Athena Mission 2.6: Gender Bender

[Constance Lafayette]

[Captain's Log]
"It has been 2 days since we arrived on planet Philo. The androgynous Philosians contacted one of our ships and requested that we sit down to talk with them about adding this lush tropical world to the Federation, at least as trading partners. We've spent a day in orbit and another shuttling away teams down to the surface. The Philosians manage a major trading hub near the gate to the Gamma Quadrant so it is doubly important that they be appeased. I have just beamed down with a large complement of the crew- the Philosians wanted to invite us to a tradational ceremony known as Á¢â,¬ËœThe Ritual of the Changing Tide'. I will be honest I haven't the foggiest idea what this ceremony is all about but I won't be the one to get between my crew and some shore leave time on a tropical paradise. As for me- I am attending strictly out of professional obligation. I have TT-18 reports I would rather be reading...

Lafayette out."

[Philo- Bay of the Tides]

The Philosians gathered along the crescent shaped bay as the shuttles from the Athena landed- turquoise waters reflecting dancing light off the underhull of the ships. Their guests were slender, hairless, androgynous, humanoids with frond-like tentacles atop their head and long ears. Constance thought they were pretty... or maybe handsome... in an artistic, youthful, sort of way. There didn't seem to be any way to tell their age or gender as they all wore sarongs that covers their chest to their legs. Even then, there was no sign of a swelling in the chest or other physiological way of distinguishing between the genders and that lead Constance to wonder if they even had such a thing. When their words were translated to English they used the female pronouns but occasionally it slipped to masculin. She had asked the communications officer about it and they said they didn't have gendered pronouns as it was messing with the system a bit.

Constance stepped out, wearing her stiff-necked formal Admiral's uniform despite the balmy temperature and sand. Her formal dress shoes crunched over the sand as she made her way towards the small grass hut that they had made for the ceremony. They had great cities elsewhere on the planet but this area seemed to have been left to nature- like many of the islands that dotted the equatorial region. She was beginning to regret wearing such a stuffy uniform to a gathering of such relaxed people but it was more for her benefit- not theirs.

The Philosians gathered, watching them, and calling out for them to come join them around the hut. The smells of sweet and spicy fish hit the crew from the Athena- it looked more like a barbeque than a formal ceremony.

OOC Note: Please read the OOC topic for an important message regarding this mission.

[Katheryn Brighton]

[Athena - Gymnasium]

Now that the date for their wedding had been set and plans made for their engagement party Katheryn had decided to hit the gym before they were due to visit the planet below with the Admiral and was looking to meeting the Philosians after hearing so much about them from members of her team that had already been to the surface. She always enjoyed maintaining her fitness regime especially the martial arts that she had learned back in her Academy days but since meeting Caleb those workouts had been much more enjoyable even more so with him encouraging her to take up boxing.

She smiled at the memory of their last workout that had resulted in a play fight and despite his denial was convinced he had let her win on purpose. She wasn't sure if he would be joining her this time but had left a note telling him where she was if he did.

Walking into the gym she set her bag down on one of the benches and took out the Walkman that Caleb had given her along with an old fashioned tape of him singing some of their favourite songs and got onto the treadmill closest to her in order to warm up. However before she could start a familiar scent hit her senses and she smiled as his strong arms wrapped around her waist and knew he couldn't of resisted the opportunity for them to spend some time together.

[Philo - Bay of the Tides]

Once they were showered and changed into their dress uniforms the pair had joined the others in one of the shuttles and for Katheryn she felt a sense of excitement at visiting an alien planet and the prospect of learning more about their rituals and culture. Even wearing her Starfleet whites couldn't deter her enthusiasm as the shuttle landed and she exited the craft. Mesmerised by what she saw and the smells of whatever they were cooking tantalised her taste buds as she waited for her beloved to join her so they could walk to the ceremony.

