Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?

Posted on Mon Mar 1st, 2021 @ 2:32pm by Sublieutenant Miles Lynn & Lieutenant Mila Lynn & Centurion Nancy Gable & Major Ashley Rogers & Lieutenant T'Ango & Gunnar Arnason & Sublieutenant Renee Hernandez

3,326 words; about a 17 minute read

Mission: Chapter III: The Hunt is On
Location: Mess Hall Ourainavassa
Timeline: 238702.04

Ash was starting to regret doing dinner with T'Ango and Gunnar and Nancy...of course it'll be in the Mess Hall... of course Renee would be there... it'll be a reunion! But after their latest adventure on the Munin, it seemed appropriate that the twins should meet her old friends. Especially after she and T'Ango hyped up Gunnar. She checked the chronometer, stalling. The last thing she wanted to do was be there early and have to spend one on one time with Renee. And she can't be late, then she'd leave the twins there alone with people they don't know. She started pacing in her quarters, "Screw it... I'm an adult. She's an adult. I can do this."

She started slowly walking towards the Mess Hall, praying to whatever deities there are in the universe that she'd run into someone else and they can arrive together. She could have coordinated with someone... anyone. But how would Ash even broach that... "Hey, I can't deal with being alone with my ex right now....?" She'd never hear the end of it: Ash Rogers, assassin for hire, can't sort out her own dumpster fire past. Ugh...

A little down the corridor, T'Ango was walking swiftly toward the Mess Hall. "It was just a short reconn trip -"

"In a mirrorverse time ship," Gunnar cut in.

"Which was perfect! She jumped right out of there before that Tal'Shiar ship could even get her weapons charged!"

He gave her a pained look. "That's doesn't make it better. What if -"

"Rogers!" T'Ango called, hurrying toward her. "Where are your 'kids'? I was telling Arnason all about them."

Ash let out a breath that she didn't know she was holding as she walked over to T'Ango. Thank you universe! Wait... her kids? "Mila and Miles will be meeting us at the Mess Hall. I think if I offered to escort them here Mila would think I'm being over protective after her experience with the Gorn. Although... maybe I should have...." she pondered out loud. Ash then saw Gunnar and gave him a hug, "Its been a long time, Gunnar. How have you been? Sorry I borrowed T'Ango earlier, glad we had her pilot skills."

"I was a lot better before finding out you talked T'Ango into another potential disaster," he replied, but hugged her back. "I can see why Nancy keeps the migraine meds in easy reach."

"It was supposed to be a quick out and back test drive... how could I keep a ship like that parked in the shuttle bay without letting T'Ango get a chance to take it out for a spin?" she said, sensing that T'Ango is probably in trouble. She's definitely not going to mention that the test drive was to coordinates found on board were left by an alternate universe version of herself.... "Besides, I would never let anything happen to Mila or Miles. I'd like to think that Nancy hasn't used her migraine meds because of me for a while... not since she's started working with that new doctor of her's. Have you met the 'best doctor in the quadrant' Kaol Ralaa yet?"

"And how could T'Ango resist taking it out?" he retorted, though casting a sidelong look sidelong at T'Ango.

"It was ...shiny," T'Ango opened her eyes very wide. Then smiled and rubbed her chin against him. "I didn't mean to worry you - which is why I didn't say anything until we got back. But we were totally safe." She looked at his 'oh really?' expression. "Okay, but at least 75% safe, which is a LOT better odds than the last time you went off without back-up."

"That wasn't..."

T'Ango's ears perked up and toward him in her own 'oh really?' look.

Deciding changing the subject was the better part of valor, Gunnar turned back to Ash's last question. "Yes. I met 'the best surgeon in the quadrant'," he replied, and rolled his eyes a little.

Ash watched the conversation with T'Ango and Gunnar... maybe she should've asked Gunnar for permission the next time she and T'Ango go off on an adventure. She wondered if he would approve of them sparring... or teaching Mila self defense... perhaps those were questions to be asked later. But she was glad that asking about Kaol elicited that response from Gunnar. "HA!" she exclaimed. "He seems to be even more insufferable lately. I haven't needed his services but he's by far the worst example of a Romulan that I've ever met! What's your take on the guy?"

