Outfitting a chef

Emely frowned at the woman in front of her. “That really won’t do. Sir is very particular about us all being ourselves, and you really, really don’t look like yourself right now.” Silver hair flicked to one side before Naera dropped back onto the bed. “But if I’m myself he might decide I’m just doing this to try and persuade him to keep me on the ship. I need to show that idiot that it’s more than that.” The Feliax woman frowned, and Naera winced. “Sorry, it’s just frustrating, right? I cook great food, and all I’ve usually had to do if I wanted someone to notice me was flash these things” and here she cupped her chest before adding “and they’d be propositioning me before dessert. Dust… sorry, the captain, not reacting like that is so irritating!”

The reason for the discussion had been a series of events on the last day in Rakhsport. Naera had been shopping, and had majorly over done it. The station had been huge, and she’d been running around like crazy trying to find everything she needed. By the time she’d met back up with Dustin and Meli who had been discussing something… important, she guessed? With a council fleet officer, by the time that was done her legs had been jelly. And Dustin - that irritating human - had seen her staggering and had just picked her up in his stupid human arms and carried her for what felt like hours but was actually only about five minutes back to the ship.

She’d spent most of the next day dealing with the fact that as well as a blonde Rabyth that was one hundred percent her type suggesting that she could get both laid and a cute nickname in the future, she also had a captain that didn’t think twice about treating her like a princess. Caenii women did not get carried like that, ever. Caenii men were too short, and most species that were taller than her generally viewed her kind as being some sort of clever shrub rather than a person who might like to be pampered and…

Naera slapped her cheeks and tried to focus. What had Emely said? “Right, so my usual. So not the tight top and jeans then? But the captain wears jeans all the time, he must like them?” The fox girl sighed and shook her head, before turning to the open wardrobe Naera had filled with a range of clothes from the allowance she’d been given. That was another thing. Normally, she was pretty sure chefs on starships got given a uniform to wear and that was it; you got your salary at the end of the trip and traded extra cookery for the credits to buy outfits for off duty from the automat in the meantime. Dustin had seen her wearing the same clothes two days in a row, quizzed her about it, and then told Sola to give her at least a weeks worth of outfits. For free. She couldn’t figure the human out, and given how he’d reacted to her previous offer of favours meant she needed outside help on this one.

Emely turned, holding up a plain black buttoned top with a moderately open neckline and frowned before nodding and tossing it onto the bed. “That should show off your assets without making it too obvious or making sir uncomfortable.” She mused, returning to digging through Naera’s supplies. The green-skinned woman made a mental note to try and figure out a way to find the Feliax’s favourite desert without telling her as a way of giving thanks. Naera had worked her way through possible allies in her quest to get the captain’s attention - she knew she’d have to wait until after they reached Earth to really push for it, but she could make him see her as a viable seedpod before then, couldn’t she?

So, allies. Trea’k was a no-go. Trying to loop in the counsellor would have been immediately reported and blown both her chances of staying on board to fight the alien bastards that totalled her home, and her chances at getting into bed with the captain in one move. Rye was friendly, but she couldn’t rely on the bunny girl to not say something by accident. And besides, the Rabyth woman was a whole other tongue-tying issue for her. Meli’a? The scientist appeared to be both Dustin’s second in command and the unofficial head of his harem, but that was a risky play - angering her would have also shut everything down. Which left…

“Aha!” Emely turned, holding up a skirt - one of only two Naera owned. “It’ll show off your legs and is just short enough that it’ll ride up if you bend over without being obvious about it. Don’t do that if possible - sir won’t take it well right now, but he’ll unconsciously think about it.” Then the fox girl giggled, before tossing the outfit onto the pile. “Sorry I’m going to get the benefits of you riling him up in this, Naera.” The Caenii woman shook her head. “I’m the one that should be thanking you. The idea’s a great one, Emmz.” The woman’s nickname rolled sweetly off her tongue without thinking, earning her another grin from her co-conspirator.

Dustin stretched. Emely had been hesitant in asking for what she wanted for her date night as per usual; eventually he’d just ordered her to plan something they’d both enjoy and left it at that. And so now he was heading to the garden - it was still unfinished and as such off limits to the non-senior staff, so he didn’t feel too bad about the fact that she’d commandeered it for the evening. As he opened the door, scents flooded his nose. There was the warmth of grass in the summer, fragrant fruits that suggested a pitcher of juice and… barbecue smoke?

Walking inside, he found Emely sat in the middle of the grass area wearing a sundress that he almost immediately noted was shorter than her usual formal attire, allowing him to see almost to the tops of her thighs. The reason it took him a moment to notice his lover’s outfit was that she wasn’t alone. Naera was fussing around a barbecue nearby, dressed in - he smiled to himself. It was good to see her not wearing a chefs uniform for once, the woman was far too focused on her job - for obvious reasons, but seeing her in a top and skirt was a good thing. Walking over to join them, his heart filled up when Emely turned towards him and beamed. Like all his lovers, her happiness meant the world to him, and it was in a very good mood that he sank down to join her on the grass.

The pair chatted for a while, just enjoying each other’s company. Emely’s work had her very busy at present and so he’d barely seen her outside of meals. Their ongoing flight was taking them into a number of tricky situations that might result in more staff for Yril’k, when the current fire teams were reassigned to other human vessels, and Emely was handling most of the negotiations. He’d lent her his ready room to add a touch of officialness to proceedings, but as a result he had missed the redhead’s company. They only paused in their chatting when a silver and green shape appeared in their peripheral vision. Naera walked over a little hesitantly, Dustin thought, before bending down to hand them both a plate of food.

Dustin’s hind brain, which had been slowly pointing out to him that every time Emely moved her dress shifted and hinted that she wasn’t wearing anything underneath now added a separate chorus in the refrain of “green cleavage, hello?”. He winced internally; it was a perfectly normal reaction to having a pretty woman more or less thrust her chest in your face, but it still felt off given that he was on a date with his lover and said woman was just a crewmate. Fortunately, the thoughts were silenced by Naera saying that she hoped they both enjoyed their meal before leaving the room, taking the barbecue with her. Well, that and the fact that the instant the short-stack left, Emely set her food down and looked at him rather seriously. “Eat up Dustin, because I know what I want for our date night.”

Taking a bite of the delicious food, he raised an eyebrow. “Oh?” She nodded, picking her own plate back up before smiling at him. “I’ve been reading up on Earth culture with Meli, and what I would really like is for us to do an old Earth couple’s past-time.” Dustin nodded, a little puzzled. “Sure, which one?” he said, thinking that given the location she probably meant some summer game, or maybe a walk through the park. Her next words nearly made him **** on his food. “I want you to rail me in a sundress.”