Feeding Time

Posted on 24 Jun 2018 @ 2:46pm by Lieutenant Commander Camila Di Pasquale & Lieutenant Commander Joey Geisler

3,315 words; about a 17 minute read

Mission: The Search Begins
Location: Talons
Timeline: MD 2 || 1430 Hours

Despite still being on duty, Camila had commandeered the first empty quarters she had came to and stepped into the sonic shower with her uniform on. It didn't matter because the sonic vibrations would clean the dirt, grime and associated filth of that station they had been on. Her arm was still sore from where the three legged platinum skinned alien had fallen on it, but the massaging effects of the shower took care of that again. She wanted to spend an hour in it, but after five minutes, she forced herself to get out of it and ran her fingers through her ombre hair.

"You let yourself get shanghaied back here," she told her reflection in the mirror, grunted, then headed out while she tapped her combadge. =^=Di Pasquale to Lieutenant Geisler. Want to meet at Talon's for a quick bite before we debrief?=^= she asked as she headed for the nearest turbolift.

***

Joey was absolutely starving as she made her way into Talon's. Maybe that had something to do with what she'd just endured, or perhaps it was the fact she was pregnant with two perfect little people who wanted to be fed. It was definitely the latter. Without missing a beat, the Intel Chief made her way over to the bar, not taking the time to look around just yet since she was on a mission, offering a smile when the bartender on duty approached her. "I hope you're ready for this," she said in an effort to prepare him for what was to come. "Double cheeseburger. No onions, extra pickles, heavy on the bacon. Add a full order of loaded fries to that along with a thick slice of chocolate cake, vanilla ice cream on the side. I'll have a strawberry milkshake to drink."

She didn't notice the wide eyes coming from the man taking her order when she heard the voice of Camila coming from her combadge. I'm already here, she answered. A shower was definitely in order, but as hungry as she was, that was going to have to wait. Joey made a mental note to never skip breakfast again.

Camila had to laugh when she heard the response and ordered the turbolift to deck eight where Talon's was located and gave a nod to the bloody claw image that seemed to be tearing through the door. "I know how you feel," she said as she entered and looked around. She spotted Joey at the bar and headed over to her to take a seat.

"I expected you to be talking to the Captain," she said as she settled into the seat and held up a finger to let the barkeep know she'd order in a minute.

"The thought crossed my mind, but hunger ruled over anything else," the taller woman admitted as she waited for what she felt was the greatest thing in any known part of space to be placed before her. "I didn't eat anything this morning before we left, and now I'm about to start gnawing on arms if I don't get food soon."

Camila pulled her arms back from the counter and eyed Joey. "As long as they aren't mine," she said. "I had a tripedal platinum skinned alien fall on my right on one the station during the first firefight and haven't been to Medical yet. I don't need you chewing on it or my left one."

Joey laughed. "I'm not really going to gnaw on your arm or anyone else's for that matter," she clarified, accepting her milkshake when it was placed in front of her. All thought was forgotten, save for the nods of thanks she gave the man who placed it in front of her. Without any hesitation, she brought the straw to her lips and took a long pull from it, savoring its deliciousness. Maybe she'd have to work out harder for it later, but it was more than worth it.

"As long as you're sure," the Chief of Security said before she ordered a braciole roll with tomato sauce and a glass of non-alcoholic Limoncello with a Amaretto Biscotti. "How are you holding up other than wanting to eat people?" she asked.

"According to what Jayla told some aliens on the station that were arresting us, I do eat people," she said, gesturing to her swollen stomach. "She told them I ate the last person that tried to arrest us. Needless to say, they left fairly quick after that." Joey laughed as she remembered that particular moment. It was definitely the highlight of their entire trip over to the station. "Aside from that, I'm holding up pretty well. I still get a bit nauseous, and coffee is one of the worst triggers for me much to Harvey's dismay. I feel so bad for him, but the smell of it makes my stomach turn."

"Jayla told..." Camila started to laugh. "Told an alien that you ate people?" She burst out laughing and her slender frame shook before she gasped for air. "Oh, wait until I ask her about that. The most exciting thing that happened with my part of the team was getting some language matrices, an old Starfleet probe, and getting into two firefights."

Joey drank some more of her milkshake as she sat on one of the stools. She'd been standing long enough already, and her feet were begging for a break. "That's more than we got. Hell... I was groped by the ugliest damn centipede around, and it didn't even by me dinner first." She gave a full body shiver at that memory.

"Do....you what?" the ombre haired woman laughed again and had to admit it felt good after the horrors of the past year. It wasn't even a full year, but it felt like ten or more. "I didn't even know centipedes had hands to grope with. I trust that you taught it a lesson?"

"Hell no!" Joey cried with the shake of her head. "We were in a ventilation shaft trying to get away from a rather large group of individuals that were trying to capture us. I screamed like a little bitch and took off. I left Halrr, our translator, Jayla and Allen behind while I tried to get the hell out of there! The bastard hung on, too. He was still attached to my leg when I made it out of there."

