"Robotech - To The Stars: Aftermath - The First Year"
Chapter 9

January 26th, 2015

Kim bade Sammie and Vanessa goodnight and headed back to her hotel. After a 5 minute taxi ride she entered the hotel lobby and walked to the elevator. The elevator came and she patiently let it carry up to her floor. The doors opened and she walked out into the empty corridor. When she was about 30 feet from her room the lights went out and she was left in complete darkness. "Great, I thought this was suppose to be a five-star hotel and they can't even pay the fricken light bill," Kim grumbled. She reached into her bag, trying to find her pen light when she heard the sound of rushing water.
"Kim...Kim..." said a raspy, whispery voice.
Kim quickly stopped looking for her penlight and stood completely still, a blast of fear running from her head to her feet. Her heart beat rapidly as she asked, "Wh-who's th-there?"
"Kim...Kim...KIM!" said the eerie voice again.
Suddenly Kim the flashbacks came to her again, Gloval, Lisa, SDF1, Edwards, Costa Rica, the many of faces she saw wiped out before her eyes those countless times she was on duty aboard the SDF1. She started heaving but no sobs would come out. The rush of the water seemed to grow louder. She looked around one more time and managed to make out the green glow of the exit sign that was directly opposite her's and Lisa's room. She made a mad dash to the door, laptop case and attache' case still in tow. She dropped both cases as she fumbled in her pockets for her key and realized she didn't have it with her so she started pounding against the door.

