Posted by Civilian Revna Freya McKenzie (Diplomatic Attache) in Holodeck 1- Songs for Old Friends (A Wake)

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Faye Calloway (Counter-Intelligence Officer) in Holodeck 1- Songs for Old Friends (A Wake)

Posted by Lindsay Bayes in Holodeck 1- Songs for Old Friends (A Wake)
Posted by… suppressed (8) by the Post Ghost! 👻
OOC: Invite & Setting: https://www.star-fleet.com/core/stf1/manhattan/posts/140334/

(snip)

Alex smiled and said “I am very much looking forward to playing with you, Kiama. And you as well, Miss Calloway. I think between the three of us we can put out some music your people would be most happy with.” He looked around and then at Faye and Shara. “What else do we need to do to get ready?”

Alex

“Let’s just hope neither of us will regret that I decided to bring a violin,” Kiama replied with a soft laugh. She was only partly joking. After all, she hadn’t been practicing long and she had no idea how good (or bad) she was.

“Nothing really,” Shara said, but gave Alex a stern look. “Except to drop the formalities. Leave them and ranks at the door. It’s Shara, remember?” she said with a teasing gleam in her eyes. She looked over towards the entrance but saw it wasn’t the person she was expecting and it was in fact someone unfamiliar.

Revna had debated for a bit whether she would attend or not. But she understood, deep in her soul, the type of community and remembrance the Calloways were giving honor. She slipped quietly through the door carrying a what looked like a cake carrier. She set it down the actual food and not the deserts. She had made a traditional dish from home, but one that most people were not familiar with. Smorgastarta, Swedish Sandwich Cake, beautiful to the eye, and layers of flavors and textures to feast on. At first glance it looked like a wonderful cake, but a look closer and it is obvious that this is savory dish with notes of smoked salmon and dill, radishes, egg salad, and chives tweaking the flavor at each stop and beautifully decorated. Revna was dressed in a calve-length dress, capped sleeves, in emerald green, copper colored Nordic knotwork embroidered across the neckline, waist, and hem. Her hair was threaded with the copper rune beads into the braids of her hair. Taking in the sand and the beach she slipped the sandals off her feet and moved towards the group. The invitation had said to bring an instrument, but Revna was never one to play or sing infront of strangers and so had chosen not to bring one.
Revna

Faye stepped closer to Alex again though she spied someone new entering the holodeck. She gave them a wave, the t-shirt under her black leather jacket reading I came| I Saw| I Made it Awkward and there was a small cat on her shoulder. She turned to Alex her left arm supporting Tess, who was taking in the surroundings curiously. “You also need to say hi to Tess. Tess, this is Alex. Alex, Tess,” she said, stroking the adolescent cat’s head. Tess let out a small chirped meow as she looked at Alex, yet again pairing her person’s emotions with people. And Tess understood this person was important to Faye.

~The Calloway Women

Alex reached up and scratched the cat’s ears. “Tess… a pleasure.” he said politely. Alex had never been big on animals, but he understood the connection people had for them. And he liked them… just never wanted a pet for himself. He looked at Shara and said “Still my ship, so still my rules Miss Calloway.” with a smile.

“Our holodeck program,” Shara tossed back idly, a smirk touching her lips. They could play this game all day.

“My holodeck.” he said with a grin.

At that moment the door opened and another figure entered. The human was male, solidly built, and wearing blue jeans with a button down plaid shirt and brown boots. Salt and pepper colored hair close shaven in the style of the SF Marines topped a rugged and oddly handsome face. The sleeve of the left arm was cut off and a metal cybernetic arm showed. The man looked around the crowd and his eyes fell on Shara and he walked directly up to her smiling.

Shara grinned and slipped her arms around him as he came within arms reach. “Well hello you. I hope you brought the good stuff,” she said before planting a small but tneder kiss on his lips.

“Oh, you know I only give you the best of what I got.” and Micah grinned and kissed her back.

Cochrane watched the entrance and grinned and looked at Faye. “Since when did your mother and Pikelsimer become a couple?” he asked very quietly.

Alex

Faye bit on her lips to keep from laughing and leaned in towards Alex. “Somewhere between him boarding and Mr. Fake making his grand exit. She hates it when I call him her boyfriend,” she said, a teasing gleam in her eyes.

~The Calloway Women

Alex’s eyes flashed and he said “Miss Calloway, would you and your boyfriend please help get drinks poured? And Mr. Pikelsimer… no hoarding the good booze under your seat again.”

Alex

Shara flashed Alex a warning look and moved off with Micah

Alex grinned but pointed an accusatory finger at Faye.

Kiama was standing a little to the side, watching and listening and soaking up all the positive emotions around her. At some point she would introduce herself to Daggum of whom she had heard so much, but hadn’t met yet. But right now didn’t feel like the right moment to do so.

