The Commander's Mood

[Cmdr Ridire 0]

It’s been an hour and a half since Aidan got off duty for the evening. After returning to his quarters he had changed into some workout clothes and gone to the holodeck. He needed to work off some frustration and anxiousness and usually working out was enough to do that. However as he enters his quarters again he doesn't feel any less frustrated or anxious now than he did before. All working out did was make him sweaty. Fortunately there is a cure for that and perhaps the shower would do what the exercising didn't.

 

The sound of Deb’s voice draws his attention towards the couch where she’s sitting. He had also caught the sound of Rose’s voice so apparently Deb and her grandmother had been talking over the comm channels when Aidan entered. He finds Deb looking up at him. He tries a faint smile and then mouths that he was going to take a shower.

 

He walks over to the bedroom door and steps through. Undressing on his way to the bathroom he enters it and steps into the shower. Some time later he steps back into the bedroom with a towel wrapped around his waist. His intention is to get dressed and then see to supper. The shower had helped ease some of the tension from him, perhaps a quiet evening with his wife would take care of the rest. A few minutes later as he's finishing getting dressed he hears the door behind him slide open.

 

Her chats with her grandmother were few and far between so it pained Deb to even think about cutting one short. But she did hurry things on a bit once Aidan came home. She could tell something was wrong and it had nothing to do with the sweat he'd worked up during his workout. She entered their bedroom just as her husband finished dressing. "Hey," she called pleasantly, walking toward him. She slipped her arms around his neck and smiled. "What's new and exciting?"

 

He slips his arms around her tightly and tucks his head into the crux of her neck and shoulder. He closes his eyes and simply enjoys her presence for a long minute. Finally he brings his head back and murmurs "Nothing's new unless Grandma Rose had something?" He briefly wonders whether to tell her what was making him anxious with part of him not wanting to impugn upon a pleasant moment alone. He trails a hand up her side to gently caress her left cheek and neck. Deciding that she's not likely to give up on finding out what's bothering him, he murmurs "And I guess this current situation with the Ithaca is making me more than a little anxious on what might happen..on what we might be asked to do."

 

For a moment, she thought she might have misread the situation. Then he mentioned the Ithaca. "Everything is well with my grandparents," she replied softly, cuddling a bit closer to him. "So tell me, what's the newest problem with the Ithaca?"

 

He pulls her gently to a chair and sits down with her settled on his lap. He rests his head against her shoulder and sighs quietly. "Nothing new really. Just that the whole aging prematurely thing is...unsettling. And there's been some talk among the other bridge officers on the possibility of an away team to the Ithaca."

 

Deb listened carefully. He was trying not to alarm her but it was obvious he was concerned. "Do you mean they're talking about sending a team to the Ithaca? she asked, carefully controlling her tone of voice. She found it disconcerting that such a thing was under consideration. "Have they figured out how to do that without instantly aging the members of the away team?"

 

"Well, Mr. Knight thinks he has a solution to that...but he's not sure it will work. And he says it may not slow down the aging completely." He closes his eyes for a few seconds then murmurs "I know I try to not interfere with you doing your job....but if there is an away team I don't want you anywhere near it, darling. But I'm hoping there won't be an away team at all and would definitely make my opposition to it known to the Captain."

 

Debbie's heart sank.Once again, her husband's innate need to protect her was putting her between a rock and a hard place. She couldn't knowingly send a member of her team on a dangerous mission unless she herself was willing to face those same hazards. She remained silent for several moments trying to gather her thoughts before speaking. "I hope it doesn't come to that," she replied softly. "But if I'm not willing to go, I certainly couldn't order anyone else to."

 

He sighs quietly to himself, privately wishing he could do what he wanted. Quietly he murmurs "I'm not going to try and order you to stay if the situation arises nor would I do anything to keep you from doing what you want...but I think I have the right to make my wishes on the matter known. I'm hoping the situation doesn't arise at all....but if it does I think it's one of those things that should be strictly volunteer." He rests his head against her shoulder and closes his eyes. "What I want is as much time as possible with you."

 

What could she say? She wanted the same thing.....to grow old with her husband. And she preferred doing it the old fashioned way. Deb had no desire to age 25 or more years during a three hour away mission to a ship trapped inside a time altering bubble. She had to admit, the idea of sending personnel on such a mission was highly distasteful, especially when it might prove totally useless. As she understood it, they weren't sure the Ithaca's crew was still on the ship.

 

She held Aidan tightly, relieved he couldn't see the anxiety now obvious in her expression. "It sounds like a desperate idea," she said softly. "I'm not sure it would be worth the risk. Don't get me wrong, I want the best for that crew, but do we know for sure they're still anyone left on the Ithaca?" The image of her husband returning from a visit to the stranded ship suddenly flashed before her eyes.The image was more than distressing and Deb paused a moment to calm her nerves. She took a deep breath before continuing. "Anna said they've located two shuttles from Ithaca. They're also trapped. Are we to send our personnel onto those shuttles as well? Can we even retrieve the away teams once they've entered those bubbles?"

 

Deb pulled away slightly forcing her husband to look up at her. "Do you really think the Captain would send any of us on what amounts to a suicide mission?"

 

He tightens his arms around her as he feels the tenseness in her body. "Well it wouldn't be to look for the crew. It would be to retrieve the ships logs in order to see if there is any clue in there as to what the crew was intending. We're sure there's no one alive on the Ithaca. So an away team shouldn't have to be there long....but it still means they will experience some accelerated aging. And if they get trapped there..."

 

He frowns darkly then sighs again. "And the Captain has ordered a remotely controlled shuttle into the distortion to see if we can retrieve it. The transporters wouldn't work in all likelyhood. And several fighters should have been launched to investigate the minor distortions we've picked up."

 

He shakes his head slightly and murmurs "I suppose it's wrong of me to want to run away with you and disappear for a while."

 

His comment about running away quickly turned Deb's frown into a mischievous smile. "Sounds like a plan," she chuckled. "How soon do you think we can sneak away. And do you suppose anyone would miss us?"

 

He smiles despite where his mood was up to that point. "I'm afraid they'd miss us way too soon. Plus there's nowhere we can go without having to abscond with a runabout which they'd notice. Besides, if we run away and disappear then I'm afraid I'd more than likely find myself preferring that it remain permanent." He kisses her cheek then purrs "But perhaps we should see to a quiet night to ourselves as soon as we can? Maybe use the holodeck...or see to that spa of yours?"

 

"Of course it would be permanent," laughed Deb. "They wouldn't want us back after we went AWOL" She pulled away from him and stood up then took both his hands and tugged him to his feet. "I like the idea of a quiet evening," she added with a twinkle in her eye. In the scheme of things, that's all they really had....the here and now. Who knew if there would be a future. "But let's try out that spa. I'd prefer to steer clear of the holodecks. Somebody got hurt in the one on deck 7. It was probably their fault but I'd just as soon let engineering inspect them all before venturing into one."

 

He briefly considers asking her to elaborate on what might be wrong with the holodecks but decides that was something that can wait until later. He squeezes her hands gently and murmurs "As you wish. And thank you for helping the mood I was in..." He pulls her into a tight hug and presses a gentle kiss to her cheek.

 

Deb offered him a warm smile. "That's why I'm here," she whispered. "Now let's get on with our evening before something happens and that comm calls you away."