Interlude – Sudden Celebrity & Mixed Emotions
by (G) Arrain - Lieutenant Arrienye t'Merek & (G) erie'Riov - Sub Commander Rianni Monteros-t'Khellian
Post Details
::ON::
Although he and Dominic had arrived on DS5 only a couple of days prior, Ai'lani wasn't the type to sit around getting settled. Soon enough, he'd gotten the itch to get out and sniff around, and this time his sniffing had gotten him on the trail of an erie'Riov Rianni Monteros-t'Khellian, a most intriguing woman.
After having asked around and found out about her attempted suicide and dismissal from Starfleet, he knew there was definitely a story there. And surprisingly, it was one she was willing to share. So, around noon, station time, he put got his equipment ready and made his way to her quarters, pressing the chime.
"Ashara, I'm not sure about this." Rianni protested as her sister helped her dress, "I mean, I just got out of sickbay.... Besides, another interview, two in one day? Seriously, I think people in hell get more of a break!"
"Yes, and we want to get in front of this story before Gabriel or any of his cronies do." Ashara reminded her, "And this man is the way to do it."
"Of course." Rianni sighed, even though she still hated the idea of laying this whole thing out for the galaxy to see.
Opening the door, she stood to greet her guest, "Welcome."
The Deltan grinned brightly, genuinely happy that she hadn't changed her mind. "Thank you! I'm Ai'lani. It's nice to finally meet you," he said in a friendly tone.
"It's good to meet you, too." Rianni smiled, something about the Deltan set her at ease, "I'm Rianni, this is my sister Ashara, please, come in."
"It's a great pleasure to meet you too," he told the other Romulan, giving her a small nod in respect as he knew was expected. "So, how is everyone?" he asked them.
"Pretty good." Rianni said, Ashara nodding in agreement, "You?"
"I'm great. I just moved here and I am loving the activity around here," he told them. "So, we can start whenever you're comfortable, but I was wondering if I can take a picture of you both? I'm a photojournalist," he explained, picking up his camera.
"Oh, of course." Rianni agreed, moving over for Ashara to get into the frame.
"Could you be so kind as to forward a copy of that picture to our father's quarters?" Ashara asked, "Mother Eleni complains frequently that we don't have enough family pictures."
"Of course," he nodded, adjusting the frame before snapping three pictures. He walked over to them so they could have a look. "Is this okay?" he asked.
Rianni and Ashara both nodded happily, the pictures were excellent, "Well, I should let you two get started." Ashara said, standing to leave, "Ai'lani, I hope to see you around more often."
"You too," he said back.
Watching her sister leave Rianni turned her attention to the Deltan reporter, "So, where do you want to start?"
"Well, where are you from?" he asked, motioning for her to sit down, wanting her to be comfortable. He always found that having an interview be more like a normal conversation was a lot more relaxing.
Taking the seat next to Ai'lani, Rianni began to open up, "Well, I was born in a Romulan POW camp, my mother was one of the captured Starfleet crew from the USS Coral Sea, after my birth my mother and her shipmates were released to return to the Federation, and we went to live in Athens, Greece, which is where I was raised."
"And how do you feel about being of two different species? I've interviewed several hybrids, but a lot of them, while showing some type of unease, generally felt quite comfortable. I think that's because the majority of hybrids are those of two species that have cultures with a similar view on life. But, you're half human and half Romulan. So, how does that feel?" Ai'lani asked her curiously.
"It was never easy." Rianni replied, "I've been accused of treason over a hundred times with no evidence on which to present such an accusation, and always found it a lot harder for me than it was for others to get promoted, I must have trained seven of my bosses. I was the last living Dominion War ace to make Major, in fact, when I made it I was the only one who hadn't made it and one of only three that hadn't made Lt. Colonel. So, to say I faced some discrimination would be putting it mildly."
