Shahr had taken one of his prescribed muscle relaxants before heading to the party. This had allowed him to walk, vice limp, his way there and make it in time to actually attend. Unfortunately, it carried the downside of being unable to enjoy any alcohol. At least, that’s what the warning label had said, and Shahr tended to follow medical warnings.

Upon entering Odin’s Palace, Shahr shuffled to a stop and dropped his jaw. This place was awesome! Shahr had asked the computer for some information about the place while he was getting dressed. Apparently, it had been decorated in honor of some ancient Earth culture. To Shahr’s eyes, the place screamed “warm bar to recover from the cold elements.” Fur cloaks hung on the wall as decoration. Furniture was actual wood, vice the plastic of standard Federation chairs. Shahr spotted what looked like a war horn carved from, well, a horn. The only downside was that damn heat! Alas, Andorians in Starfleet seemed doomed to suffer the standard environmental settings… but Odin’s Palace seemed even warmer than the rest of the ship.

Tugging at his collar to let some air in, Shahr ceased gawking, closed his mouth, and headed for the food trays.

Flint had never been one for social gatherings. His past was usually spent working alone in his own little world, something he enjoyed for the most part. This also allowed him to get what he was doing done without any subtle chit-chat that usually comes with awkward silences.

He headed through the door. He received the invitation a few days before the party, and then the awkward interaction with his other crew mates virtually forced him to come along. Not wanting to stand out, he persisted. The first thing he noticed was how busy it was already. Some crew were already well underway, getting merry, and the floor was starting to feel sticky under his feet.

Flint headed straight for the food. He didn’t care too much for the alcohol; it always ended up messy, and he couldn’t deal with it the day after. He was, after all, trying to keep that impression up. He had noticed an Andorian was already staring to tuck in, something he himself was looking forward to, and ended up approaching them.

“It seems I have found another one who likes to start where the food lands,” he said, hoping to prompt a reaction and open a conversation.

Shahr turned towards the unfamiliar voice. “Oh, hello! I’m Ensign, I mean, Lieutenant Shahr Th’tholler. You can call me Shahr.”

Flint began reaching for the food with a smile, responding to the Lt. “Hi Shahr, I’m Flint,” he said while continuing to fill his plate.

“I was just admiring the dessert trays… I can’t drink tonight, so I figured I’d eat something decadent.” Shahr gestured to the vast array of choices. “Anything you suggest? I recognize none of this.”

Flint shook his head. His food choices were actually rather bland, and he liked to be simple. Usually, he picked things that included something to help his own body out, more for physique rather than comfort.

“I must admit, and it’s shameful to say, I have no clue what’s happening around these tables; the array of colours alone is enough to throw me off,” he said with a laugh.

Nodding in agreement, Shahr took another glance at their options. “Yeah, you know I got used to the human food options on Earth, so I was kind of expecting to see the same here. Clearly, I was mistaken” Shahr exclaimed, pointing out a few of the more exotic-looking treats.

Struck with inspiration, Shahr started again. “How about this: Let’s pick something we both agree is ‘weird-looking’, try it, and compare notes?”

Flint agreed. It was nice to find someone else who was willing to be a ‘tryer’. He has always landed around individuals who follow a regime or a path that doesn’t divert away from an end goal. It was refreshing.

“Now that sounds like a challenge”, he said.

Inspecting his options once again, Shahr pointed to a sticky-looking orb with stripes of green and orange ‘frosting.’ At least, he hoped it was frosting.

“How about that one?”

He nodded, reaching forward. Flint overextended his arm. They were right at the back of the table, and he didn’t want his dress suit covered in some gelatinous compound; it would never come out.

He toppled while balancing his plate, and one of his fingers went straight through one. “I guess this one will be mine?” he laughed, trying to contain his embarrassment. “I’ll let you get your own…”.

Shahr gingerly reached across the table, and delicately plucked one of the orbs from the tray. After one final inspection, he popped it into his mouth. Eyes squinting suspiciously, he chewed the dessert and swallowed. After a moment, Shahr decided it tasted fine and wasn’t going to kill him.

“It’s pretty busy here already.” he said to Shahr. “Do you know many of the crew or anything that might be of interest around here?”

“I know a few by now! Only been onboard a couple months, but we’ve been through some interesting missions together. Made a couple friends along the way. Honestly, I try to keep things professional and straight-laced here, but the missions always seem to go off the rails…” Shahr thought of his friends from the Orion mission-gone-bad.

“Oh actually, here comes one of them now!” Shahr turned towards the door and waved. Except it was still shut. Then, five seconds later, Ensign Stroyer walked through. Shahr waved a hello, then turned back to Flint.

“Well that was weird. How did I know she was here before she entered?”

Flint felt the same premonition as it happened; it was a sense more than a feeling, one of the most bizarre experiences he had ever had.

“I got that feeling as well,” he said, looking around the room to see if anything else would come at him with the same sort of feeling. It did not.

He was rather enjoying the deserts that they had chosen, but at one point, he was overcome with emotion. His stomach started to feel like it was about to explode, and his view was thrown full of ghost-like images going on around him. He felt dizzy and then suddenly woke up with three people standing over him.

“Great, this is all I need.” he thought to himself.

Shahr took a slight step back, as if to steady himself. He was suddenly… aware of more of the room. No, that wasn’t quite right. He was aware of the people! He looked at an amorous couple in the corner, and realized he was overhearing their conversation. Except they weren’t speaking. He was overhearing some naughty thoughts!

Shahr quickly averted his gaze. Glancing at Flint, Shahr heard him complain about his nausea. Except again, Flint hadn’t spoken. He had thought it.

“I, uh… I don’t like this. Can you hear my thoughts? Don’t check. I’m never eating alien desserts again.” Shahr promptly spun on his heel and exited Odin’s Palace. He needed to be alone. At least, until the effects wore off. It would be rude not to attend a party that was at least partially for me, Shahr thought to himself. Then he wondered if the passing yeoman had heard his thought. A moment of concentration confirmed he had.

“Gah!”