[D'Vid]

[Captain's Log]
"It has been 2 days since we arrived on planet Philo. The androgynous Philosians contacted one of our ships and requested that we sit down to talk with them about adding this lush tropical world to the Federation, at least as trading partners. We've spent a day in orbit and another shuttling away teams down to the surface. The Philosians manage a major trading hub near the gate to the Gamma Quadrant so it is doubly important that they be appeased. I have just beamed down with a large complement of the crew- the Philosians wanted to invite us to a tradational ceremony known as Á¢â,¬ËœThe Ritual of the Changing Tide'. I will be honest I haven't the foggiest idea what this ceremony is all about but I won't be the one to get between my crew and some shore leave time on a tropical paradise. As for me- I am attending strictly out of professional obligation. I have TT-18 reports I would rather be reading...

Lafayette out."

[Philo- Bay of the Tides]

The Philosians gathered along the crescent shaped bay as the shuttles from the Athena landed- turquoise waters reflecting dancing light off the underhull of the ships. Their guests were slender, hairless, androgynous, humanoids with frond-like tentacles atop their head and long ears. Constance thought they were pretty... or maybe handsome... in an artistic, youthful, sort of way. There didn't seem to be any way to tell their age or gender as they all wore sarongs that covers their chest to their legs. Even then, there was no sign of a swelling in the chest or other physiological way of distinguishing between the genders and that lead Constance to wonder if they even had such a thing. When their words were translated to English they used the female pronouns but occasionally it slipped to masculin. She had asked the communications officer about it and they said they didn't have gendered pronouns as it was messing with the system a bit.

Constance stepped out, wearing her stiff-necked formal Admiral's uniform despite the balmy temperature and sand. Her formal dress shoes crunched over the sand as she made her way towards the small grass hut that they had made for the ceremony. They had great cities elsewhere on the planet but this area seemed to have been left to nature- like many of the islands that dotted the equatorial region. She was beginning to regret wearing such a stuffy uniform to a gathering of such relaxed people but it was more for her benefit- not theirs.

The Philosians gathered, watching them, and calling out for them to come join them around the hut. The smells of sweet and spicy fish hit the crew from the Athena- it looked more like a barbeque than a formal ceremony.

OOC Note: Please read the OOC topic for an important message regarding this mission.

[Philo - Bay of Fish]

Call it a bait caller for the El-Aurian who was a nature lover. Add fish. You got his interest. The one thing he hated was the formal starch diplomatic uninform. The tailors had to be out of the mind.

The huts, the waters and the fish. The fish. He was looking for to dine on fish. His mouth was getting watery from thinking. The smell was not helping either. Maybe he might be able to fish later.

[Caleb Brighton]

[Athena - Gymnasium]

Now that the date for their wedding had been set and plans made for their engagement party Katheryn had decided to hit the gym before they were due to visit the planet below with the Admiral and was looking to meeting the Philosians after hearing so much about them from members of her team that had already been to the surface. She always enjoyed maintaining her fitness regime especially the martial arts that she had learned back in her Academy days but since meeting Caleb those workouts had been much more enjoyable even more so with him encouraging her to take up boxing.

She smiled at the memory of their last workout that had resulted in a play fight and despite his denial was convinced he had let her win on purpose. She wasn't sure if he would be joining her this time but had left a note telling him where she was if he did.

Walking into the gym she set her bag down on one of the benches and took out the Walkman that Caleb had given her along with an old fashioned tape of him singing some of their favourite songs and got onto the treadmill closest to her in order to warm up. However before she could start a familiar scent hit her senses and she smiled as his strong arms wrapped around her waist and knew he couldn't of resisted the opportunity for them to spend some time together.

[Philo - Bay of the Tides]

Once they were showered and changed into their dress uniforms the pair had joined the others in one of the shuttles and for Katheryn she felt a sense of excitement at visiting an alien planet and the prospect of learning more about their rituals and culture. Even wearing her Starfleet whites couldn't deter her enthusiasm as the shuttle landed and she exited the craft. Mesmerised by what she saw and the smells of whatever they were cooking tantalised her taste buds as she waited for her beloved to join her so they could walk to the ceremony.

