Unintended Counselling

Posted on 12 Feb 2016 @ 11:56pm by Lieutenant JG Natalya Kirilova

1,865 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Episode 10 - Symposium
Location: USS Galileo - Sickbay, Deck 3
Timeline: MD 23 - 1145 hrs

[ON]

Natalya was waiting for the full scan results, but she could already tell that this was not going to be the best-case scenario. Ol' Sawbones was probably going to get her wish... the only question now was how deep the cut would be.

Sitting up, Nat shrugged back into the top half of her uniform jumpsuit and prepared herself for the long nervous wait. Aside from another patient who was getting some treatment done, the main part of sickbay was empty. He looked like he'd been through quite a lot... she could see that one of his hands was missing. Nat shuddered. She couldn't imagine what the man had been through.

Just having finished his check up, Naois took a moment to gather himself. The good news he received was that he would be getting a bionic replacement for his right hand. The bad news was, they couldn't be certain when. Soon, but no exact date. Sensing that he was being stared at, he turned his head and found himself looking right at a young woman.

Sitting up, he gave her a small smile. "Ma'am," he spoke, the softness in his voice contrary to his Vulcanoid appearance which would suggest cold and distance just by default. "Are you alright?"

Nat almost blushed in a self-conscious way, realizing that she might have been seen as staring. "Hey... I might be a chief, but we're both JGs." She'd heard one of the medical staff say his rank and part of his name.

"I'm Nat... or Natalya. Whichever you prefer." She tried to smile, but it might have seemed a bit hollow, given the circumstances. "I ah... guess I'll be alright. Tomorrow, maybe. Not so sure about today." She was hesitant to talk about her problems. The man next to her had lost a hand... and maybe had other injuries that she couldn't see. He probably had enough of his own. But then again, maybe he wanted to take his thoughts off of them for a time.

"It is not what I prefer, it is what you prefer," Naois replied softly, sitting up a little further, "I am Naois and I fear that no-one has ever tried to shorten my name. Why would you not be alright today?"

"Natalya has a nicer ring to it, but Nat is more... efficient. I like that too." Efficiency was a huge part of her life and her career, so she was used to preferring it to whatever else she might have preferred.

"The doctor... Doctor Voutilainen," Natalya had trouble pronouncing the unfamiliar name "found something in a scan. A tumor. She fears it will spread and wants to remove it." Natalya couldn't help but shudder. She was too young to be dealing with this. Even if it was a simple case now, things didn't look well for the future.

Unable to not sense the fear, Naois nodded in understanding. "Doctor Voutilainen is an excellent surgeon," he confided to her, "if she says she can remove it, then she can and will." He slid off the bed and hopped on to hers to sit next to her. "She is one of the best surgeons on board," he added, "and I know because she saved me when my hand could not be saved. Trying to save it, would have killed me instead."

Nat nodded. She didn't doubt that the doctor was a competent surgeon... Starfleet would not have posted her to the fleet otherwise. She made some room on the biobed for Naois when he came over to join her. She thought she saw him almost try to use it to get up on the bed. It must be so tough... not just the pain, but having to rethink going about all of life's little tasks. Her father used a robotic prosthesis after losing a hand in a construction accident, but she'd been too young to really remember the healing process.

"Did she sing showtunes for you too?" Nat asked, referring to the whole first act of Pinafore that she'd just been subjected to.

"Not that I was aware of ma'am," the Vulcan replied thoughtfully, "I was sedated during the procedure. It is entirely possible that she did though." He gave her a curious look. "Why?"

Nat had had her eyes closed for much of the scan, trying to focus on relaxing. She hadn't noticed when exactly Naois had arrived in sickbay. He must have just come in if he hadn't heard it.

"Oh it's nothing... It's not important." Nat lied. In truth, she was afraid to utter the words HMS Pinafore aloud ever again, for fear that the computer would go right into it all over again. She feared that even thinking about it would cause the memory to invade her dreams. She shuddered at the thought... that, among other things.

"Nothing is ever not important," Naois suggested carefully, "it is obviously important enough for you to initially bring it up. Is her singing voice so terrible? I must admit, I have never heard Doctor Voutilainen sing..." He smiled encouragingly at the young woman. "Or is there something else that bothers you?" The Vulcan shifted slightly so he was partially facing her. "Though not formally declared fit for duty due to my injury, I can still listen if you want to talk." He didn't mention the fact that he was a counsellor, his offer to listen was evidence enough, in his view. And he felt it couldn't hurt to listen if the young woman needed to talk to someone. He just couldn't offer any formal advice until cleared for duty.

