The Wise Man Has The Power To Reason Away
Posted on Wed Sep 6th, 2023 @ 6:47am by Tadao Yoshikawa & Captain Kagami Izumi & Hatsune Izumi
Edited on on Sun Sep 17th, 2023 @ 3:13am
2,714 words; about a 14 minute read
Mission:
Lockdown
Location: "Final Frontiers Bar & Grill," Galleria LL (Deck 10)
Nestled in the central court of the Main galleria, book-ended by an obnoxious clothing store that reeked of cheap Cardassian perfume and an axe-throwing experience that primarily catered to the drunk, off-duty Klingons who had nothing better to do in their down time, there resided a small, unpretentious dining establishment.
Making use of soft lighting, gentle curves, and natural Oaken wood to give diners a bit of a reprieve from the harsh steel bulkheads of a starbase, the food offered here was something of a novel variety, taking several unique recipes from cultures spanning the Federation and putting something of a gourmet twist on them.
Here, the staff made a dedicated effort to address their customers by name, making their experience here all that more rewarding. Klingons didn't seem to get the "soft, friendly" vibes that the establishment gave off and proceeded immediately to the axe-throwing experience next door to get hammered on bloodwine, but for a Starfleet officer looking for even the slightest reprieve from all the hustle-and-bustle that came with living and working aboard a starbase, this place offered up as good an escape as any.
"We've got an Andorian Redbat and Tuber Roots for Mr. Maurice Lagrange, coming up!" the restaurant's manager announced as he set the order down at the window. "Oh, and tell Ms. T'pir that there's going to be a slight delay with her Plomeek Soup; the broth was expired and we had to start over, but we should have another one ready for her in just a few minutes!"
"On it, Boss!" one of the servers replied, taking the tray and heading off to the corresponding table.
"Hey, how are those Katterpod Noodles for Mr. Daiej coming along?" The manager called back to the kitchen. "He's probably been waiting on those for about 10 minutes now!"
"Just about done!" one of the chefs reported. "We're just adding the finishing touches; should be ready to serve in just a minute!"
"Fantastic," the Manager nodded.
"Oh my God, is that..."
"Where are her parents?"
Overhearing the concerned mutterings of his patrons, the manager turned his attention back to the main dining area, where he could see a young (and by young, he meant very young- easily no more than 4 or 5), blue-haired girl standing in the middle of the room, looking equal bits curious, confused, and (most certainly) terrified.
"Ah, shit," one of the servers standing next to him remarked. "Looks as if one of the kids from the preschool wandered off again; you want me to take care of this, boss?"
"No, let me," the manager insisted as he dropped what he was doing and made his way over to the scared little girl.
However the little girl, was in fact no where near scared. She was just curious. She had wandered off as usual, but if anyone looked closely you could spot that a Starfleet Comm badge was pinned to her chest.
As the manager pushed his way through the crowd, he was keen to observe the badge, and immediately deduced that this was likely the daughter of a Starfleet officer posted aboard the station. If he could convince her to let her use the badge for just a second, perhaps he could get in contact with her parents.
"Hey, there," he greeted, getting down on his knees so he could look the girl in the eye. "What's your name, Sweetheart?"
Hatsune raised an eyebrow as she looked up at the stranger. She sensed that he had no ill-intent from her Betazoid senses. "I am Hatsune. Your name is Tadao..." she said in response.
The manager blinked in surprise. "Yes... yes, that's quite right," he replied, taking the little girl's hands in her own. "Hatsune, I believe you said your name was? I take it you're a Betazoid, then?"
"Half Betazoid," Hatsune replied. "My mummy said that my daddy was a very powerful Betazoid. But I don't know what that means..." she said with a cute smile.
Tadao frowned a little bit at her mentioning her father in the past tense. Had something happened? Had her father walked out, or possibly...?
He shook his head. No. This isn't your kid, Tadao; let's focus on getting her back on where she belongs.
"So I see," he remarked, glancing over at her comm badge as if he had just spotted it for the first time. "Oh! And what's this that you've got here on your shirt? It looks very important."
"Thats my comm badge. It connects to my mummy." she told him. "But I only use it if I need help."
Tadao looked back up at Hatsune. "Do you mind if I speak with your mummy, please?" he asked politely. "It'll only be for a moment."
Hatsune cocked her head to one side as if confused. "But I don't need help. But Ok..." she said as she pulled the badge off and held it out to him.
Nodding a head as a gesture of thanks, Tadao proceeded to take the badge and depressed the button, hoping the girl's mother already had it set to a frequency that would connect him directly to her.