[Philo - Bay of the Tides]

Caleb smiled as he walked over to grab Katheryn's hand. The ride down was lovely and so was their time at the gym. The ceremony sounded wonderful and he was glad that Katheryn thought so as well. The culture was so different when he first heard about the species. It was times like those, he could look back on the jungle times in fondness.

"I can't wait to experience the culture here. That's one thing I do miss about Ben. I learned you have to experience as much as you can when the opportunity presents itself," Caleb said. The sights and smells were something of a marvel. It was times like those that reminded him of why he joined Star Fleet in the first place. Being with his beloved made it all the more special to him. This also reminded him of the trip with the Voon. He had a feeling this trip would make Katheryn and him closer.

[Katheryn Brighton]

[Philo - Bay of the Tides]

Caleb smiled as he walked over to grab Katheryn's hand. The ride down was lovely and so was their time at the gym. The ceremony sounded wonderful and he was glad that Katheryn thought so as well. The culture was so different when he first heard about the species. It was times like those, he could look back on the jungle times in fondness.

"I can't wait to experience the culture here. That's one thing I do miss about Ben. I learned you have to experience as much as you can when the opportunity presents itself," Caleb said. The sights and smells were something of a marvel. It was times like those that reminded him of why he joined Star Fleet in the first place. Being with his beloved made it all the more special to him. This also reminded him of the trip with the Voon. He had a feeling this trip would make Katheryn and him closer.

[Bay of the Tides]

Whenever Caleb held her hand she always enjoyed the closeness that they shared and this time was no different smiling at him when she felt the familiar warmth of his hand around hers. Listening as he reminisced about the jungle time and Ben and again it was something she could never tire of.

" I feel the same way my love I'm looking forward to experiencing everything about it to and your right as usual with that as its something I've learned to appreciate and take advantage of ever since our time in the jungle holodeck" she replied with a slight playful nudge knowing she didn't have to go into detail as they continued walking.

[James Carter]

[Personal Quarters - Five Hours Earlier]

The alarm on James's bedside table softly rang out. Slowly, the first officer slunked out of the bed and muted the alarm. The lights slowly faded on and the officer made his way over to the dresser. It was another regular day, or at least it was as regular as they came. He went through his normal morning routine. Brushed his teeth, took a shower, grabbed his watch and then sat at his desk to look at his daily schedule. It was completely mundane, a meeting, a review of schedules, then he had to head down to the planet to do things he didn't want to do. How wonderful.

[XO's Office - Three Hours Earlier]

Carter sat in his otherwise empty office looking at the garment bag sitting on a chair by his door. He'd met with a Cadet and promptly told them everything they needed to do to improve and then reviewed all of the duty schedules. All that was left in his day was changing into his dress uniform and leaving for Philo.

[Corridor - 2 Hours Earlier]

As James went to leave for the transporter room but stopped when he noticed a familiar face walking towards his office. "Sparks? What's going on?" He asked the woman in front of him.

Tessa stopped a moment, a small smile appearing on her face. "Dress attire? You must be headed to Philo with the captain then?"

"I am. You're on duty in the armory correct?" Carter pressed, still trying to place why she was there.

"I...uh, yes I am. I was headed there now actually. Just wanted to grab you for lunch if you had a minute, but I see you don't. Catch me when you're back on board." The young woman replied anxiously before she started to walk away.

"Everything okay Tessa?" James asked, his gaze turning to watch her leave.

"Uh...yeah. Everything's fine. I'll see you soon, okay?" The woman asked as she paused to look at him again. James silently nodded to acknowledge that he understood her and then watched her disappear down the hallway.