"What the...?" said Rick as he heard the noise at the door.
Lisa looked at the clock and said, "It must be Kim, you have her key right?"
Rick slapped his pockets and said, "That's right, I still have it. But does she have to make so much noise?"
Lisa stood up and went over to the door, a little bit worried.
Kim heard Lisa say, "Just a minute," and then the lights came back on and shortly after that, Lisa opened the door.
Lisa was shocked by the expression she saw on Kim's face. Kim's eyes were tearful and wide with fear but also had a wildness in them. She was perspiring and was as pale as a ghost.
Kim pushed past Lisa and made her way into the living room. Lisa, momently at a loss as what to do, say, or feel, was about to close the door when she realized Kim had left the laptop and attache' cases on the floor. She pulled both cases inside the foyer and then closed the door and rushed to the living room.
Kim was standing in the middle of the room with her hands covering her ears. Rick was a few feet away from her staring at her and Lisa went to stand next to him as he gave her a frightened and confused look.
"Kim, what's going on, what's wrong? Why are you so scared?" asked Lisa as if trying to calm a child.
Kim, still wide-eyed, said in a scared tone, "Didn't you hear them?? They're waiting for me, I don't belong here..."
"Kim, who's waiting for you, what are you talking about," asked Rick.
Kim laughed nervously and the sound of it sent a chill through both Rick and Lisa.
"I have to report for duty, they're waiting for me," Kim said suddenly business-like.
"Who's waiting for you Kim?" asked Lisa, trying to figure out what Kim was referring to.
"I have to report for my shift, on the SDF-1," said Kim eagerly.
Rick and Lisa looked at each other both realizing that Kim was in serious mental distress.
Lisa didn't know what to say and made sure that she thought carefully before speaking. Finally she said, "Kim, you don't have to report for duty now-"
"Yes, I do. Yes, you see, they're waiting for me, right out there. Captain Gloval wants me to assist him with the tests they are going to run on the engines because Khyron is going to attack us. And after the tests are done, I'm suppose to try and repair the leak, or else we'll sink," said Kim matter-of-factly.
Lisa choked down a sob and looked at Rick and said, "I'm going to call the paramedics."
Rick shook his head and moved towards Kim when she suddenly hurried after Lisa and beat her to the phone, then yanked the cord out of the wall and threw the phone across the room.
Kim flashed an angry look at them and tried to keep calm as she said slowly, "No. No you aren't going to call the paramedics, you aren't going to call Jean. You aren't going to call Sammie or Vanessa. I have to report for duty and repair the leak. Don't you hear the water right now?? We're being flooded. If I don't fix this thing, we're going to sink and Admiral Gloval will be really upset at me."
Rick looked around for his cellphone but Kim followed his eyes and saw it on the table and ran over and grabbed it then spied Lisa's phone and grabbed it too.
"Kim, come on now, let us help you, you're not feeling well. Remember, you promised me. It's me Rick, you're 'little brother', you promised me that if you weren't feeling well you'd let us help you," said Rick as he slowly tried to approach her again.
"I'm fine Rick. I think it's you and Lisa who are not feeling well. In fact, I think it sounds to me as if you two are trying to avoid duty. We must go out and fix the leak or else everyone will drown," said Kim authoritatively.
"Kim, there is no leak...we...we fixed it already...what you're hearing is just the water draining out," said Lisa, hoping Kim would believe her.
Lisa and Rick moved closer to Kim as she stood there trying to analyze what Lisa had just told her. She was still preoccupied when Rick gave a quick nod to Lisa and they both rushed Kim and tried to subdue her.
"NO! YOU ARE IN DIRECT DERELICTION OF DUTY!! THIS IS MUTINY! YOU MUST NOT ABANDON SHIP YOU MUST GO DOWN WITH THE SHIP, IT IS YOUR DUTY!!" shouted Kim as she wrestled in their grip.
As she still tried to squirm her way free, Kim's attention became transfixed on the ceiling light and she stared at the lit bulb.
"Rick, do you see a phone anywhere? We've got to get her to the hospital now!" shouted Lisa.
All of a sudden Kim stopped wrestling and said, "No, no please Lisa, Admiral. I...look...look at the light, we've been rescued. We're ok now...what? Hospital? Wait, no! Damn, what happened? Did I freak out again? No no, don't send me to the hospital, no please, I beg you Lisa, don't tell anyone what happened!"
Rick and Lisa gave each other a shocked look and then looked back at Kim as they relaxed their hold on her. They helped her sit up and she wiped away her tears and buried her face in her hands.