"As an NP, I'm used to doctors being a bit arrogant, but that guy is whole new level," Gunnar chuckled. "Like MD arrogance and Romulan didn't just add with him, the factors multiplied."

"So, now you understand that Nancy's migraine meds.... totally because of him. I've actually been relatively well behaved!" Ash laughed. "I've only assaulted him once... before she stopped me...."

Gunnar laughed. "I'm almost surprised she did. In fact, it's a small miracle she hasn't assaulted him. I think even I'd be tempted if I had to work with him."

"Now that's saying something." T'Ango looked at Rogers. "Maybe we could convince him to be the practice dummy for Mila."

Just then, the twins rounded the corner, conversing in sign language. They both had dressd up for the occasion, with Mila in an elegant, strapless, slivery dress - the one she had picked up with Xia - and Miles wearing a dark navy jacket with golden trim over his usual white shirt, with some black slacks. An educated eye would recognise the jacket as that of a Starfleet uniform from the 2250s, as worn by commanding officers. As they were walking, Mila was teasing it about him. A Captain's jacket is a little bit ambitious, don't you think? And the navy clashes with your hair something awful! She chuckled as Miles started to defend himself, when he spotted Ash and the others.

Ash raised an eyebrow at Miles' attire... glad that Mila was giving him grief about it so she didn't have to. She smiled proudly at the two.

"Evening all!" He exclaimed, letting out a breath of relief. Mila smiled and waved, before touching behind her ear to engage her aural implant. "Hey!" Immediately, she went up to Ash and gave her a hug, before looking at the other two. "T'Ango. Some good flying this afternoon, Miles would have been impressed I think! If only he could have been there."

Her brother let out a little groan. Mila had been teasing him about the flight with Munin all day, and he was getting a little tired of it. He turned to Gunnar. "Miles Lynn, pilot," he introduced himself. "Pleasure to meet you all. Don't mind my sister, she can be a bit of an annoying teenager when she's in a good mood."

Mila punched him in the shoulder. "Watch it, hotshot. Or do you want me to go and have a chat with that cute little Orion engineer?"

"Mila's already met T'Ango, but this is Gunnar Arnason, both old friends of mine. Good friends of mine," Ash said with about a warm a smile as she could muster before tugging on Miles' jacket to nudge him closer to her so she could ask, "What cute little Orion engineer?"

Miles' face went the colour of a Starfleet commander's uniform. "Oh, he's got his eyes on one of the recent recruits down in engineering," Mila chimed in, chuckling at her brother's discomfort. "But for all his past conquests that he likes to brag about, he doesn't seem to have the balls to just go and introduce himself. Which would be useful, especially since she's mostly working on the propulsion systems."

She turned to Gunnar, and thought she'd test him on what the others had told her. "Gott kvöld, Gunnar Arnason. Ég heiti Míla Haraldsdottir Lynn, og þetta er bróðir minn, Miles Haraldson Lynn. Gaman að hitta þig. I hope I got that right, my Norse is a bit rusty."

Gunnar face lit up at hearing something so close to his native tongue. "Gaman að hitta þig, Míla Haraldsdottir Lynn. Ég er Gunnar Arnason," he replied with a slight bow. "I speak Icelandic, which is close but not Norse proper, so I'm no judge there, but I understand you just fine." He turned to Miles. "I'm pleased to meet you as well. And don't let your sister - or Ash - discourage you form chatting with an Orion. One of our dearest friends is Orion."

"Several of his are," T'Ango teased, bumping him affectionately.

Ash smirked at Miles' blushing. She remembered when she was his age and the shenanigans she would get into. She put an arm around him and semi-whispered into his ear threateningly, "Grow a pair," before grinning at him. "If she's the engineer I think it is, I'm fairly certain she's single..."

"They really weren't exaggerating about you adopting these two," Gunnar remarked with a small laugh. "Also, my advice would be to offer to help her out where you can. If she's interested in you, she'll let you know."

