All Around Me Are Familiar Faces

Posted on Wed Apr 27th, 2022 @ 7:47pm by Executive Officer Jake Ford & Evelyn Reynolds

Mission: Mission 15: Adrift
Location: Freecloud
Timeline: Backpost
1800 words - 3.6 OF Standard Post Measure

"Can I get you something else while you wait, ma'am?"

It was cold. If there was one thing to be said for Stardust City, coming from the heart of a true Anglophile, it was that it got the weather right. Proper weather; sharp and rigid, uncompromising chill that permeated through layers and challenged the circulation. You certainly got nothing like it on starships, and and as anyone back home would tell you, you couldn't possibly drink tea properly unless its primary task was to burn the inside of your mouth just a little bit as it thawed out your tongue and provoked the slightly dripping of a red and frostbitten nose.

Evelyn blew the steam off the surface her cup.

And offered the cafe's solitary waiter a faint smile before shaking her head. "This is perfect, thank you." It wasn't but it was good tea and was more than ample for what her appetite would permit in any case. What couldn't be salvaged from the situation by any menu offering was the impetus behind opting for an outdoor seat, or the reason for being halfway up a mountain in Freecloud's largest city in the first place. She'd been there several days and, whilst not the most unpleasant place to recreate, it was undoubtedly hard to relax with the cold knot of anticipation and anxiety twisting itself into a permanent coil in your gut. Uncertainty was not Evelyn Reynold's specialty. She was a woman who knew her own mind and looked at the universe in a certain way, as if to say, 'That is where I need to be right now.' And that was that, always had been. It wasn't arrogance, that had been bred out of her at a young age, but confidence at the very least. Certainty. Deliberation mingled with sheer tenacity and hard work because she likewise didn't hold a lot of stock with fate and destiny; or luck, for that matter. Fickleness didn't make a great foundation. How many times had she been ribbed for being the only person capable of standing entirely still in the middle of an earthquake? She wasn't easily frazzled. Stirred plenty, she had the humour for it, but not shaken.

A teaspoon fished out a couple of leaf-floaters as the idle thought occurred that perhaps she ought to tell them how a pot was properly brewed, but instead Evelyn folded chilled fingers around the cup and settled with elbows unfashionably on the table to stare across the vista at the frozen canal. Great for ice skating. In fact, the entire street would make quite a picturesque Christmas market, if anyone in these parts had even heard of the archaic tradition and cared enough to risk life and limb to dangle ornaments from the streetlights. Evelyn's mind spun as it had for weeks upon weeks, a tumble of scattered recollection and frenetic intent churning its way through the very singular effort to remain distracted. It wasn't like her. There was a lot of that going around lately.

"Well, of all the people to run into in this neck of the woods...you were probably the last person I expected."

Jake had been forced into a double-take at seeing her there, between the bustle of the crowd and the far-too-loud noise of the city streets. He'd known straight away that he had to change the angle of his stride and adjust his path to intersect her table. "Evie Reynolds, as I live and breathe. Sat amongst us mortals in this dive of a system." He smirked as he arrived. "This must be one of those moments where it really is appropriate to ask what a lady like you is doing in a place like this."

He'd snuck up on her. It wasn't a fair accusation, since technically she was the one stalking him, and that was another thing so wildly out of character that it became an impossibility not to flush a little at being startled. Pink-cheeks were not uncommon in these parts, at least, and she'd always been pale enough to wear high-colour naturally. After she was done nearly spilling her entire cup in her lap, Evelyn risked the glance upwards to meet the gaze of a man who was more familiar than perhaps he ought to be for someone she'd not seen in person for quite a while, and tilted her head to just the angle that was a common gesture. It was accompanied by a likewise-familiar faint-smile-coupled-with-a-knowing-quirk-of-the-eyebrow and Evelyn managed a steady tone as she committed to the one piece of honesty she'd promised herself.

"Wondering how long it takes old friends to actually read their mail." She'd sent it less than an hour ago, which was why his sudden appearance had unnerved her. Serendipity was a force Evie couldn't argue with, but it was different to fate, even if it was just about as inconvenient. She added an explanation. "I've been here for several days, I'll have you know," she remarked, rising to finally offer him an uncommon hug. She was not a woman particularly liberal with physical affection, and saved it for those who had already done the hard yards to earn it.