=A=Hello?=A= He began. =A=Is Hatsune's mother here?=A=
A few seconds of silence followed his question before a voice finally answered. "Yes this is. Who is this?" the womans voice asked in response. "Where is Hatsune? Is she ok?" a hint of worry could be heard in her tone.
=A=Yes, Hatsune's alright,=A= Tadao replied. =A=We found her wandering around our restaurant without an adult, so we figured we'd get in contact with her parents to let you know where she is.=A=
There was an audible sigh from the woman on the other end of the comm line. "Where is she now?" she asked.
=A=Final Frontiers Bar & Grill, Deck 10,=A= Tadao replied. =A=Can't miss it; it's right next to the axe-throwing experience.=A=
"Ok. I'll be there shortly. She's probably hungry so thats why she wandered in. She's still new to the whole 'Starbase' thing. By all means get her something to eat and drink, I'll pay for in once I arrive," The womans voice replied. "Make sure she doesn't wander off ok?"
=A=Will do,=A= Tadao answered. =A=And, uh... sorry for all the trouble this may have caused. I understand you're probably a busy woman and all...=A=
"Don't worry about it..." The woman replied before the comm link was terminated.
As she terminated the communication, Tadao glanced back over at Hatsune and smiled.
"There we go," he began, reaffixing the comm badge to her blouse. "Told you it would be just a moment. Now, your mummy's going to be here in just a few minutes to pick you up, so what's say we get you something to eat in the meantime?"
Hatsune's stomach growled. "Do you have Rice Omlettes? With tomato ketchup. Do you have chocolate milk?" she asked.
"We've got anything here your heart desires, Sweetheart," Tadao smiled as stood up and led her off to a table.
The restaurant-goers looked on with curiosity as Tadao wheeled over a high chair and proceeded to hoist Hatsune into her seat.
"There we go," he said as he buckled her in. "Best seat in the house; and as for that omelette, we'll have it ready for you in just a few minutes, okay?"
Hatsune nodded simply. "Thankyou"
Tadao looked up at one of the servers who was watching this all unfold and gave him a nod.
"Rice omelette, extra ketchup, and a chocolate milk," the server nodded as he turned to head back in to the kitchen. "Coming right up!"
Tadao shifted his attention back to Hatsune. "Say, Hatsune, you like to draw? What's say we get you some crayons so you can draw a picture, eh?"
"I'm good at drawing pictures..." Hatsune said.
[A Little While Later]
After wrapping up what she had been doing, Kagami finally arrived at the 'Final Frontier's Bar & Grill'. The Captain walked through the front door that lead off from the main level of the Galleria. Her purple twintails flowed behind her as she walked, and the four ranks pips on her chest glistened in the low light.
She immediately spotted Hatsune, along with a man whom she presumed she had spoken with earlier.
The man happened to glance up from the picture that Hatusne had been drawing and spotted Kagami from across the room. Of course, those bright, purple twintails that flowed like a banner behind her were enough to catch anyone's attnetion, but there was another kind of recognition in his eyes-almost as if he had just seen a ghost. He whispered something to Hatsune before getting up and making his way over to where Kagami stood.
"I, um... I take it you're Hatsune's mother?" he began, twiddling his thumbs nervously.
Kagami smiled at the man. "Yeah, I see you have her well catered for..." she said. "Thanks for making sure she's ok. She's always wandering off these days. You know how little kids can be..." she noticed that he seemed to be rather nervous for some reason. "Are you ok?"
"I, um... I think I'm fine," the man replied, scratching the back of his neck. "I mean, as long as your daughter's okay, that's all that's important"
That was so obviously a lie.
"Say, um before you go... you wouldn't have happened to attended ZekkÅ No Kikai academy sometime in the mid-2370s?" the man asked, looking especially anxious as he did so.
Kagami raised an eyebrow. "Now that you mention it, I did actually..." she replied.
"Wouldn't happen to have been in Class 2-10, with Mr. Morishige?" the man continued.
Kagami was starting to feel a little freaked out by this. "Erm... yeah..."
"Wouldn't possibly happen to remember a scrawny drip seated across from you? Dirty blonde, green eyes, not much of a talker?"
The Captain placed her chin between her forefinger and thumb as she trued to remember. It was such a long time ago and the memories were still vague at times. "I think I do... what was his name. Yado... no... Yawa.... no thats not it..."
"Tadao Yoshikawa," Hatsune burst out. Kagami looked at her daughter in surprise. 'How the hell does she know that?!' she thought as she blinked a few times still trying to process the information. She then watched as Hatsune simply began pointing at the man she was talking to. "Tadao Yoshikawa," she repeated.
