round 24 Lt Commander Foster - Curious Questions

[Guest]

((Promenade - StarBase 11))

::Shar'Wyn Foster firmly believed in never tempting fate.

He would pass that advice on to others as well, though he didn't often give advice outside the medical field. Mostly because he didn't usually take advice from others and he didn't want to be counted as a hypocrite.

Oh, but sometimes fate was tempted. And right now the timing was just too perfect. He was about to stay his hand when his hyperactive hearing caught exactly what Sinda Essen said, that light affirmation of good behavior that he was a hair's breadth away from proving wrong. And his fingers simply relaxed - almost apart from his conscious thought, and the popcorn sailed perfectly towards its target.::

Sinda: I've always respected Andorians, some of the best officers I've ever seen.

::Incoming... incoming. Thump!

Ok, it was a highly unimpressive thump as far and knocks on the head went. Just a little piece of fluff that nearly stuck in his hair. If it had stuck, Wyn was quite sure he might not have been able to control the subsequent laughter. So he was in some ways disappointed and yet glad that it didn't.::

Sinda: Of course, there are always exceptions...

::Who, me? Oh how innocent he could look when he was clearly not.::

Valoru: What was that? :: It was a rather dry question for a rather strange occurrence. ::

Foster: ::With equal measures of mirth and angelic innocence.:: You're supposed to catch it in your mouth!

Sinda: How was he supposed to catch it if he didn't know it was coming? Are Andorian antennae designed for detecting incoming foodstuffs, too?

::He offered a silent, sage nod even as Valoru offered his own take on the situation.::

Valoru: It is hard to hear the intricate wind differentiation with such a small and lightweight projectile.

Foster: ::feigning modesty and the best of all possible behavior:: Skill shot, I assure you. I would never insinuate that a fellow crew member has a big mouth!

Valoru: So what is it that my not-so-big mouth should have accepted? :: His straight responses probably sounded arrogant, or just moronic. ::

Foster: It's popcorn. You eat it. ::He tossed a few pieces in the air and caught them in his own mouth for good effect:: It's a Terran tradition.

Valoru: I'm somewhat familiar, actually.

:: The Cardassian hybrid waved at him and he obliged by tossing her a piece quite gently, before he untangled himself from his perch to offer quicker access to move like a normal, civilized person.::

Sinda: It feels like cardboard.

Foster: ::he shrugged:: It's mostly starch.

Valoru: Possibly a good pre-mission consumption item.

Sinda: ::popping it in her mouth:: It tastes like cardboard too. Salty cardboard. You say Terrans eat this?

::He nodded a deep assent::

Foster: Oh yes, Terrans love the stuff.

Sinda: Well that explains a lot. This pretty much sums up the blandness of Terran 'food'. ::she paused:: Actually, I had something called a curry once, that was good. So tell me, Doctor, what exactly is the nutritional benefit of eating that?

Foster: Well, by itself it's full of fiber and low in calories. A decent snack. Though adding butter and salt both improves the taste and kills most of the nutritional benefits.

Valoru: Ah yes, that would make sense, and add to the meal for sure. Although this was not part of the plan.

::His antennae perked up as the subject changed::

Foster: Plan?

Sinda: The plan was coffee and cake, but if you're happy with that stuff, then you can just stay up there.

Foster: ::He clasped one hand melodramatically to his chest:: Oh please. Turn down a chance for caffiene and sugar? Never! ::He waved a hand from the landing above:: Give me a bit to get down. I don't think jumping in a safety-approved form of travel.

::By the time he got down to the lower level, Valoru and Essen had found themselves a lovely Betazoid teahouse, one that was heady with all the aromas of delicious sweet things and a variety of spiced beverages. Betazoid hot teas were particularly tasty he had found; and there were several he had a taste for. His antennae twitched in anticipation as they grouped again and Sinda turned towards the blue pair.::

Sinda: So what is it Andorians do when you get together? Recite old legends from the time before time? Arm wrestle to prove your physical superiority? Staring competitions?

::Well that was actually a very good question. One that Wyn really didn't know the answer to because, problematically, he had never been to Andor. Sure, he had known some other Andorians; though with the exception of Liani he hadn't been fast friends with any of them. Something about being raised on Earth that his kinsman found at best unusual and at worst borderline heretical.

Then again, from the ones he did know he had formulated a certain perception, a hazy idea on what 'real' Andorians (as opposed to smart-mouthed ones with Terran accents) did in their free time. Still, he thought it wiser to let Valoru speak first.::

Valoru: Well... :: He thought for a second, Foster seeming to wait to reply. :: It depends where you are. In a setting such as this, we would do the very same thing we are doing now. On the snowy mountains of Andor, we might very well challenge one another to a duel. :: He smirked. ::

Foster: ::Shrug:: Get drunk, swap stories. At least that's been my last few affairs.

Sinda: Ah, just like everyone else then. Good to know.

Foster: Pretty much. ::Another shrug. He assumed so. Maybe if he ever got a chance to check out his species' homeworld his perception might change.::

Valoru: Yes, pretty much.

:: The conversation lulled after that, and Wyn couldn't help but feel a tinge of awkwardness at the subject of a people he didn't know. So he decided, for once, to stay quiet until drinks were ordered. It was a nice little break that seemed to reset the conversation into a different direction.::

Sinda: How are you finding the Conny, Ensign? I hear we've got a pretty routine patrol lined up after we refuel. A nice few weeks of absolutely nothing exciting.

Valoru: Well, yes actually. I hope to get some bridge time, as well as get to those standard reports and data collection reports. I tend to walk about the ship for those instead of sitting at a console for an entire shift. I cannot stay away from *activity* for very long.

Foster: ::he chuckled:: I, for one, could use the down time. Nothing exciting means catching up on routine physicals and no emergencies. ::he smiled. No emergencies was good in his trade.::

Valoru: Well, quite true. Physicals are annoying.

::As they chatted, he leaned back considering how likely it would be that they could pull off an entire survey with nothing exciting. This was Starfleet. Every mission seemed to turn into a disaster... sooner or later. But for now it was good to relax...::

~*~


Lt Commander Shar'Wyn Foster
Chief Medical Officer
USS Constitution-B