"Oh god, don't tell me I freaked out," said Kim regretfully.
"I'm afraid you did, big time," said Rick.
"Kim, we need to-" started Lisa, but she was cut off by Kim.
"No! PLEASE! PLEASE! DON'T! Do you know what would happen if I go back to the hospital?? They're lock me up in the psych ward! Everyone will think I'm a psychopath! DON'T! PLEASE DONT!" pleaded Kim.
"Kim, you NEED help," emphasized Lisa.
"I...you! You and Rick can help me!! But...but I promise, it won't happen again. I'll be alright, it won't happen again! Please, please, don't send me away, they'll lock me up!! They'll never let me out! Please Lisa! Look look, see, I can calm down. I just need a drink, a shower, and a good night's rest, I...I am just tired that's all, see. Please Lisa!," begged Kim.
Kim got up slowly and stood there trying to look normal, "See, I...uh...the lights went out in the hallway out there and it just freaked me out for a bit, you know post-traumatic stress disorder, you've all had it too. Please, just give me some time. I'm NOT CRAZY!" said Kim desperately.
Kim started to head towards her room and Rick and Lisa followed her. She turned to them and tried to sound cheerful as she said, "Hey, what do you think you're doing, you can't follow me to the shower, shame on you Rick!"
Rick and Lisa stopped and Kim smiled them and motioned towards the bathroom, "I'm...uh...I'm going to take a shower and then afterwards we can all have some nice hot tea and you guys can tell me how you spent the evening."
"Wait, Kim. Are you sure you'll be ok right now?" asked Lisa.
"I'll be ok, I just need a nice hot shower to get relaxed."
"Make sure you leave the door unlocked, just incase." called out Rick.
Kim came back over to them and then she looked at Rick suspiciously, "Sure, you just wanna go peek at me while I'm in the shower, Mr. Lingerie!" Kim laughed then turned to Lisa and said, "Make sure your flyboy doesn't come peeking in on me or else I'll have to kick him where it hurts."
Kim headed back to the bathroom and soon after they heard the sound of the shower.
Lisa followed Rick back to the living room and Rick picked up his phone then had it snatched away by Lisa. "Wait. Let's give her some time," she said quickly.
Rick gaped at her, "Are you out of your mind?! She needs to see a doctor, right NOW."
Lisa said nothing then Rick realized what her intentions were.
"You're insane! How can you let her talk you into covering this up?! It's clear that she needs some major psychiatric help, right away!" said Rick loudly.
"Don't give me that bulls--t Rick! Don't you remember how much trouble we had getting back to normal after we escaped from Dolza's ship? I don't know how many times I had flashbacks of Dolza nearly sqeezing me to death! But they let me remain on active duty and I got through it because Captain Gloval had enough faith in me to let me slowly work my way through it," argued Lisa.
"But you weren't going around having freakouts like Kim," said Rick.
"What are you talking about, it isn't like she's been freaking out everyday or something," returned Lisa.
"The other day she came out of the bathroom with that same wild and scared look on her face," reported Rick.
"And what happened then?" asked Lisa.
"Well...she said she just had a little flashback I guess and got scared," answered Rick.
"And? Did you call the doctor?"
"No. She said she would be ok," said Rick, now trying to predict what Lisa's reply would be.
"Then why are you-"
"That wasn't the same as this," said Rick, cutting Lisa off. "This panic attack or whatever you want to call it...that other day was nothing compared to this. You heard her yourself, she was talking nonesense!"
"I want to give her one more chance..." said Lisa tiredly, as she remembered back to the promise she had made to Claudia about keeping an eye on Kim.
Rick rubbed his forhead, frustrated, and said, "You're making a big mistake, she belongs in a hospital right now."
"What do you know and who are you to say whether she's suppose to be in the hospital or not?!" exploded Lisa. "She's my aide! She's my FRIEND. And she's begged me to give her one more chance. How is she ever going to trust me again or forgive me if I send her to the hospital and it turns out they have her locked up in some padded cell!"
Rick, still too worked up, replied without thinking and said sarcastically, "Since when did YOU start listening to the wishes of other people instead of going by the book of logical reasoning and duty?"
Rick closed his eyes, not wanting to see Lisa's reaction. "Oh my god," he breathed, realizing what he had just said.
Lisa didn't react. She knew that his words would be coming back to haunt her in due time and so she headed towards the kitchen to fix some tea.
Rick followed her to the kitchen and then came up behind her and put his arms around her waist and rested his head on her shoulder and said softly, "I'm sorry I said that. I wasn't thinking, I shouldn't have-"
