Cerulean Stars - Chapter 107

Chapter 107

Stardate 48472.5 - June 22, 2371 - 11:06:00

Spinning around in place before coming to a stop facing the couch, Raine motioned dramatically with a hand to the sheer strapless dress she was wearing as she looked hopefully at her daughter.

“So what do you think?”

Glancing up from her padd, Saya took a moment to take in the dress.

“It's purple.” She drolled, clearly unimpressed with Raine's color choice.

“It's lilac.” Raine corrected, pouting slightly at the lack of praise. “And what’s wrong with purple?”

“It makes you look like you’re trying too hard to be edgy.” Saya returned with a humph as she turned back to her padd.

“That’s why I went with lilac instead of grape.” Raine explained, well aware the deeper purples were pretty much the Asari equivalent of wearing blood red.

“Anyways.” She continued, motioning to the dress again. “What do you think outside of the color?”

“Nice enough I guess.” Saya offered with a shrug.

Sighing in annoyance, Raine walked over and plucked the padd out of her daughter's hands.

“Hey! Give that back!” Saya yelled, jumping off the couch to try and reach the device Raine was now holding over her head.

“We have to be on the promenade in forty five minutes for the gratitude festival's opening ceremony.” Raine lectured disapprovingly. “And you haven’t even started getting ready yet.”

“That’s cause I’m not going.” Saya said as she hopped a few times trying to grab padd back only to finally give up, crossing her arms and plopping back onto the couch with a huff. “Who needs to see the stupid gratitude festival anyways.”

“You do.” Raine said, not the least amused with her daughter's sudden switch. “Just last week you were going on and on about how you couldn’t wait to show off your new dress.”

“That was before Jake decided he was going to take Mardah.” Saya returned in a tone that was almost pure teenage angst. 

“They broke up two days ago.” Raine deadpanned, more than a little amazed her daughter had missed that. “She got accepted into the Regulus Three science academy and didn't think a three hundred lightyear relationship could work.”

Mardah likely hadn't been wrong either, even without the teenage dating aspect long distance relationships like that almost never lasted.

“So are you going to…” She began, only to blink at the metaphorical dust cloud that was now the only thing where her daughter had previously been sitting.

“Well all right then.” She muttered, biting her bottom lip to keep from laughing.

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Stardate 48472.6 - June 22, 2371 - 11:58:33

The Gratitude Festival was an old Bajoran holiday that possessed a number of thematic similarities to the Lunar New Year celebrated in various places on Earth. Which meant that it was a prime chance for couples and prospective couples to get together. Something that left Raine a tiny bit depressed given her own girlfriend was currently on her homeworld knee deep in some sort of plot.

“Guess we're both doing the singles routine tonight.” Jadzia offered playfully as she walked over to where Raine was leaning on the second level's railing waiting for Kira to officially begin the ceremonies.

Tipping her already half empty glass of Bajoran spring wine at the other woman, Raine grinned as she took in the Trill's somewhat similar choice of dress. “Here's to a night of being stared at in envy over our magnificent physiques.”

“Oh.” Jadzia exclaimed in amusement as she joined Raine in looking down at the platform where Kira was preparing the pair of reactive liquids the Bajorans used as part of the ceremonies. “And here I was starting to think you'd never noticed.”

“Bah.” Raine scoffed, playfully waving off the other woman before taking another sip of her drink “I noticed the first day we met, I just couldn't get past your two hundred year old hairstyles.”

“It's always about the hair with you.” Jadzia returned with a giggle.

“You try not having any.” Raine said as her lips twitched upwards into an impish grin.

“These fins.” She continued, pointing at her head with her free hand. “You can't do anything with them.”

Jadzia took a moment to playfully flip her hair over her shoulder. “I suppose I wouldn't know.”

A young child began ringing the gong at the side of the platform, calling everyone to gather for Kira's opening speech.

“Guess we better head down.” Jadzia said as she turned towards the stairs and began walking.

Taking a second to stare at Jadzia's well formed ass and lament what could have been, Raine downed the last of her drink before following after the Trill. 

The pair of them made it down to gathering just as the last of the twelve strikes rang out, and Raine gave a nod of acknowledgement to the somewhat put out Odo as they slid in next to him and an almost giddy looking Lwaxana Troi.

Kira stepped onto the central dais of the platform upon which a long glass tube had been set up to feed the renewal fire with fuel for the entirety of the twenty six hours that the festival was going on.

“Tesra Peldor impatri bren.” She intoned, holding the pair of bottles out before bringing them together to pour the liquid into the helix shaped tube.

“Bentel vetan ullon sten.” She continued as the two streams of glowing liquid reached the brazier causing it to burst into a bluish flame.

“And now.” The Bajoran woman said as she set the bottles down and walked over to grab the paper scroll that was sitting next to the brazier. “I have the honour of placing the first Renewal Scroll into the fire. As the scrolls burn, may our troubles turn to ashes with them.”

With that she threw the scroll into the fire, its paper almost instantly consumed by the flames within.

“So for the next twenty-six hours, I expect you all to enjoy yourselves.” She smiled fondly over at Kai Bariel, who was staring back at her with a very romantic look in his eyes. “I know I will. May the Prophets walk with us.”

With that Bariel offered a hand to help Kira down from the dais as Jadzia turned to shoot Raine a moderately amused grin. 

“Good to see at least one of us is having some luck.”

“Make that two of us.” Raine corrected as she glanced over to where moments ago she'd seen another pair. “I saw Keiko and Miles over by Quark's when we were coming down the stairs.”

“It was so good to see those two still together.” The voice of Lwaxana said from behind Raine, making the Asari jump slightly as she'd completely forgotten the other woman was there.