"You left everyone behind but the one you were trying to get away from?" Camila laughed. "I guess it liked the...close protection you offered. Either that, or it had a leg fetish. You seem to attract a lot of attention from animals and now insectoids."

Joey gave another full body shudder. She didn't want to attract those kinds of things. "Great. Not only do I attract creepy crawlies, but I'm a two-eyed, one bump, non-flying, pink-skinned people eater."

"Stop..." the other woman laughed again as she held her sides. "I'm not going to be able to eat if you keep making me laugh."

"I'll be eating no matter what. The only thing they had to feed people over there is depression and hostility. I'm pretty full on both counts," the Intel Chief said.

"I hear that," Camila seconded. "Two different groups of aliens wanted me and the other simply because we were different and they thought they could use the knowledge we had. Even one of the attackers that I helped still wouldn't help us."

Joey took another sip of her milkshake, then looked to Camila with a straight face. "I would voluntarily let a giant centipede hump my leg than to ever have to go through any of that crap again."

The ombre haired woman was practically wheezing from laughing and took a minute to get her breath. "Don't say that. You may wake up with one in bed with you," she said.

"If Harvey turns into a giant centipede, the last thing I'm going to let him do is hump my leg," she said, still keeping a straight face. It was nice to hear Camila laugh, and if Joey had to guess, it was a long time since that had happened.

"I'll have to mention that to him," Camila threatened jokingly. "Or maybe get you a millipede body pillow while you're sleeping. Or...have Harvey dress up as one."

"And that's how you get Joey to move into a workbee on the hull of the ship," Joey said. And, she wasn't even joking a little. There were many things she'd do in life and her career, but dealing with creepy crawlies and those related to them, weren't on that list. Not now... not ever. "If you get the pillow, I'll make sure I'm sitting on your lap when my water breaks."

"You've already been sick on me, so what's a little water, assuming I let you sit on my lap?" the Security woman asked.

"I'm bigger than you are, and outweigh you by a bit. And let's not forget about the fact you've lost a bit of weight. Add in my added girth, and there's no doubt I can wrestle you down to sit on your lap," the taller woman stated.

"You'd have to catch me first," Camila laughed as their food arrived. "And right now, I think I'm a lot faster than you are."

Joey eyed the woman next to her as her food was brought out and placed before her. "Did you just say I'm a lot fatter than you? Because, while it may be true, it's not polite to point out my added weight."

"Not at all," the other woman said. "I'm just saying that I'm faster than you and I've been warned by you, which means that if I see that look in your eyes, I'm gone."

"Well, I did say that would happen if you put a pillow in my bed," the Intel Chief pointed out. "So, until that happens, I think you'll be safe."

"If I were to do that, and with being warned," Camila said as she began to cut up her food. "Then I'd be in hiding and you'd never find me after you stopped screaming."

Joey looked at the food in front of her, but didn't know where she wanted to start. Food. The only thing that could rival Harvey for her affection. There had been a few times over the last couple of weeks she found herself sneaking out of bed just to hit the replicator and indulge in a new kind of love affair. "Let's just hope it never comes to any of that," she said, scooping her burger up.

"I can agree to that," the ombre haired woman said as she speared a piece of her braciole and dipped it in the tomato sauce before she brought it to her mouth for a bite. She chewed and swallowed it, then took a sip of her Limoncello. "Mamma would never approve of this, but in space, it's the only taste of home I can get."

After a big bite of her burger, Joey set it down and reached for a napkin to wipe her mouth as she chewed, then swallowed the food in her mouth. "I think what you see in front of me," she said of the burger, loaded fries, onion rings, cake and milkshake. "Is about all I've been eating lately. Don't get me wrong. I eat other things, but this is what appeals to me the most."

"It's what the twins are craving, and you can't argue with that," Camila said as she ate. "If you tried, you'd pay the price just like with coffee. How's the Captain handling the lack of it?"

"Not well," she said with a frown. "I don't know what it is about coffee, though. Nothing really sets me off like it does."

"It could be the smell or something in it that your body no longer likes," the Security Chief said after another bite of her food. "How are you getting on without it?"

"To be perfectly honest, I'm not handling it so well, either. I came to rely on it a lot before I got pregnant, but now when I need it, I have to find some kind of alternative. It's not exactly easy, either," Joey answered, going in for more good. She didn't really want to talk about herself too much, and would be changing gears as soon as she felt Camila was comfortable with it.

"There's always tea," Camila responded. "It's what I see the Captain drinking now." She paused for another sip of her drink and eyed her cookie, but decided for the main meal instead for the moment. "Or you could ask the computer what a good alternative is. I can't live without coffee."

