Jim Kirk (![[info]](https://www.insanejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} nottiberius) wrote in ![[info]](https://www.insanejournal.com/img/community.gif){kind=small} toboldlyrpg,@ 2017-06-05 16:00:00 |
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| Entry tags: | ! earth, ^ log, james kirk | star trek, mary crawley | downton abbey |
WHO: Jim Kirk & Mary Crawley
WHEN: Backdated to day 1 in Hawaii
WHERE: Hawaii
SUMMARY: Jim & Mary sunbathe and go for a swim.
WARNINGS: Some discussion of nudity. But it's tame.
The last time Jim was on a beach like this, he was being chased by a group of native animals that looked a little like a cross between a boar and a giraffe. He certainly wasn’t lounging back on the white sand, watching the crystal blue ocean lap up against the shore, a drink with a slice of pineapple and a paper umbrella sticking out of it in hand, as he waited for Lady Mary, who said she would join him just as soon as she changed into a bathing suit. He turned and looked over his shoulder, grinning when he spotted her making her way down the beach toward him, though it didn’t look to him like she had found a bathing suit to wear at all.
He lifted a hand and waved her over, leaning up on his elbows to smile widely at her. “What’s this?” Jim asked, motioning to her cover up. “I thought you wanted to sunbathe.”
Mary cleared her throat quietly. “Well. I’m not quite sure if I want to anyway.” Surely he’d noticed how pale she was. That was a staple for women from her time and social class. She’d pressed her luck enough being out at Pike’s ranch. Today she carried a parasol.
This time she had gone to Peggy for fashion advice and ended up in a vintage bikini. She felt terribly exposed and wondered how women could wear such things in public. It was like inviting a man to stare. Mary had fretted in front of the mirror for a while before finally pulling on her silk kimono robe and trudging down the beach to meet Jim.
He looked very comfortable in his chair with no shirt and a fruity drink in his hand. Mary tried not to stare at his chest, not wanting to be hypocritical about exposure, but she couldn’t help but take more than a casual glance. Jim looked good without a shirt on.
She settled down in the chair next to him, smiling and trying to look comfortable while also holding the parasol and the robe closed at her chest. “That drink looks quite good.”
He rubbed his chest and sipped the drink through a curly straw. “They’ll bring you one if you want one,” he said. He sat up a little more and raked a hand back through his hair. “It’s hot out,” he pointed out. “And you’re wearing too much.” He reached out as she sat down and tugged at the belt of her robe, just a little as a tease, not enough to let it fall open.
Jim toyed with the end of the silk robe’s belt and then let it fall between his fingers. “I mean, you can’t go into the water wearing all of that,” he said.
Mary motioned for the waiter to bring her a fruity drink. Alcohol seemed necessary at this time. She gasped a little when he grabbed at the belt to her robe. “Jim!” He was teasing, but she still was self-conscious. She crossed her arms over her chest.
“I don’t think going in the water is necessary…” Even though the water looked incredibly relaxing and she wanted to at least dip her feet in. Mary sighed and decided to be up front with Jim. “The bathing suit that I have on makes me feel quite exposed,” she said. “I’m not sure if I’m comfortable.”
“You can’t be serious. There’s no way you’re sitting on a beach in Hawaii and not going into the ocean,” he said. He looked at her as if he was going to challenge her about it, and maybe he would. Maybe he would even pick her up and run with her into the water. Who knows. He went back to his drink and shrugged. “Well, what did you wear at the beach where you’re from? I can’t believe that swimming attire has changed that much, has it?”
Mary gave him a sharp look at his tone, as if she could tell what he was thinking and dared him to do any of that. “Most bathing outfits for women in my time consisted of a sleeveless top and shorts that ended at the knee.” The outfit she was wearing was decidedly less modest. “I… will have never worn so little in public.” It made her nervous and self-conscious. Although, the beach was relatively quiet. There were some other travelers and tourists milling around, but that was it.
He shook his head. “That sounds horrible. I’m sure you look fantastic. And whatever you’re wearing under that robe, I bet it’s still decent.” He nodded over her shoulder to a young blonde woman, a tourist, whose string bikini barely covered all the important bits. “You’re not wearing something like that, are you?” Not that Jim would mind in the least seeing her wearing something like that. He just knew her enough by now to know that it wasn’t the type of swimsuit she would have even let herself be convinced into wearing.