"It's alright Rick. Let's just forget about it and concentrate on Kim for now," said Lisa quietly.
Rick was about to protest but he decided not to say anything and just stood there holding onto Lisa. A few minutes later he became aware that the sound of the shower had stopped and looked towards the direction of Kim's room. Lisa picked up on it too and said, "I'll go check on her," then slipped out of his arms and left.
Lisa walked slowly towards Kim's room and when she didn't hear any noise she made her way towards Kim's bathroom. "Kim?" she called out.
There was no reply so Lisa walked more quickly to the bathroom and peered through the door to find Kim, in her bathrobe, standing in front of the mirror, staring at her reflection.
"What's happened to me Lisa? I HATE being like this," Kim said with a shaky voice and tears rolling down her cheeks. "I hate being out of control and being such a...such a wimp!"
Lisa pulled Kim by the sleeve and sat her down on her bed and looked her square in the eyes and said, "You are not a wimp! You will get better and we will help you."
Rick, having not heard anything for a few moments, had turned off the teapot then walked towards Kim's room and was now standing out of sight, listening to the conversation.
"I am!" Kim sobbed. "I'm just some big freak now, afraid of the dark like a little child. Rick was right, maybe I should be in the hospital now. Just let them lock me up and throw away the key before I freak out again."
"No!" said Lisa angrily. "I will not lock you away! I believe in you Kim. I believe you will recover from this, it will just take some time that's all. I'm not giving up on you, and you shouldn't give up on yourself either."
"Lisa, it's no use-" Kim started to say.
"BULLS--T!" spat Lisa. "Don't give me that! Tell me, if our roles reversed... Tell me you wouldn't say the exact same things to me that I'm telling you now. Tell me that you wouldn't stand up for me and stick by me and give me another chance to prove myself."
Kim didn't say anything and just looked at her hands.
"You would, wouldn't you? You would tell me the exact same thing I'm telling you now. You'd be loyal to me. So now, let me be loyal to you," said Lisa sincerely.
Kim hugged her and said, "I'm sorry, for everything. Before I got in the shower I overheard you and Rick arguing over me, I didn't mean to cause any trouble between you two."
Lisa laughed lightly, trying to lighten the mood, and said, "You didn't cause any trouble Kim. Besides, you know the reputation Rick and I have, we argue over everything, it's just a bad habit of ours."
"I know but I was starting to get used to the new habit you guys were forming; the habit of always being suctioned to each others faces," returned Kim, reminiscent of her old self.
Suddenly Rick entered the room and headed straight for Lisa and said to Kim, "You mean like this?" then he clasped Lisa's face and kissed her for several seconds. When he released her she tried to catch her breath to speak.
Kim smiled and said, "Hey, don't stop on my account!"
Lisa faked a smile and told Kim, "Go and get dressed, the tea is getting cold."
Rick and Lisa left the room and headed back to the kitchen. As Lisa was setting the teacups down at the table Rick came over and said in her ear, "I didn't kiss you just for Kim's sake."
"I know," Lisa said quietly.
Lisa sat down at the table and looked up at Rick, waiting for him to sit down as well. They said nothing, knowing Kim would be joining them any moment.
Kim came to the table and picked up her teacup and said, "I...uh...think I'll take my tea to my room then turn in." She sensed the awkward silence between Rick and Lisa and thought it would be better to leave them alone.
Lisa got halfway out of her chair to try and stop her but Kim had already walked briskly back to her room. Lisa instinctively looked at the clock, as did Rick.
Rick got out of his chair and said, "It's...uh...getting late, I better go."
Rick walked to the door and Lisa followed him in silence. Rick looked as if he was about to say something, but it seemed like he changed his mind. He looked at Lisa one more time then walked through the door.
Lisa waited for a few seconds then closed the door quietly and sighed. She walked back to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator and stared at the wine bottle Montgomery had given her.
Lisa closed her eyes tightly and said "No," firmly to herself then closed the refrigerator door and turned around to head to her room when she saw Kim standing in the doorway.
A surprised Lisa remained rooted to her place but Kim pointed towards Lisa's room, like a mother ordering her child to go to her room for being bad. Kim waited until Lisa was in her room then headed back to her own room for a much needed night of sleep, hoping that nightmares would not disturb her slumber.