~Kiama Naim

Faye set Tess on the ground and flashed a smirk at Alex. “Speaking of good tag-teaming, remind me later to tell you about how Dag and I ran into your mom and sister,” she said with a grin.

“Oh joy… I can only imagine what my dear sister told you.” Alex said.

Faye waggled her brows. “Ahh, it was great. And your mom…” Faye blew out a breath. “Be forewarned there Cochrane, I’ve been officially invited to cook hasperat for the family on Vulcan. You’re never getting rid of me now!”

Watching as Tess set off to explore the beach, Faye looked around for the large hulk of a fiancé. Catching his eye, she waved him over.

Daggum walked over and took Faye’s hands in his. “You know, just in case I haven’t told you today… I really love you.” and he smiled down at her and winked.

Faye beamed at him. “Well, ditto,” she said sincerely, momentarily lost in his gaze.

But remembering where she was an what she was doing, Faye set about more introductions. “Daggum Hammor, my good friend Kiama Naim, our Chief Science Officer. Kiama, this is Daggum, my… fiance.” She flipped her gaze back to him. “Huh, that sounds pretty good you know?”

Meanwhile, Shara set out glasses so Micah could divvy up some of the moonshine, though she set a different glass aside for Faye to make her something fun and special but without the alcohol.

~The Calloway Women

Alex and Hammor

“I hope I’m not too late,” Walker said as he walked onto the holodeck. He hadn’t been quite sure what to wear, but knowing Faye he decided to keep it simple with slacks and a light button down shirt. But with his first step onto the sand, he paused as he pulled off his socks and shoes. Scooping them up with one hand, he continued on barefoot.

Approaching the group he held up two bottles Aldebaran Whiskey he was carrying in his other hand. “Sorry I’m late, I picked up a case of these back on the station, but somehow the case ended up in one of the lower cargo bays, tucked back behind a bunch of the long term engineering part stores. I’m going to assume that one of the crewmen ‘accidently’ moved it, instead of trying to secret it away,” he said with a grin. Taking in the group, and the glasses being poured on the table already, Walker lowered the bottles. “But enough of my story, and we can save these for later.”

CWO Darach - COO

Cochrane smiled at Darach and said “That sound like a issue for the Operations Chief. Fair warning… he can be grumpy.” He walked over and held out his hand to Walker and said “Good to see you here. I figured Faye would have made sure you made it.”

Alex

“Oh he would have been even grumpier if I hadn’t found that crate,” Walker said with a laugh, taking Cochrane’s hand.

“And she certainly did make it pretty clear that I was to be here. I think the invite went something like ‘blah, blah, blah, holodeck, blah, blah, your life is forfeit’. I figured I got the point and made sure to block off the time,” he said with a chuckle.

Shara began passing out glasses of clear stuff. “Everyone grab a glass and be forewarned it’ll knock you your socks off and then also probably knock you on your ass,” she said with a grin. She handed a glass with a bubbly pale yellow drink in it to Faye. “Shall we start in a minute.”

Faye nodded. “Yeah, I think we’re good to get going.” But her gaze cast it way over to Pikelsimer and she looked like she was definitely sizing up the man.

~The Calloway Women

“Thank you,” Walker said taking the glass. He took a brief sniff and let out a low whistle. It didn’t sneak past him that Faye was handed a different glass, he was going to have to bug her about that later.

CWO Darach - COO

Revna took the glass and sniffed, oh now that was something worth drinking. A home brew moonshine, she’d bet her last bottle of mead, but she did not miss the change of drink for the younger Callaway woman from the corner of her eye. She didn’t bring attention to her observation. No one should drink alone - alcohol or not, whatever their reason. She set the glass down and smiled at Shara, “I think that might be more than I can handle.”
McKenzie, DA

Shara chuckled. “Feel free to grab something else, or just inhale the fumes. It’s surprisingly effective.” She held out a hand to Revna. “I’m Shara,” she said, and then gestured to Faye. “And this is my daughter Faye. I’m just the guest around here.

Revna could smell the fumes easily and it was quality shine that was for sure. But she took a glass of a fruit juice with her thanks. She took the woman’s hand, “Revna, I’m the new girl.” She smiled at Faye, “It’s nice to meet you both.”

Cochrane took a glass and looked around. “Ladies and gentlemen, if I may be so bold” he said over the assembled guests, “… a toast. To the people of Tracken - past, present, and future. May their memory and their strength continue to shine to us as an example of what we all strive for: community, hearth, and home.” and he raised his glass to group.

Alex

Revna raised her glass in salute and then sipped from the drink. It was very good.