Mary gaped at the young woman. “Certainly not!” She said. That was obscene. A woman would be arrested in her time for wearing that in public. By comparison, her swimsuit was downright modest.
She sighed and stood up, moving in front of him where only he could see. “I will show it to you and you can tell me what you think.” Mary was still nervous, having never bared this much skin before. Her hand shook slightly as she opened the tie to her robe. She then held the sides open, fighting the urge to immediately cover herself back up.
Jim raked a hand through his hair and shrugged. The woman he had pointed to could pull off that kind of skimpy swimwear, but Mary’s reaction confirmed for him that what she was wearing probably covered her up more than a casual bikini did. He looked at her, the corner of his mouth twitching into a grin, when she showed him her swimsuit. Then he did grin.
“Now what’s wrong with that?” he asked, reaching out to brush his hand over the exposed skin at her side. “Take that robe off and sit back down. You’re fine.”
There was a flush to her cheeks when he looked at her, then a gasp when he touched her bare skin. After another furtive look around the beach, Mary let the robe slip from her shoulders.
She was incredibly pale, having never tanned, even accidentally, in her life. She sat back down next to Jim and held the parasol over her head. “Hopefully I will not burn,” she told him. “Ladies in my time did not sit in the sun without protection.”
“I’ve got some sun tan lotion here,” he said, reaching for a bottle that he brought, honestly, for this exact purpose, the one in which he slathers it all over Mary’s pale skin. “It’ll make sure you don’t burn.” It would have been easier if he’d told her that she could get something over the counter that didn’t require him using his hands on her, but he didn’t need to tell her that.
“Oh,” she said, looking at the bottle curiously. “I just… put it all over like hand lotion?” Sunscreen didn't exist in her time either.
Honestly if Jim wanted to run his hands over her body with the excuse that he was putting sunscreen on her, she would not complain. Mary had already told him that she would enjoy being touched by him.
He nodded. “Sure, anywhere there’s exposed skin,” Jim said, “so you don’t burn. Here, sit in front of me and I’ll get your back while you get your stomach, face and arms. How’s that sound?” He shifted back in his seat, his feet down on the sand to give her room at the end of his chair. He gave it a pat and gave her a grin.
Mary sat down in front of him and took some of the lotion in her hand. It was thick as she slathered it on her front side. When Jim started to touch her back, she closed her eyes, enjoying the feeling of his hands on her skin. They were warm and soft as they traced down the curve of her spine. She bit her lip, holding back a little moan that threatened to escape.
Jim didn’t want her to burn, so he was careful with his application of the lotion, kneading his fingers into her shoulders, pushing her hair aside to get it along the back of her neck, slipping his fingers under the straps of her bikini to make sure that no inch of her was left exposed to the elements. “Do you not usually enjoy the beach like this, where you’re from?” he asked curiously.
Her breath hitched when she felt his fingers under the straps to her top. His hands on her skin felt like ecstasy. She was so caught up in his touch that it took her a second to realize that he had asked her a question. “Oh! No, I have not been to the beach in a long while. I would play in the water when I was a girl, but after a certain age it was more expected that I should sit under a parasol in the sand.” Mary glanced over her shoulder at him. “It wasn't very fun, thus I didn't see much of a reason to go.”
He finished massaging her and Mary mourned the loss of his hands. “Would you like me to put some on your back?” She asked.
Jim frowned. “None of that sounds like very fun,” he said. He placed a quick kiss against the back of her shoulder before nudging her forward as he finished. “I hope you’ll be able to relax and have more fun here, preferably without that parasol.”
“No, I don’t need any lotion,” he said, though he almost lied and said he did just to feel her hands on him. “I took care of it before I came out here.”
She did gasp a little at the kiss, mentally scolding herself for being so ridiculous about a man’s touch. Mary did enjoy the fact that he was showing her affection in public, even subtly. “Ah,” she said, disappointed that she wouldn't be able to massage him in return.
Standing, Mary turned to face him, leaving her parasol and robe on her chair. “So what do you usually do? Get in the water and cool off?” Now she was getting a vision of a dripping wet Jim, one that she definitely liked.
Jim tried not to look as amused as he felt. What did people do at the beach? He guessed there were a lot of different things that people do at the beach. “Yes, if you’re hot you can swim. Some people just sunbathe. Drink. Toss around a Frisbee or something. Surf. Paddleboard.” He nodded to the water where, just up the shore from where they were sitting, a few tourists were trying their hand at paddleboarding. “I guess the waves aren’t big enough here for surfing though. We’d probably have to go away from the public beach for that.”
