Several hours and several empty storage containers now stood between the arrival of Lieutenants Khar and Lillian Grant and the scene that now stretched out before them. Their spacious quarters were now adorned with a fusion of Human and Klingon aesthetic accoutrements that made each of the occupants feel much more at ease than they had in the past few weeks. Both Khar and Lily stood in the living area as they admired their handiwork, each of them signaling their satisfaction in their own little ways.

Lily had her hands resting on her hips, her eyes slowly drifting from piece to piece as she took them in both individually and as a whole. Khar stood with his arms folded proudly over his puffed-out chest, nodding quietly at everything he was seeing. They had put in a fair amount of work to get things in order, all thoughts of reporting for duty long diminished from their thoughts.

“I think we did good,” Lily said finally, turning to her partner.

Khar grunted in satisfaction, “It is a fine space, fit for a warrior and his House.”

Lily couldn’t help but giggle at the Klingon’s formal and yet intimate statement. His heartfelt declaration mere hours ago still echoed in her mind and heart, even if the tears had long abated. The event felt both real and ethereal in equal measure, and if not for their new living arrangement she might have dismissed it as a fanciful delusion.

“Well now that we’ve constructed a space that is the envy of warriors everywhere,” Grant teased gently with a smirk, “How about we think about something to eat? For the first time in a what feels like forever… I’m actually really hungry.”

“Yes. I could use a meal myself,” Khar nodded, making his way toward the replicator sitting against one wall of their shared dwelling.

“Why don’t we find a nice restaurant?” Lily spoke up, stalling the Klingon’s advance.

Khar turned back toward his mate and stroked his short beard in thought, “Getting familiarized with this station may indeed be a sound plan…”

“I wasn’t trying to be tactical about it,” Lillian said with a laugh. “I just thought maybe we should see what our new home has to offer.”

“Motives aside, it is still a worthy idea,” Khar said, making his return to her side. Before he’d managed to get much further than a few steps, the two-toned door chime of their quarters rang out. The Klingon frowned as he turned toward the door, uncertain as to how they could possibly have a guest so soon after their arrival.

Lillian started to walk toward the door, but Khar put up an arm to block her path and stop her, “I will check to see who it is.”

“Alright…” Lily said with a small nod as she took a short step back.

Khar walked to the door, his brow set in a look of displeasure as he stabbed at the door lock command with his left index finger. When the doors swished open, the Klingon found himself standing face-to-face with a Human Lieutenant Commander who had a polished smile on his face. Though his frown didn’t falter too much, Khar did straighten up a bit.

“Can I help you, Commander?” the Klingon asked with as much professionalism as the situation demanded.

“No, Lieutenant,” the man said with a soft shake of his head, “I was actually just stopping by to welcome you aboard the station. I received word from one of our immigration officers that you and Lieutenant Grant had reported aboard and I thought it would be a good opportunity for me to meet the two of you prior to your official assumption of duties. I’m not intruding, I hope.”

“Yes…” Khar started to respond before Lily jumped in both verbally and physically.

“Not at all, Commander. Please, come in,” Grant said, dragging her partner backward by the arm while trying her best to exude a welcoming presence.

“Thank you,” came the cheerful response as the Lieutenant Commander crossed the threshold and took a casual look around the space, “I like what you’ve done with the place. Very ‘Klingon tradition meets Federation practicality’. Oh… and where are my manners? I completely forgot to introduce myself. I’m Lieutenant Commander Vernon Reid, the station’s Executive Officer. Since you’re both going to be heading up divisions on the station, we’ll be seeing quite a bit of one another in the coming months.”

Lily could feel Khar’s body tensing up as he struggled to keep his annoyance at bay. While nothing the man had said could be considered rude, she knew that her partner didn’t have much in the way of social grace when it came to empty, or perhaps perceived empty platitudes.

“Thank you for stopping by. Khar and I had been wondering when we would hear from you, but we hadn’t expected you to visit personally,” Grant said, her arms still wrapped around the Klingon’s arm.

“Well, I figured since you two got here a little early, you might want to take the extra few days to get settled in, get a feel for the station, how life works here in the off hours before we throw you two into the thick of it. Figured an informal hello would be better than a stuffy formal affair,” Reid said casually.

“The gesture is appreciated,” Khar managed to say behind slightly clenched teeth.

Lily nodded while giving Khar’s arm a pinch, “We’re very grateful for your consideration, Commander. We’ve had a rough few weeks, so you’ll have to forgive my partner for being a tad more abrasive than he normally would be.”