"I understand. Being Deltan tends to bring on some prejudice from people," he told her with a small smile. "So, why did you stay in Starfleet all these years, despite the discrimination?"
"I always felt what I was doing was important and that sooner or later people would start to see me and not their conceptions of me." Rianni said, "And, it did happen, just not in Starfleet."
"Yes, I heard you were dismissed from Starfleet a few days ago. But, from what I've heard of it, if you don't me being a bit subjective here, it seems to be like they were just looking for a reason," he admitted, hoping she wouldn't mind him expressing his opinion. While he did try to remain as objective as possible, Ai'lani knew it was no way to live and if you couldn't pour your heart into your work, you weren't doing anything.
"It does look suspicious doesn't it?" Rianni offered, "Not totally unexpected, but it did still hurt."
"I understand. So, I'm really sorry to have to go down this road, but it's part of my job," Ai'lani stated, "So, what happened? Why did you wish to take your life? But, please, you don't need to answer if you don't want to. I won't push. Much," the Deltan smirked good-naturedly.
Rianni had to fight the urge to tell him everything, knowing if she did she would cause Ayren so much shame, though she didn't really know why she cared, "Well, after a lifetime of dealing with this sort of prejudice and pressure and harassment from people who were supposed to be on my side I had too much to drink and it all seemed a little harder to bear than I had expected. It just sort of happened, as ridiculous as it might sound."
"It doesn't sound so ridiculous," he assured her. "Sometimes, when a lot of things pile up and get alcohol poured over them, any way out seems great," he explained with a smile, that was sympathetic without holding that 'I'm so sorry for you' tone just under the surface.
"I guess so." Rianni shrugged, it made as much sense as anything else, "Sometimes things just happen."
"So, now that you've been through so much, what do you think about Starfleet? Do you think hold the same views of it you had, or have the recent events changed that?"
"I think Starfleet needs to conduct a closer review of their personnel policies and bring them in line with the Federations advertised humanistic views." Rianni replied, "I think I could've been treated a lot better in light of my situation, and I hope someone steps in from above to make sure what happens to me doesn't happen to anyone else. I'd hate to see this kind of thing tarnish the otherwise great organization that is Starfleet."
"I agree. One of the things I personally am opposed to, is the Oath of Celibacy my people have to take when entering Starfleet. I find it very insulting," Ai'lani explained, tapping a couple of things on the pad he held.
"It does seem hypocritical doesn't it?" Rianni asked, "I mean, they don't make Betazoids sign an oath not to use their telepathy to manipulate people with less powerful minds. Where's the distinction?"
"There isn't any. The way I see it, they think my people are just a bunch of sex-hungry maniacs who can't keep keep their own hormones in check," Ai'lani explained, shaking his head in disappointed at the things his kind had to put up with.
"And they think my people are all here looking to spy on them." Rianni continued, shaking her head as Ai'lani had, ~If he only knew.~
"Yeah, because Starfleet would never spy on someone," Ai'lani said sarcastically. "But, moving on. Have you encountered any hostility from Romulans due to your mixed heritage?"
"A bit, but it has actually been less than I encountered on Federation worlds." Rianni answered, "Though a lot of that might be due to the fact that the Federation is more mixed than the Empire is."
"How do you feel about that? Do you think your transition will be a difficult one?"
"Well, as I'm actually serving almost directly under the Ambassador, who is my aunt, I think things will be a lot easier for me than it would otherwise." Rianni said, "I mean, I've already got a certain level of comfort going into this."
"Well that's good," he nodded. "I really wish you all the best in your new job. Now, I have to ask. I heard that you took your new ship out for a little test drive the other day and make a bit of a show in front of the Cardassian Embassy," he grinned. "What can you tell me about that?"
Rianni laughed hard, "It's just SOP to cloak and decloak a new ship when it first goes online, if it spooked the Cardies, well, that shows they've dropped their guard too much or they jump at too many shadows or both."