Kagami turned to face Tadao. "Seriously? Yoshikawa, that's actually you?"
The man smiled. "Small galaxy, it would seem; it's been a while, Kagami."
"Oh, we're on first name basis?" Kagami smirked. She held a hand out for him. "It has been a long time Yoshikawa. Well, since little madam there is happily eating. Shall we catch up? Its not every day you run into an old classmate."
Tadao blinked in surprise. "O-oh! Yes, of course; feel free to have a seat."
Kagami slid into a nearby seat and instantly her body relaxed. Obviously it had been a long day for her. "Finally, time to sit down that isn't behind a desk or in Ops." she sighed.
"Well, I can see you're doing well for yourself," Tadao remarked as he sat down across from her. "Captain Izumi, I see?"
He gestured towards the four gold pips adorning Kagami's collar.
Kagami smiled. "Yeah, not too bad to be honest. Although this base is my second command. I did have a Starship before... stuff happened..."
An awkward silence followed.
"I, uh... I see," Tadao remarked, stealing a glance over at Hatsune. "Well, I'm sure that life on a starbase is a much more suitable environment for bringing up a child; I take it her father visits every now and then?"
Kagami looked down sadly. "Unfortunately not. Hatsune's father was taken from us far too soon. She was only a few weeks old when he was..." she paused for a brief moment and glanced over towards her daughter before returning her gaze to Tadao. "Murdered."
A look of horror washed over Tadao's face.
"Oh my God... Kagami, I'm so sorry," he expressed with genuine sympathy. "If I had known, I wouldn't have-!"
"No its ok. It was a while ago now," she smiled. Her smile seemed a little shallow. "I spent until now back on Earth teaching at Starfleet Academy. This is my first space assignment since then." she explained. "The guy who did it is now securely in a penal colony, thats justice at least. Plus, I have Hatsune. So its not like I've lost everything."
"Still... raising a kid? By yourself? That's gotta be tough, even in today's day and age."
"Its not easy. But she's worth it." Kagami smiled fondly. "However she sometimes struggles with her Betazoid abilities. She has a bad habit of talking telepathically to me or others she is close to instead of her voice."
Tadao looked over at Hatsune again, and happened to notice she had a milk mustache. Chuckling lightly to himself, he grabbed a napkin and proceeded to dab it lightly at Hatsune's upper lip, much to the toddler's evident confusion.
"Have you ever been to this... Betazoid, I think it was?" he asked, glancing back over at Kagami.
"Betazed." Kagami corrected him. "Yeah I have. Technically I still own the estate from my late husband there. But I haven't had the heart..." her tone changed "Or the courage..." she muttered before turning back to her normal voice. "To go back there. Its currently managed by his family, they're content with living there. Plus my work as a Starfleet Officer means that where I am assigned I call home."
Without warning, her comm badge chirrped. "Ops to Captain Izumi." a voice called from the badge.
Kagami sighed and tapped the badge. "Izumi here."
"Captain. We have an incoming transmission from the Orion Freighter that is arriving. They want to discuss the trade arrangments you have made with them. They're quite adament on speaking only with you sir..."
Kagami rolled her eyes. Slowly she stood up. "I'll be right up. Tell them I'll be there shortly." she replied. The comm channel cut off and she turned back to Tadao. "Sorry, business calls." she looked over towards Hatsune.
"When she's finished. Would you mind..." she blushed a little, she was used to asking for favours. "Keeping an eye on her until I can finish my shift. It'll only be a couple of hours. No doubt she'll be getting tired soon, just put her on some cushions or something. If there's one thing she's good at it is sleeping."
Tadao smiled. "Not a problem. I'll see to it that she's in good hands while you're busy taking care of that."
"Thanks. Tadao." Kagami said before turning on a heel and swiftly walking towards the door.
Tadao watched her leave before sighing and turning his attention over to Hatsune. She was still nursing her chocolate milk, but even now he could tell that exhaustion was catching up with her as she struggled to keep her head upright.
He smiled a little, and reached over to playfully ruffle her hair. While he'd probably missed his chance with Kagami a long while back, perhaps his chance was finally coming around to make up for lost time. And perhaps if he didn't have that place in Kagami's life as her special one, he had to admit, with this bundle of joy to look after, he could very comfortably see himself settling into the role of family friend.
Posting by (In order of appearance):
Tadao Yoshikawa
Manager, Final Frontiers Bar & Grill
Hatsune Izumi
Civillian Child
Captain Kagami Izumi
Commanding Officer, Starbase Frontier
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