“Don’t worry about it, Lieutenant. I did a bit of reading on your last assignment… more specifically your last mission before your transfer. I’m sure the two of you have gone through quite a bit, so I can understand you being a bit on edge. That’s partly why I suggested to Commander Novak that you two be given a few days of leave before having you take up your new positions. It’s entirely up to you if you decide you want to start earlier, but I thought you might appreciate taking the three days you should have been in transit off to start a new routine on your own terms,” Vernon said with a sympathetic smile.

Lily and Khar turned to each other, their eyes doing all the talking before they returned their attention to the man almost at the same time. Unlike his previous attempts at conversation, Khar’s words came out a lot more genuine.

“Thank you, sir. I believe we will accept your suggestion and spend the time to prepare for our new responsibilities here on the station,” the Klingon said.

“Sounds good to me,” Vernon said with a broad grin. “Then with that out of the way, do you have any questions for me? I’m happy to run through anything you might be confused or unclear about while I’m standing here.”

“I don’t have anything duty related,” Lily said thoughtfully, “But we were just talking about getting a bite to eat. Do you happen to have any recommendations?”

Vernon’s face curled into a knowing smirk, “As a matter of fact, I do.”

Khar and Lillian looked around the dining room of the restaurant that Reid had proposed they all visit. At first, the couple had assumed that he would simply make the suggestion, perhaps point it out on the station map. But now that they were seated across from the man, it became apparent that the station’s XO had ulterior motives all along.

“I was on my way to lunch anyway,” Vernon explained, leaning comfortably in his chair, “So why not achieve two goals at once? You got a nice little tour and a great table at one of the best places on the station, and I get to know my new security and science chiefs over a nice meal. Even our new commander can’t argue with the efficiency of that deal.”

Lily allowed herself a restrained laugh, “That certainly is efficient…”

Tessa walked up to the table, just behind her husband and threw her arms around him, “Hello dear, how’s your day going?”

“Not bad at all,” Vernon said, giving his wife a swift peck on the cheek, “Tess, I want you to meet our newly arrived security and science division heads.”

Tessa rolled her eyes at her husband’s lazy introduction, “You say it like they already know who I am. What am I going to do with you?” Slapping his shoulder playfully, Tess turned to the two newcomers, “I’m Tessa Reid, I manage the Emberlight Café and Grill. It’s a joy to see some more new faces coming to the station.”

“Lieutenant Khar, Son of Grel, House of Toreth,” the Klingon offered before extending an arm around Lily, “And this is Lieutenant Lillian Grant, Daughter of Robert, also of House of Toreth.”

Lily’s face reddened as she squirmed in Khar’s embrace, though she offered up no correction to his choice of phrasing. Tessa’s smile brightened a full order of magnitude upon seeing the shy reaction that the man’s proud declaration had inspired. She even went as far as to grab and shake Vernon’s shoulder as she reveled in the second-hand appreciation of joy that Lillian was so obviously experiencing.

“That would explain the joint quarters,” Vernon nodded sagely as if he’d just unraveled the secrets of the universe.

“Actually…” Lily muttered through her embarrassment, “That only happened… today…”

Tessa finally let out the squeal she’d been holding in and rushed over to pull Lillian into a maternal hug, “Congratulations! Oh, I am so happy for you! We have to celebrate this. You two aren’t on duty, are you? Vernon, you didn’t make these two work today, did you?”

“Of course I didn’t, they just got here a few hours ago, dear,” the man shook his head, “Whatever you’re planning, go nuts. They’ve got a few days off coming, they can surely sleep it off by then.”

Tess moved to arm’s length from Lily, “Every now and then my husband can use his brain. Now tell me, what can I make you? You name it, I’ll find a way to make it.”

Lillian furrowed her brow a little, “I’m not sure… you kind of put me on the spot here…”

“Pot roast,” Khar interjected firmly, “Freshly prepared, nothing replicated.”

Tessa’s lips curled in amusement, “I see… and for yourself?”

Lilian cast a glance over at the Klingon before looking back at Tessa, “He hasn’t had qagh in years. And that is definitely something you can’t replicate.”

“Pot roast for the lady, and qagh for the gentleman,” Tess repeated, smug satisfaction lighting up her face, “And to drink?”

“Blood wine,” the couple said in perfect unison.

Vernon laughed from his spot at the table, “Yeah, I think we can manage that one too. Give me a second.”

Lily gave the man’s back a confused look, “Why would he be getting it?”

“My husband moonlights as our bartender every few nights, so he knows where everything is behind the bar,” Tessa giggled. “Let me go see to your food, and Vernon will take care of keeping your mugs full.”

When the pair were finally alone for a moment, Khar looked down at Lily, “Are you sure about the blood wine?”

“It’s a special occasion…” Lily shrugged, “It won’t kill me.”