"Mail service out here is a bit slower than Starfleet's," he explained. "Several days, you say? So what's your purpose out here, a vacation?" There had to be better places to take a break than this semi-lawless place. It probably wasn't high on Federation travel bulletins, and from what he remembered of Evelyn she wasn't the sort to naturally gravitate to this sort of adventure.

It hadn't mattered how many times she'd considered her options at this point, Evelyn had not produced an imagined response that satisfied her. As she pulled back from the hug, there was a slight shuffle of weight exchange that emphasised a certain reluctance to her stance, and it was her return to a seat, whilst offering the one opposite to Jake, that betrayed an obvious imbalance. Tucked beside her, the walking cane that would have assisted dangled uselessly but, once noticed, at least helped to add detail to the unusual picture she painted.

"Medically-enforced sabbatical leave," she confirmed, offering a wry smile because she certainly hadn't changed so much over the years that taking any sort of recreational break sat high on her list of preferences. "Though admittedly, disembarking here was somewhat of a whim." Also not like her. "At least the weather is agreeable." She always had preferred the cold. Once comfortable again, the blonde regarded Ford with a familiar scrutiny, shrewd intelligence mingled with profound intuition combining as an attempt to read beneath the surface. Evie studied him as she studied the rest of the universe before adding, "And now the company is too."

"Medically enforced?" he took a closer look, leaning around the table to assess properly. He saw the cane, and put the pieces together. "Tough break. Hey - it'd be good to catch up properly. And I'm sure I can get you a free berth on the Mary Rose if you're still feeling free-spirited. I guarantee the folks on board are better company than I am," he grinned. "Up for the ride?"

Fate, Evelyn reminded herself, was not a logical force upon which to pin your hopes for success. There was a brief moment, however, as Ford's offer eradicated any need for the botched-together explanations and justifications she'd spent all morning trying to conceive, where the scientist could see the appeal in ascribing certain victories to an outside influence. Her surprise turned very quickly into a see-sawing conflict between suspicion and gratitude, and for a split second Evie was in danger of turning down the offer that she'd been inclined to ask for specifically herself. Too easy, too accepting, too accommodating. Her world constricted again and Evelyn took a moment to breathe in deeply through her nose before paranoia and panic ruined her charade.

She smiled, what she hoped was a faintly puzzled smile. "I don't know about free-spirited but that ship of yours is a museum piece." Museums, art galleries, private exhibitions; history, as a past-time, was right up Evelyn's alley.

The squirm in the pit of her stomach that was trying to tell her Jake had acted too swiftly, that his invitation was so immediate it felt almost pre-meditated, battled with what remained of Evelyn's significantly level-head as it attempted to remind her that there was a reason she'd placed herself in his path specifically. Maybe he did know something, or maybe he was just doing that thing he'd always done where he took one look at her and didn't believe her bullshit. So eloquent. Whatever the case, her options were limited and this had seemed, at least when she'd done the hard yards sorting out what to do next, the best of an uncertain bunch.

"How long before you're back to port?" Exit strategies were important.

"Couple of weeks," he shrugged. "The Captain's off doing something personal, so it's just going to be me running the boat. Should be quite a relaxed run though."

"Wait, you're in command?" The amusement in her tone ought to have been insulting, except for the fact that it was underpinned by a surprised sense of approval. It took a lot to impress Evelyn enough to have her voice it; it also took a devilish amount of distraction to pull her out of herself recently. That Ford had achieved both so effortlessly offered a sense of reassurance that Evelyn hadn't felt in months. A slow smile spread warmth that finally reached her eyes. "Well, that's a different story. If its the at the request of the commanding officer, I guess I have a 'couple of weeks' to spare." The sparkle in her eyes teased him, though Evelyn swiftly resorted to the practical. "When do you leave?"

"First thing in the morning," he replied with a grin. He could sense that she was on board with the idea. Besides, having an old friend around for a while might break some of the monotony. "Be there or be square," he added with a wink.

As always, his cheek was contagious. If nothing else, Evelyn reflected, it was reassuring to know that some things remained constant, even if it was Jake Ford's capacity to be more charming than he gave himself credit for. The gentle shake of her head was a familiar reaction but also represented what had historically always been Evelyn's eventual capitulation. Lifting her cup, the blonde woman drained the last of her tea.

"I think I'll worry more about the shape I'm in after two weeks on your ship."