Going Home - Pt 2

Posted on Thu Aug 19th, 2021 @ 6:12am by Captain Rhenora Kaylen & Remal Kajun

Mission: Gamma Quadrant
Location: Bajor

The sun began its slow descent towards the horizon, its warm rays rescinding as it approached its final destination. A gentle chill began to permeate the air, prompting a shiver to tickle Rhenora’s skin. They’d frollicked in the water for some time, acting many years their junior as they splashed and played in the crashing waves and warm water. All good things it would seem had to come to an end, the ever impermanence of time itself.

“Did you bring towels?” she quipped as she sank her shoulders under the water in an effort to keep warm.

Frowning as he realized the fun was over and now he had to commit to being a warm blooded man, “Sorry love, I didn’t think to grab them when I was racing you to the water.” He eyed the beach and the long walk to their bags. “Don’t move, I’ll go get you a towel, and then we can get to work on a fire.”

He slowly trudged his way out of the familiar cold of the water and onto the beach, the full display of his pale white rear end on display for her to see. While confident in his sexuality, the walk from the water to the beach line was still an awkward one.

Rhenora let out a low wolf whistle as her husband walked stark naked to retrieve their clothes and find some towels, a quirky grin on her face at his chivalry. True this was his idea in the first place but she could probably do more than wait to have things brought to her like some Queen. Stepping forward she made her way from the water, shivering as the rays from the sun had now completely lost their warmth in the early evening. With nothing yet to dry herself with, she tried to sluice the moisture from her body with her hands then headed up to where Remal had gone, the movement warming her body slightly.

Meeting her at the edge of the beach, her pale naked body shivering from the chill in the air, he offered her a towel and what clothes he could find for her to put on. While he wanted to stop and stare, he too was cold.

“ I had forgotten how quickly it gets cool and dark here” She accepted the towel and clothes from her husband as they dried and dressed, heading back towards the path to the cabin. An outdoor fire pit lay ready for them, wood stacked neatly to one side, a late cast iron plate on a stand that swivelled over the flame almost begged to be used. Flame cooked food, the scent of the smoke and the crashing of the waves in the near distance.

Reaching for the smaller kindling she started the fire with a quick burst from her phaser in her bag, just enough to heat the wood to the point of combustion before carefully adding the larger wood to get the heat building in the pit.

Meanwhile, Remal had made his way over to the groceries they had brought from the market and was digging through them for his planned meal. There was some bread, and some local veggies which he could throw on the grill plate once the fire was warm enough. He pulled out a cutting board and knife and set to work.

The sun descended below the horizon, it’s last vestige of light vanishing for the day in the ever present cycle of day and night. Damp cool air descended from the nearby mountain, settling in the low lying village and filling it with a chill. The damp air threatened to stifle the still birthing fire, Rhenora refocused her attention on the flames, feeding it, tending it and coaxing it to be bigger and stronger.

Vegetables chopped and seasoned, Remal turned to check the fire. She had it just about right for cooking and perfect for getting warm. He brought a grate over with local caught fowl and the seasoned veggies and placed them over the flames. Then he sat down beside her and offered her a piece of the bread.

She accepted the bread and poured wine for both of them, the perfect beginning to their meal. “Ooo it’s been a while since we’ve had fresh meat, not the replicated stuff I mean”

"When we are here we eat as Bajorans should. I do my best on ship but the meat always tastes off to me." He picked at the veggies, rotating them as necessary. "The veg are also crispier."

“ Real food is always preferable to replication. There’s just no way technology can replicate the perfect carrot…” Her voice lingered off as she stole a stick of said carrot from the plate and crunched down on it. “ See.. perfect crunch, perfect texture and flavour, and…. Unique. There is only one of THIS carrot… not the same pattern replicated over and over” She mused, realising she was waxing lyrical about a carrot.