[1.5 Hours Earlier - Transporter Room]

Carter was disturbingly early. No one had beat him there, not even the officer who would be running the station. Now he had to wait.

[Present - Philo - Bay of the Tides]

It was uncomfortably warm, a fact which was only amplified by the fact that he had to wear a dress uniform, which by itself was uncomfortably warm. The small group that came with them were all off doing various things in preparation for the actually meeting itself. The exception was, surprisingly the captain. Immediately he moved over to her side and shook his head. "Well? What do you make of the situation?" Carter asked quietly.

[Leonard T. Scott]

[Personal Quarters - Four Hours Earlier]

Leo was still distracted from previous events. Cat was the only one that really knew what was up. There were a few times it interfered with his duties, but he was powering through the best he could. He had the list of available pilots and they were in their set rotation to get the needed personnel down to Philo.

Cat was in the room and would be on the shuttle he was piloting. She watched him pace around the room as she sat on the bed, chin resting on her knees. Only her eyes moved back and forth like an old fashioned cat clock.

"I'm pretty sure you could power the shuttle all on your own. No engine needed." She joked with him, hoping to ease his mind a bit.

Leo laughed at the joke.

"I'll either power the bloody thing or get us there quicker by running a hole through the hull," he answered with a smile, "right?"

"I'll be sure to pack my environmental suit. Why don't you sit down a spell? I'm getting tired just watching you." With a bit of of a wiggle, she shifted over and patted the bed beside her.

He walked over at the invitation. Cat smiled up at him. For once, her hair was up in a messy bun and the star tattoo on the nape of her neck was visible. He sat down and laid back with his hands under his head.

"Ya know, Aiden would have loved to meet you. He was a bit like me," he trailed off at the end. "Anyways, we should get down to the shuttlebay. We wouldn't want the paperwork that comes with keeping the admiral waiting, now do we?"

Cat playfully pushed him back to the bed, when he tried to rise. "Some things are worth a little extra paperwork." With a saucy wink, she gave him several little kisses all over his face.

He grabbed her face before she could get one last one in and kissed her before getting up and pulling her up with him. She protested minimally and allowed him to help her to her feet.

"Alright alright, I'm up. Let's get to work." She contemplated flopping back on the bed, but truthfully, she didn't really want to deal with the paperwork. Cat straightened her clean but slightly rumpled uniform and looked for the boots she had kicked off before sitting in the bed.

[Constance Lafayette]

[Philo- Bay of the Tides]
Constance gave James her normal flat, academic, analytic, look and simply said, "Temperature is acceptable. Biological scans didn't note anything harmful and I'd place our chances of successful negotiation within the first standard deviation from the norm. So... I like it."
The last bit seemed tacked on, like she was admitting something personal after all that jargon. If she was being honest with herself- it reminded her a bit of home. She'd grown up in San Francisco and it reminded her a bit of some of the family trips to the beach.

She looked him up and down, appraisingly,
"Mr. Carter- I never thought I'd see the day that a salty pirate like you wore a formal Starfleet dress uniform."
She paused, approvingly, "That having been said- it suits you."

With that she took a few steps forward and was greeted by the leader of the gathering. He wore a thin, intricately woven, circlet of several stands of bluish metal. She extended a hand in greeting but he grasped it, pulled her close and thumped her on the back in a hearty embrace.
"Welcome! Ad-ee-mah-rial!" The Philosian leader said, enunciating the word distinctly that was strange to him. They had a slightly higher pitch to their voice than humans, almost like they were children, but there was genuine joy and excitement in it. The philosians were as tall as humans and, as Constance was rather short, she ended up burying her face in his chest during the embrace. When he had let go she nervously fixed her hair. One she had collected herself she smiled, formally, and replied,

"Thank you for inviting us to your ceremony. Our crew gets so little chance for shore leave that I'm sure they are all rather excited to take in your beautiful planet." She added, giving a slight look over her shoulder at her crew. Some had shown up with swimsuits or casual wear on. She hadn't told them they couldn't so she just wrote it off as a lost cause. They needed to blow off steam.