“Ambassador Troi.” Raine greeted, turning to the colorfully dressed woman with a somewhat strained smile on her face.

“Lwaxana, please.” She corrected with a smile as she held onto Odo’s arm with a grip that would likely leave a giant squid turning green with envy. “It’s only Ambassador when I’m performing official duties.”

“Lwaxana it is then.” Raine returned, glancing over to Jadzia for help only to see the Trill doing her level best to blend into the nearby wall. “Are you enjoying the festival?”

“It’s been entertaining on several levels.” Lwaxana answered, glancing over to Odo in a way that suggested deep danger for the stoic security officer. “Odo here was just telling me about the absolutely adorable Jem’Hadar he’s been raising. I never really took him for the fatherly type, but I guess life always has a way of surprising you.”

“I’m not his father.” Odo grumbled with a tired shake of his head that suggested this wasn’t the first time he’d had to say that. “I’m just trying to teach him that there’s more to life than what the Dominion programmed him to be.”

Which was pretty much the same thing, but Raine wasn’t going to say anything since the idea was obviously a sticking point for the Changeling.

“You're one of Na’Tal students aren't you?” Lwaxana suddenly asked as she studied Raine's face with an odd look.

“Yes?” Raine answered, slightly unnerved that the Betazoid woman had apparently been able to figure that out.

“Thought so.” Lwaxana said, nodding to herself before turning to the suddenly more interested seeming Odo. “I'd recognize those mental shielding techniques anywhere. She always does this little thing where…”

The older woman stopped and shook her head. “Well you probably don't care.”

“I actually wouldn't mind hearing about it.” Odo put forward, to the clear surprise of all three of them. “I recently discovered my people are somewhat psychic themselves, so I've been going over various mental techniques as a way to explore that.”

Lwaxana's smile wasn't even remotely feigned, and she moved to say something only to rub her head as a brick spike of pain shot through Raine's.

Glancing over to Jadzia, Raine could see the trill massaging her temple, enough for the Asari to know she must have felt it too. Not the best look for the Ambassador to be projecting like that, but sometimes you got that when a telepath had a migraine.

“You okay?” She asked Jadzia in concern, knowing the Trill didn't have nearly the experience the Asari did with such things 

“I'm fine.” Jadzia reassured her with a smile as she put a momentary hand on Raine's shoulder as the Trill glanced over to the now quietly talking pair who seemed to headed over to an out of the way corner. “But I think Lwaxana and Odo are going to be talking shop for a while, so how about you show me where you got that wine you were drinking earlier?”

That sounded like an inordinately good idea given her own glass was currently empty, so she grabbed Jadzia's arm and began dragging the suddenly happy Trill towards the vendor.

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Stardate 48473.0 - June 22, 2371 - 15:28:47

They’d ended up finding an out of the way table in Quarks where they’d spent the past three hours sipping Bajoran spring wine and regaling each other with stories of humorously failed romances.

“So I showed up at his dorm room naked.” Raine said, the wide eyed look of barely restrained mirth on Jadzia’s face adding an attractive flush to her normally pale features. “Waited for him to open the door and then yelled out; this, this is what you’re missing because you’d rather study warp field equations than me.”

“You didn’t.” Jadzia got out between giggles as she laid a hand on one of Raines and squeezed slightly.

“I absolutely did.” Raine confirmed with a nod as she grabbed the other woman’s hand and pulled in her. “He looked me over and then just quirked an eyebrow and said; while your physical form is somewhat compelling, it is something that can be enjoyed at any time, however the engineering finals are quickly approaching so must be my top priority .”

“Oh no.” Jadzia muttered, biting her bottom lip and shaking her head.

“I dumped him on the spot.” Raine confirmed, smiling over at the other woman as she felt a flush of desire in her chest. “And made it a policy from that point on to never date Vulcans.”

“No matter how hot they might be.” Jadzia offered with a knowing grin.

“No matter how hot they might be.” Raine repeated with a solemn nod, holding it for a second before breaking out into chuckles. 

“The universe is full of hot people though.” She continued, making sure to look into Jadzia’s eyes as she said that. “So it’s really not much of a loss.”

Their communicators chirped, and they both let out a sigh knowing what the alarm was reminding them of.

“Benjamin's probably going to be annoyed if we don’t at least show up for his dinner party.” Jadzia said after a moment, noticeably not lifting her hand from Raine’s or moving to get up.

“He’ll be especially annoyed if he finds out we choose Quarks instead of whatever he’s put together.” Raine agreed, very much not wanting to cut things short with Jadzia when they were having such a good time. 

Jadzia seemed to consider that for a moment before grinning in a way that made Raine’s heart skip a beat. “You know… I know this great recipe for Anza I’ve been dying to make for someone.”

“Yes.” Raine agreed without hesitation, the excuse all she needed given how little care she had for dinner parties in general. 

“Great!” Jadzia exclaimed, pushing herself out of her chair with an almost catlike grin on her face. “Your place or mine?”

“Yours.” Raine said as she followed suit, the choice a relatively easy one to make since Saya wasn’t likely to interrupt them there.

Shooting Raine a seductive smile, Jadzia grabbed the Asari’s hand to pull her along, something Raine had little will resist given the other woman’s look suggested there was going to be a lot more on that particular table then just dinner.

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Author's Notes: A projective mental effect that leaves people acting on certain specific repressed desires related to romantic feelings, welp, it could be worse.

As likely guessed, the next chapter will be Raine and Jadzia's happy fun time. Per SV rules most if not all of that chapter will only be available on Patreon and QQ.