Echoes

Posted on Sun Jan 22nd, 2023 @ 8:45am by Lieutenant JG Summer Wyse & Lieutenant Magnus Volsung

Mission: The devil wears tripolymer
Location: Counselling office

Rank and position was no escape from a session with a counsellor. Like old age, it snuck up on you and you realised, the same way you suddenly made a groaning noise when you stood up, that it was time for another one. Magnus Volsung wasn't sure if he really wanted to compare a counselling session with the inevitability of aging, but it did come to his mind as he walked down the corridor to Counsellor Wyse's office. As a senior officer, Magnus knew her name and he had exchanged words with her, polite smalltalk, since he had taken his position on the ship. But this was the first session he'd have with her, and the first time he'd have a conversation with her that went beyond the normal pleasantries.

He recalled what he knew about her. She was Betazoid, something that even now made him feel oddly excited. Meeting people of other species always had that effect on him, but usually he pushed it down so it didn't distract him. He remembered she was pretty, the sort of effortless attractiveness that he found the Betazoid people had. She was also eloquent and he suspected she'd make good conversation.

Conversation. He smiled at himself at that. Well. He was there to talk and he supposed he had to. He was decently sure he'd rather be working right now, but this was part of Starfleet. Not his favourite part, he always felt a bit ashamed when he had to talk about his feelings, or his past. If he was lucky, they'd just focus on the here and now. He rang the chime to her office, waiting to hear her before he walked in and stopped, his eyes meeting hers. "Counsellor Wyse."

Summer smiled warmly as she greeted Magnus, “Hello Magnus, I hope you don’t mind me calling you Magnus ... please come on in and take a seat. Make yourself at home.” She walked across to a seat and sat down. “If you’d like something from the replicator feel free.”

He nodded as he took a seat, rather than go for the replicator. "Thanks. And sure, Magnus is fine," he said, making no move for the replicator. Not yet anyway. Maybe when he needed to create some space. He did smile to her though, an automatic reaction to someone smiling to him. "How have you been?"

“Me? Oh I’m fine, thank you for asking.” Summer smiled warmly. It wasn’t very often that those coming to see her asked how she was. “So this is your first evaluation with me, I promise it won’t be anything horrific.” She grinned a wry grin.

He chuckled at the words, nodding as he watched her. "It's strange how...difficult it gets, when you realise you have to talk about yourself. Not work, but who you are as a person. Gets into your head a bit."

“I can understand that” Summer nodded. “If it helps to talk about yourself in the third person then you can do that, it helps to separate you from the awkwardness of it. I don’t mind.”

"Oh, I am not quite there yet," Magnus said with a small chuckle, shaking his head. "It'll be fine. Awkwardness is just an emotion like any other, not to rule you."

Summer smiled. “Now that’s a response I like to hear. So how have you settled in onboard ship?”

"The months have been fine," Magnus said, easily, because it was the truth. His tenure as Chief Security and Tactical Officer had been quiet. Routine. "I have been given a good team."

“That’s good to know” Summer smiled warmly. “Is this your first assignment as Chief? Are you happy with the level of responsibility on your shoulders?”

Magnus held her eyes before he took a deeper breath. "Despite my age...yes, it is my first assignment as Chief," he said, not ashamed of it. His career had been on safe ships, the sort of steady ones where nothing interesting happened and therefore, people stayed the same rank until either a position needed filling, or a review came up. "The responsibility is fine. It's not that different from Assistant Chief, except if it all goes wrong I have to blame a higher power or take the hit myself."

“You took a deeper breath there, I was going to say there’s no shame in it, but you obviously don’t feel ashamed.” Summer smiled warmly. “There’s no rush to make Chief these days, though some of the upcoming officers would rather get there swiftly.”

He was always surprised at how Betazoids just knew. Even after these years, a part of him found it magical. Like a Vǫlva, able to see into people and the future. "It is the journey that matters, not where you end up," he said, with a pragmatic little shrug. "But the young are...restless and eager. I was young once as well, I understand that aspect of it." But the first battle he had been had softened that eagerness, changing him from fire that flared to water that took the time to shave down mountains.