Ai'lani laughed with her, inadvertently releasing some more pheromones. He'd been keeping the amount steady, to make sure Rianni was relaxed around him, but he slipped momentarily, and managed to pull it back in right away, hoping she wouldn't be affected too much. "I completely agree with you there."
"Good to see we're in sync on that note." Rianni giggled, for some reason this guy was having an effect on her, ~Must be the Deltan thing.~
"Yeah," he nodded. "Well, is there anything you want to talk about?" he offered. He'd mostly gotten all the information he wanted, but he liked this woman. She seemed fun.
"Nothing important." Rianni replied, "But, I don't mind company at all, if you'd like a drink or something."
"Sure if you're offering," he accepted. "Nothing alcoholic though. I'm cutting down," he said.
"Oh, of course." Rianni said, choosing to offer him iced tea instead of Romulan Ale, "I've got iced tea and lemon, fresh lemon, in my fridge."
"Iced tea sounds good," he smiled. "I recently got dumped, so I'm trying not to drown my problems," he explained, not sure why. Part of him did feel like he needed to at least get a thing or two off his chest, since at home he tried to be as strong as possible around Dominic. The kid didn't need to worry himself with his problems after everything else he has to go through with him.
"Yeah, alcohol plus a broken heart is not a good combination." Rianni nodded, knowing very well that of which she spoke.
"You can say that again," he nodded with her. "Sorry, I didn't mean to get all depressed on you. I have a son at home and he's got enough to deal with as it is without me moping around."
"No, it's okay." Rianni replied, "I mean, if anyone understands what you're feeling it's me. Please, feel free." She returned from the kitchen and sat down a tray with two glasses of ice and a pitcher of iced tea and a dish of sliced lemon on it, "I mean, we all need to unburden ourselves sometimes."
"Yeah, but I don't usually unburden to the people who I try to get to unburden to me," he smiled as she poured himself some iced tea. "My son keeps asking me what happened but it's hard to explain Deltan relationships to a human," Ai'lani admitted.
"Trust me, human relationships are no easier." Rianni said, sipping her tea, "And believe me, I know all about this, I am 0 for love, my friend. Three ex-husbands, a couple of brutal dumpings by girlfriends, yeah, I feel your pain."
"You know what the worst line is? 'I love you but I'm not in love with you', and you're standing there thinking 'What the hell does that mean'?" Ai'lani said, shrugging his shoulders in confusion.
"Or 'I love you, but my heart is somewhere else.'" Rianni groaned, remembering some of Ayren's words the day she left, "What the frack is that?"
"Hmm..." Ai'lani said, drinking his tea, part of him wishing it was something stronger. "Well, it's not good to give up hope," he added after a moment of silence.
"I suppose that's true." Rianni nodded, "After all, how does one live without hope?"
"Not well," Ai'lani replied. "We'll find someone," he assured her. "Do you wanna go out?" he suddenly asked her.
Rianni at first wanted to say that she wasn't sure men were really her thing, but she'd come to realize after Lee and Ayren that women weren't exactly easy to deal with either, and she figured he probably didn't mean it that way anyway, ~Damn!~ "Sure, I know a great Romulan place, unless you're in the mood for something else. Anything but Klingon. I can not do racht tonight!"
"I've never tried Romulan food before, so that's a yes. And I can't stand Klingon food. I tried gagh once and spent the entire night throwing up," Ai'lani admitted. "My date really didn't appreciate it."
"Yeah, vomiting, not really a turn on for most people." Rianni nodded and laughed, "But, I'm sure somewhere out there in the galaxy, probably in front of a computer terminal, there is someone who gets off on it. Just hope I never meet them."
"Wow, thanks for that image," Ai'lani told her. "And they call Deltans weird," he commented.
"Hey, next time someone calls you weird you got ammo to fight back with now." Rianni smirked, "Tell them 'I may be bald but at least I'm no reflexophile!'"
Ai'lani laughed. "I like you," he told her.