Joey eyed Camila's biscotti for a second, too. Would the Security Chief stab her with her fork if she tried to take it? That was highly likely, and not a risk worth taking. However, it did look really good with slivered almonds and chocolate drizzle... The Intel Chief blinked. What was she doing? Food was starting to become more than just a necessity for survival, and Camila needed it more than she did. "I'll look into it, but for now, I'll just keep pushing through like I have been."

If the thin woman next to her noticed the contemplative look that was given her biscotti, she gave no indication as she took another drink of her Limoncello. "Maybe try some green tea with ginseng," she suggested before she took another bite of her meal. She knew she should eat more as she still wasn't up to where she had been even though she had put a couple pounds on since her return, but her appetite just wasn't there as it once was. She looked at her biscotti, then over at Joey. "Do you like biscotti?" she asked her.

"It's food. I'm in no position to discriminate presently," she answered.

Camila passed the amaretto biscotti over to Joey with a smile. "Here you go," she said. "After tasting the braciole, I doubt they'd find a way to do justice to it. You may want to dunk it in your milkshake first to soften it up."

Joey looked down at the biscotti, then back to Camila. "Are you sure? You wouldn't have ordered it if you really didn't want it," she said, though she was quite happy to take it off of the Security Chief's hands if she really didn't want it. "You should keep it. Or at least have some of my cake." Did those words really just leave her lips? There was only three other people she'd ever share cake with. One of them wasn't even there, and the other two weren't born yet.

"I still don't have much of an appetite," the ombre haired woman responded. "The situation on the station didn't help much, either. The entire place was depressing, but I appreciate the offer. Replicators just can do biscotti true Italian justice."

This was the opening she'd been hoping for. "Have you thought about going to medical?"

"For what?" Camila asked. "I don't have anything wrong with me."

"I know there isn't, and I wasn't saying that to imply that there was," the taller woman stated, taking another bite of her burger. She wanted to help Camila, but Camila had to want the help first. "I'm glad you're back, Camila. Really and truly. It just wasn't the same without you here, and now that you are, it feels like the family is back together."

"I missed you guys, but I'm still not sure if I have the right to be back," the Security Chief said. "Especially after what just happened on the station. Back to back firefights brought back some bad memories that I would rather not have relived again. Is that why you suggested I go to Medical?"

"No, not exactly, but I think talking to Lieutenant Stuart might not be such a bad idea. She might be able to offer you ways to help cope a little more, not that you aren't already," Joey added for clarification. "And you do belong here. Just as much as anyone else does, and my children need their Aunt Camila in their lives."

Camila pushed her plate away at hearing the suggestion of counseling. "The last time I talked to her, it was after the old ship went down and that didn't work out very well. I'll be fine on my own and I really should be getting back to the office to get my report ready."

"No, please. Look... I'm sorry," the taller woman said with a frown. This wasn't what she wanted to do, and now she felt like a total ass. "If you stay and finish your lunch, I'll tell you what Harvey and I are having." Maybe that would be enough to convince her to stick around and eat.

The Security Chief remained in her seat and sighed. "Look, it's just a touchy subject with me and being on that miserable station didn't help. It's just something I have to work though. I'm really not that hungry and the replicator just doesn't do it justice, so keep the surprise until it's time to announce it to everyone."

Joey still felt like an ass. She wasn't normally one to share her food, but in this instance, she would. "The replicator makes a mean cheeseburger," she said. And it had to be true, or she wouldn't be eating it. "Do you want some of it?"

"I appreciate it, but you're eating for three, Joey," Camila said. "They need it far more than I do. I'll be okay. Really."

"I really don't mind sharing if you'd like to have some," Joey told her in a tone meant to be encouraging. She didn't like seeing Camila like this, but if anyone could understand, it was her.

"Thank you, but no thank you, Joey," the ombre haired woman said. She had just wanted to sit down and have lunch without the past being dredged up and now all she saw were the images of the dead on Deep Space Eleven. Starfleet turned against Starfleet. The damage she had helped cause. The breakup with Bast. It threatened to suck her back into the dark place she had dwelled for months and she was almost ready to give in to it and go back to her quarters for a drink, on duty or not. "I really do need to get my report done, though."

"Okay," Joey said with a nod. What else could she possibly say? She'd messed that up big time, and now she found that her own appetite had left her. "I should probably take a shower and get back to work myself. I'll see you in the briefing when the time comes." She waved the bartender down to settle up with their bill, then got to her feet. "Try not to work too hard if you can help it."

"No," Camila said. "Please, Joey. Don't feed bad just because I don't have an appetite. It isn't your fault. You're eating for three. I can eat something later."

"I don't have much of one, either, but it's okay. I'll grab a ration bar if I get hungry while I'm working," Joey said. "I'll see you at the briefing." She offered the Security Chief a smile, then made her way out of Talons so she could make good on that shower she mentioned, then get back to work.

"Porca troia! Non posso fare nulla di giusto!" the Security Chief exploded after Joey had left. She paid for her meal with a growl, then left the lounge. It was one thing after another and she decided that she wanted that drink after all and if she was called on it, she was called on it.

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