text ► un: girl on top

[unas]

( if you'd have taken a bet as to which starfleet officer ended up in the brig first you wouldn't have come out with this one. the fact that she's now back in the brig-- she's starting to really hate superstition )

Anyone that's allowed on deck want to tell me which direction the ship's pointing? Or what you see up there?
I'll even trade a story, something from your home for one of mine.

( she'd even take a story about the things that people have seen here but she's info seeking, find out where people are from, maybe when... she can't help the pirates but she can still be busy.

you could also potentially assume that she's a little bored )

Comments

[winscenario]

[ She looks exceedingly calm, and not the least bit surprised by what's happened. It only puzzles him further, and when she says her fever's gone, he reaches out to touch the back of his fingers to her forehead. ]

... you're right. It is.

[ Eyebrows knitting together, he's quiet for a few seconds, trying to piece all of this together, make sense of it. ]

What was that?

[unas]

( there's a pause, a clear hesitation before she speaks. she'd tried to dodge five's questions entirely but that hadn't worked and she doubts this captain would let her dodge too much either, not for nosiness but in making sure she really was okay )

My body doing what it's supposed to do.

( admitting it to m'benga and chapel had been hard and risky, pike had been necessary. but kirk doesn't know her and even though he's not from her world... it's complicated. she doesn't know the status of her people in his world, though she assumes it's the same.

it leaves her on a fence. what's worse, admitting to being illyrian or just admitting to being augmented? neither is easy )

My immune system burns out infections and disease. But in the cage it couldn't. There's a barrier around it.

( which she'd learned her first time there )

[winscenario]

[ Well, it certainly looks like she's used to it, like it's perfectly normal for her, which in turn calms him down considerably. So there's nothing wrong with her, nor is there anything going on here that's changing anything in her in any way.

It is a relief, even if it may leave him with even more questions than before. But at least now, the questions are much easier to narrow down to one conclusion. The only one that makes sense to him. ]

So you're not Human.

[ Not that it even matters, or that she was obligated to tell him in the first place, of course. ]

[unas]

No, I'm not.

( she could leave it there, he hasn't asked for anything else but now that the truth is semi out there she can't do a half-truth. which is a little funny considering the sheer lies she's lived since attending the academy.

but it's about trust. they're from different universes and he's not her captain but in this situation they need some working trust to be able to help each other. and trust comes with truth )

I'm an Illyrian.

[winscenario]

[ She could leave it there, and he would ask no further. It's who she is, and it's her choice who she shares that with. Even if he can't immediately think of a reason why she would keep it to herself, especially with another Starfleet officer, she's well within her right to not want to tell him any more.

But he appreciates that she does offer more information. Even if it takes him a few seconds to even process what she's just said. ]

... wow.

[ That's... all she's getting for a moment there. Then his expression opens into a relieved grin, and he chuckles. ]

Damn. Must've broken a whole lot of rules to get to where you are.

[ For some reason, this seems to please Jim immensely. ]

[unas]

( she now sits up slightly but that's mostly because she's confused about his reaction. he's approving of what she did when he doesn't know her?

granted, una would love many more reactions like that or even really for her to not have had to do it. but amongst all of her fears of being discovered it really is jarring )

Dozens of them. It was the only way to join.

( she might be proud of being illyrian but she's not proud of the lies )

[winscenario]

[ It was the only way to join. That alone pretty much encapsulates why Jim approves of what she's done. She caused no harm to anyone, and it's certainly not her or her species' fault that Humans long ago messed with genetics and accidentally created what was essentially a new species of despotic megalomaniacs. ]

Well— good on you. I know it's not what you expected, but you've got my respect, for what it's worth.

[ And his admiration apparently. He may as well have little stars in his eyes right now as he looks at her. ]

Any other cool stuff you can do?

[unas]

( it really isn't what she expected and una's quiet for a moment, trying to absorb his reaction, to accept it against everything she'd expected. maybe there are more people that feel this way, those she'd so far told did... but it never allays the fear.

which is why it takes her a moment longer to respond and then when she does it's more of a joke. she's not going to tell him everything but she'll give him one more )

That depends if you want to arm wrestle.

[winscenario]

[ Jim chuckles softly, shaking his head. ]

Something tells me I probably shouldn't risk it.

[ Amusement mostly, but also curiosity, coupled with the fact that Jim's never been one to back down from a challenge. ]

Raincheck on it?

[unas]

( she'd joke that he was scared if she a) was that way inclined and b) felt better about having her 'talents' known )

Raincheck.

( a small smile that's polite more than anything. and then she realises something-- )

Spock doesn't know. ( and spock is here )

[winscenario]

[ For the better that she doesn't, because if she did then he would take it as a challenge.

He smiles a little at her, then nods at her admission. ]

You don't have to worry on my end. He won't learn it from me.