"Wonderful! They can partake as much as they want! We've got surf, sand, grilled flick'mon'ja'ka, and some wonderful u'lok'jivx you just have to try ad-ee-mah-rial! It's much stronger than that bottle of saurian brandy you sent us and much sweeter!"

Constance looked to James, her face hopeful, "I understand the Commander here is a connoisseur of alcoholic beverages. Perhaps he'd like to try as well."

If she was going to have to stomach weird alien food- so was he. Call it "privileges of command". She was roughly patted on the back again, causing her to almost lurch,
"There's enough for everybody! We'll drink until we are seeing spots and the tide runs out!"
The leader said and laughed good-naturedly in his child-like voice.

[Catrin Maddux]

[Philo- Bay of the Tides]

Cat lingered behind the others, distastefully tugging at the collar of her dress uniform. The temperature was far too sticky and tropical for her liking, and being all fancied up in layers of uniform was oppressive. The water looked cool and inviting as she looked on it, longingly.

"I'm pretty sure this is made out of godsblasted wool. I'm gonna wilt." She stuck her tongue out expressively at Leo, miming her impending wiltiness. A sharp tug almost dislodged a pip.

"Oh you," Leo replied with a wink. "We'll be inside sooner or later. Besides, diplomacy is foremost on our agenda. Minor discomforts are expected, ya know."

"Oi, I'll minor discomfort you, Flyboy. I'm a delicate feminine flower, not a hot house pansy." Cat sighed, it was hard to be diplomatic when you felt like a wrung out dishrag. "At least there'll be something to drink."

"Easy there, Starfire," he giggled back. "Let's get something to drink. The food doesn't look too bad either."

His stomach was reminding him that he skipped breakfast. On the table just inside, one side dish was making a break for it, reminiscent of gagh, albeit brightly neon rainbow colored.

"I think it's trying to colonize the platter of lime green devilled eggs. Interesting hors d'oeuvres." Cat mused thoughtfully, considering how much he had enjoyed the wriggling wormy Klingon food. She took a goblet of something hot pink that she assumed was alcohol based in nature. Or hoped rather fervently.

[Caleb Brighton]

[ Philo - Bay Of The Tides]

Caleb and Katheryn were enjoying their time together. Seeing as the both of them were used to much more hot and humid climates thanks to Caleb's holodeck programs, they found enjoyment so far on the trip. Though they did get time together when not on duty, it was nice they actually got to be together on a shore trip while on duty.

The two were enjoying socializing with the locals. There were some stories exchanged and many laughs that were had. One of the locals suggested they try some of the local fare. Caleb of course obliged and challenged Katheryn to try as well.

Caleb then spotted Leo and Catrin from a distance."What do you say we go over and say hello. I've already introduced you to Jenna, but not Catrin yet," Caleb said. He was glad that Katheryn agreed. They excused themselves for the moment thanking their hosts for thaw wonderful conversation. Caleb gave a small kiss to Katheryn before they headed over to enjoy more of the local fare.

Caleb waited for a lull in Catrin's conversation before speaking. "Hey there Catnip," He began. "Glad to see you came along for this. I am amazed already by what I see. There is someone I would like you to meet. Catrin this is my fiancé Katheryn. Katheryn this is my good academy friend Catrin who I share the medical department with."

[Catrin Maddux]

[ Philo - Bay Of The Tides]

Caleb waited for a lull in Catrin's conversation before speaking. "Hey there Catnip," He began. "Glad to see you came along for this. I am amazed already by what I see. There is someone I would like you to meet. Catrin this is my fiancé Katheryn. Katheryn this is my good academy friend Catrin who I share the medical department with."

[Philo - Bay of the Tides]

Cat looked up from the plate she held. Instead of eating she was letting several of the rainbow worms race for a choice bit of royal blue lettuce and lime green egg.