Mary pondered those options before turning back to him. She certainly didn't know how to surf and wasn't sure about paddle boarding either. “Let's cool off,” she said, taking his arm and heading for the waves. “When was the last time you went to the beach? For me it was a family holiday in Brighton, many years ago.” Mary determined that today was going to be a fun day, and she was going to try not to worry that much about what was or wasn't proper, now that Jim had managed to get her out of her robe.
"Depends on what you mean by beach," he said. "If you're talking about a beach here on Earth, it's been at least a decade. But I've visited beach-like places since then." Jim set his drink back down before she led him down the hot sand for the water. "Did you go into the ocean when you were in Brighton?"
“Not the last time, but when I was little. It's probably been at least a decade for me as well.” Mary reached out to grab his arm as they walked into the surf. The water was cold and Mary jumped, squeezing Jim’s arm. They would have to go in slowly.
“Would it be improper of me to say that you look good without a shirt, Jim?” She spoke casually, trying to hide a smile as she watched the water run over her toes.
Jim shook his head. "You should never go in slowly," he pointed out. "Can't get used to it that way. And this isn't even as cold as the lakes in Iowa where I grew up." He pulled his arm away from hers and gave her a wink before letting out a 'woohoo!' and racing right down into the water, splashing as he went, until he dove through a breaking wave and surfaced out past the breakers, shaking his hair out. "Come on, Mary," he called out.
Mary tried to hurry after him, but the water was cold, especially on her bare stomach. It made her squeal a little and try to stand on her tiptoes so it wouldn't touch her. Eventually she sucked it up and moved through the waves to the spot where Jim was floating.
“The water here is so blue.” She couldn't help but notice that it was a very similar color to his eyes.
"It's clean here. Well, it's clean throughout most of the Earth these days, but there were a few centuries there when it wasn't. Took a massive global effort to get the pollution at bay. It's incredible the change even in the last hundred years, if images are any indication." He ducked under the water and then re-emerged again, racing a hand back through his hair. "And since we're here on a public beach, we don't have to worry about any sharks or other natural sea creatures either.”
Mary had seen some dirty polluted cities in her time, mostly parts of London and Birmingham. She wondered if they still looked like that or if they had been cleaned up as well.
She hovered close to Jim, keeping her head above the waves. Reaching out, she clasped his hand under the water. “Sharks and sea creatures don’t come to public beaches?” That didn’t seem to be true, at least not in her time.
He shook his head. "They've created safety barriers. The life in the sea and its environment still thrives - probably more than it did years ago, at least with the animals not extinct, but they're managed in a different way. I don't know. I'm no marine biologist, honestly." He looked a little sheepish and shrugged.
“Ah,” Mary said with a nod of her head. “Well, you know more than I do about it, especially things happening in this time period. There is so much to learn.” It made her head spin sometimes to think about how much had changed. 300 years was a huge expanse of time.
That made her think about how she had asked Pike about somehow working in diplomacy aboard the ship. He was going to make inquiries and would probably speak to Jim about it, but she thought he might want to hear about it from her.
“I… asked Admiral Pike if there is any way I could work in some sort of diplomatic function on the ship. That may be the only place where I can contribute.” Mary wasn’t a dumb woman by any means, but there would have been a lot of science for her to catch up with and understand, particularly because it hadn’t been an area she studied a lot of even in her own time.
"Diplomacy?" he echoed, surprised. Not because he doubted it was of interest to her, but more that she was considering how to contribute. "What did he say about that?" Jim asked. He might defer to the admiral about something like this. Diplomacy was a sensitive matter aboard any starship, but especially aboard the Enterprise. He assumed that it was a skill of hers and something that she probably had experience with in some manner where she came from, but he thought it might be very different here. He told himself to check in with Pike about his thoughts on it.
"Do you mean for Starfleet or with other travelers?" he asked, shifting a little farther out in the water as the swells had begun rising and falling too quickly where they were. "I know Peggy Carter can always use more help, and if you didn't want to be a liaison, there might be more uses in that program too, especially now that we have more people arriving."
Mary moved with him, holding onto his hand tightly. “I suppose I mean with Starfleet. Eventually.” She sighed. “Pike said that he would have to run it past a few people, including you. I realize that I am not officially a member of Starfleet, so I would understand if it is not possible.”
