The Uncaged Bird

Posted on Sat Sep 23rd, 2017 @ 11:41pm by Captain Brady Dering M.D., PhD
Edited on on Wed Sep 12th, 2018 @ 7:43pm

Mission: My Place In This Universe
Location: ZuluBase Sickbay
Timeline: 2388/08/18 1145 (August 18 2388 1145)

"Hi." Brady stood smiling in the doorway of Kelly's room at Zulubase Medical. Suddenly he was there with both hands hidden behind his back.

Kelly looked up at the sound of a voice and smiled when she saw Doctor Dering. "Hi there," she said, setting a PADD down. Since she had been confined to the medical facility, she had been taking time to research what classes were offered at the Academy for what she would be taking. More so with her lack of ability to continue with her violin like he had suggested, but she had learned several new things and it was going to be worth it.

"Come on in, Doctor Dering."

Brady walked in and pulled out what he had been hiding, her violin, within it's case. "Kept my word." he said.

"Oh!" she exclaimed, her eyes lighting up. "Thank you!!" Getting out of bed in her pajamas, she smiled and advanced. "Is it permissible to give a superior officer a hug?"

Smiling with a look of uncertainty, Brady stared at her for a moment and then feigned giving in. "I suppose...this time.." he said, as he sat the violin case down on her bed.

Kelly smiled and gave him a quick hug before pulling back. "I won't tell if you won't....and I'm a person of my word too, Doctor Dering." She gave an enigmatic smile before looking at the violin case. "Reunited...at last!"

Brady kept his eyes on her for a moment as he wondered about her smile. "Well, open it up." he gestured impatiently at it, "I want to hear you play."

Smiling from ear to ear, she opened the case to reveal a emerald green translucent violin. Taking it out with loving care, she pulled out a patch cord and a PADD that looked like it had seen half the galaxy and attached it. Swallowing, she looked up at him a bit shyly. "This is one I've been working on in my head since we talked. I call it Song of the Caged Bird."

Going to the desk, she picked up the PADD she had been working on and synced it with the other one attached to her violin with care. Checking that the sync was complete, she bit her lip and glanced at him again before putting the violin to her neck and picked up the bow. Giving a nervous smile, she began to play the song.

She started slowly at first, the bow moving over the strings to draw out a haunting melody that filled the room with the sound of yearning and loss. Her expression matched the music flowing from the violin and she slowly swayed in tune with the beat coming from the PADD. Slowly at first, then faster, her fingers moved over the strings as the bow coaxed the sound from them before slowing again.

Finishing the melody, she looked up at the Doctor again and gave a tentative smile. "Do...you like it?"

As she had began to play, Brady had sat down in a chair. And he watched her, suddenly mesmerized, the music moving him in a personal way he hadn't expected. "I..." touched emotionally, he cleared his throat. It was in his eyes, "I love it... That was beautiful, Kelly."

Kelly smiled when she heard the emotion in his voice and saw it in his eyes. "Thank you," she said softly. "It's a little sadder than I normally do...but I was inspired." She carefully set the violin on the bed with the PADD. "Thank you again for bringing it for me."

"You're welcome." he replied quietly, "I'm glad I could help. If there is anything else you need, let me know and I'll do what I can..." He had alot on his mind, and suddenly felt the need to leave, to sort some things out for himself. But it wasn't that simple; first he needed to know she was going to be okay. "I have to be going now, I have something I need to do. How about I stop by this evening, we can have dinner together."

"I'd like that, Doctor D," Kelly said, then stopped as she noticed something. Her eyes went wide and she squeaked, causing a blush to rise in her cheeks. "It worked! They actually did it! Congratulations!" Without asking for permission or explaining her words, she threw her arms around him and gave him a big hug.

Thrown off, Brady eyes widened as he gripped the chair. "Kelly..." he said after a moment, releasing it. Feeling uncomfortable at her continuing proximity, he reached his hands to the back of his neck, and carefully pulled on her arms to released him. "What..what worked?"

"You got promoted!" she said as if it were obvious and he had somehow overlooked it. "After you brought the chocolate, I wrote a letter of recommendation to Admiral Hawkins and Rear Admiral Solkuv. I'm glad they took me on my word of how you are."

"Ohh..." he smiled back, realising now to what she was referring to, his new pips, and had to force himself from chuckling. He was extremely touched, "I'm grateful, Kelly. Thank you."

Sitting down on her bed, her eyes shining with excitement, she looked at him. "Keep bringing me the good chocolate and you'll go far, Doctor D," she chuckled. "Seriously...I'm glad for you, even if it wasn't because of my recommendation. If the Admirals get back to you, tell them that I wasn't in my right mind, but you ensured that I am now perfectly sane. Unless chocolate is involved, then all bets are off."

This time Brady laughed. Although he had a heart of gold and genuinely cared about people in general, he had grown very fond of her. "Kelly, you have yourself a deal."

"I'm going to miss you when I go down to the planet, Doctor D," Kelly said with genuine affection. "We can keep in touch via subspace communication, though it won't be the same...and I know sending packages through the wormhole isn't easy. I guess that means that I'll have to savor the chocolate while I can."

"I'm going to miss you too, Kelly, but I'll be on campus for about another week before I leave...and I'm putting you in good hands." Brady looked at her thoughtfully, considering an idea as it came to him. "We'll be in touch alot more than you think. Unless something changes, I'm not leaving the quadrant."

"You aren't?" She perked up. "So does that mean you'll be able to come to my concert when I make my debut?" She hesitated for a moment. "Good hands? Someone else?"

"The new chief counselor on the campus, I'll be introducing you to her. She's very good, you can trust me on that, I know her personally."

"Okay," Kelly said, making mental plans on how to get chocolate out of the person. Her eyes traveled back to the violin and a wistful look crossed her eyes. "You kept your word...and I'll keep mine. That's a promise, Doctor Dering."

Brady nodded, suddenly a bit distant, and rose from his chair. He had alot of decisions to make, and until he did, he wasn't sure what kind of commitments he could make to her. He looked down at her and smiled, "See you at dinner." and started heading for the door, stopping right before it to turn around, "Kelly, I wouldn't want to miss your debut concert for anything in the Universe."

Kelly smiled. "Thanks, Doctor D...I'll let you know when it happens. See you later." She noted the look on his face and figured he had another appointment to make that was far worse than hers. "Thanks again."

"You're welcome," Brady said, returning her smile for another moment, and then he left.

OFF


Kelly Khan
Cadet
Magellan Campus

&

Captain Brady Dering
Zulu Fleet Psychiatrist with the brand new pips
Temp assign - Magellan Campus