"I'm glad." Rianni smiled, "Since my application to be someone else got rejected. But, for whatever it's worth, I like you, too, Ai'lani."
"Good, so when do you want to go out? I promise I won't load you up with pheromones and drag you back to my place," he said innocently.
"Name the time and place." Rianni offered, "If I'm on the station I'm good to go."
"Oh really?" he asked suggestively, looking her up and down.
"Didn't you know Romulans were ever ready?" Rianni giggled, sticking her tongue out at him as she did.
"Oh, well I do now. Maybe I'll just have to surprise you in my own Deltan way," Ai'lani said, moving his head towards her as if to take a bite at her stuck out tongue.
For reasons yet undetermined, Rianni didn't move, merely waiting to see what he was going to do.
But he didn't bite her. Instead, she could feel the whish of air as his teeth connected sharply just short of the target and he grinned at her. Then he stepped back. "See, I do things like this and then I wonder why my son doesn't tell me about PTA meetings," he commented.
"I can imagine." Rianni giggled, then, out of the blue and shocking even herself, leaned forward and kissed him deeply, "So, do all your interviews end like this?"
He smiled. "Only the good ones," Ai'lani grinned, kissing her back.
"So, you hungry?" Rianni asked, "Or do you have other plans?"
"Well, a little bit of both. Unfortunately, my dear, I need to go home before my son wonders where I am," he said with a flirty grin. "But I'll be sure to call you to set up our date," he said.
"Okay." Rianni sighed, "Don't keep a girl waiting too long, though."
"I won't," he grinned before leaving.
::OFF::
Ai'lani
Freelance photojournalist
erie'Riov Rianni Monteros-t'Khellian
CO, IRW Dhelan
&
Arrain Ashara R'Vek t'Khellian
by (G) Arrain - Lieutenant Arrienye t'Merek & (G) erie'Riov - Sub Commander Rianni Monteros-t'Khellian
Post Details
| Title | Sudden Celebrity & Mixed Emotions | |
| Mission | Interlude | |
| Author(s) | (G) Arrain - Lieutenant Arrienye t'Merek & (G) erie'Riov - Sub Commander Rianni Monteros-t'Khellian | |
| Posted | Fri Jun 11, 2010 @ 12:45am | |
| Location | Rianni's quarters | |
| Timeline | SD22-1 Hour after "Hard News" |
Although he and Dominic had arrived on DS5 only a couple of days prior, Ai'lani wasn't the type to sit around getting settled. Soon enough, he'd gotten the itch to get out and sniff around, and this time his sniffing had gotten him on the trail of an erie'Riov Rianni Monteros-t'Khellian, a most intriguing woman.
After having asked around and found out about her attempted suicide and dismissal from Starfleet, he knew there was definitely a story there. And surprisingly, it was one she was willing to share. So, around noon, station time, he put got his equipment ready and made his way to her quarters, pressing the chime.
"Ashara, I'm not sure about this." Rianni protested as her sister helped her dress, "I mean, I just got out of sickbay.... Besides, another interview, two in one day? Seriously, I think people in hell get more of a break!"
"Yes, and we want to get in front of this story before Gabriel or any of his cronies do." Ashara reminded her, "And this man is the way to do it."
"Of course." Rianni sighed, even though she still hated the idea of laying this whole thing out for the galaxy to see.
Opening the door, she stood to greet her guest, "Welcome."
The Deltan grinned brightly, genuinely happy that she hadn't changed her mind. "Thank you! I'm Ai'lani. It's nice to finally meet you," he said in a friendly tone.
"It's good to meet you, too." Rianni smiled, something about the Deltan set her at ease, "I'm Rianni, this is my sister Ashara, please, come in."
"It's a great pleasure to meet you too," he told the other Romulan, giving her a small nod in respect as he knew was expected. "So, how is everyone?" he asked them.
"Pretty good." Rianni said, Ashara nodding in agreement, "You?"
