Pretty Good Year

Posted on 20 Feb 2022 @ 7:35pm by Lieutenant JG Karras & Lieutenant Aria Rice

1,939 words; about a 10 minute read

Mission: Episode 18 - Cold Station 31
Location: USS Galileo: Counsellor's Office
Timeline: MD-05, 17:00

[ON]

"Okay Aria...no biggie...no biggie at all..."

Lieutenant Aria Rice took a deep breath and shook her arms and shoulders, jumping from spot to spot as she stood in the corridor of the USS Galileo. In her uniform, her in a pony-tail, she looked no different than she had a million times before. But the new position that went with her rank was freaking her out a bit. She was still getting her mind wrapped around it. I'm only responsible for...oh, the safety of everyone on this ship. No biggie...

And when she had stepped onto the ship and seen that little flag on her daily task list with 'see counsellor', she had almost groaned. Typical her luck that it was her yearly check up on the very same day that the ship was leaving Regula I. And here she was. Outside. Getting herself psyched up so to speak. "Don't babble...be honest...thiiiink before you speak..." she repeated to herself, old advice she always gave herself and then forgot.

She finally grimaced and rang the chime, biting her lip. Maybe Lieutenant Karras wasn't there? Oooh! That would be something. Or maybe there was some tiny emergency she had to go to instead? Like, nothing serious, a weird behaviour of the forcefield in the brig or something? She could totally do that right now.

Karras waved from where he was standing just inside the entrance to open the office door. "Ah, Lieutenant Rice, am I right? Come on in." He returned his attention to the replicator. "I was just getting some tea. Would you care for any?"

"Tea? Tea's good, I like tea, I could drink tea," the words poured out of Aria really fast and she walked in, putting a hand over her own mouth to silence herself before she lowered it. "Sorry. Yes, you're right. Aria. I'm Aria. I have this thing that I babble in front of counsellors."

"That's perfectly fine - counselors can work with babble," he offered with a smile. "Computer, tea service for two, Chamomile, hot." A tray materialized in the dispenser, loaded with a small tea pot, two cups, and small dishes filled with cream, sugar, and lemon. Lifting the tray with both hands, the counselor led the way over to the office's seating area. He settled the tea service on a small table near the long, wavy couch that lined the room's windows, and began to pour the tea.

"So tell me, Aria, what brings you to my office? Ship's business, or personal?"

"Oh, bit of both," Aria said and realised she had more or less shadowed him to the replicator, done a quick turn to avoid crashing into him when he had turned and then walked to the seating area. She finally sat down, smiling. "It's the date for my annual Counsellor session. You know, the 'let's make sure she is still sane' one. Not to be confused with 'oh dear did we break her' sessions..."

"Very good," Karras acknowledged, setting Aria's filled cup in front of her so she could add whatever she'd like. He squeezed some lemon into his own tea and sat down. "How have you been?"

"Oh!" Aria took the tea before she started to add sugar. A lot of it. A whole lot of sugar. And then she stirred it, slowly, clearly thinking about the question. "Been good on shoreleave. Drank a lot. A whole lot. Danced some too. The usual..." she gave a shrug and met his eyes, taking the sweet concoction she had created and blowing on it before she sipped it. "Mm...oh, and now I am a Department Chief which isn't terrifying at all!"

The counselor grinned, identifying with his patient more than she knew. He'd just made a similar admission to the first officer only a few days before. "Terrifying is... a strong word choice. Would you care to elaborate?"

"Well..." Aria let out a breath and put her tea down, to lean closer. "The chair is cursed. Every Chief who has sat on it as met either some horrible end or accident. So I got rid of the chair and got a new one, but maybe it is the room that is the issue? I need to burn some sage..." she stopped her rant and let out a breath. "Also, there is the thing that I am in charge of a department and my voice now counts to more people than my friends. It's a big responsibility and my career has been up and down like a Ferengi searching for profit."

Sipping his tea, Karras considered her answer. She had revealed a lot of information with relatively few words, so the counselor mentally prioritized the concerns he'd heard articulated. "Okay. We'll circle back to the 'curse', but first..." he began gently, "You'd mentioned that there have been many ups and downs in your career, and in my understanding, several ups and downs indicate experience. Would you agree?"

Aria considered the words carefully, with the same sort of intensity she considered a lot of things...like what shoes to wear off duty, or how to put her hair up. And then she let out a breath. "Oh, I got experience, alright...maybe not the sort of experience that Starfleet HQ might have expected. Seriously, without the Captain backing me I would have spent most of my life on the lower decks..." she said and there was no self-pity or sadness behind the words. "I'm a lucky Lieutenant, that's all. If the luck holds!"

