Tea, Both Poured and Spilled

Posted on Sun Aug 2nd, 2026 @ 6:58pm by Commodore Elias McEntyre & Commander Gil’an Tyris & Commander Cressida Vale MD & Petty Officer 1st Class Alina Tevaris

2,182 words; about a 11 minute read

Mission: Prologue
Location: Commodore’s Quarters
Timeline: January 2389

”It’s so nice that Commodore McEntyre and Commander Tyris invited us to dinner.”

Alina Tevaris walked with Cressida Vale, her wife of nearly two months in the direction of the Commodore’s quarters. It wasn’t far. As Cressida was Chief Medical Officer she rated senior officer quarters on the same deck. Indeed, it was a minor miracle of room assignment randomness that they didn’t share a wall.

“We’ve been trying to arrange it for a while,” Cressida said, holding Alina’s hand as they walked the tens of meters between doors down the hall. “We often have working lunches but it’s not the same as two couples on a double-date, enjoying dinner and wine.”

“And it’s not every night that we get to dress all fancy,” Alina said, taking a second to spin and let her dress and hair twirl, giggling all the while.

Cressida caught her right outside the Commodore’s door and leaned in for a quick kiss.

But Alina pulled back. “Ah ah ah! It’s too early to mess with the makeup!” she said cheerfully. She chimed the door and while waiting stole the kiss that Cressida had tried to take. “Couldn’t resist,” she said with a wink.

In the moments before their guests arrived, Gil Tyris moved through his quarters with the quiet efficiency of a man who knows exactly how he wants things to be. The table is already set — simple, clean lines with a few carefully chosen touches from his Bak’u heritage, including a small bowl of fragrant dried blossoms at the center. He checks the temperature on the slow-cooking main course, adjusts the lighting to a warm, flattering glow, and cues a curated playlist of soothing chamber music beginning with Samuel Barber’s Adagio For Strings that will fade easily into the background. There is no rushing, no last-minute scramble — just the measured, deliberate motions of someone who finds as much pleasure in the preparation as in the evening itself.

Tonight’s menu was simple, but not understated. There was a charcuterie board, featuring an assortment of meats and cheeses from four different worlds and multigrain crackers and bread. Decorate artfully with dried fruits and nuts, the board was a marvel of presentation and a testament to Gil’s well-earned culinary skills. As he placed the board on the kitchen island, the door chimed.

“E, could you get the door?” Gil called out. He knew that his hubs was putting the finishing touches on his outfit…but Gil was elbows-deep in food preparation.

Elias came out of their bedroom, straightening his simple button up cardigan in deep navy blue. He dressed simply. The Cardigan, a white collared button-up shirt, a pair of fitted khakis and a pair of comfortable brown leather Oxford shoes. He walks over to the large doors, pressing the panel as they slid open.

"Welcome!" Elias greeted warmly.

“Thank you!” Cressida replied as she accepted the invitation inside.

“Thanks again for inviting us, sir,” Alina said as she followed her wife in. Social gathering aside, habits of protocol died hard. “It smells wonderful in here!”

“Am I able to say hi to Emery?” Cressida asked. “Or is he already asleep?”

“Emery is having a sleepover with a classmate. He was very excited about it. It’s nice he’s making friends.” Elias commented as he ushered the two into the living area.

“It really is,” Cressida agreed. “And it’s nice that you’re able to get an evening properly child-free once in a while. Visiting grandparents for the weekend isn’t an easy prospect aboard a starship. But a friend to have sleepovers with is nice for you, and nice for the friend’s parents when you host.”

“We’re having them for a sleepover sometime soon as a thank you. Please though, help yourself. There is charcuterie, and cheese. I think Gil has a nice bottle of wine somewhere and I have some bourbon and whisky from the family estate.” Elias smiles as he turned to the small bar set up near the large windows that framed their quarters.

"I'd love a glass of whiskey, thank you," Alina said as she went to the charcuterie board. A beautiful display of meats, cheeses, and the best things to accompany them, which looked too scrumptious to pass up.

"Same, thank you," Cressida added. "You two went all in for this. It's almost too pretty to take from."

"But we will," Alina interjected, filling a small plate for herself. "Oh, I have something for you," she remembered. "Wait, where is it?"

"Here." Cressida had remembered the small bag that her wife had forgotten by the door and passed her its contents before setting the now empty bag down.

"Thanks Love. Here, Commodore, Commander." She handed Gil a glass bottle whose contents were a vivid gold. "The latest batch of authentic USS Guinevere brand honey. The bees have been productive this season. First bottle goes to you two."

Gil took the bottle with a warm nod, holding it up to the light. It was beautifully colored, an impressive deep amber-gold hue. “You are too kind,” he said as he placed the bottle on the counter near the refrigerator. “Had I known this was coming, I would have integrated it into one of my recipes.” He reached under the counter and produced a bottle of Slane Irish Whiskey, an Irish brand with notes of warm spices, dried fruits and butterscotch. He poured two fingers worth into a delicate crystal glass and passed it across the counter to Alina.

“I hope you all like tonight’s menu,” said Gil with a smile. “Bacon-wrapped pork loin and roasted asparagus is the main course. Soup and salad are almost ready.”

"My husband is nothing if not a remarkable cook" Elias beams as he hugs Gil from behind, pulling him back into his chest with a big smile on his face. "Though when it comes to the grill, he usually defers to me on that." He winks at his husband with a loving embrace.

“If we’re doing home-cooked, it’s Alina doing it,” Cressida said, as she accepted the second glass that Gil poured. “Baking, too. Thanks, Gil. I’m a replicator girl, myself. I can’t cook to save my life. Seriously, I burn water.”