"I'm great. I just moved here and I am loving the activity around here," he told them. "So, we can start whenever you're comfortable, but I was wondering if I can take a picture of you both? I'm a photojournalist," he explained, picking up his camera.
"Oh, of course." Rianni agreed, moving over for Ashara to get into the frame.
"Could you be so kind as to forward a copy of that picture to our father's quarters?" Ashara asked, "Mother Eleni complains frequently that we don't have enough family pictures."
"Of course," he nodded, adjusting the frame before snapping three pictures. He walked over to them so they could have a look. "Is this okay?" he asked.
Rianni and Ashara both nodded happily, the pictures were excellent, "Well, I should let you two get started." Ashara said, standing to leave, "Ai'lani, I hope to see you around more often."
"You too," he said back.
Watching her sister leave Rianni turned her attention to the Deltan reporter, "So, where do you want to start?"
"Well, where are you from?" he asked, motioning for her to sit down, wanting her to be comfortable. He always found that having an interview be more like a normal conversation was a lot more relaxing.
Taking the seat next to Ai'lani, Rianni began to open up, "Well, I was born in a Romulan POW camp, my mother was one of the captured Starfleet crew from the USS Coral Sea, after my birth my mother and her shipmates were released to return to the Federation, and we went to live in Athens, Greece, which is where I was raised."
"And how do you feel about being of two different species? I've interviewed several hybrids, but a lot of them, while showing some type of unease, generally felt quite comfortable. I think that's because the majority of hybrids are those of two species that have cultures with a similar view on life. But, you're half human and half Romulan. So, how does that feel?" Ai'lani asked her curiously.
"It was never easy." Rianni replied, "I've been accused of treason over a hundred times with no evidence on which to present such an accusation, and always found it a lot harder for me than it was for others to get promoted, I must have trained seven of my bosses. I was the last living Dominion War ace to make Major, in fact, when I made it I was the only one who hadn't made it and one of only three that hadn't made Lt. Colonel. So, to say I faced some discrimination would be putting it mildly."
"I understand. Being Deltan tends to bring on some prejudice from people," he told her with a small smile. "So, why did you stay in Starfleet all these years, despite the discrimination?"
"I always felt what I was doing was important and that sooner or later people would start to see me and not their conceptions of me." Rianni said, "And, it did happen, just not in Starfleet."
"Yes, I heard you were dismissed from Starfleet a few days ago. But, from what I've heard of it, if you don't me being a bit subjective here, it seems to be like they were just looking for a reason," he admitted, hoping she wouldn't mind him expressing his opinion. While he did try to remain as objective as possible, Ai'lani knew it was no way to live and if you couldn't pour your heart into your work, you weren't doing anything.
"It does look suspicious doesn't it?" Rianni offered, "Not totally unexpected, but it did still hurt."
"I understand. So, I'm really sorry to have to go down this road, but it's part of my job," Ai'lani stated, "So, what happened? Why did you wish to take your life? But, please, you don't need to answer if you don't want to. I won't push. Much," the Deltan smirked good-naturedly.
Rianni had to fight the urge to tell him everything, knowing if she did she would cause Ayren so much shame, though she didn't really know why she cared, "Well, after a lifetime of dealing with this sort of prejudice and pressure and harassment from people who were supposed to be on my side I had too much to drink and it all seemed a little harder to bear than I had expected. It just sort of happened, as ridiculous as it might sound."
"It doesn't sound so ridiculous," he assured her. "Sometimes, when a lot of things pile up and get alcohol poured over them, any way out seems great," he explained with a smile, that was sympathetic without holding that 'I'm so sorry for you' tone just under the surface.
"I guess so." Rianni shrugged, it made as much sense as anything else, "Sometimes things just happen."
"So, now that you've been through so much, what do you think about Starfleet? Do you think hold the same views of it you had, or have the recent events changed that?"