“Hear, hear.” Shara lifted her glass and drank a moderate sip, casting a sideways grin towards Micah. It was good stuff. But she felt attention on her and turning her head, she met Faye’s gaze. They had worked out ahed of time sort of how they wanted to handle this, but now it was time for words and actions. And mirrored in her gaze Shara saw the same uncertainty. How did you sum something like that up? Maybe you didn’t need to try.

Moving to let Faye and Daggum stand with them, Shara switched ‘’on’, letting herself hold the space she stood in and reached out a hand to Faye.

Faye took her mothers, hand, letting her fingers wrap around Shara’s and squeeze gently. She was already emotional and they hadn’t even gotten started.

Squeezing her daughter’s hand, the two women share a moment of silent communication before Shara began. “We asked people to join us this evening for many reasons. But the core of it all is the fact that on Tracken Two, you never went it alone. Even those that chose a life of solitude could participate in the community in their own way. Tonight I am here because I was an unconventional woman who married an unconventional man and raised a very unconventional daughter. Tracken itself seemed to defy convention, and yet at its core, it gave and bred the things that so many people want: camaraderie, love, kinship, protection and belonging. You could do your own thing, be your own person and you still belonged. Here we are on a Starfleet vessel where much of that can be said as well., but its… different. And I know for some of us that finding those things took unexpected turns and were not always easily found, but I like to think that it’s because of places like Tracken that we get to enjoy that here.

Shara sighed slightly. “I wasn’t sure who I wanted to be or what I wanted to do when Edward and I first moved to Tracken. In fact, we almost didn’t go. I thought it was a ridiculous idea.” Shara shot Faye a look as if to say, ‘listen up kid, you might learn something’. For her part, Faye was amused. “I mean, it was hard enough getting by as I was at the time, working on a small moon. Edward thought I was wasting away there, and maybe I was. But I wasn’t looking for anyone to rescue me and I certainly wasn’t asking him to. But he did anyway, in his own quiet way and when he told me about this colony one of his freighter shipmates was moving too, his eyes lit up. He was nothing less than enchanted. And I thought to myself, here’s this man I unexpectedly fell in love with. I could try it, for a little while. And if we weren’t happy there we could leave. And so we went and ended up finding things we didn’t know we were missing.

“For me, Tracken is this incomplete thought and feeling. I was whisked away before it was gone, so a part of me has to remind myself that it doesn’t exist anymore, except in here”-she tapped her head-” and in here,”she said as she placed her hand on her heart. “And maybe that’s easier some days, though I feel all their absences deeply. I am Shara, wife of Edward, best friend of T’Lora and Jaris. On Tracken I was a hunter and forager, a mathematics teacher and a musician. I am still all those things, but it’s al very different now.” She turned to Faye to let her daughter take over and say her peace.

~Shara Calloway

Juice in one hand, Faye drew in a deep breath. “And I am Faye, daughter of Shara and Edward, best friend to Cameron, protege of T’Lora. Growing up on Tracken was so different than many others I’ve talked to over the years, but also I’ve come across many who also grew up on colonies. Some had more than we did, some less, but the commonality was self-reliance. I’m not going to sugar-coat this. We’re here tonight because a lot of people died.” She gestured over to the rows upon rows of candles burning brightly within their hurricane shades. “Each candle represents a member of our community that no longer lives. Who died under horrific circumstances. My mom and I decided that while that event was sad and still is sad, that tonight would not be. But we can’t let it pass without honouring their lives but recognizing how they died.

She shook her head for a moment, trying to gather her words. And she went to say more but couldn’t and decided that maybe that was enough. So she shrugged. “I guess there’s not much to say. I’ve told the story in detail to some people here, but the thing about all the changes I’ve been going through is that now that I’ve told the story a few times, I don’t want to. I’m ready to let it go. And that was the whole point of this. My mom and i never got closure. Normally when your loved ones die you do something, but circumstances didn’t allow us to have that. So this is our way so thanking them and saying goodbye. Please do walk amongst the candles. Each one has a name on it. And listen to our stories and know that you now share Tracken with us. That you too get to carry its spirit with you wherever you go.”

Faye lifted her glass. “To Tracken, its people and the things they held dear.”

~Faye Calloway

Along with the rest of the assembled crowd Revna raised her glass and there was a chorus of “To Tracken” and then everyone was drinking. Revna smirked watching those that had no idea what ‘shine’ was taking big heaping gulps of it or sniffing and sipping and a shocked shiver go through them. But either way it was a beautiful tribute of support for the two woman standing before them.
McKenzie, DA

“To Tracken,” Walker echoed as he raised his own glass, before taking a drink. He tried to suppress a grin at what sounded like a cough somewhere as someone took a drink. That was one thing they never did teach officers back at the Academy, how to drink.

CWO Darach - COO