She would still have a lot to learn about the various alien species, but it would probably interest her more than science - and she would probably be better at it too.
It had nothing to do with her being in Starfleet or not, but more the fact that she had three centuries and hundreds of cultures to catch up on. "Well, I'm sure we can find something that you'll enjoy doing," he said, smiling over at her.
It sounded like a brush off, but Mary kept that thought to herself for the moment. Maybe he didn’t think very much of her, which only meant that she would have to prove herself. It wasn’t the first time.
“It’s not that I don’t enjoy working with the traveler liaison program,” she continued, “I am simply looking at other options as well. Besides, I already know about pon farr.” Mary raised an eyebrow. Obviously she knew there was a lot more to learn, but that Vulcan romance novel had been eye-opening to say the least.
Jim looked at her oddly when she brought up the Vulcan pon farr and then he laughed. "Considering we've only got one Vulcan on board and I'm fairly certain that Spock would be horrified - or at least as horrified as he'd ever let on - if you brought it up, I'm not sure that would qualify for diplomacy. Bedroom talk is not something that any Vulcan excels at." He grinned at her. "On the other hand, some other cultures are way less uptight than that. On Betazed, for example, did you know that they sometimes conduct business fully in the nude?"
“That’s why they need someone who can be sensitive to their culture,” she teased. From what she knew of Spock, he would definitely be embarrassed if she asked him about such a thing. “Oh really?” Mary replied at his revelation. “And have you ever conducted business with them in the traditional way?”
"Me?" Jim shook his head. "No, I've never had the pleasure of visiting Betazed, but I've heard stories."
“What a pity,” she said. “I'm sure you would have looked absolutely wonderful.” Mary had a sly smile on her face as she bobbed closer to him in the water. He seemed so loathe to flirt with her sometimes, even though he had done so in the past, even when they were in the bar in San Francisco. Perhaps it was the more public setting that was throwing him. There were other travelers and crew members out on the beach.
"I know I would have," he said. "And I'm sure you would as well." He gave her a wink and couldn't help but glance back up at the beach. "Are you hungry? They're selling helado up along the shore and I've been told it's not to be missed."
“Your ego is something to behold, Jim,” she said fondly. Honestly, she didn't mind. He hadn't yet said something that he couldn't back up.
Mary fit her hand back into the crook of his arm. “What is helado?”
He'd been told about his ego numerous times, over the years, but it didn't bother him. As a captain, he needed a big ego, he needed the confidence to do just about anything, in certain situations. "It's a shaved cream ice," he said. "I usually get the coconut flavor but they have orange and cherry and all flavors like that too. Here," he said, tugging her out of the water and making their way back up the beach.
He lifted a hand and waved her over, leaning up on his elbows to smile widely at her. “What’s this?” Jim asked, motioning to her cover up. “I thought you wanted to sunbathe.”
Mary cleared her throat quietly. “Well. I’m not quite sure if I want to anyway.” Surely he’d noticed how pale she was. That was a staple for women from her time and social class. She’d pressed her luck enough being out at Pike’s ranch. Today she carried a parasol.
This time she had gone to Peggy for fashion advice and ended up in a vintage bikini. She felt terribly exposed and wondered how women could wear such things in public. It was like inviting a man to stare. Mary had fretted in front of the mirror for a while before finally pulling on her silk kimono robe and trudging down the beach to meet Jim.
He looked very comfortable in his chair with no shirt and a fruity drink in his hand. Mary tried not to stare at his chest, not wanting to be hypocritical about exposure, but she couldn’t help but take more than a casual glance. Jim looked good without a shirt on.
She settled down in the chair next to him, smiling and trying to look comfortable while also holding the parasol and the robe closed at her chest. “That drink looks quite good.”
He rubbed his chest and sipped the drink through a curly straw. “They’ll bring you one if you want one,” he said. He sat up a little more and raked a hand back through his hair. “It’s hot out,” he pointed out. “And you’re wearing too much.” He reached out as she sat down and tugged at the belt of her robe, just a little as a tease, not enough to let it fall open.
Jim toyed with the end of the silk robe’s belt and then let it fall between his fingers. “I mean, you can’t go into the water wearing all of that,” he said.
