Show Tunes And Sun Tzu
Posted on Wed Jun 17th, 2015 @ 12:52pm by Ensign Six of Ten & Lieutenant Bryce Kendrick
Mission:
Further Challenges
Location: The Promenade
* The Promenade *
“Can you wrap that please?” Six asked the bookseller.
“Of course.” He hurried to the back room, a little relieved to be out of reach of ‘the Borg’. He likely would have just given her the book if she’d go and leave him in peace but he had to admit, she had been pleasant at least. Not that it made him any less nervous. He wrapped the box in a shiny red paper and added a black ribbon. Finally done, he returned with the present in a bag.
“Thanks.” She flashed the man a bright smile and hurried out.
Behind her the man took off the small skullcap he wore and wiped his face. She was gone and nothing bad had happened. But her smile….pretty as it was had creeped him out a little. He was unsure just what to make of a Borg that smiled.
Out on the Promenade, Six stopped at the jumja stand and now, the sweet in hand, she strolled along. The movie she had seen with Counselor Amani had been lovely and Six had watched it again later at home. The songs had been catchy too and one in particular was stuck in her head. She began to sing softly as she went along and soon it caught her up in its melody.
“I could have danced all night….and still have begged for more…..”
She twirled around, thoroughly enjoying herself and...twirled right into a rock hard chest clad in Security gold that didn’t move as she crashed into it.
“I could have spread my wings...and done a thousand things I’ve never done before!” Bryce belted out in a deep baritone, and surprisingly on key. He stopped when he noticed Six staring at him. “What? You can sing. I can’t sing?”
She rubbed her nose, then smiled up at him. “You should do that more often. You have a tremendous voice. The counselor took me to see “My Fair Lady”. He seemed to think it was very similar to me. I loved it.” Her smile grew as she studied Bryce. “You remind me a lot of Professor Higgins.”
Bryce laughed at the comparison. “You could definitely be Eliza but I don’t think I’m Professor Higgins.” He saw the package in her hand. “Doing a bit of shopping, eh?”
“This is for you, actually.” She offered the bag to Bryce. “I just happened to be in the right place at the right time but I think I made the seller a little nervous. I hope you like it.”
He took the bag, slowly, and asked, “Why are you buying me things? You don’t have to do stuff like that.”
“What? You can buy me things but I can’t buy you things?” she asked, mimicking his earlier question. “It’s one of those things that had your name written all over it, as they say. Go on...open it.”
Looking into the bag he saw the red, wrapped package and pulled it out. Once unwrapped his jaw hung loose as he saw what it was. He looked up and around the Promenade, then took Six’s arm and pulled her over to a more quiet corner. “Six, what the hell is this? I mean, it’s amazing, but...this must have cost, well, more credits than I’d be willing to spend.”
In his hand was a copy of Sun Tzu’s Art of War. It was obviously an antique, leather-bound, the pages a bit browned from old age but still in very good shape. It was a book he’d seen a few times but never bothered asking the price because he knew it would be outrageously expensive.
“Seriously, you don’t know how much this means to me,” he added, seeing the frown start on her face, “but Six, how can you afford this. Hell, I don’t even know if I could afford this!”
“Bryce,” she said and reached over to pat his hand. “It wasn’t that bad, don’t worry. I made the man an offer and he took it. And wrapped it for me. It was easy, trust me. You were meant for this book...or vice versa.”
He slumped his shoulders and gave up. “Fine!” he said, dragging it out like a whiny teenager. “Thank you. By the way, have you read this thing? It’s very interesting. Maybe, when I get through with it, I’ll let you take a peek at it.” He couldn’t help but to keep running his hand over the leather and smiling.
“In the computer, yes. It only took a few minutes to...yeah...that would be nice, thank you.” She watched as he continued to touch the book and her smiled returned. It pleased her that he liked it so much. Then she recalled something she had wanted to tell him. “I have a funny story for you.”
“Oh yeah?” His attention was finally pulled from the book which he returned to the bag.
“Remember my outing with Reva at the Nexus Club? I told you about the man who was choking?” A short laugh escaped her. “Well, I am seeing one of the counselors, he’s the one who took me to see that movie, and you will never guess what happened. “My first visit I walked into his office and….he is the man from the bar!” Six began to laugh once more. “It’s funny now, but then I wanted to just crawl under the rug.”
Bryce laughed. “Oh man, that had to have been real awkward. So how did it go? Were you guys able to loosen up a bit and get past the weird?”
“Counselor Amani is great. He laughed it off and even showed me his forehead to prove there had been no lasting damage. Which is a good thing, he has a handsome face.” SHe shifted a little, looking up at Bryce. “He’s an empath too. Kriosian.”
“Ah, empaths,” he replied with a sneer. “I never feel to easy around them. Never can really tell if they’re just poking away in my head all willy-nilly.” He flurried his fingers around the side of his head for effect.
His remark earned him a jab to the ribs from her elbow. “I am an empath. We can’t poke in your head like a Betazoid or an Enaran can. We just know how you’re feeling. And you need to stop worrying about how expensive that book was.”
“I know you’re an empath,” he replied. “And who said I was easy around you?” He jabbed her back with a smile. She was one of only a few empaths and telepaths that he didn’t mind being around and letting his guard down. “You’re my friend, Six, and a little out of sorts now that you’re not in the Collective. I just didn’t want that guy taking advantage of you. I get it, you’re a big girl and all that, but you’re like my kid sister. I don’t want anything bad to happen to you. So I’m gonna’ worry. Make peace with it.” He stuck his tongue out at her, hoping to take some of the seriousness out of what he’d said.
She stuck her tongue out at him right back. “Wait...which guy? I’ve met two guys lately who fall into that telepath/empath category.”
“The guy selling you the book, dork,” he said, rolling his eyes and laughing. “I just didn’t want him to rip you off. This thing is expensive enough as it is, but if he hiked up the price and you went for it anyway, well, I’d have to go pound him into tiny little pieces.”
“Oh!” She leaned in and whispered in his ear. “I got it for half. And the wrapping was free. So no pounding needed.” She was touched, however, at his words about being like his little sister. The fact that he’d go run off to harrass someone he thought might be causing her a problem was equally impressive. “Thanks for that.”
“Well, yeah, okay. No problem, then,” he said, kind of embarrassed about the whole thing now. “Half, huh? Do you think the whole ‘resistance is futile’ thing got him down to that?” He chuckled again then shook his head. “Some people are just so fucking dense.”
He stood quiet for a moment then gave her a quick hug and backed off just a quickly. He wasn’t the huggy type, but in this instance he thought it was worth it. “Thanks, Six. I appreciate it.”
“Oh my, was that a hug?” Reaching up, she poked him in the chest. “You’re getting soft, Kendrick. Next thing you know, you’ll be singing show tunes on the Promenade. Oh wait...you already did.”
“Shut up,” he said as he walked away, acting like he didn’t know her.
“Hey Professor Higgins,” she called out. “How about dinner?”
He stopped and turned. “Fine. My treat.”
As they walked down the Promenade he spoke loudly in a terrible British accent, “Eliza? Where the devil are my slippers?”
The sound of her groaning at his ridiculousness was enough to make him happy.
**************
Ensign Six of Ten
The Fair Lady
Lt. Bryce Kendrick
The Nutty Professor Higgins