"Hmm." Superstition was evidently a part of the security officer's world view. Karras's training immediately brought to mind his studies of (and experience with) operant conditioning, or perhaps confirmation bias. "Lucky, cursed... are these cultural beliefs? Or do you follow a faith tradition that includes such concepts?"

Aria clearly thought about it before she smiled, taking a deeper breath. "Purely...cultural. Luna can be a bit like that. I follow no religion," she said before she sipped her tea, letting the flavour settle on her tongue. She then shifted, so that her leg became tucked under her in the chair, as if that was a normal position to sit in. "My Dad, he believed in luck. But according to my mother he also used to reference ancient things, so...you know...maybe not the best example. He woo-ed her with ancient literature..." she winked and took a deep breath. "Dwell on the beauty of life. Watch the stars, and see yourself running with them."

Karras smiled warmly. "That's beautiful. I can see how your mother was woo-ed." He sat down his cup and leaned back. "You also just mentioned the Captain... I'm assuming you were referring to Captain Saalm? How are you adjusting to the new Acting Captain?"

Aria looked uncomfortable for a moment before she made a decision. This was a safe space, as much as any. "In my inner monologue, she remained Acting in every sense of the word," she admitted before she gave a shrug. "I am just sorry that you're missing out on Captain Saalm. But I am sure we will soldier on until she is back."

"It will be nice to eventually meet her," Karras admitted. "I think I only missed her by an hour or something when I arrived. Although Commander Blake and Allyndra made me feel welcome and very much a part of this team, it does feel a bit odd to be tending to a shepherd's flock without having met the shepherd."

"Well, better a shepherd than a wolf," Aria said brightly with a smile, nodding. "I am glad people have been welcoming. It's the good thing about a feisty little ship like this, you get to be part of a community more than anything. I love it. I am small enough to appreciate small ships. Less walking."

Karras laughed. "You have quite the sense of humor. That can be a powerful asset, especially in your chosen field. I've counseled many in security that were so intense and focused, you couldn't even order them to relax. Not that everyone needs to be a comedian, of course... but everyone needs a way to express themselves, to... let it out."

"Oh, it's sort of my thing," Aria said as she smiled, with clear ease. "I try to tone it down now I am Chief. Or will try and tone it down..." she sighed before shaking her head. "Look, if everyone's got a role in life, I am the plucky and funny best friend. With an amazing shoe collection and able to hold a drink."

"It's good to know your strengths. I would just advise against limiting yourself to one role. The funny thing is great, but you are so many other things, too. I guess what I'm trying to say is don't pass on something because you don't think it fits with one aspect of yourself." Karras picked up the pot and poured himself more tea. "Take your new position, for example. Not something you would have sought out, but I think you are really going to flourish. Trust yourself, know yourself, but never underestimate yourself."

"I don't," Aria said and there was a truth that was more like acceptance in her eyes. "Other people underestimate me and often that ends up making...things worse. For them. I'm a survivor. My career is anyway! I've been promoted and demoted so much they should name a rollercoaster ride after me."

Karras pictured the rollercoasters from a holodeck program his Academy friends had shared with him: many ups and downs, and inversions along the way, too. "Rollercoasters are certainly a journey, not unlike this past year, I'm sure. We've discussed your promotion and we've... mentioned the acting captain. Is there anything else that's happened since your last check-in that you'd like to discuss?"

Aria considered it, scratching at her neck for a moment as she genuinely considered how she felt about a lot of things. And then, the truth came out. "Nothing else has happened. It might sound sad, but despite the weirdness it's a lot of routine for me. The weirdest thing is I now got my own quarters, so now I don't have a room mate to tell me off for being messy."

"How you keep your quarters is your business, but if you ever feel it getting out of control just let me know and I'll send someone over to fuss you out," Karras joked. He took a final sip of tea, which was getting much cooler. "In all seriousness, though, you seem to be in a good space. Unless there was anything else you wanted to talk about, I can mark you down as 'still sane'."

"No, I think that is it," Aria said, happy with the development and giving a firm nod. "Thanks for this. And hey, if you ever get bored and want someone to chat with in the mess, you now know my name."

"Of course," Karras replied, standing to escort her to the door. "And I appreciate the offer. It's been nice getting to know you, Aria."

Aria got up and turned to face him in the doorway. "And you, Karras...although this was a little one-sided," she winked before she walked away, almost with a skip in her step as she turned to wave at him.

"Fair enough," he returned the wave, calling after her. "Next time we can just talk about me!"


[OFF]

--

LTJG Karras
Chief Counselor
USS Galileo-A

&

Lieutenant Aria Rice
Chief Security Officer
USS Galileo-A

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