Mary motioned for the waiter to bring her a fruity drink. Alcohol seemed necessary at this time. She gasped a little when he grabbed at the belt to her robe. “Jim!” He was teasing, but she still was self-conscious. She crossed her arms over her chest.
“I don’t think going in the water is necessary…” Even though the water looked incredibly relaxing and she wanted to at least dip her feet in. Mary sighed and decided to be up front with Jim. “The bathing suit that I have on makes me feel quite exposed,” she said. “I’m not sure if I’m comfortable.”
“You can’t be serious. There’s no way you’re sitting on a beach in Hawaii and not going into the ocean,” he said. He looked at her as if he was going to challenge her about it, and maybe he would. Maybe he would even pick her up and run with her into the water. Who knows. He went back to his drink and shrugged. “Well, what did you wear at the beach where you’re from? I can’t believe that swimming attire has changed that much, has it?”
Mary gave him a sharp look at his tone, as if she could tell what he was thinking and dared him to do any of that. “Most bathing outfits for women in my time consisted of a sleeveless top and shorts that ended at the knee.” The outfit she was wearing was decidedly less modest. “I… will have never worn so little in public.” It made her nervous and self-conscious. Although, the beach was relatively quiet. There were some other travelers and tourists milling around, but that was it.
He shook his head. “That sounds horrible. I’m sure you look fantastic. And whatever you’re wearing under that robe, I bet it’s still decent.” He nodded over her shoulder to a young blonde woman, a tourist, whose string bikini barely covered all the important bits. “You’re not wearing something like that, are you?” Not that Jim would mind in the least seeing her wearing something like that. He just knew her enough by now to know that it wasn’t the type of swimsuit she would have even let herself be convinced into wearing.
Mary gaped at the young woman. “Certainly not!” She said. That was obscene. A woman would be arrested in her time for wearing that in public. By comparison, her swimsuit was downright modest.
She sighed and stood up, moving in front of him where only he could see. “I will show it to you and you can tell me what you think.” Mary was still nervous, having never bared this much skin before. Her hand shook slightly as she opened the tie to her robe. She then held the sides open, fighting the urge to immediately cover herself back up.
Jim raked a hand through his hair and shrugged. The woman he had pointed to could pull off that kind of skimpy swimwear, but Mary’s reaction confirmed for him that what she was wearing probably covered her up more than a casual bikini did. He looked at her, the corner of his mouth twitching into a grin, when she showed him her swimsuit. Then he did grin.
“Now what’s wrong with that?” he asked, reaching out to brush his hand over the exposed skin at her side. “Take that robe off and sit back down. You’re fine.”
There was a flush to her cheeks when he looked at her, then a gasp when he touched her bare skin. After another furtive look around the beach, Mary let the robe slip from her shoulders.
She was incredibly pale, having never tanned, even accidentally, in her life. She sat back down next to Jim and held the parasol over her head. “Hopefully I will not burn,” she told him. “Ladies in my time did not sit in the sun without protection.”
“I’ve got some sun tan lotion here,” he said, reaching for a bottle that he brought, honestly, for this exact purpose, the one in which he slathers it all over Mary’s pale skin. “It’ll make sure you don’t burn.” It would have been easier if he’d told her that she could get something over the counter that didn’t require him using his hands on her, but he didn’t need to tell her that.
“Oh,” she said, looking at the bottle curiously. “I just… put it all over like hand lotion?” Sunscreen didn't exist in her time either.
Honestly if Jim wanted to run his hands over her body with the excuse that he was putting sunscreen on her, she would not complain. Mary had already told him that she would enjoy being touched by him.
He nodded. “Sure, anywhere there’s exposed skin,” Jim said, “so you don’t burn. Here, sit in front of me and I’ll get your back while you get your stomach, face and arms. How’s that sound?” He shifted back in his seat, his feet down on the sand to give her room at the end of his chair. He gave it a pat and gave her a grin.
Mary sat down in front of him and took some of the lotion in her hand. It was thick as she slathered it on her front side. When Jim started to touch her back, she closed her eyes, enjoying the feeling of his hands on her skin. They were warm and soft as they traced down the curve of her spine. She bit her lip, holding back a little moan that threatened to escape.
Jim didn’t want her to burn, so he was careful with his application of the lotion, kneading his fingers into her shoulders, pushing her hair aside to get it along the back of her neck, slipping his fingers under the straps of her bikini to make sure that no inch of her was left exposed to the elements. “Do you not usually enjoy the beach like this, where you’re from?” he asked curiously.