* * * * * * *

Claudia was pleased that she had talked the doctors, including her own sister-in-law, into letting her leave her room and walk around the hospital as part of her rehab. Claudia made her way to the cafeteria and selected pancakes for breakfast, along with a cup of jello, tea, and a donut, and carried her tray back to a small table near a window.
After a few minutes, Claudia had finished her pancakes and was holding up her cup of jello when she heard the chair next to her slide a bit across the floor, she looked to her left and saw a little boy climb up into the chair.
The little boy looked to be about 4 or 5 years old. He had curly medium brown hair and a complexion that was difficult to describe. He looked at Claudia then then at the jello, then at Claudia again. She smiled at him then he pointed to the jello.
"Well, I guess it seems like you want this cup of jello," said Claudia warmly as she held it out to the boy.
The boy looked at her, not sure whether he should take it or not, but then as he looked at Claudia's friendly face awhile longer, he took the jello from her.
"James. What are you doing there? That belongs to the lady, we can get you some jello back at your room," said a voice that wasn't too scolding.
A woman in nurses scrubs walked up to the table and said, "I'm sorry Captain Grant. James doesn't usually take people's food, he doesn't even approach people at all."
The boy, with a worried look in his eyes, looked up at the nurse then at Claudia.
Claudia smiled at James and said, "Don't worry. It's alright, he can have the jello. I'm not too fond of orange, I prefer cherry."
"Come now James, we better get back to our unit, it's almost storytime," said the nurse calmly.
James, with the jello in one hand, climbed off the chair and stood there staring at Claudia.
"I'm afraid he doesn't talk much. Come on James, thank Captain Grant for the jello so we can go get ready for storytime."
James didn't say anything but instead stuffed his small, chubby hand in the pocket of his shirt and pulled out a pack of two saltine crackers. He held the package out towards Claudia and continued to stare at her with his big, hazel eyes.
"Are those your crackers?" asked Claudia in a friendly tone.
"He wants you to have them," explained the nurse with a smile.
Claudia grinned and lowered her head a bit so that she was more eye-level with James and said, "Thank you very much James." She then took the pack of crackers from him then shook his small hand and afterwards he followed the nurse, casting one more glance back at Claudia before exiting out of view.
Claudia smiled to herself and then finished her donut and headed back up to her room. She decided to take the long way around and pass by the children's ward. As she was walking down the hall, the nurse that was with James called out to her from the nurses station.
"Captain Grant. It's a nice coincedence that you showed up when you did, can I speak to you for a moment?"
"Yes, what can I do for you," said Claudia cheerfully as she watched a little girl walk down the hall with her mother.
"The volunteer that usually comes to read to the children during their morning storytime break has called in sick today, and as it is we are short-staffed right now, I was wondering...if you wouldn't mind reading to the children for about half an hour."
"I wouldn't mind at all, let me just call the nurses' station to let them know I'm here, before my nurse sends a posse out to look for me. I've been threatening to sneak out and go back to work, so she's really worked up," said Claudia with a chuckle.
"Great, thank you Captain! You can use the phone right there at that desk," said the grateful nurse.
Claudia read to the children for almost 45 minutes and by the time she was done, several of the kids were trying to hold her hand or sit next to her.
"Well, Captain, you were a big hit. The kids love you," said a surprised doctor who had come to escort one child to x-ray.
Claudia got up to leave and a few small voices asked the same question, "Can you come back and
read to us tommorrow?"
Claudia smiled down at the cherub faces and said, "But what about Lindsay? She won't like it that I stole her job now would she?"
One child said, "Well, then can you come by and play with us later?"
"Captain Grant is still not feeling well, we shouldn't tire her out because she has important work to get back to and they want her to recover quickly," said a nurse.
The children groaned and Claudia came up with an idea, "I can come by after dinner and visit with the children for a little while."
The nurse gave her approval and a couple of the kids cheered. As Claudia was leaving the room she saw James near the door, staring at her. Claudia walked up to James and looked down at him and said, "Hello there James. I hope you enjoyed the story today."
James looked up at her then held out a cookie. After Claudia took the cookie, James hurried off even before Claudia could thank him. A nurse looked after him making sure he had gone to his room then turned to Claudia and told her, "I think he likes you Captain. James is a difficult one to get any response from."
Claudia was suddenly concerned and asked, "What do you mean?"
The nurse told Claudia the boy's story,"Everyone's tried, but no one can get a peep out of him. The doctors can't find anything really wrong with him and the psychologists have no clue either. But they think he's suffered from some type of shellshock. They don't know since when though, because he's been in an orphanage for the past two years and couldn't, obviously, tell us anything about his background. The orphanage just found him wandering the street one day after a Zentraedi Malcontent raid here in Monument. No one knew what his true name was so they just decided to name him James and that's the name he's had for the past two years. He's here right now for a removed appendix but should be released back to the orphanage by next week."
"The poor little guy," said Claudia sadly.
Claudia told the nurse she'd be back again that evening and then headed off down the hall towards the elevator. Before exiting the ward completely, Claudia looked back and saw a small head of curly hair peeking at her from one of the rooms. She strained her eyes to see who it was and it was James. She smiled and waved to him but all he did was stare at her. She smiled at him again then turned down the hallway out of sight. After she was gone he peered from the doorway for a few seconds more then waved his small hand twice.