“You’re the best kitchen assistant a chef could ask for though,” Alina said. “Especially since we labeled everything. No more handing me salt when I ask for sugar.”

Cressida shuddered. “Worst. Cookies. Ever.” Then she and Alina started laughing at the memory. “But how are you two doing these days? We’re all so busy we don’t really get to talk after staff meetings.”

“This survey of the Concordia Expanse has been rough,” said Gil, placing a large bowl of mixed green salad on the table. “So many spatial considerations…compressed space time distortions and graviton eddys. I feel like a coiled spring at the end of the day.”

“Distortions that bring in just enough minor injuries that it keeps us on our toes in sickbay,” Cressida pointed out. “Thankfully nothing serious for a while.”

Elias reached over for the bowl, taking a bit of salad and putting it on his plate before taking a bite. "Always glad to hear that, Cressida. Nothing as exciting in the world of Admirals. The Annual Admiral's Ball is coming up, and this one," He pointed his fork at his husband "I know is goin to fight me about going."

“If I wanted to hear windbags and persons that enjoy the sound of their own voice, I would move to Tellar Prime” chimed in Gil. But, Elias was not wrong; Gil was not a fan of the Admirals Ball, not in the slightest. The only good thing about it was that you were expected to dress in your finest look, something a vain individual like Gil was always on board with.

Cressida and Alina both giggled at their exchange. "At least Starfleet Medical's formal ball isn't annual," Cressida said. "And it usually is nice to see collaboration partners in person every few years."

"You haven't taken me to one yet," Alina interjected.

"The last one was before we met," Cressida reminded her. "That just means the next one can't be far off though. The newsletter says they're thinking Deneva for the next one, which isn't too far away."

"Though my husband is correct, most of the admiralty are a bunch of windbags who enjoy hearing their own voices." Elias quipped as he took another bite of salad.

The group fell silent a moment as they enjoyed their salads, interrupted by a question from Alina. "If you don't mind me asking, what's it like raising a child on a starship?"

Cressida smiled and reached over to squeeze her wife's hand. "We've been...thinking about our options."

Elias had to think on that for a minute. His face tilted in a sort of look of deep thought.

"I would say, it's alot like raising them anywhere else, though they would be seeing much of the galaxy as we do." Elias started.

"The schoolhouse on Guin is fantastic, at least I think. Lieutenant Creedmore has been wonderful with Emery."

Elias puts his paw next to Gil's hand. "Gil?"

Gil placed his hand gently over the much larger paw. “I have not raised a child anywhere else,” said Gil dryly, taking a sip from his Chardonnay. “But, I think the key is making certain the child has a wide variety of experiences on the ship; otherwise, you risk sheltering them too much. And liberal holodeck privileges so they develop an appreciation for open sky.”

“Well we know who were coming to for any future advice,” Cressida said, smiling at Gil and Elias. “It’s early days yet but we’re thinking about the future.”

“We’ve already decided we want kids,” Alina added. “An important conversation before getting married. We’re just not sure when. Soon? Later? Here? The next assignment? Lots of options. It’s a bit overwhelming.”

"Y'all probably have an easier time about it than we did. Skip the step of genetic splicing and trying to find a surrogate." Elias commented, taking another drink of his wine.

“If we went the donor route,” Cressida observed. “You’re right that we skip the surrogate step but genetic recombination is probably the way we’re going.”

“If and when we decide to proceed,” Alina added. “We’ll enjoy this life a bit first.”

“At least the process is straightforward when you’re planning it out like us,” Cressida said. “One of the sadder parts of the job is seeing when opposite sex couples of the same species want a baby and things work against them. Thankfully the artificial methods like you used and we’d use work just as easily for them, but some people want it to happen naturally and they’re heartbroken when it doesn’t.”

The sadness held a moment, broken by a quip from Alina. “And in my experience there isn’t a lot that’s less sexy than being instructed to have sex on a certain day by your doctor.”

“In your experience?” Cressida asked dubiously.

“I had a life before you,” Alina answered as she took another bite of salad, prompting Cressida to giggle.

Elias looked into his glass of wine, somber like. "My life before Gil...I couldn't imagine living that life again." He spoke before looking at his husband with love in his eyes, a soft smile, squeezing his hand softly in his paw.

“Remember when I said Bak’u was ‘an agrarian wasteland’? Maybe I was wrong about that. But my life after Bak’u, it’s so much better than I ever imagined it could be,” mused Gil.

***

Some Time Later…

Dinner had been lovely, and the company doubly so. Wine had been sipped, some of the best food on the ship had been enjoyed, and two couples that really should be spending more time together on double-dates like this shared stories and laughs to last a lifetime.

“Thank you for having us over Gil, Elias,” Cressida said as she and Alina prepared to go back to their quarters. “You really do have a lovely home here,” she added.

For Alina, it had taken an effort to break ranks while enjoying a night out with the ship’s commander and her own department head, but she was managing, and found it liberating. “You really do put the ‘meow’ in ‘homeowner’, Elias!” she said with a grin.

"I try to set a good table, but I can't do it without my better half" Elias beams, leaning into his husbands side.

“You don’t want to know what Elias would have served you ladies,” piped in Gil.

-----

Commodore Elias McEntyre
Commanding Officer
USS Guinevere

Commander Gil Tyris
Chief Science Officer
USS Guinevere

Commander Cressida Vale, MD
Chief Medical Officer and Second Officer

Petty Officer 1st Class Alina Tevaris
Botanist

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