"Oh hey there, Knives." She looked slightly flushed, but whether it was the exotic wine or the embarrassment of being caught playing with the 'food', was anyone's guess. She set the plate down after nudging the prize to all the worms. They could all be winners.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Katheryn. Caleb has told me about you, but schedules haven't been accommodating for a meeting until now." Being a hugger, Cat walked over and embraced the other woman. The love the couple had for each other was obvious, and she couldn't help but approve, with her best friend so happy. Pulling back slightly, she gestured to her own companion.

"And I'm sure the both of you already know the handsome and illustrious Leo Scott." The man in question froze with a slice of something that looked like pizza (but probably didn't taste like it) half way to his mouth.

[James Carter]

[Bay of the Tides]

James smiled as the captain spoke to him and offered a small laugh when she told him that the uniform 'suited' him. "Connoisseur is a weak word Cap." Carter joked taking the drink from one of the Philosian's. He raised the glass to look at the drink for a second, shrugged, and then threw back a drink. It wasn't what he was use to. That much was certain. It definitely wasn't smooth like his drink of choice; whisky. But it wasn't bad either. All he knew was, it was a stronger alcohol. "I think this may just be the first time I've ever drank while also being on duty."

[Katheryn Brighton]

[ Philo - Bay Of The Tides]

Caleb and Katheryn were enjoying their time together. Seeing as the both of them were used to much more hot and humid climates thanks to Caleb's holodeck programs, they found enjoyment so far on the trip. Though they did get time together when not on duty, it was nice they actually got to be together on a shore trip while on duty.

The two were enjoying socializing with the locals. There were some stories exchanged and many laughs that were had. One of the locals suggested they try some of the local fare. Caleb of course obliged and challenged Katheryn to try as well.

Caleb then spotted Leo and Catrin from a distance."What do you say we go over and say hello. I've already introduced you to Jenna, but not Catrin yet," Caleb said. He was glad that Katheryn agreed. They excused themselves for the moment thanking their hosts for thaw wonderful conversation. Caleb gave a small kiss to Katheryn before they headed over to enjoy more of the local fare.

Caleb waited for a lull in Catrin's conversation before speaking. "Hey there Catnip," He began. "Glad to see you came along for this. I am amazed already by what I see. There is someone I would like you to meet. Catrin this is my fiancé Katheryn. Katheryn this is my good academy friend Catrin who I share the medical department with."

[Philo - Bay of the Tides]

Cat looked up from the plate she held. Instead of eating she was letting several of the rainbow worms race for a choice bit of royal blue lettuce and lime green egg.

"Oh hey there, Knives." She looked slightly flushed, but whether it was the exotic wine or the embarrassment of being caught playing with the 'food', was anyone's guess. She set the plate down after nudging the prize to all the worms. They could all be winners.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Katheryn. Caleb has told me about you, but schedules haven't been accommodating for a meeting until now." Being a hugger, Cat walked over and embraced the other woman. The love the couple had for each other was obvious, and she couldn't help but approve, with her best friend so happy. Pulling back slightly, she gestured to her own companion.

"And I'm sure the both of you already know the handsome and illustrious Leo Scott." The man in question froze with a slice of something that looked like pizza (but probably didn't taste like it) half way to his mouth.

[Bay of the Tides]

Katheryn had been enjoying meeting and speaking to the Philosians sharing stories and all the while happy that she got to share this experience with Caleb as it didn't happen very often and would always treasure the memories they made ever since their time in the jungle holodeck and the other programmes that they took part in.

When he challenged her to try some of the local food she accepted straightaway and had never experienced anything like it but wasn't one to turn down something new and enjoyed what she had tried. Afterwards he asked if she would like to meet Catrin and there was no hesitation in her agreeing to do so as they so far hadn't had chance to speak to one another and she knew how important she was to her better half.  Plus she was looking forward to getting to know her just like she had after speaking to Jenna and even though she was a little nervous at the prospect the small kiss she received from Caleb before they went over alleviated those nerves.