Nat subtly looked around, as if expecting the good doctor to return and overhear their conversation. She appeared to still be out of earshot. "I wouldn't say it was the singing... but having patients sit through hours of awful opera that might be an issue." Nat winced. Sure, she probably could have told the computer to stop the music, but interfering in other departments was generally frowned upon.

"It's okay." Nat almost laughed aloud. "I mean, I'm sure you hear that a lot. It's probably not okay. I just haven't had to deal with anything like this before. Don't know how to feel. My last scan was five months ago and that was totally fine."

"Some...tumours do grow faster than another, and there are also external factors to be considered," Naois replied thoughtfully, "did you do anything out of the ordinary in the last five months? Have you been anywhere that exhibited any form of excessive radiation? Ate anything funny?" He looked away. "I apologize, asking questions is part of my profession. You do not have to answer if you do not wish to, but I am trying to help."

Natalya shrugged. Space was full of cosmic radiation, and even though modern starships were shielded there was always a chance of exposure. The fusion reactor that powered impulse engines in Starfleet vessels also produced radiation, but there were strict procedures engineers followed in order to work on them without exposure. "It's okay. I guess I'm just unlucky." She said. Perhaps there was an external factor at play, but if so she couldn't think of one. Perhaps Tuula would know more.

"Or simply more susceptible," Naois suggested, "perhaps Doctor Voutilainen can assist you in finding out?" It was, from a medical perspective, a viable suggestion. "And maybe speak to a counselor. I would be willing to assist, when I get cleared for duty. I expect that to be soon..."

Natalya nodded. That would be the likely course of events. "So... when do you think you'll be back at it?" She asked in somewhat tentative fashion. Naois was the counselor so he probably wasn't the overly sensitive sort, but injuries certainly weren't easy to talk about.

"Hopefully in the next few days," Naois replied, "I have been speaking with a counsellor while we were at Starbase 84 and I intend to see the chief medical officer tomorrow as I have been speaking with her during our transit. Today was just a medical check to see how I am healing." He did feel better than two weeks ago, for sure. "Come see me in a few days, if you wish to talk."

"Okay. That sounds good." Natalya said. Even though she'd had few reasons to really speak to a counselor before, she wasn't averse to doing so. Life in space, and especially on an active fleet posting, was often stressful and dangerous. People were pushed to their limits and beyond in ways that couldn't be predicted or prepared for. Counselors were needed to monitor stress on the crew, just as she was often tasked with keeping track of stress on the hull plating. Avoiding counselors and thus becoming an unknown quantity in their eyes was not always good for one's career.

Thinking back to her father, and how he'd gone through something very similar to what Naois was dealing with now, Natalya almost spoke up about that commonality. Her dad had had a robotic prosthesis in place of one of his hands for thirty years now. Surely he would have a lot of things to say to Naois. But Natalya couldn't be sure. She'd never spoken to her father about his injury before. It had happened when she was four. He might not even want to talk about it, or approve of her involving them in someone else's personal struggle.

Besides, Naois seemed way more at ease with his situation than she did with hers. Just a moment ago he'd spoken of returning to duty as if nothing had ever happened. She was still very much in turmoil over her own situation. Maybe when she'd gotten to know him better she'd bring it up. Or maybe after she'd talked to her dad. For the moment she'd just keep her mouth shut.

"Thanks for coming to speak with me, I appreciate it." Nat said genuinely. Everyone in sickbay had been supportive so far, Nat couldn't deny that. But out of the two medical staff members she'd met, one was a hologram, and the other seemed all too eager to cut her open. It was nice to speak to someone who was both a counselor, and a fellow patient.

"Anytime," the half-Vulcan replied, smiling in return. He slid off the bed and stood beside it for a moment. "Should I be allowed back on duty soon, come find me in the counselling offices if you wish to talk. It does not have to be about your current situation, it can be about anything you wish."

Natalya nodded. "Ok... I will-" She cut off abruptly. Seeing Dr. V on her way back over. "Uh oh. I think it's time. Nice knowing you..." She said, somewhat in jest, though the humor wasn't entirely there.

"And you," Naois replied, giving her an encouraging smile. He ducked out of sickbay to leave the young woman to her appointment.

Just as Naois left the medical bay Natalya was subjected to Act II, leaving no witnesses yet again.

[OFF]

Lieutenant j.g. Naois Mercy
Counsellor
USS Galileo
pnpc Tyrion

Lieutenant JG Natalya Kirilova
Chief Engineering Officer
USS Galileo

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