A persistent tone indicating that Siobhan had a message was emanating from her desk console; the noise rousted Saoirse from her pleasant dream and brought her back to reality. Tying her hair up into a messy bun, she ambled sleepily to her work desk, PAADs strewn about messily; a direct result of the plethora of cases that has landed on her desk.
“Computer, what time izzit?” she asked sleepily, lips smacking dryly.
“The current time is 0344 Zulu. The local time in this sector is 2213.” 
Siobhan groaned. She had to be up in a few hours, and yet…here she was, being awoken by some forsaken message at a godforsaken hour. She turned toward the replicator. 
“Computer, coffee. Extra strong. With milk.”
The computer beeped and with a whir, the cup materialized. Sipping on it, she sighed as she sat down at her desk. Tapping on her console, she authorizes the commlink connection. A slow smile appears as the face of her boyfriend appears on her screen, lit up brightly by the midday sun.
“Heya Kenz, I know it’s super early for you…at least if your ship is off near Starbase 86.”
Siobhan’s small smile widened, albeit sleepily. “Hey stranger; yes, it is. It’s about 4 in the morning here; at least going off by Starfleet standard. Why are you calling so early?” She paused, giving him a look. “Why are you calling at all? Usually, you leave messages when you’re not off doing the thing you do…” she trails off, arching an eyebrow while still giving him a tired smile.
“Well…how would you like a romantic getaway to Anthan Prime for a weekend? The Federation President is going to be hosting a joint defense summit between Starfleet, the Klingons, and the Romulans. We can tour the western continent for a few days…” Bentran smiled and winked; he knew Siobhan well. Her eyes lit up at the mention of a potential vacation on Anthan Prime. He continued: “I can even get us passes to the formal gala at the Starfleet Museum…it would give you an excuse to wear a gala dress. We can make it a date. What do you say?” 
Siobhan could hardly suppress the smile as her cheeks started turning a rosy shade of pink. She was fully awake now, her mind processing what Bentran had just plopped on her lap.
“I… I don’t know what to say!” she finally squealed with a mix of shock and delight. “I love the idea! Let me ask the Captain if he can spare me, then I’ll get back to you.”
“Very good, my sweet honeydew; I’ll await your response. I love you much and miss you more.”
“I love you too, A ghrá geal. I miss you more too. I’ll send you a message. It’s great to see you.”
The console beeped, signaling the closure of the commlink and the familiar Federation logo appeared. Siobhan let out a small giggle, then stood up and stretched. She looked around her darkened suite. 
“Computer, lights.”
The lights came on brightly, erasing the last vestiges of sleep. She took down her bun, then shook her head to try and have her hair arranged evenly before she hopped in the shower.

Four Days Later, Sector 001: Sol System

Siobhan took a deep breath as she walked in the morning air down the Champs Elysée, away from the Louvre and towards the Arc di Triomphe. The sun had started rising, and she was heading towards the new outdoor mall that had been built about 10 years ago for the 10th anniversary of the Federation Alliance’s victory against the Breen-Dominion Alliance. As she walked, she smirked at the memory that had occurred the night before.

After borrowing the USS South Platte (Danube-class runabout) for the trip back to Earth, she had finally arrived yesterday, around mid-afternoon (local time Paris). She waited for her boyfriend to finish work at his apartment, surprising him as he got home with a fresh dinner for two. After dinner, Ben dropped his little surprise: the summit gala was declared by treaty to be “black-tie,” with all attendees required to dress in tuxedoes and dresses. Starfleet dress uniforms were only allowed for the personnel on duty; no guests were allowed to wear Starfleet uniforms. Siobhan had whined to Ben that she didn’t bring any sort of dresses from the Los Angeles, and he coyly responded that she could get one at the Champs Elysée complex. After a bit more playful back and forth banter, the happily reunited couple started to settle down to watch a movie.