* * * * * * *

Lisa and Kim had been in their office for over an hour without much conversation taking place. Finally, Kim got up from her desk and walked into Lisa's office and closed the door behind her. Lisa looked up at her with a concerned look.
"Lisa, please don't tell Sammie and Vanessa what happened yesterday," said Kim calmly.
Lisa looked at her and sighed, "Kim, they're your best friends."
"Exactly. Exactly why I don't want them to know," said Kim firmly.
"But Kim, let them help you-"
"You don't understand Lisa. The first thing they will do is drag me to the hospital. I know they mean well, but they go overboard sometimes. Please, if I go back to the hospital then I think I really WILL lose it."
Lisa got up slowly from her desk and went over to the window and looked out, remaining silent for a few seconds, then said in a resigned tone, "Alright. I won't say anything. But if this happens again, I won't have any choice..."
"I understand. Thanks, I owe you one Lisa." said Kim.
Lisa waived her hand, "Forget about it, I'm not counting, so neither should you."
Kim turned around to leave but then turned quickly back and said quietly, "I...uh...I guess I f----d things up up between you and Rick, didn't I? I heard him leave last night. He left right away, so I doubt that you two had time to make up."
Lisa shook her head, "Look, Kim. You know the track record Rick and I have. I doubt things will just fall into place and be smooth sailing this quickly. We've got a lot of wrinkles to iron out. If it wasn't what happened yesterday, it is bound to be something else. And...you know what's coming up, I doubt if he'll be happy about it. In fact, I can pretty much predict what his reaction will be, so you better make sure you're nowhere near us when the s--t hits the fan."
Kim sighed loudly, "You know, we all need a vacation, you and Rick especially. Damn that Khyron!"
Lisa gave her a weary look and said in an equally weary voice, "That would be like a dream come true, a vacation alone with Rick...but now, with these four stars on my uniform, I highly doubt if that dream will come true anytime soon."
Kim shook her head and said with a bit of disbelief, "Wow...I don't envy you your job but I really must say, we sure do admire you, Sammie, V, and me. We knew the first day we served with you, that you'd be an admiral someday. Not just because it's in your blood, but also 'cause anyone could tell just by listening to you that you knew what you were doing."
Lisa smiled sadly and looked at the the two pictures on her desk. Kim walked back over to Lisa's desk to peek at the pictures.
"That's a good picture of Admiral Gloval. You know he'd be proud of you right now, Lisa."
Kim looked at the other picture as Lisa stared at the picture of Admiral Gloval.
"Who's this Lisa? He's cute...wait, this looks like..."
"My father," finished Lisa. "It was taken a very long time ago, before I was born, when he and my mother were engaged."
"He's very handsome Lisa."
"Yes, yes he was," said Lisa with a nostalgic smile.
"He'd be very proud of you right now too Lisa."
Lisa stared at the picture of her father and mused, "Yes...yes I think he would be."
Lisa put the picture back down and cleared her throat, "Well now, I guess we better start getting ready to go to that meeting with Reinhardt."
Kim saluted and went back to her office as Lisa looked at the picture of Gloval and silently asked him to give her strength and wisdom. Then she looked at the picture of her father and reflected on Kim's words, and realized the significance of being the last of the line of a military dynasty, 8 generations preceeding her. Right then and there she made a silent pledge to her father to uphold the reputation, respect, and pride of the family name.

