While Vivienne hadn’t exactly been nervous when she had entered the shuttle that would bring her (and Hera, and apparently also her travel companion Tom Thomas)  to the Cupertino, the emotional impact seemed to catch up to her the closer they got to the vessel. Fears, hopes, expectations and doubts merged and separated, collided and dissipated, until eventually Vivienne no longer had to capacity to deal with the emotional whiplash, and instead took a mental step back to simply observe.

Tom seemed to notice that something was going on, but if he did, he didn’t comment on it – which Viv was grateful for. They were barely on first-name basis and she didn’t exactly feel like sharing her deep dark fears with him.

“Almost there.”, noted their pilot, and Vivienne redirected her attention to the ship that was visible through the viewscreen. The USS Cupertino was a California class vessel, and there really wasn’t  anything particularly special about it. Or rather, there shouldn’t be. But for some reason, Vivienne could feel her chest swell regardless, and whatever other feelings she had felt throughout the shuttle ride, now she actually was excited.

“It’s beautiful….”, she said, and Tom smirked.

“First time, huh?”

Vivienne nodded, and if the situation were any different, she would feel embarrassed, but was too occupied with feeling excited.  “It’s something else entirely when it’s your ship, isn’t it?”, he asked gently, which elicited another nod from Vivienne.

“It really is…”  

“Welcome!” beamed Naya Ceix, the Trill Vivienne had met on the Academy Campus, and who had seemed … nice. Albeit a little more serious now that she wore her teal-collared Starfleet uniform with a single, shiny pip. Her hair looked a little less outrageous too. The latter wasn’t unexpected, but a little disappointing.  

“Thanks,” said Tom.

“Nice to see you again.”, smiled Vivienne. Naya nodded and was about to say something when her gaze shift to the travel crate Vivienne was carrying.

“What is that?” Naya asked, her tone somewhere between curiosity and suspicion.

“That’s Hera,” Vivienne replied, turning the crate so Naya could see. Naya cocked her head and peeked inside. For a moment, the blue feline and the Trill stared at each other. Then Naya squealed in delight, and Hera hissed in annoyance.  

“A cat!” the Naya exclaimed. “Did you clear that with Keller?”

Vivienne furrowed her brows in a gesture Naya misinterpreted by a considerable margin.

“Lieutenant Keller. She’s our Chief of Security, and I am pretty sure pets need to be cleared with her. I mean, you want it to be cleared with her. The alternative is clearing it with Brennan.”“Brennan was your XO, wasn’t she?”, asked Tom with mild interest, and Naya nodded. “Yeah. Between you and me, she’s no fun at all.”, she said, then turned her attention back to Vivienne. “If you haven’t cleared it yet, I would very much advise you to do so.”“Will do…”, said Vivienne, feeling a little dazed. Not only was she so miserable with names that she had already forgotten who Brennan and Keller were – honestly, she could barely name the Captain of the ship – but she had absolutely not considered the need to “clear” anything with anyone.

On the SS Belladonna, a passenger liner captained by Vivienne’s uncle, those rules and guidelines hadn’t existed. And if they had, they hadn’t applied to her.

Of course Vivienne took no issue in having to jump through the same hoops as everyone else did, but asking for permission meant that permission might or might not be granted. And what if it wasn’t? Would she leave Hera behind?  

“I… “, she started, but Naya raises a hand to quiet her down.

“Just… uh… make sure no one sees her until you do. She’ll stay in our room,” she instructed.

“Our room?”

“Yeah, you’ll both bunk with me,” Naya replied. “We got our own room.”

Tom seemed both surprised and delighted at that. Vivienne was surprised too, but not exactly delighted.

“Both of us?” Viv asked incredulously.  She hadn’t given the living arrangement on board the Cupertino any thought. She had also never actually considered sharing her living space, and she wasn’t sure how comfortable she felt about it.

“It’s a small ship,” Naya reminded her. “Be glad you didn’t end up in a hallway.” “A… hallway?”

Naya nodded, and Tom did the same. Evidently the two Ensigns knew something Vivienne didn’t know. Well, not something. A lot of somethings.  

Vivienne, in the meanwhile, trying to hide her disappointment at how things were unfolding and the realization that she hadn’t thought this through. At all.  She had made a quick decision when offered the opportunity to join, and hadn’t asked any questions when she should have. Now she felt stupid about it. 

Because of Hera, Naya expedited the journey to their quarters rather than giving them a tour. They meandered through a few sparsely populated corridors, and Vivienne considered that most of the crew was on shore leave. Eventually, they arrived at what seemed to be a designated crew quarters area.  

“Welcome to your new home,” Naya smiled as the door hissed open, and stepped to the side.

The room they were going to share was barely the size of the living area that Vivienne had for herself in the past few years. Its walls were kept in a muted gray color, in line with the utilitarian design found throughout the ship. Dim lights in the ceiling bathed the room in a soft, cool white glow, and together with the sparse furniture, created a sense of functionality over luxury. 

The room was dominated by two bunk beds, one set against each wall. Each bunk had a small personal space with a recessed shelf and a storage drawer beside it for the occupants’ personal items.

There was a compact desk unit bolted to the wall, a fold-out table that could serve as both a workspace and a dining area. Two cushioned chairs were tucked neatly beneath the desk when not in use. On the opposite wall, a panel with various buttons and touch-screen controls allowed the occupants to adjust lighting, temperature, and other room settings to their liking.

“Is there someone else in here too?” Tom asked and gestured towards the fourth available bed.

“Nope,” Naya replied as she climbed onto her bunk, occupying the top one. 

Vivienne stood by the door and chewed on her lower lip. For a moment, she considered turning around and leaving while the Belladonna was still docked at Starbase Bravo. But she didn’t. Instead, she sighed and set the crate down. She freed Hera from her confinement, and the feline quickly darted out of her prison, and underneath the closest bed.

“She’ll get used to it,” Vivienne said hopefully.

“So will you,” Naya reassured her. “I promise.”