Followup With the Old Boss

Posted on Sun Jul 16th, 2023 @ 9:27pm by Lieutenant Talsi Carey & Lieutenant Etan tar-Lexros

Mission: Starship Side Quest
Location: Operations Office
Timeline: After meeting with Xavier

Etan knew that no matter what happened with Xavier and Sky (and he would have to approach her as well), Talsi was going to be involved in this wedding thing. Even if she intentionally uninvolved herself, the young Ops chief had come to learn that the people on this ship would involve her. They were persistent like that. She'd been the one running Ops before his arrival, and had left him a department in excellent order. He had a lot of respect for the woman, and considered her a strong professional support aboard Resolution. He wondered if that would make them friends. He decided to table that thought in favor of resolving the prickly situation.

He paged her through the comm on his desk, after reviewing her duty schedule and seeing that she was off-duty. "Lieutenant Carey, would you please come to the Operations office? I'd like to speak to you about arrangements some upcoming social events on the ship."

He tried to be vague about it, and professional. That way, if she was in a situation where it would be untoward to talk about the situation between her, the Captain, and Lieutenant Jansen, Talsi could pass whatever story she wanted. Plus, he hadn't lied - the wedding and the reception were technically separate events.

Tal looked at the time, then rolled over. Xavier and Sky HD departed for their shifts. Hitting the coms. "Be right there chief."

<10 mins later>

Walking into the office, she looked around. "What can I do for you lt."

He gestured as politely as he could at the chairs, indicating she should take one if she so wanted. Trying to muster a smile, he looked up toward Talsi with at least a friendly and pleasant expression. "Thank you for coming. I was hoping that you might be able to help provide some advice regarding the Captain's upcoming wedding ceremony. Federation standard weddings described in the Operations handbooks cover only monogamy. That leaves me a bit out of my depth."

Keeping the situation to Operations and work would make things easier for him. The stressed knot of muscle in his chest told him to tread very lightly on this topic with Talsi. Even if he hadn't immediately recognized her frustration with Jansen, his instincts had.

"I was hoping that, since you are part of the wedding, you might have had a thought about some of the particulars. Things like outfitting the wedding party, who would be best to officiate, that sort of thing. And, uh, positions of the wedding party at the altar... if there will be an altar."

Tal wrapped her tail around her body, out of the way, and sat down. "I believe that the discussion is the Admiral Owen that is in sickbay... hes on the mend. Outfitting... that was never my forte... clothing is not my forte honestly they are too constrictive." Pausing. "If you can... offer suggestions... I know Xavier will probably wear his dress uniform. Commander Soran will be the best man... The ceremony is not going to be a big affair, however, the reception.... that may be what will be the biggest thing to plan."

Etan noted the shift in Tal's tail; having spoken to her before told him that she expressed her more subtle feelings through her tail in the same way that he sometimes did with a PADD or a stylus. Even with imperfect eyesight, he could tell that quickly enough. What he guessed he was seeing was the same level of discomfort he had with the situation. In a sense, he was glad for that, hoping that if both of them were uncomfortable, they could at least work together to ease the situation. "If Doctor Rutherford clears the Admiral for light duty, that would likely be best, yes. As far as outfitting suggestions, I trust the quartering and outfitting team's judgments - so, yes, I do believe I can help. Are there any cultural taboos I should be aware of, areas of your body you'd prefer to specifically have exposed or hidden, or colors you'd prefer to wear or avoid? Also, would you prefer to have separate outfits for the ceremony and the reception?"

He considered the wedding party, taking down careful notes based on what she'd told him. The reception would be large, that he knew. "I'm going to be bringing alcohol and additional synthehol aboard for the reception. As the party is scheduled to take place in the holodeck, we won't need additional staff or many of the mess staff on-duty; I'm certain that holographic servers will suit the need fully. Are there any particular foods you would like to have there?"

"If we were to follow my peoples tradition... the betazoid wedding would be more appropriate... although, my people never had the need for clothing at any time. Xavier... I mean the Captain had a lot of... house training to do with me... there are a lot of taboo, my people think of as normal. Sex was normal for us to have with anyone any time anywhere."

Etan thought for a moment, and shook his head. "I am certain that any of your people, exposed to a military culture like Starfleet, would recognize that there is a time and a place for certain behaviors. I also trust, without hesitation, that you and your ancestors recognize the need for consent, as outlined in Federation law. However, the wedding is a civilian function. If you choose to arrive without clothes, I assure you, I will defend you to the Admiral and the Captain, Miss."

It wasn't the statement of rank that 'ma'am' would be in Starfleet. But it was certain that Tali would understand the respect that Etan was giving her. He was weird, he was persnickety, but he respected people. And in this case, he respected her as his predecessor in the Operations role on USS Resolution.

He took a deep breath. "You do not seem at ease with the marriage, Talsi. I accept that I am not the best person to talk to about it; but the best person is inevitably biased. Would you feel comfortable expressing your concerns to me?"

Smiling. "Honestly between you and me, the whole reason we went into counselling, was my want to be with other people. An... open relationship. So to speak. I believe thats what it is called." She paused. "I did not intend to bring the counsellor into this, nor have people judge. Which I have heard rumblings of. However, my issue is, now I will outlive two people I love. I will have to find others. With none of my own race around. I will outlive most that I do take."

Etan didn't really know how to take that, but as he'd come to learn in Ops, sometimes an amateur making a genuine effort was better than an expert who thought they knew everything. "I understand your concerns. I think part of the issue with judgment is that it does involve the Captain and you, and now Lieutenant Jansen. I don't listen much to scuttlebutt, but there may be concerns about preferential treatment; I'll do what I can to suggest the team work actively to quash them - they worked under you, they know you well, and the way the Captain has respected my needs - and how he supported Miss Paige. As far as outliving people... I'm not very well experienced at that. But the little I do know suggests that you should try to cherish the time you have with them. In terms that I'm more familiar with, we use low-lifespan, high-power phaser capacitors with a tendency to catastrophically blow, because for the time they're here, they're more effective than those which would last longer. But we don't think about when we'll have to replace them in advance - they exist and serve their purpose well. Focus on the time you have, with those you have, and worry about the future and the possible loss when that point is reached. If you do outlive the Captain or Lieutenant Jansen, I'm certain that resources will be available to help you in your grief and that people who care about you, including me, will also support you. You will not be as alone as you fear."

"I appreciate the talk Lt." Tal replied with a smile. "Xavier and Sky has told me there is more than one way to 'open up' then what I am accustomed to. I hope I did it... appropriately."

Etan smiled back at her, nodding. "I believe so, yes. I hope that we agree that we are friends. You made my transition to this ship easier, and I respect some of the challenges you have. I've had trouble with 'fitting in', too. Having friends makes that easier."

"Oh... what trouble have you been having Lt?" Tal replied as she twitched her tail over to her other side.

Etan shrugged lightly, unsure even how to explain what he had felt. "It's not a major concern; but there are times when I am not socially in sync with others - I believe the challenge is more related to my preferences than their intent. I vastly prefer technical topics, it seems that they're foreign to so many others. I'm uncomfortable with scuttlebutt as a rule, but it's a common practice. The off-duty activities aboard the ship don't appeal to me, and those I have suggested don't garner that much interest. In addition, with this being my first real command-level role, there's a certain propriety to be maintained. Everyone here is welcoming and understanding; but there are times I am not comfortable engaging with them."

"Well if you want to have some... technical scuttle butt.... I am available. The first officer thinks I would do well with finding activities to do with people."