     Siobhan stepped through the glass sliding doors of the shopping complex, intent on finding a suitable dress. Her first stop is a dress shop one of her friends recommended; Chelsea Reese. Finding the store, she notices that the windows are frosted except for the store’s logo etched into the glass. Siobhan steps inside to discover a simple layout, no dresses, rather a sterile room adorned with ornate holographic displays and real flowers. At the center of the room, there is a small podium, and standing at the podium, is a young woman, dressed in an informal sundress with flats. Her hair was braided, and the smile was bright. Siobhan smiled shyly and walked up to the young woman. 
“Good morning, I’m looking for a dress…” 
“Good morning! Welcome to Chelsea Reese. My name is Amity. Very nice to meet you.” 
Siobhan is taken aback, unsure if the person in front of her is a hologram or a real person.
“Hi…Amity…I’m Siobhan. Siobhan Pearse.” Her voice was a bit confused, but friendly. “Are you…are you a real…”
Amity interrupted Siobhan. “A real person. Goodness no. At least not in the sense of flesh and blood. But I am a sentient being, insofar as I know.” Seeing Siobhan’s martyred look, Amity smiled. “It’s a perfectly valid question, Siobhan. Regardless, what brings you into Chelsea Reese today?” 
“Well, I’m going to a formal event with my boyfriend as my date and I need a new dress.” 
“Perfect! What kind of dress were you thinking?”
“Something appropriate for a black-tie event. Or a gala. Or meeting the Federation President.” Siobhan chuckles ruefully. 
“Okay, I think I have enough data points to start. Why don’t you follow me to our workshop.” 
“Workshop…” Siobhan repeats with wonder, following Amity through a plain doorway into a small holodeck-esque room. 
“This is our creation room, where we can have you try on all the dresses you would like; the dress you order will be custom-made and tailored to you and delivered the day before the event.”
“Let us begin.”
The room transformed into a cozy tailor shop, like the London tailor shops of the 21st century.

     Siobhan left the store, unable to believe that she had found a dress in the first store she had gone into. It was a beautiful black dress, sleeveless with the skirt down to mid-calf. It was modest, stylish, elegant, and most importantly, had the twirling effect without being too puffy. She was in love with the dress and the company.
‘Today is going to be an interesting day’ Siobhan thought to herself as she continued her shopping trip, buying shoes and other accessories.

Two Days Later, Anthan Prime: USS South Platte

Siobhan glanced over at her garment bag, hung up in the closet of the runabout, next to her boyfriend’s garment bag containing his tuxedo. She had been adamant that he was not going to look at her dress until tonight. She had shared the color with him, so they could match. Her boyfriend was in the pilot’s compartment, setting up for the approach to Spacedock (i.e. the museum); she was starting to get ready. As she was doing her hair, Ben suddenly walked into the shared compartment and grabbed his garment bag. 
“You’re getting ready, I need to start. We’re expected to be in the reception line for the President in about three hours.” 
“I’ll be ready. You on the other hand, we will see.”
“Oh shut up. I’m getting ready now. I’ll see you in the pilot’s cabin when you’re ready.” He sneaks a kiss before heading down to the other section.

Siobhan pulls out her dress out, and gently lays it on the conference table. She also grabs her shoes (black ballet styled shoes with a 1.5-inch heel) and the small diamond pendant in the form of the Starfleet Arrowhead. She got dressed, then gently put the necklace around her neck. She smiled as she braided her hair to complete the look, then put on the heels. It had been a while since she had gotten dressed up like this, but as she admired herself in the mirror, she wondered why she didn’t do it more often.

Once ready, she grabbed her small clutch handbag, embroidered with the seal of Starfleet JAG and headed to the front of the runabout. She was waiting for about 10 mins when her boyfriend came out of the other compartment, still fiddling with his bow tie. As soon as he saw her, he stopped and stared, mouth agape. Siobhan was elegant, beautiful, and he was enchanted. 
“Close your mouth dear, it’s so unbecoming” Siobhan teased as she herself suppressed the urge to stare. Ben was in his finest tuxedo, and the man looked dashing. Dressed in a black tuxedo with a pin bearing the Seal of the United Federation of Planets on his lapel and black bow tie, he looked like the real deal. 
“It’s really hard to close my mouth when I’m looking at the most stunning lass in the Alpha Quadrant.” 
“Oh, stop it. You look dashing yourself, you know that?”
Ben shrugs and smiles at Siobhan. “I don’t look half as decent as you do, my honeydew.”
Siobhan smiles and blushes. Pushing a strand of hair behind her ear, she just turns without answering his comment and plots the final approach into the shuttle bay of the museum. As the runabout approaches, she reaches for the hand of the man she loves and holds it.

As Siobhan exited the South Platte, she held her beloved’s arm as they walked towards the first of many security checkpoints within the museum. The giant hologram of Starfleet Command was fully illuminated as it changed form from its first United Earth form to the newest logo, released in 2390. As she walked, Siobhan felt oddly comfortable, though there were the usual butterflies in her stomach that seemed to be there. Soon, they arrived at the reception line, where the heads of state from the Federation (including the leaders of Earth, Vulcan, Bajor, Andoria, and Tellar Prime), the Klingon Empire (the Chancellor and his wife), and the Romulan Star Empire (the Praetor), were greeting the invited guests. Siobhan saw many people she knew and settled into the gala with her boyfriend. It would be a night to remember.