Ash smiled at Gunnar, she never felt like she actually adopted the twins. They're their own people. She's just.... there for them. And she'd have no qualms about ending the lives of anyone that would hurt them. That's perfectly normal behavior, right?

Mila noticed her brother becoming more and more skittish, and decided to put him out of his misery and change the subject. "I mean, Ash didn't really adopt us. She just saved my life, and then saved us from becoming homeless. We owe her a lot. Anyway, enough chatter outside the mess hall, why don't we go in and see what the chef has to offer today?"

Miles' eyes lighted up at the mention of food. "Oh, please," he added, almost pleadingly. "I'm starving. The boss had us go through combat drills for hours today, we only got back into dock five minutes before you returned from your little field trip."

Ash visibly tensed up... oh yeah... dinner... "Of course. I'm... pretty hungry too. Let's... uh... go in. After all of you..." she said as she let everyone else go into the Mess Hall first.

When the doors opened, Renee greeted everyone with a smile. The last time T'Ango and Gunnar were here it was a very enjoyable experience... but this would be the first time she has seen Ash since that morning in her quarters. It wouldn't surprise her if her ex has been hiding in her quarters eating rations... She watched her enter the room last, almost using Miles and Mila as human body shields. The woman can face a room full of angry Klingons, Nausicaans, and Sindareen, but she still can't deal with her emotions.

"Welcome! I have us set up at a private table in the back. I know how rowdy some of you can get if you get some drinks in you," Renee smirked at T'Ango.

Ash is trying her best to avoid eye contact with Renee, finding a piece of lint on Miles' jacket quite fascinating as she picked it off of him.

"I'll be good, as long as we get more of your delicious food." T'Ango smacked her lips, motioned to Gunnar. "Come on. You too, Rogers," she added, "and quit using your kits for cover."

"You heard her," Gable said coming up from behind and giving Ash a light push on the shoulder. "Show us you're still a big brave assassin."

Ash glared at her friends while muttering, "I hate all of you," under her breath. She followed the group towards their table. If she had a tail like T'Ango, it would be be tucked between her legs. She can do this... its just one dinner. As she passed Renee, she made fleeting eye contact with an uncomfortable smile, "Hey."

Renee looked at Ash and shook her head. Hey? She resisted the urge to roll her eyes, telling herself that Ash was trying. "Hey, yourself," Renee said cordially. "Glad you came to dinner, I would have thought you'd still be hiding in your quarters eating rations, haven't seen you for meals in days," she poked at the bear.

"I've... been busy," Ash said. "Mila and I got the Munin up and running. T'Ango got to test fly it for us today..." Her eyes pleading for anyone else to take up the mantle of conversation.

T'Ango nodded, jumping in at her friend's clear need for a change of subject. "She's a dream to fly. Makes a nice agile little scout, though she needs a cloak and up-armored shields. Then if we convert a torpedo or two to sensor drones we could collect more data," she mused.

"More data..." Gunnar got the distinct feeling he was missing some of the story here. He looked at her, then at Ash. "More data from where? And why exactly would you need a cloak and better shields?"

Mila had sensed the awkwardness between Ash and Renée, and was glad that the topic had changed to Munin. "Oh, you know, we're hoping to turn her into a proper scout vessel. And since we are not using the temporal displacement drive, we can install better shields with the extra power that frees up. The galaxy is a dangerous place, plenty of people wanting to blow you up if you cross them."

Miles, meanwhile, had other things on his mind. He had just turned to Renée to ask her for today's menu, when he spotted the new Orion engineer at a table across the hall, on her own. With her short hair and dressed in a plain engineering overall, she certainly looked nothing like a stereotypical Orion girl - but she was just his type. Mila noticed his distraction, and smacked him on the back of the head. "Hey, fly guy. Pay attention." Then, she followed his gaze, and chuckled. "Oh. I see. Just go over and talk to her already, you big coward."

Ash wasn't going to get T'Ango into more trouble by revealing they had found and was nearly blown up by a Tal'Shiar ship found orbiting Hobus and having upgraded weaponry and sensors was prudent for that reason... nope. Taking the opportunityto change the subject yet again, "You're excused from dinner Miles, I'm not going to stand in the way of you and your girl.... or force the rest of us into watching you drool the entire dinner. Or should I do something to embarass you now?" Ash threatened with a smirk on her face.

