Fire and Ice (Part II of III)

Posted on Tue Jan 15, 2019 @ 9:25pm by Captain Maritza Soran & Civilian 'Arrival' Geral Lasuma

1,868 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Doors of Perception
Location: Geral Lasuma's yacht.
Timeline: MD 04 2000

Previously on Fire and Ice

She gave a girlish squeal, trying and failing to dodge, and she looked down at her snow covered belly. "You're going to pay for that." She backed away to get another handful of the snow, and threw it, with more enthusiasm than accuracy, at his head.

There was no time to dodge and his eyes widened before closing instinctively. When he reopened them he was spitting wiping his face looking at her with one eye as he wiped snow from the other.

He laughed as well, "Oh I'm fine. Just didn't expect you to try and blind me is all." One corner of his mouth curled, "You know you are going to pay for that."

Taking a step forward he spoke in Bajoran, "Computer remove the section of roof above my guest." With that command the blanket of snow that had collected there came falling down on and around her with a thump.

And Now the Continuation

Her shocked yelp was brief and outraged as she was buried in a pile of chilling, fluffy flakes. She was left gasping at the sudden rush of cold, which then hit again a moment later, when it melted and ran down her neck. "Cheat!" She protested. "R-r-r-rotten....ch-ch-cheating..." Her words disappeared into a chattering of her teeth as the cold gripped her.

He could help but let out a laugh as she stood there trying not to move and let more snow slip down her neck. "Cheat??? Don't you mean disarming." As he stepped over to help brush her off.

He was in her personal space, and it made her blood rush and her breath catch, though that was probably just the cold. Just the cold. And her heated skin melted more snow which trickled an icy streak right down her spine and she gasped again.

"I don't know what you mean," she stuttered out between chattering teeth. "If this was my holodeck I'd relocate you into the lake for that." With snow melting in her hair she looked a bit bedraggled, making the threat sound somewhat ridiculous.

Smiling warmly at the shattered threat. "Come on, let's get you inside." Lifting her out and over the pile of snow around her he let her down slowly, brushing a few tendrils of hair from her face.

His hands on her waist felt...good. Being closed to him was ...warming. And when he touched her face, her stomach flipped over and over like she was a twelve year old girl again. "Yes, please!" she tried not to shiver. "I think my revenge will have to wait until I've dodged pneumonia."

Stepping away he opened the classical door with an actual door knob and stepped aside for her to enter. The interior was a mix of rock, wood, leather, and cloth. A fire roared in the large fireplace and the subtle scent of spices fill the air. Stomping the snow off of his boots he stepped down the hall returning with a towel.

By the time he'd got back, Maritza had removed her boots and placed them neatly by the door and and hung her coat in a convenient peg. Now she was standing in front of the flames, warming her fingers. her pale blue tunic was damp at the neck, but she was far too enthralled by the surroundings to really notice.

The cabin was rustic, with its exposed beam vaulted ceilings, and piled stone chimney breast, but luxurious. Leather upholstered furniture was gathered in a lose circle around the fire place, and strewn with throws and pillows that looked very inviting on a cold day. The main room was illuminated by a huge pendant chandelier, a round cage of curved willow bands surrounding half a dozen lights suspended within it, dim enough that the light from the fire still threw a cosy glow across the room.

Maritza took the towel with thanks and used it to squeeze the dampness out of her braids. "Its a beautiful home. Do you come here often?"

"Not as often as I like. Though when I do decide to get away I will get things taken care of during the trip to Bajor and once I'm here...I shut everything out. Everything I need is restocked and in a stasis chamber in the cellar for my eventual return and I have an emergency transmitter in an office space. When I come here, it's to get away from everything and everyone, so that's what I do."

"You haven't really succeeded with that this time," Maritza pointed out, finding another spot of dry towel to dab the back of her neck with. "I'm honored to go where no one has gone before."

Nodding deeply in gratitude he replied leading her to a spot before the fire to help remove any lingering chill. "Well it's true that no one, other than myself, has stepped across that threshold, in reality I just left here. So my batteries are charged. Though I thought you might like it to help you recharge yours."

"You have no idea." she sighed, sinking down onto the thick rug. "Its been a rough few weeks. And its not just hard to get away. When you're the person in charge, your options for an outlet are somewhat curtailed."