* * * * * * *

Rick had been staring out the window for a good fifteen minutes and Miriya was nearly done with her report and in need of more work to do. She looked over at Rick and decided to raid Claudia's cabinet and fix a drink for the both of them. Miriya poured both herself and Rick a glass of apple cider and then walked over to the window and handed Rick his glass.
Rick shook out of his daydream suddenly and mumbled a 'thank you.'
Miriya took a sip then asked, "Are you and Lisa having difficulties?"
Rick, although he should have been used to Miriya's frankness by now, still found himself surprised by her straightforwardness. Before Rick could say anything, Miriya pressed on.
"I still completely do not comprehend the relationship you two have. How come everyone says that you two are in love with each other when all you two do is fight all the time. I do not understand, even though Max has explained it to me so many times, I still do not understand. I suppose it has to be some strange quirk of micronian culture, but that doesn't explain Khyron and Azonia. In fact, you and Lisa remind me of Khyron and Azonia."
Rick stared at Miriya in disbelief, but she continued, seemingly unaware of the shock her comments caused. "Azonia and Khyron fought ALL the time. Everytime there was a transmission between them, they were fighting with each other. But then, after Dolza's attack and they disappeared into the Amazon, they reappeared again as if they had gotten married, they even enjoyed touching lips! It is illogical, I just do not understand."
Rick said nothing, and could only wish that Max had been there to hush Miriya up. But as he thought about it, he knew she was right; he and Lisa did remind him of Khyron and Azonia, only Khyron and Azonia finally managed to stop fighting while he and Lisa seemed to be nowhere near seeing an end to their sparring.
Rick gave Miriya some more reports to work on and sat down for a minute, only to be so fidgety that he stood up and quickly said, "We don't ALWAYS fight."
Miriya stared blankly at him and said, "But you do. I always see you fight. I've never seen you touch lips or hug each other, and I won't believe it until I see it with my own eyes."
Rick tapped his pen rapidly, "Well...well, you'll see."
Miriya looked at him, unconvinced. She looked like such a Doubting Thomas that it was actually almost humorous and Rick nearly started to laugh.
Rick put a stack of folders on the desk in front of Miriya and said, "Here, you work on these while I'm gone."
"Where are you going?"
"I'm going to find Lisa," answered Rick.
"To fight?" asked Miriya innocently.
Rick stared at her in disbelief, the conversation they were having at the moment was so unbelievable that he burst out laughing, and as Miriya looked at him blankly he only laughed harder and gafawed as he closed the door.
"Did I say something humorous?" wondered Miriya aloud.
Rick walked down the hall, still laughing and said out loud, "Max, if this is a setup or joke of yours, you're going to be in biiiiig trouble."
After over an hour of searching and not finding Lisa at the places where she was suppose to be, Rick decided to use the last resort of calling her, but he had an armload of reports that had been dumped on him as he had passed through the Intelligence building and decided to stop by the office first and drop
them off and make the call from there.
In the hallway he saw Kim heading towards him and he rushed up to her and asked, "Is Lisa with you?"
"Yea, she's in Claudia's office. Miriya had asked us to pickup Dana for her and bring her to the office since Max wouldn't be able to pick her up until late tonight and the Grants had to make a trip over to pick out their new housing unit and also Miriya wanted to take Dana to lunch at that new taco stand."
Rick was about to enter the office when he heard Lisa talking to Dana, so he decided to wait outside and observe for awhile. Peeking from the doorway, Rick saw Lisa over at the window holding Dana.
"Look over there Dana. Look at the birdie, wave to the birdie Dana," said Lisa in a playful voice.
Dana waved at the bird as did Lisa and the sight brought a smile to Rick's face. Dana caught sight of something else and started to wave and shout 'hi.' Lisa looked around to see what it was that Dana was waving at and then she also started to wave and say 'hi' along with Dana. The toddler squealed with delight and then hugged Lisa around the neck with a choke hold. "Help help, Dana monster's got me," Lisa said with a laugh. Dana laughed wildly, still clinging to Lisa's neck and Lisa hugged the child back and swiveled her from side to side a bit. Dana sat back a bit in Lisa's arms and it seemed like she was getting ready to sneeze.
Dana sneezed twice, and when Lisa looked down at her uniform she groaned loudly, "Ohhhhhhhh, Dana, yuuuuuuck," and the child went into another fit of laughter as she looked at her number she had done on Lisa's uniform.
Rick was still peeking from the doorway, chuckling quietly when Kim and Miriya came up behind him. Miriya and Kim peeked through the door and watched as Dana giggled loudly as Lisa was telling her, "I'm going to have to send your mommy and daddy my cleaning bill for this little souvenier of yours."
Kim laughed too loudly and Lisa became aware that she was being watched. Miriya and Kim filed through the door with Rick lingering in the doorway. Miriya took Dana from Lisa and gave her a guilty look as she saw Lisa's uniform, "Sorry about that Admiral," she said with a shrug.
"Oh hey, someone better take a picture of this, it's not everyday you see a four-star admiral with baby snot all over their uniform," said Kim teasingly.
Rick pulled out his handkerchief and walked over to Lisa and said quietly, "Here, why don't I help you," then began dabbing at her uniform only to find that the dabbing was making things worse.
Lisa looked at her uniform again and made a sour face and then said, "I'll just have to go without a jacket for now. This thing is not salvagable at the moment." She carefully tried to undo the top fastening, hoping that she would succeed without getting baby snot on her hands. Rick, realizing she needed help, instinctively started to undo the fastening underneath the one Lisa was working on. After he undid the third fastening he realized that Lisa was staring at him.
Kim shook out of her stupor and covered Dana's eyes, "Shhh. Dana don't watch, this is for adults."
"Huh? Wha-? I'm so sorry!" apologized Rick in a hurry.
Dana laughed, her eyes still covered by Kim. Dana held out her arms towards Rick's direction and Lisa motioned to him with her hand. He took Dana from Miriya's arms and looked around nervously. Dana started lightly slapping Rick on the cheek and forehead, laughing all the while then she suddenly stopped and had a quick intake of breath then unleashed another sneeze, this time all over Rick's uniform.
Rick looked at his uniform and let out a loud groan, "Eeeeeewwwww gross!!"
Lisa couldn't help but laugh and laughed even more when Kim turned to Miriya and exclaimed, "My god woman! What do you feed this kid?? She's some kind of booger blasting machine."
Rick made a disgusted noise and Miriya just smiled and shrugged as she said, "She must have a cold."
Rick, Kim, and Lisa just looked at each other. A cold? Yes, apparently.
Rick said that he was going to wash his hands and Lisa followed him to the small bathroom that adjoined the office. Rick let Lisa wash her hands first and then he washed his as she dried her hands with the handtowel. When she was done she handed him the towel and Rick took it and quickly said, "Lisa, I'm really sorry, I didn't mean-"
"It's ok Rick, you don't need to explain," Lisa said soothingly.
"I'm sorry about last night," he said even more quickly.
Lisa touched his cheek and said quietly, "I'm sorry too."
"How's she doing today," Rick asked with concern.
"Well, as you saw, she seems to be back to her old self again," said Lisa, looking at the door.
Rick looked at the door and Lisa read his mind, saying, "I know. I'm so worried about her too, but please, let's just give her one more chance."
Rick shook his head and looked in her eyes, their emerald color seemingly more illuminated by the reflective bright green color of her turtleneck.
"Are we still on for tonight?" asked Rick, transfixed on Lisa's eyes.
Lisa shook her head, barely noticeably, as she leaned towards Rick.
Miriya told Kim she was going to clean Dana's face and headed towards the bathroom. Kim tried to stop her but was too slow and Miriya walked through the door to find Rick and Lisa lip-locked. Rick and Lisa instantly separated from each other and Miriya stared at them and mumbled something in Zentraedi in a tone of disbelief.
"Well can you believe it Dana?" asked Miriya as she looked at her daughter. Dana answered with a laugh and Miriya returned, "Yes, I am shocked too," then she mumbled something in Zentraedi again and Lisa replied in Zentraedi. Miriya's eyes widened with surprise and then she said in English, "Will you be having children now?"
The shock of Miriya's question made Lisa brace herself against the sink and Rick pulled at his turtleneck collar nervously. Rick and Lisa were trying to think of an answer as Miriya stood there with a look on her face that told them she was waiting for one when they saw Kim poke her head through
the door. "Hey, so are we like having a party here or something? How come I wasn't invited?" said Kim loudly.
Rick took Lisa's hand and led her out of the bathroom and Miriya followed them, telling Dana, "Wait till your father hear's about this."
Rick and Lisa looked at each other and smiled nervously.