Her breath hitched when she felt his fingers under the straps to her top. His hands on her skin felt like ecstasy. She was so caught up in his touch that it took her a second to realize that he had asked her a question. “Oh! No, I have not been to the beach in a long while. I would play in the water when I was a girl, but after a certain age it was more expected that I should sit under a parasol in the sand.” Mary glanced over her shoulder at him. “It wasn't very fun, thus I didn't see much of a reason to go.”
He finished massaging her and Mary mourned the loss of his hands. “Would you like me to put some on your back?” She asked.
Jim frowned. “None of that sounds like very fun,” he said. He placed a quick kiss against the back of her shoulder before nudging her forward as he finished. “I hope you’ll be able to relax and have more fun here, preferably without that parasol.”
“No, I don’t need any lotion,” he said, though he almost lied and said he did just to feel her hands on him. “I took care of it before I came out here.”
She did gasp a little at the kiss, mentally scolding herself for being so ridiculous about a man’s touch. Mary did enjoy the fact that he was showing her affection in public, even subtly. “Ah,” she said, disappointed that she wouldn't be able to massage him in return.
Standing, Mary turned to face him, leaving her parasol and robe on her chair. “So what do you usually do? Get in the water and cool off?” Now she was getting a vision of a dripping wet Jim, one that she definitely liked.
Jim tried not to look as amused as he felt. What did people do at the beach? He guessed there were a lot of different things that people do at the beach. “Yes, if you’re hot you can swim. Some people just sunbathe. Drink. Toss around a Frisbee or something. Surf. Paddleboard.” He nodded to the water where, just up the shore from where they were sitting, a few tourists were trying their hand at paddleboarding. “I guess the waves aren’t big enough here for surfing though. We’d probably have to go away from the public beach for that.”
Mary pondered those options before turning back to him. She certainly didn't know how to surf and wasn't sure about paddle boarding either. “Let's cool off,” she said, taking his arm and heading for the waves. “When was the last time you went to the beach? For me it was a family holiday in Brighton, many years ago.” Mary determined that today was going to be a fun day, and she was going to try not to worry that much about what was or wasn't proper, now that Jim had managed to get her out of her robe.
"Depends on what you mean by beach," he said. "If you're talking about a beach here on Earth, it's been at least a decade. But I've visited beach-like places since then." Jim set his drink back down before she led him down the hot sand for the water. "Did you go into the ocean when you were in Brighton?"
“Not the last time, but when I was little. It's probably been at least a decade for me as well.” Mary reached out to grab his arm as they walked into the surf. The water was cold and Mary jumped, squeezing Jim’s arm. They would have to go in slowly.
“Would it be improper of me to say that you look good without a shirt, Jim?” She spoke casually, trying to hide a smile as she watched the water run over her toes.
Jim shook his head. "You should never go in slowly," he pointed out. "Can't get used to it that way. And this isn't even as cold as the lakes in Iowa where I grew up." He pulled his arm away from hers and gave her a wink before letting out a 'woohoo!' and racing right down into the water, splashing as he went, until he dove through a breaking wave and surfaced out past the breakers, shaking his hair out. "Come on, Mary," he called out.
Mary tried to hurry after him, but the water was cold, especially on her bare stomach. It made her squeal a little and try to stand on her tiptoes so it wouldn't touch her. Eventually she sucked it up and moved through the waves to the spot where Jim was floating.
“The water here is so blue.” She couldn't help but notice that it was a very similar color to his eyes.
"It's clean here. Well, it's clean throughout most of the Earth these days, but there were a few centuries there when it wasn't. Took a massive global effort to get the pollution at bay. It's incredible the change even in the last hundred years, if images are any indication." He ducked under the water and then re-emerged again, racing a hand back through his hair. "And since we're here on a public beach, we don't have to worry about any sharks or other natural sea creatures either.”
Mary had seen some dirty polluted cities in her time, mostly parts of London and Birmingham. She wondered if they still looked like that or if they had been cleaned up as well.
She hovered close to Jim, keeping her head above the waves. Reaching out, she clasped his hand under the water. “Sharks and sea creatures don’t come to public beaches?” That didn’t seem to be true, at least not in her time.
He shook his head. "They've created safety barriers. The life in the sea and its environment still thrives - probably more than it did years ago, at least with the animals not extinct, but they're managed in a different way. I don't know. I'm no marine biologist, honestly." He looked a little sheepish and shrugged.
