"And then!" Heluna almost couldn't speak straight, she was laughing so hard. Her demeanor was not her typical self; instead, it was loud and boisterous, as opposed to the elegant poise and calmness she usually carried. "Spock almost punched Sam Kirk dead in the face! All in front of us on the science team!" she shouted, snorting with laughter. "It took both Albert and Sanota to tackle and restrain Spock! I've never seen Sam so scared out of his mind!" She laughed and giggled like she never had before.
"So, Heluna… sorry, Azre," Anzyl corrected himself. "Spock was literally, fully human for a time?!"
"Yes! And it was the week that his future mother-in-law was going to have some big Vulcan pre-engagement dinner!" she kept laughing so hard she could hardly breathe. "He was such a nervous wreck that he made everyone miserable, but so very awkward! We all couldn't help but laugh! AHahahah!"
Then there was an unexpected chime at the Captain's door.
Startled by the unexpected company, Anzyl apologized, "I'm sorry, Azre. I told the crew I didn't want to be disturbed. I'm sorry."
"Oh, please, Anzyl!" she waved him away. "No harm, no foul! Answer your door!"
Anzyl nodded in thanks and moved to open his door.
There stood Veirik, holding a bouquet of flowers, visibly nervous.
"Uh… can I help you, Veirik?" Anzyl asked, looking at the flowers, then back at him.
"Is SHE here yet?" He asked earnestly.
"Who's that, Anzyl?" Azre/Heluna asked as she walked up beside Anzyl, then was startled by the giant of a man in the Captain's doorway. "Hello, hello, hello. Azre Praxas. Pleasure to make your acquaintance." She held a soft hand toward him, obviously smitten by the hunk of a man in the Captain's doorway.
"Is it true you knew and served with Una Chin-Riley!?" Veirik blurted out, starstruck.
She shrugged. "Well, yeah, as well as any Lieutenant could. She was my boss's boss, after all."
Veirik squeaked with excitement, like a little boy meeting his idol after so many years. "These are for you!" he almost shouted, shoving the flowers into her arms. "I have so many questions I've always wondered about her!" he blurted, barging past the Captain and Azre, taking a seat on Anzyl's couch.
"Sure thing, Veirik," Anzyl sighed. "Come on in. Not like it's not your Rite of Closure or anything..."
"What was it like aboard the Original USS Enterprise?!" Veirik blurted out. "Serving with THE Una Chin-Riley!?"
She looked confused at Veirik, then at Anzyl. "He knows Christopher Pike was the Captain of the Enterprise at the time, right?"
Anzyl let out a sigh and nodded. "Mr. Veirik is… an Illyrian… and…"
"Ohhh!" Azre connected the dots in her head. "Durr! After her major court-martial trial thing, and her many subsequent years of service, of course," she looked at Veirik with big wide eyes. "She kinda became a big-time hero for your people, huh?"
Veirik nodded his head, eager and excited to hear more about his childhood hero.
Then Azre's face went flat. "Well, she was my boss's boss and kind of a hard-ass to work with, really." She bent her mouth to the side in a half-frown. "Sorry. 'Never meet your heroes,' am I right?" she blurted out, completely bursting Veirik's bubble of hero worship.
His hopes and dreams of learning all he could about the great and magnificent Una Chin-Riley burst before his eyes.
Azre held her hands like she was holding a balloon. "Pop!" she exclaimed, mimicking the explosion. "Yeah, sorry to burst your balloon, buddy. No one really got along with her too well. However... after she completed her round of Enterprise Bingo, she did get a lot more… fun."
Anzyl sat next to Veirik as both looked up at her. "Fun? Like how?"
Azre perked up and put her hands on her hips. "Did you know she was rather good at singing? Gilbert and Sullivan, even! She could sing 'Modern Major General' at the drop of a hat!"
Veirik grew a faint smile as Anzyl looked at her fondly. "Are you where I get my 'cup always half full' from?"
Azre chuffed. "I don't know, Anzyl!" she shrugged. "I just burst this cutie patooty's bubble and wanted to make him happy!"
Anzyl laughed as Veirik turned red from embarrassment, while Heluna, or Azre Praxas, threw her head back and laughed.