* * * * * * *

After dinner, Claudia walked towards the children's ward, making good on her promise to the kids. She spent about ten minutes with each child that had been at the storytime break and then came to the last room, James' room. Before she could reach out her hand to open the door, someone tapped her
on the shoulder. She looked behind her and saw a doctor and a woman. The doctor motioned for Claudia to follow them and when they got to the nurses station the doctor introduced himself.
"Captain Grant, I am Doctor Gibbs, James' physician and this is Miss Fisher, James' case worker. I wonder if it would be alright with you if we observe your visit with James via vidcam. We have been told by the staff that James seems more responsive since his first encounter with you this morning and we'd like to make more observations."
Claudia was surprised that she had been the cause of some improvement and willingly agreed to the doctor's request then headed back to James' room. Claudia opened the door and found James standing there, apparently waiting for her.
"Good evening James, how are you doing?" greeted Claudia.
James looked at her shyly then took her by the hand and pointed to the chair that was near his bed.
"Do you want me to sit down?" asked Claudia.
James nodded yes and then climbed back onto his bed. He looked at her for a few moments then he picked up a book that was the the foot of his bed and held it out to her. Claudia smiled and took the book and then started to read from it as James sat there listening intently. After Claudia finished
reading, James got down from his bed and ran out of his room. Claudia shrugged at the vidcam and wondered if she should get up and follow after James but a few moments later she heard the patter of feet heading back towards the room.
A few seconds after that, James came through the door and had a small plastic bowl of jello in his chubby hands. He held it out to Claudia and when she looked down at it she noticed it seemed to be cherry jello. Claudia smiled, heartwarmed, as James carefully set the bowl and a spoon down on the arm of her chair then climbed back into his bed.
When Claudia was finished eating her jello, Doctor Gibbs came into the room and informed James that it was time for him to rest and that Captain Grant had to get back to her own room and rest too.
Claudia got up to leave and turned to James and said, "Goodnight James, thank you for the jello."
James looked at the doctor and the case worker and then back at Claudia and pulled the covers over himself, leaving only his eyes and the top of his head in view, then he poked out one hand and waved to Claudia.
Claudia tried not to grow misty-eyed and smiled and waved to James as she left the room. As she was nearly out of the ward the doctor hurried after her and asked her if she would come back to visit James again.
"You're one of the very few people who he's responded to since he's been under my care. I really do think, you can help him substantially Captain," said the doctor eagerly.
Claudia agreed and headed back to her room, determined to help James in any way she could.

* * * * * * *

Rick was sitting in the living room of Lisa's suite waiting for she and Kim to return. After dinner the two had been called into town to sit in on a city council meeting and had not yet arrived home yet. Rick looked at his watch and it read 11:50 and he realized that the stores were most likely closed and that the shopping date was going to have to wait until another day.
He decided to fix himself a glass of cold water but when he looked in the freezer he saw that there were no icecubes available. He remembered seeing an ice machine on one of the floors below so he took his glass and headed out in search of some ice.

At midnight Kim and Lisa entered the lobby of the hotel, dead tired. They trudged over to the elevator and Kim slapped the button. Both of them dragged their feet as they entered the elevator and Lisa didn't even notice that Kim had accidently hit the button for a wrong floor.
"When I get home I'm just going to drop. I don't even think I have any energy left to change my clothes," said Kim with a loud yawn.
"Me too," said Lisa tiredly.
Suddenly they heard a grinding noise and then the elevator jolted and came to a stop.
"What the hell..." said Kim, greatly annoyed, then the lights in the elevator went out, leaving them in pitch darkness.

Rick found the ice machine and headed to the elevator with his glass full of icecubes. He punched the button and had been standing there waiting for several minutes when he decided he would just take the stairs instead of go the elevator at the other end of the hall. He turned away from the elevator and took one step and saw Minmei right in front of him.
"Rick..."
"Minmei..."

=================
Author's notes:

You can find my notes here: http://www.geocities.com/sphersian/chapnotes3.html
:)