“Ah,” Mary said with a nod of her head. “Well, you know more than I do about it, especially things happening in this time period. There is so much to learn.” It made her head spin sometimes to think about how much had changed. 300 years was a huge expanse of time.
That made her think about how she had asked Pike about somehow working in diplomacy aboard the ship. He was going to make inquiries and would probably speak to Jim about it, but she thought he might want to hear about it from her.
“I… asked Admiral Pike if there is any way I could work in some sort of diplomatic function on the ship. That may be the only place where I can contribute.” Mary wasn’t a dumb woman by any means, but there would have been a lot of science for her to catch up with and understand, particularly because it hadn’t been an area she studied a lot of even in her own time.
"Diplomacy?" he echoed, surprised. Not because he doubted it was of interest to her, but more that she was considering how to contribute. "What did he say about that?" Jim asked. He might defer to the admiral about something like this. Diplomacy was a sensitive matter aboard any starship, but especially aboard the Enterprise. He assumed that it was a skill of hers and something that she probably had experience with in some manner where she came from, but he thought it might be very different here. He told himself to check in with Pike about his thoughts on it.
"Do you mean for Starfleet or with other travelers?" he asked, shifting a little farther out in the water as the swells had begun rising and falling too quickly where they were. "I know Peggy Carter can always use more help, and if you didn't want to be a liaison, there might be more uses in that program too, especially now that we have more people arriving."
Mary moved with him, holding onto his hand tightly. “I suppose I mean with Starfleet. Eventually.” She sighed. “Pike said that he would have to run it past a few people, including you. I realize that I am not officially a member of Starfleet, so I would understand if it is not possible.”
She would still have a lot to learn about the various alien species, but it would probably interest her more than science - and she would probably be better at it too.
It had nothing to do with her being in Starfleet or not, but more the fact that she had three centuries and hundreds of cultures to catch up on. "Well, I'm sure we can find something that you'll enjoy doing," he said, smiling over at her.
It sounded like a brush off, but Mary kept that thought to herself for the moment. Maybe he didn’t think very much of her, which only meant that she would have to prove herself. It wasn’t the first time.
“It’s not that I don’t enjoy working with the traveler liaison program,” she continued, “I am simply looking at other options as well. Besides, I already know about pon farr.” Mary raised an eyebrow. Obviously she knew there was a lot more to learn, but that Vulcan romance novel had been eye-opening to say the least.
Jim looked at her oddly when she brought up the Vulcan pon farr and then he laughed. "Considering we've only got one Vulcan on board and I'm fairly certain that Spock would be horrified - or at least as horrified as he'd ever let on - if you brought it up, I'm not sure that would qualify for diplomacy. Bedroom talk is not something that any Vulcan excels at." He grinned at her. "On the other hand, some other cultures are way less uptight than that. On Betazed, for example, did you know that they sometimes conduct business fully in the nude?"
“That’s why they need someone who can be sensitive to their culture,” she teased. From what she knew of Spock, he would definitely be embarrassed if she asked him about such a thing. “Oh really?” Mary replied at his revelation. “And have you ever conducted business with them in the traditional way?”
"Me?" Jim shook his head. "No, I've never had the pleasure of visiting Betazed, but I've heard stories."
“What a pity,” she said. “I'm sure you would have looked absolutely wonderful.” Mary had a sly smile on her face as she bobbed closer to him in the water. He seemed so loathe to flirt with her sometimes, even though he had done so in the past, even when they were in the bar in San Francisco. Perhaps it was the more public setting that was throwing him. There were other travelers and crew members out on the beach.
"I know I would have," he said. "And I'm sure you would as well." He gave her a wink and couldn't help but glance back up at the beach. "Are you hungry? They're selling helado up along the shore and I've been told it's not to be missed."
“Your ego is something to behold, Jim,” she said fondly. Honestly, she didn't mind. He hadn't yet said something that he couldn't back up.
Mary fit her hand back into the crook of his arm. “What is helado?”
He'd been told about his ego numerous times, over the years, but it didn't bother him. As a captain, he needed a big ego, he needed the confidence to do just about anything, in certain situations. "It's a shaved cream ice," he said. "I usually get the coconut flavor but they have orange and cherry and all flavors like that too. Here," he said, tugging her out of the water and making their way back up the beach.