Intrigued, he asked, “Oh, do go on. You have now piqued my interest in fresh carrots. What about the rest of these veggies, what can you say about them?” He probably should have warned her that talk about fresh foods was a bit of a turn on. Oh well, she would find out soon enough.

She gave him a look, tossing up in her mind whether he was being serious or not. Still looking at him she grabbed some celery and began crunching on it… musing over whether to keep talking or not. “And your opinion on fresh Vs replicated?”

He nibbled on a stalk of a local delicacy, similar to that of the Earth based Rhubarb. He reached out and squeezed her shoulders in his arm, “You know I prefer them, much like I prefer my women, home grown and feisty.”

“ Well well, aren’t you in a mood tonight” She smirked, winking provocatively at him. “But first my dear, dinner otherwise you will not have the stamina” She teased, continuing to crunch on the celery.

“Yeah, yeah. Always teasing.” He looked out over the water and the moonlight as it began bouncing over the waves. “After that swim, I may just need that stamina.” The old was creeping upon him. He snagged a piece of the meat, nice and juicy yet crisp around the edges.

“ Ahhh to be young again” She mused, giving him a wicked glance “ When we could work all day and play all night without batting an eyelid - those were the days” She reclined against the sand, resting her bones.

As he ate the last piece, he patted his full belly and lay back as she did. But he angled himself in such a way that his head, specifically his ear, landed upon her abdomen. He closed off all of his senses to his surroundings and just listened.

At first he could only hear her heartbeat, strong and full of rhythm. But as Rhen shuffled beneath him, he began to hear a smaller, more rapid tender beat. He couldn't help but smile. He would be a father soon, a lifetime goal growing to fruition within his lover's body. There were no words to describe his ranging mix of feelings from excitement to deep dreaded worry.

She watched him, a dozen different expressions flickering across his features in short succession and he tried to locate what he was searching for. She noted the frustration, the contentment then something along the lines of concern.

“Ok - out with it” She said quietly, realising his ear was still connected with her lower belly. “What’s worrying you?”

He swallowed hard. "I've never been a father before is all. I have to wonder, with the life I've led and the things I've seen, will I be a good one? And before you out right say yes, just know that will probably not stop me from wondering and worrying."

“ Ok before I say yes - what makes you think that you won’t be? You’ve lived an incredible and highly broad life, you have a vast array of experience and knowledge, not to mention wisdom in many things.” She looked at him with a look that clearly read ‘need I continue?’

“Like every good father, I can only be as good as I can be. I know I have emotional issues, I’ve lost my temper once or twice.” He shifted onto his arm so that he was now face to face with her. “Without you as my rock bearer, my guiding star, sometimes I wonder where I’d be.”

“Temper? You weren’t the one who got S’Thenosis as an overseer… and as stability - I think you’re way more stable than I’ll ever be” She chuckled as she recalled their previous time on the Sunfire under the watchful eye of the ‘Dragon’. “You will be the best father you can be - and that is all I can ever ask.”

He smiled, “Well, who am I to argue with that logic?” He gave her a flirty kiss upon the lips, then rolled onto his back in the cool sand. “I wonder where ole Gorgox is nowadays? She could be half a quadrant away, or she could be watching us from the shadows, judging our every move.”

“ Who knows, she’s most likely making someone else’s life miserable” Rhenora chuckled as Remal returned to his comfortable position on the sand “ You miss her?”

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha, no." After he calmed down he continued, "though I never had a direct problem with her that I can remember. You have to admit that her personality was something else. Always straight forward, to the point. I suppose brash is a good way to describe her. It was usually fun to watch her action and reactions, like she was better than everyone else."

He looked at Rhenora who was staring back with wide surprised eyes. "Well not when she was berating you, of course. But everyone else." He doubled back on himself, noting his lost brownie points.

She retrained her expression from one of surprise back to a relaxed one. “I’m just a little surprised to hear you say that, She was a thorn in everyone’s side. But then again I never did consider any other perspective - shame on me” She regarded her husband as he lay content against the sand.