Joining her on the rug, the light from the fire flickering off her. "I learned that when on the top of the ladder, the more burdens one bears, the more important it is to find a way to relax. Like you are now."

"I have to admit, if it wasn't for you, I probably wouldn't be. There's just too much to do. An hour to myself is an unjustifiable luxury."

Shaking his head as he placed a hand on hers. " When that is one's mindset, it becomes not only justified...but necessary. But enough of the heavy." Standing, "I'll be right back."

She watched him get up, curious to see what he would surprise her with next. She decided it was best not to try and second guess him, she'd only underestimate him.

Stepping passed her he walked over to the kitchen area to the source of the aromatic spices, a kettle of mulled wine. Pulling two mugs from the cupboard her poured the wine and placed it on a tray to which he added various items; meats, cheeses, toast points, brown mustard, fruits, and shortbread cookies. Returning to the spot on the rug he set the tray on the stone work and sat in front of her again.

"That smells good." the spices wafting off the mulled wine were rich and and seemed to perfectly complement the rustic nature of the cabin. Then she bit her lip, trying not to giggle. "I don't think I've had a floor picnic since I was a little girl."

It was good to see her enjoying herself and their was always something about a beautiful woman biting her lip. "Well in that case a floor picnic it is." Taking plate and bowl from the tray he spread the dishes out between them.

"Haven't you ever had one? Not even when you were little?" she asked, helping lay out the spread.

Shaking is head. "When I was younger there were other priorities. When I was able to eat it did matter where you were, you ate."

She did quick math in her head and winced internally. When he had been little, Bajor would have been under Cardassian Occupation. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to...I didn't think."

Shaking his head as he wrinkled his chin with a little shrug. "Nothing to be sorry about. While horrible, the occupation shook Bajorians out of their complacency, made Bajor stronger, led to the discovery of the wormhole, and me what I am today."

Maritza picked up her mug of mulled wine and held it up, "To what you are today."

Marirza sipped her drink. "What was it like? during the occupation?" Maritza found the Cardassians on the station insufferable: arrogant, entitled, and rude. And that was them trying to get on with people. She'd read the reports and the analysis - was it too soon to call it history?- when she'd been younger and had found it horrific.

Lifting his mug to her toast he drank, pausing at her question. Lowering his drink he contemplated actually answering her question. "I wouldn't want to ruin the evening. But if you really want to know I'll tell you sometime."

"Another time then." She wrapped a piece of cheese in a thin slice of some sort of ham or sausage. "Tell me something else about you. Have you got any family?"

Spreading a bit of mustard on a toast point and topping it with a piece of meat. "Not any longer. My father died in the ore processing station on what is now Deep Space 9. My mother and sister were killed in a retaliatory strike by Cardassians after some resistance operation. I came home from running an errand and the whole neighborhood was a smoldering ruin.
I was alone and on streets by the by time I was ten."

Maritza was aghast. it had never occurred to her that his family would not have survived when he had. She'd put her foot in it again. "I'm sorry.' she covered her embarrassment by drinking again. "So how did you to from there to here? It doesn't sound like an auspicious start."

"It wasn't. But while the others on the street where stealing and scrounging I was observing. Who was doing what, who had what, who needed what. It wasn't long that I had the thieves and scroungers working for me and became the source regional of not only information but things. Everything grew from that."

"Thieves and scroungers worked for you?" Maritza's eyebrows raised and the cheese and ham morsel froze halfway to her mouth.

Popping a morsel in his mouth. "Absolutely. The during an occupation it's the thieves that have the most; other than the occupying forces or collaborators. By controlling them I was able to use those resources to help were I could. Besides...i had them working against the collaborators and the Cardassians themselves. After the occupation we used the contacts we had developed to start a legitimate business."

"And the rest as they say is history?" Maritza finished for him, before nibbling at her own food. "I was going to say its kind of hard to see a man who has a snowball fight as a criminal Kingpin."

He didn't hesitate, even as he thought about some of his less than reputable activities still going on. Shrugging with a smile, "One could say the same thing about the Commanding officer of a Starbase."

She blushed and looked down with a demure smile of her own. "I had a moment of weakness. Its been a long few days. Ill try to retain the dignity of my office at all times from now on."

Lifting her chin, he looked straight into her eyes. "Don't you dare..."

To Be Continued

Commander Maritza Soran
CO
DS5

Geral Lasuma
Owner of Lasuma Enterprises

 

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