Ice Time And Dinners Part 1

Posted on Tue Feb 1st, 2022 @ 11:52am by Senior Chief Petty Officer Victoria Aries & Lieutenant Commander Brandon Pratt
Edited on on Tue Feb 1st, 2022 @ 11:53am

1,474 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: Christmas Vacation
Location: Holodeck One, Fairmount Resort, Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada, Earth., Sol.

[ON:]

The ice beckoned to them and despite her insistence on skating at least twice, or thrice a week in a holodeck, Victoria squealed in delight and pulled away from Brandon's hand and all but pranced her way on her skates until she hit the open rink that had only a two-inch barrier between walkway and ice. She was dainty on her soft-shoed skates, replicas of the ones she'd worn in figure skating competitions. The soft leather, tightly laced, blades that were oh so different than the ones that Brandon wore, that she'd worn for ice hockey, beige like most of her outfit.

She glided on the ice that overlooked the lake, partially frozen over, reveling in the feel of the smoothness of the ice, focusing on her footwork as she transitioned from forward skating, to backwards, using her arms for the precise balance it took on these skates. Typically, she'd have been wearing a costume that would flow in the breeze if she were really planning on doing anything special, but today she'd dressed warmly. She was color coordinated, her blonde hair gathered under a knit silver hat, ears tucked under for warmth, a beige sweater and gloves with a snug fitting beige skirt as well. the matching off-white leggings again for warmth.

The air was crisp, a slight cloud emitting from her mouth with every breath as she gracefully transitioned again, then virtually tapped the ice with her toe for a single, simple toe loop jump, wobbling ever so slightly as she landed again and continued on backwards, crooking one finger towards Brandon with a smile as she beckoned him out on the ice. She clasped her hands behind her back as she eeled back and forth, then with a wrenching twist, jammed her toe into the ground for a double Lutz jump that she landed with another waver, making her way back around to circle Brandon at a distance of about three feet, "It's rather lovely out here, isn't it?" She asked, eyes bright with joy, "I tend to do my skating on a real rink, not something like this."

Pratt watched onward with intrigue and interest in the art and style that Victoria had put hard work into her routine. All the moves were crystal and spot on.

“That is incredible.” Brandon had sauntered around Victoria on the ice, skating with his hands behind his back. “You are simply a pro, and I cannot believe that I have met a figure skating pro, such as the one and only Victoria Aries!” He snorted. “I am not milking yer butter Vic. I’m just stating the truth. That is a cool talent. And to boot.” Pratt had begun to warm up his thighs and ankles on the ice in the big brooding skates as his eyes scanned the distance of the rink visually, spatially.

“Victoria, You’re also a Bonafide Federation Inter-Planetary Hockey League star in her own right!” Pratt had winked stroking at Victoria’s ego.

He lent his hand downward pulling his own grey wool toque covering, covering his own ears nice and warm. Breathe rising outward as he spoke and skated along with Victoria, Pratt had some of his own smaller moves he had learned.

Although he was a Bull in a China Shop when it had come to finite metrics of free skating like Victoria and her programs, Pratt had a full brazen reign of the surface he dominated and he was stubborn much like Aries were.

Pratt couldn’t help himself. A chance to show off in front of Victoria his moves, his highly regarded skills, and agility on the ice. She was one for Hockey, and he knew this full well.

Confidently as Brandon's face kept forward on the ice before him, as if the leg movements, each positional routine, and training programs he routined.

His two large engineering hands at the side of his waist, holding the center of his gravity on the ice Circle Skating Backwards now. Circling around a half-moon. Pratt warmed up in forwarding power drills and demanded agility as his whole large body stopped on a dime on his CCM blades at the very end of the pond.

Victoria idled about, watching him, not moving very far from where she'd been, just keeping herself oriented on him, eyes bright and a smile on her face. She knew what he was doing, having had done most of it herself, though he was clearly a winger rather than the center she'd been.

Swirling around with transitional skating the mimicking of passing and receiving a puck from another player, Brandon smiled as he had passed by Victoria his hand movements mimicking his stick positional.

And lastly breaking out into a stop and go, forward, stop and go backward Landmines and Pylon agility. These last parts of Pratt’s conditioning for forwarding Defense is what he is currently training for within the Federation Athletics Federation.

Swinging around and breathing outward, the white air rising Brandon smiled. “What does Victoria think? Or does she think she can kick this Engineers' ass at both his games?” He chuckled.

"Victoria thinks that if she were wearing her hockey boots instead of these things, she'd skate circles around you." She stuck out her tongue at Brandon as she skated past him, evading the grab at her that he'd made to pull her in. She turned around and began to weave backwards, even as he began to follow her, "I'm better on turns than you are, you're probably, PROBABLY faster in the straightaway and if you hit me I'd be splattered on the ice." Victoria grinned, then turned sharply, changing her direction while keeping her speed, "We'll have to change shoes and grab sticks soon, then I'll show you what a talented amateur can do."

"Okay. Face off, just you and me Vic. First to ten points wins." He grins devilishly. "Loser has to streak the entire arena."

“Even if it's a holographic arena, the winner gets to watch and enjoy the view." Pratt puffed his chest and grinned cockily as he shrugged. "Brag it all or bare it all!" Brandon laughed, "That's what the juniors used to say. I always beat them anyways. I was the first to the 24 pack off the ice and watching the haze... Er, I mean training."

"Nuh uh, if I beat you or you beat me, no goalie? I thought you wanted to beat me fair and square." She bounced in her skates, "You and me, one on one, goalie in the nets with no shooting from past the blue lines. Pads are a must, but I'm gonna need to use a locker room to get changed, you aren't getting a sneak peek of what you're not gonna see goin' down the ice."

“Please! The first time we met you were sitting on my lap in my quarters with a drink in hours. Let’s show each other what we’re playing for, shall we?” Brandon raised a brow. “Get out of those pretty skates of yours!”

She stuck her tongue out at him as she programmed her hockey gear and glided over to the door in the rink to put herself on solid ground and within five minutes was looking completely different, looking much bulkier with her pads on and finished triple-knotting her laces and finally pulled on her sweater showing a snarling wolf with the number 11 and the name Aries on the back. "Computer, stick." She demanded and a replica of her normal stick before stepping back onto the ice, still wearing her knit hat rather than the helmet she probably should wear. It was a completely different style of skating, but she transitioned into it as she skated a wide circle and gained speed before continuing her acceleration towards Brandon, ten feet away changing the angle of her skates ninety degrees and skidding to a stop a foot away from him, spraying him with snow from the ice.

"Classic. Stick your tongue out. Yep." Pratt had winked and shook his head.

Victoria grinned at him, tapping his shin gently with her stick, "You ready?" She shucked one of her gloves, going through the motion of rock, then paper, then scissors, "Winner gets the puck first. Rock, Paper, Scissors, shoot!" She showed scissors and glanced at his hand.

Brandon nodded. "Dealio!" He readied as he usually used a good old piece of paper. That was usually handy. Yet, the rock was good akin to the scissor which would destroy his paper. Both hands outplaced, Brandon's large hands to the smaller lithe hands of Victoria's as they both counted down and then drew their actions.

Victoria chose scissors whereas Brandon had chosen paper.

To Be Continued in Part Two

A Post by Lieutenant Brandon Pratt
and Senior Chief Petty Officer Victoria Aries

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