Once the introductions had been made she felt a lot happier especially when Catrin walked over and hugged her and smiled as she answered her. " It's good to finally be able to meet you to Catrin" she replied as Catrin pulled back slightly and gestured towards Leo. She remembered the flight control officer straightaway as he had been one of the first people she had spoken to when she first came aboard the Athena. " I do and hello again Leo ".

[D'Vid]

[Philo- Bay of the Tides]
Constance gave James her normal flat, academic, analytic, look and simply said, "Temperature is acceptable. Biological scans didn't note anything harmful and I'd place our chances of successful negotiation within the first standard deviation from the norm. So... I like it."
The last bit seemed tacked on, like she was admitting something personal after all that jargon. If she was being honest with herself- it reminded her a bit of home. She'd grown up in San Francisco and it reminded her a bit of some of the family trips to the beach.

She looked him up and down, appraisingly,
"Mr. Carter- I never thought I'd see the day that a salty pirate like you wore a formal Starfleet dress uniform."
She paused, approvingly, "That having been said- it suits you."

With that she took a few steps forward and was greeted by the leader of the gathering. He wore a thin, intricately woven, circlet of several stands of bluish metal. She extended a hand in greeting but he grasped it, pulled her close and thumped her on the back in a hearty embrace.
"Welcome! Ad-ee-mah-rial!" The Philosian leader said, enunciating the word distinctly that was strange to him. They had a slightly higher pitch to their voice than humans, almost like they were children, but there was genuine joy and excitement in it. The philosians were as tall as humans and, as Constance was rather short, she ended up burying her face in his chest during the embrace. When he had let go she nervously fixed her hair. One she had collected herself she smiled, formally, and replied,

"Thank you for inviting us to your ceremony. Our crew gets so little chance for shore leave that I'm sure they are all rather excited to take in your beautiful planet." She added, giving a slight look over her shoulder at her crew. Some had shown up with swimsuits or casual wear on. She hadn't told them they couldn't so she just wrote it off as a lost cause. They needed to blow off steam.

"Wonderful! They can partake as much as they want! We've got surf, sand, grilled flick'mon'ja'ka, and some wonderful u'lok'jivx you just have to try ad-ee-mah-rial! It's much stronger than that bottle of saurian brandy you sent us and much sweeter!"

Constance looked to James, her face hopeful, "I understand the Commander here is a connoisseur of alcoholic beverages. Perhaps he'd like to try as well."

If she was going to have to stomach weird alien food- so was he. Call it "privileges of command". She was roughly patted on the back again, causing her to almost lurch,
"There's enough for everybody! We'll drink until we are seeing spots and the tide runs out!"
The leader said and laughed good-naturedly in his child-like voice.

[Bay of tides]

D'Vid gave a short giggle as he saw the Captain was buried in the Philosian diplomatic. It was rather amusing to his perception.

The El-Aurian saw other crew members in bathing and shore leave clothing. He was a wee jealous cause he accepted this side of the mission to join the Captain. However, he had decided to tag along and listen.

[Tavana]

"Tens of thousands of light years for the alpha quadrant, and I'm look at water."  Tavana thought stand with hands behind her back in her dress whites.  She put her hair up in a tight bun, instead of her normal ponytail.  She didn't know why maybe live with the human for the past.

"Several years of living with them is starting to rubbed off on me." She thought.   She'd became use to the uniform now as she thought about it.  The language too, "Rubbed off" they was a humans term. She never would have thought such thing as before.  But the thought didn't worry not really it was comfortable in some ways.  But right now she give anything to back on the ship.   As interesting as these aliens were watching this "ritual" held no interest for Tavana.  So she  resigned herself to watching the ocean for the duration.