"I think Starfleet needs to conduct a closer review of their personnel policies and bring them in line with the Federations advertised humanistic views." Rianni replied, "I think I could've been treated a lot better in light of my situation, and I hope someone steps in from above to make sure what happens to me doesn't happen to anyone else. I'd hate to see this kind of thing tarnish the otherwise great organization that is Starfleet."
"I agree. One of the things I personally am opposed to, is the Oath of Celibacy my people have to take when entering Starfleet. I find it very insulting," Ai'lani explained, tapping a couple of things on the pad he held.
"It does seem hypocritical doesn't it?" Rianni asked, "I mean, they don't make Betazoids sign an oath not to use their telepathy to manipulate people with less powerful minds. Where's the distinction?"
"There isn't any. The way I see it, they think my people are just a bunch of sex-hungry maniacs who can't keep keep their own hormones in check," Ai'lani explained, shaking his head in disappointed at the things his kind had to put up with.
"And they think my people are all here looking to spy on them." Rianni continued, shaking her head as Ai'lani had, ~If he only knew.~
"Yeah, because Starfleet would never spy on someone," Ai'lani said sarcastically. "But, moving on. Have you encountered any hostility from Romulans due to your mixed heritage?"
"A bit, but it has actually been less than I encountered on Federation worlds." Rianni answered, "Though a lot of that might be due to the fact that the Federation is more mixed than the Empire is."
"How do you feel about that? Do you think your transition will be a difficult one?"
"Well, as I'm actually serving almost directly under the Ambassador, who is my aunt, I think things will be a lot easier for me than it would otherwise." Rianni said, "I mean, I've already got a certain level of comfort going into this."
"Well that's good," he nodded. "I really wish you all the best in your new job. Now, I have to ask. I heard that you took your new ship out for a little test drive the other day and make a bit of a show in front of the Cardassian Embassy," he grinned. "What can you tell me about that?"
Rianni laughed hard, "It's just SOP to cloak and decloak a new ship when it first goes online, if it spooked the Cardies, well, that shows they've dropped their guard too much or they jump at too many shadows or both."
Ai'lani laughed with her, inadvertently releasing some more pheromones. He'd been keeping the amount steady, to make sure Rianni was relaxed around him, but he slipped momentarily, and managed to pull it back in right away, hoping she wouldn't be affected too much. "I completely agree with you there."
"Good to see we're in sync on that note." Rianni giggled, for some reason this guy was having an effect on her, ~Must be the Deltan thing.~
"Yeah," he nodded. "Well, is there anything you want to talk about?" he offered. He'd mostly gotten all the information he wanted, but he liked this woman. She seemed fun.
"Nothing important." Rianni replied, "But, I don't mind company at all, if you'd like a drink or something."
"Sure if you're offering," he accepted. "Nothing alcoholic though. I'm cutting down," he said.
"Oh, of course." Rianni said, choosing to offer him iced tea instead of Romulan Ale, "I've got iced tea and lemon, fresh lemon, in my fridge."
"Iced tea sounds good," he smiled. "I recently got dumped, so I'm trying not to drown my problems," he explained, not sure why. Part of him did feel like he needed to at least get a thing or two off his chest, since at home he tried to be as strong as possible around Dominic. The kid didn't need to worry himself with his problems after everything else he has to go through with him.
"Yeah, alcohol plus a broken heart is not a good combination." Rianni nodded, knowing very well that of which she spoke.
"You can say that again," he nodded with her. "Sorry, I didn't mean to get all depressed on you. I have a son at home and he's got enough to deal with as it is without me moping around."
"No, it's okay." Rianni replied, "I mean, if anyone understands what you're feeling it's me. Please, feel free." She returned from the kitchen and sat down a tray with two glasses of ice and a pitcher of iced tea and a dish of sliced lemon on it, "I mean, we all need to unburden ourselves sometimes."