Renee watched the exchange between Ash and the twins, seeing her relax for the first time all night. She's seen them interact before but it's always a bit jarring to see Ash Rogers turn into a complete softie with them. "Or Miles, I can send her a drink or a dessert in your name..." she said to Miles, "Because Ash would do something to embarrass you if you don't do something. She's not bluffing."

Ash smiled innocently at Miles as she took a sip of her water, punctuating Renee's point.

Gunnar had a sense his question was being avoided, but he'd ask T'Ango later in private. For the moment he felt that someone should take Miles' side and since he was the only other male at the table... "The lot of you are worse than any pack of guys in a locker room. Let the poor kid move at his own pace. Shove him out there because he's embarrassed not to go and you're practically setting him up for failure."

Miles looked around, and abruptly stood up. "I hate all of you," he said, as he went off in the direction of the girl. He seemed to speak to her for a moment, when she suddenly pointed at the chair opposite. Miles looked back at the group he had just left, shrugged, and pulled out the chair.

Mila grinned. "I knew he could do this. All he needed was to grow a pair."

Ash chuckled and looked over at Miles, giving him two thumbs up. "Have I sufficiently embarrassed the kid yet?"

Mila chuckled. "I'd say so, yes." She turned to Renée. "So, what's on the menu?"

Renee found herself fascinated by this side of Ash that she's never seen before... it wasn't until Mila asked her a question did she come out of her own thoughts, "Tonight for all of you, I have surf and turf: steaks and lobsters. It was impossible to get fresh lobsters out here, but you won't be able to tell they are replicated ones once I got done with them. But, in the interest of honesty, I thought I should let you know. I also have the option of a vegetarian lasagna for anyone that would prefer that as well."

Ash perked up, steak and lobster is her favorite. A part of her wanted to think this was Renee's way of extending an olive branch, but she can't let her mind go down that path. "I definitely can't say no to steak and lobster..." she said definitively. "But, before everyone orders... I'd like to propose a toast," Ash said raising a glass. This was somewhat out if character for the normally private former Section 31 operative, but seeing her old friends again warmed her usual cold dead heart. "I walked away from my life a couple of years ago and didn't look back... I would never have thought I'd be sitting at a table having a meal with all of you again. But here we are. I needed help and you answered the call..." she furrowed her brow trying to come up with the right words, regretting that she even started down this path. "Thank you..." she looked around the table, even briefly making eye contact with Renee. "To friendship..." she said tipping her glass and smiling at Mila and looking over at Miles flirting with the Orion, "And found family..."

She then sat down and took a deep breath, "Okay... I'm never doing that again...."

"You did fine," T'Ango assured putting a hand on Ash's shoulder. "We're happy you called. We were family when we served together, always there for each other ...even when there was some ruffled fur. So this..." she gestured around the table, "...is a family reunion, with some new members," she added, dipping her head toward Mila.

"I think that deserves another toast," Gable said, pushing her empty glass toward Gunnar. "Presuming you brought the booze you owe me."

"Of course," Arnason laughed and pulled a bottle of bloodwine from a satchel. "House Ozhpri 2309 - almost the last of the stash from Q'tIl."

Renee smiled at the group in front of her. For as much as it hurt that Ash left and as angry as she has been with her recently... T'Ango is right, they are all a family. They may have all gone their separate ways, but quite frankly, there's no other group of people she would reach out to if she was ever in trouble... and that even includes Ash. Damn frustratingly a pain in the ass Ash. As Ash was getting her glass refilled by Gunnar, Renee looked over at Mila, "Welcome to our little dysfunctional family, Mila.... I hope by the end of tonight we don't scare you and your brother off."

Mila smiled at Renee. "You'd have to try pretty hard for that." She looked around the table, and over at her brother, who was deep in conversation with his new friend, who seemed to cling to each of his words. He was doing well. She sat back and relaxed. Mila could not even remember the last time she had felt so happy.

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