember your name Miss..." Came his next comment, the appended end to it something that he'd noted some humans did to prompt someone to introduce themselves. This plumped on rather than commenting on what he'd noted about how she looked. They were off duty and this andorian wasn't in his department. He'd not been insulted or affected in anyway that couldn't be supressed with ease and given his lack of familiarity of them, he reckoned it'd be rude of him to comment on the blinking followed by a turn and glance he'd watched.

She looked to him. “Ensign Vara Zh’rahlor.” She said with a hum as she looked at her drink, happy she had not been smited by the intel gods. “You have an extra l thing at the end of your name. I have a mean Hirogen lawyer on speed dial.” She said with a smile. Tor-lan was a chill guy when you got to know him, mean ass attorney though.

Vara'l inclined his head in greeting to the Ensign when she introduced herself and then proceeded to indulge in a mouthful of lobster stew. He then idly smiled at their comment, smile met with smile. "I suppose our names are somewhat similar." He responded at first before he then added simply. "I'm..not the best at recognizing jokes and such, Vara Zh'rahlor, if your lawyer comment was the end of one I'm afraid I've not followed." He'd then paused and considered his words before he elected to add. "If it wasn't, I apologise for miss-construing your intent."

Konstantin turned around to around to the voice that had greeted the group he was in, he turned around with the same excitement he had just had encountering the two other Lieutenant Commanders. "Hi, hello! Pleasure to meet you..? Both? I guess, I'm Konstantin." He said rapidly but with some awkwardness hoping he wasn't interrupting the conversation all to much, he could be pretty good at interrupting someone's conversation at times, not something he liked to do but sometimes it couldn't be helped.