"Yeah, but I don't usually unburden to the people who I try to get to unburden to me," he smiled as she poured himself some iced tea. "My son keeps asking me what happened but it's hard to explain Deltan relationships to a human," Ai'lani admitted.
"Trust me, human relationships are no easier." Rianni said, sipping her tea, "And believe me, I know all about this, I am 0 for love, my friend. Three ex-husbands, a couple of brutal dumpings by girlfriends, yeah, I feel your pain."
"You know what the worst line is? 'I love you but I'm not in love with you', and you're standing there thinking 'What the hell does that mean'?" Ai'lani said, shrugging his shoulders in confusion.
"Or 'I love you, but my heart is somewhere else.'" Rianni groaned, remembering some of Ayren's words the day she left, "What the frack is that?"
"Hmm..." Ai'lani said, drinking his tea, part of him wishing it was something stronger. "Well, it's not good to give up hope," he added after a moment of silence.
"I suppose that's true." Rianni nodded, "After all, how does one live without hope?"
"Not well," Ai'lani replied. "We'll find someone," he assured her. "Do you wanna go out?" he suddenly asked her.
Rianni at first wanted to say that she wasn't sure men were really her thing, but she'd come to realize after Lee and Ayren that women weren't exactly easy to deal with either, and she figured he probably didn't mean it that way anyway, ~Damn!~ "Sure, I know a great Romulan place, unless you're in the mood for something else. Anything but Klingon. I can not do racht tonight!"
"I've never tried Romulan food before, so that's a yes. And I can't stand Klingon food. I tried gagh once and spent the entire night throwing up," Ai'lani admitted. "My date really didn't appreciate it."
"Yeah, vomiting, not really a turn on for most people." Rianni nodded and laughed, "But, I'm sure somewhere out there in the galaxy, probably in front of a computer terminal, there is someone who gets off on it. Just hope I never meet them."
"Wow, thanks for that image," Ai'lani told her. "And they call Deltans weird," he commented.
"Hey, next time someone calls you weird you got ammo to fight back with now." Rianni smirked, "Tell them 'I may be bald but at least I'm no reflexophile!'"
Ai'lani laughed. "I like you," he told her.
"I'm glad." Rianni smiled, "Since my application to be someone else got rejected. But, for whatever it's worth, I like you, too, Ai'lani."
"Good, so when do you want to go out? I promise I won't load you up with pheromones and drag you back to my place," he said innocently.
"Name the time and place." Rianni offered, "If I'm on the station I'm good to go."
"Oh really?" he asked suggestively, looking her up and down.
"Didn't you know Romulans were ever ready?" Rianni giggled, sticking her tongue out at him as she did.
"Oh, well I do now. Maybe I'll just have to surprise you in my own Deltan way," Ai'lani said, moving his head towards her as if to take a bite at her stuck out tongue.
For reasons yet undetermined, Rianni didn't move, merely waiting to see what he was going to do.
But he didn't bite her. Instead, she could feel the whish of air as his teeth connected sharply just short of the target and he grinned at her. Then he stepped back. "See, I do things like this and then I wonder why my son doesn't tell me about PTA meetings," he commented.
"I can imagine." Rianni giggled, then, out of the blue and shocking even herself, leaned forward and kissed him deeply, "So, do all your interviews end like this?"
He smiled. "Only the good ones," Ai'lani grinned, kissing her back.
"So, you hungry?" Rianni asked, "Or do you have other plans?"
"Well, a little bit of both. Unfortunately, my dear, I need to go home before my son wonders where I am," he said with a flirty grin. "But I'll be sure to call you to set up our date," he said.
"Okay." Rianni sighed, "Don't keep a girl waiting too long, though."
"I won't," he grinned before leaving.
::OFF::
Ai'lani
Freelance photojournalist
erie'Riov Rianni Monteros-t'Khellian
CO, IRW Dhelan
&
Arrain Ashara R'Vek t'Khellian