[ Even if he was the Spock he knows and is close to, he still wouldn't break the trust she's put in him by confiding something so personal. ]

[unas]

( she nods a silent thanks. and she might be making a mental note to get around to telling him just in case this place did it first since the rules were different.

pike knew, la'an knew, chapel and m'benga knew. spock... was a friend, someone she had a good understanding with about freaky. she'd get around to it.

maybe )

I suppose if you've got any questions--

( it's his one opportunity to ask them )

[winscenario]

I probably will have questions. If you don't mind me asking them later, as they come up.

[ Hard to think of them all on the spot, though one comes to mind, even if it's not necessarily related with her species. ]

Do you ever get to go back home?

[unas]

I haven't since I left.

( she was a human from an illyrian colony, that had been the story, meaning that there were other humans also living within the colony. that part was truth at least, there were humans there. but going back...

something about it had felt safer to never do even if it may have been fine. but everything felt a risk, everything could potentially end badly. there'd been some messages sent, never enough, never video conversations, but enough for them to know how she was. and never any details on either side.

it protected her, she told herself, and them. even if it hurt her heart a lot )

But I don't tend to do shore leave. I prefer being busy.

[winscenario]

Must be lonely.

[ It's all that comes to mind. Jim doesn't often go back to Iowa, granted, nor does he see family often, but he knows he can whenever he wants to, whenever he has the time. He hasn't cut off relations, neither by need nor by desire. And besides, he is still surrounded by people of his own species, and his own world. There is a lot of inclusion and understanding between species in Starfleet, especially on his crew as he makes sure of that, but knows there are things that can't be translated across worlds, across cultures, so easily. ]

What, never? You're exaggerating, I have to assume.

[unas]

( she pushes herself up, deciding to maybe continue this chat sitting up )

It depends on the leave.

( shore leave on a planet she was more likely to take, she could walk, find somewhere to climb, to really clear her head and find a moment of peace that was rare in its need.

but she didn't take that many of them. on a starbase? the enterprise getting some repairs? she kept busy, unless it was a lengthier break.

and sometimes even then she took a job )

[winscenario]

Okay, so it's not like you never take shore leave.

[ He absolutely gets still looking to keep busy, though, especially in those same contexts. He might even be worse than her at times, but his friends have their own strategies to get him to go out and do things, enjoy his time off while he can.

Now that she's sitting up, he reaches for a canteen with water, passing it over to her as he sits beside her. ]

What's a shore leave you've really enjoyed? Something you liked doing?

[unas]

I don't think you're going to get the answer you're looking for.

( unless the answer was just getting to know her better and then he would.

but una tended to spend the leaves she did do alone -- it was peace she looked for and getting to hike or climb in quiet company was nice. she had some friends on earth, people from a posting previously that she'd managed to keep in touch with but she didn't look for the company. she was on a busy ship every day, when she was alone that's what she wanted )

I go climbing. I've tried a few different spots across Earth.

[winscenario]

[ Getting to know her better is exactly the point of his question, so whatever the answer will be a good one.

But it's definitely an added delight when she answers, a bright smile stretching across his lips, chuckling in surprise. ]

No way! I love climbing. Personally I like to go offline and camp too, add to that adventure. Just disappear for a few days. I always try to make time for that when I go back to Earth.

[unas]

I've camped a couple of times though usually it's just the climb and the day.

( she does enough camping on some of their landing parties even if it was far from the same experience )

Do you have a favourite?

[winscenario]

Guess I've done that a couple times too, but I like the camping. I drag Spock and Bones along with me sometimes.

[ More than just sometimes, actually, but they do enjoy it. For all that Spock struggles with the concept of campfire songs (or pretends to, just to be an insufferable little shit). ]

Yosemite will always be a favorite of mine. Plenty of spots to choose from, lots of variety in terms of surface, height, inclination and difficulty. But Kalymnos and Dolomites are pretty nice too, and it's always a nice change in scenery.

[unas]

Anything's different compared to a ship. And it's nice really seeing the stars.

( you didn't truly see them during travel, them just whizzing by. sometimes it was nice to take that moment, the reminder of how she'd gotten here: by looking at the stars )

[winscenario]

It really is. They just don't look the same from a ship.

[ Even when they're stationary. Plus, it's not like Jim has a lot of free time during those periods to just sit and admire what's outside. ]

We had some wonderful clear skies, back in Iowa. That's where I'm from. Not a lot of exciting climbing spots, though.

[unas]

I've never been.

( and not because of the lack of climbing. really, even in her academy days, una hadn't explored earth that much. her early days were very contained and since she'd only done what she'd needed on the planet, gone where had been useful )

Do you still call it home? Iowa?

[winscenario]

Oh, no. Absolutely not.

[ It's said with a smile, small but not the least bit sad. He has a home, he was lucky enough to find it after leaving Iowa, but it's not like he's ever felt like he's lost much when he left that behind. ]

I don't think I've ever called it home. Not really.