“You still are young Magnus” Summer smiled warmly. “Haven’t you ever heard the human saying that life begins at 40? You have experience that very few younger crew have, that’s important in itself.”

Magnus chuckled at the way she said it, raising an eyebrow in question. "Life begins at the first breath. And there's no guarantee for a second," he said lightly. "You flatter me, but I am not young. My spring has ended, my summer days as well. But autumn too is a good season, where you reap the harvest of what you have sown so far."

Summer grinned. “I wish everyone was as level headed as you, I just love your outlook on everything. So...do you have any questions for me?”

He looked at her, considering it for a moment. It was difficult to truly be objective when you knew you had a new role. "Will you keep an eye on me?" he asked, not smiling. "In the beginning, at least. I want to be a good Chief, but it's hard when...you're not able to be as objective with your own performance as you'd like. Interpersonal...relationships aren't my strong suit."

“In a counselling sense I don’t see a problem that requires supervision” Summer smiled. “But I can continue to advise you where interpersonal relationships are concerned.”

"I'd appreciate it. I'm..." Magnus considered a way of saying it before he shook his head. "I'm a private person, who doesn't...have the best manners in the world. I don't want my people to...feel like they lack something in their Chief."

Summer nodded. “I understand, anytime you need to talk just give me a call. I can meet you away from my office to save you having to come here all the time. I know it can feel awkward being seen visiting the ship’s shrink!”

Magnus watched her with a little bit of confusion before he smiled. "No, it isn't awkward being seen coming here. It is a part of Starfleet. I am not sure why people appear...ashamed of it."

“It’s just a cultural thing really” Summer smiled. “It’s like a taboo to be seen visiting the ship’s Counsellor. Others just find it embarrassing, and then there are those who don’t mind.”

"I must have missed those cultural embarrassments," he said, but it was almost playful as he watched her. "I do not mind. Where I was raised, talking about emotions to someone you trust is...a good thing."

“Then I’m happy about that” Summer smiled warmly. “It makes a change to know someone who doesn’t mind talking about their emotions.”

Magnus watched her, a small smile on his lips. "I think it was the poet William Blake who wrote...I was angry with my friend; I told my wrath, my wrath did end. I was angry with my foe: I told it not, my wrath did grow."

“I haven’t heard that one before, but I like it” Summer gave an appreciative smile. “So does this mean we’re friends? I’d certainly like more friends onboard ship.”

He looked at her, studying the woman. He considered what she said, but also...the way she made him feel. "We're friends," he said and offered his hand to her. "And allies. One can never have too many of either and if one is the same, it is even stronger."

Taking his hand Summer smiled the biggest smile yet. “That sounds wonderful to me!” She let his hand go again. “As a Counsellor people tend to avoid you, because they think you’ll psycho analyse them all the time. It’ll be nice to have a friend I can talk to who doesn't mind being with me.”

He laughed at that idea, shaking his head. "You can try to psychoanalyse me," he said lightly. "But you'd be bored. I am a simple man under this uniform...and if it makes you feel better, being the Chief Security Officer keeps people...at a distance too."

Summer nodded. “I guess you’re right there, in that case I’ll look forward to seeing you around. Anytime you need a friend just let me know.”

"And you," he said and smiled, standing, but slowly so she could stop him if their time was not up.

Summer didn’t stop him, she simply smiled. “Thank you for coming to see me Magnus.”

"Thank you for taking the time to listen, Summer," he said, meeting her eyes and holding them. "Frig keep you," he added, a soft whisper. For him, Betazoids reminded him of clairvoyance and prophecy, for how they saw into a person.

Summer didn’t know what deity Frig was, but that was a question for another time. She simply nodded politely and smiled warmly. “Thank you. Take Care.”

{OFF}