Meetings on a shuttle

A public shuttle quietly flew through the air over the busy Risian city. You couldn’t even feel any bumps or shifts. You were looking out over the city before sighing and shifting back to face the middle of the shuttle with the unicorn doll in your lap. This version of the public shuttle had all the seats facing the center, away from the window. You pick up the doll.

“Soon,” you murmured while you bounced your leg.

“Can you stop that?” Laura growled as she gripped your bouncing knee. You looked at her glare before you looked away. At the very least, your leg has stopped moving.

“Sorry Laura,” you apologize before you set aside the doll.

“If you’re nervous, it can’t possibly be worse than how I met my father,” Laura let out a little snort.

“Didn’t you stab your dad twice?”

“She what?”

“I beg your pardon?” You looked to your right to look at Diana and then lean forward to see a rotund old man looking at you and Laura with concern. You figure he was the one who had exclaimed ‘I beg your pardon’. The old human man looked really familiar to you.

“I didn’t mean to. I was brainwashed.” The old man seemed to make a face and nod, accepting Laura’s explanation.

“Aye, that would do the trick.” He then stuck out his hand and shook yours, Diana’s, and Laura’s hands one after the other. “Sorry to barge inta your little chat but I couldn’t help but find ya a wee bit familiar. Have we met before mister…? Oh I just realized I forgot to introduce myself, I’m Montgomery Sc—”

“Scott, or better known in some circles as Scotty,” you finished for him. “I’m James Gardner. You haven’t met Laura nor Diana here but us two have met before on the Enterprise.” Scotty frowned at me as he tried to place my face.

“Were ye that bartender who gave me that synthale concoction?” You quickly wave your hands.

“No no, well I guess we did meet, I was like 12 at the time and got your autograph,” you thought out loud as you thought back a bit but you then clarified. “The original Enterprise with Captain Kirk and the others.” Scotty frowned.

“Now listen here laddie, you look about seventy years too young to have been on the Enterprise with the Captain and myself. Pull the other one….unless…” Scotty had a spark of realization in his eyes. “Wait weren’t you the lad with the gaggle of lassies—”

“What did you call my wife, you honorless dog!” You proclaimed from on top of a table. TOS-Era Klingons, StarFleet personnel, and a couple of random ‘civilians’ brawled around the bar room.

“Who wants to live forever!” You shouted as you dove at a Klingon about to stab an unaware Scotty. You slammed a steel chair into the Klingon’s back, knocking out the dishonorable bastard. Where the steel chair came from, you weren’t quite sure, a human girl with big poofy hair, a large red nose, glasses, and a pink mustache gave it to your drunk self and stole your bottle.

“Who had hung around for a few days until we encountered the flood of tribbles?”

“Yup, lots of time travel around that time period,” you commented. “We finally made it back here after a couple other detours. It was only like yesterday that we came back.”

“How interesting,” Scotty commented as he eased back into his seat. The four of you made some conversation while the shuttle continued towards the park.

“If you don’t mind me asking, where are you heading? I am going to the Tech and Engineering Conference,” Scotty asked after a while.

“James is going to Trenini Park to meet his brat,” Laura explained, cutting off your own explanation. “The unicorn wasn’t for me. Maybe for Diana though.” Laura smirked amicably at Diana who only gave an exaggerated displeased look back. Scotty looked between you and Diana and finally noticed the unicorn doll.

“Oh, did your wife, the pink one, finally give birth?”

“She’s not due for another month or so,” you give a pause as you decide whether or not to reveal much more information. “About eight years ago, right after I got lost for nearly eight years in a time space anomaly (I really get involved in a lot of those now that I think about it). A friend I was dating at the time had my kid, Jessica. So, we’re going to meet them at the park. Well, I say we but it’s mostly me who's going to meet them.”

“You’re nervous ain’t ya,” Scotty said after he and your girls let you ramble on. “Good, you ave every right to be. Aye myself was downright hysterical when I met my family and friends again after my crash.” The crash being when Scotty survived for decades in a transporter buffer until being rescued by the Enterprise-D under Picard. “But you gotta push on through; I’m sure the little lassie will be overjoyed to meet ya, you seem to be a fine lad.”

“I just hope she doesn’t expect much, I know how Becky could exaggerate. I hope she didn’t fill her head with, well, Kirk like expectations,” you gave a wry smile.

“You’ll be fine,” Diana assured you and put a hand on your shoulder. “Maybe tell her about the trash world or one of the casino stories. Keeping parts of it back of course.”

“It’s too late to turn back now anyways, it's our stop,” Laura pointed out, causing the three of you to turn around to look out the window. You see a large park with miniature trains (some wheeled and others floating) for kids and small adults to ride around and play with. Many trees were scattered around though some species you didn’t recognize. Several spaces were available with tables and pavilions. Beyond the park was a massive convention center that looked from your angle to be designed to look like a flattened spiral that slopes down from an eighth floor that slowly got shorter until it was two stories tall at one end.

“Looks like you’re right,” you comment, gulping a little.

“Don’t worry, the little bairn is probably just as worried, just remember my advice,” Scotty said as he got up and grabbed a bag from an overhead space.

“Nice meeting you,” you got up and shook his hand again in goodbye. Soon after, everyone had said their goodbyes and the shuttle’s pilot was verifying who was going to the next stop. You grabbed the unicorn doll and made sure you weren’t forgetting anything or anyone before stepping out and seeing…