Posted by Cadet Aramis Bijou (Security Officer) in Cadet Aramis Bijou Checks In With The Counselor

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Vanessa Lofton (Counselor) in Cadet Aramis Bijou Checks In With The Counselor

Posted by Cadet Aramis Bijou (Security Officer) in Cadet Aramis Bijou Checks In With The Counselor
Posted by… suppressed (2) by the Post Ghost! 👻

<snip>

“Oh, I’m not worried,” a more traditional Arizonan accent came out, sounding a Crackling cowboy as he took a seat, half-lotusing his legs on the sofa. “I’ll have the whole ship about me for social.”
“Also,” his voice got more modern Arizonan again, which is greatly smoother, “I am planning to adopt after my cadet days are over.” His voice then became halfway between accents, “I could always bother the kids. I should probably give them plenty of social. Make sure they become family instead of just having a nice home with a stranger. I plan on making them roleplay for their writing and social development, cosplay for their self-esteem, and LARP for their social development.”
“I’m sorry, I keep southerning in voice. I guess I shouldn’t be embarrassed about it. My biological mother is quite cowgirl sounding when she’s not being professional. It sometimes comes out.” He was blushing, because, “It’s a rarer accent in the modern world, thus it is different. So, I feel self-conscious when it comes out.” He smoothened back out, “Most Arizonans have adopted a smooth accent that sounds Aztec.”
After a pause, he said, “I hope adoption goes well, I’m kind of late to parenting.”
“Yeah, sometimes I sound modern Mexican, too, from Mexican influence growing up. Sorry, if it’s weird that my accent changes.”

-Cadet Aramis Bijou, Security

Vanessa smiled, shaking her head. “You should hear my grandmother’s Yat accent,” she replied. “New Orleans has its own share of interesting accents, and, as I’m sure you’ll find soon enough, so do the various spacefaring species you’ll meet in Starfleet.”

She relaxed back into the sofa, crossing her legs again. “That would be a very interesting parenting style, and feels like it would have a lot of your mothers’s influence as well. It sounds like you have a good grasp on how you would handle socializing. What about in a team environment?” She cocked her head. “What role do you tend towards in a group?”

Lt. Cmdr. Lofton - CNS

Ari thought for a moment, while looking at his hands on his ankles.
He tilted his head to the right as he answered, “I tend to sub-lead. I tend to be a secondary leader. Any time I attempt to lead a group as the head, my friends ignore my efforts. Except in everyday, personal conversations, wherein they like me to lead.”

-Cadet Aramis Bijou, Security

Vanessa watched the thoughtfulness the cadet put into his answer. Good, she thought. This one should be mulled over by most people.

She nodded along as he answered, then pursed her lips. “Interesting observation,” she noted. “We all tend to fall into certain hierarchies within our friend groups, but that doesn’t necessarily follow for work groups. Leadership is an important quality within Starfleet, so perhaps that would be a good facet to work on here, then.” Perfect segue.

“What other areas do you think you could use improvement in?” she asked him, blue eyes studying him as he responded.

Lt. Cmdr. Lofton - CNS

Ari was unhappy with that question, “Improvement?”
But, his spirit soon picked back up into happiness, “My dancing. I’m using video lessons, but I have a lot of room to improve. You see, I used to feel uncomfortable dancing with social anxiety. But, my anxiety was treated by a psychiatrist prior to coming aboard, and is greatly lowered. Not the mothers who’s judgements gave me the anxiety, mind you, an unrelated psychiatrist that I never met prior to treatment. Starfleet assigned her. She’s quite great. My mothers always judging me, and picking me apart, made me a nervous wreck about making any decision, always afraid my emotions would lead me astray from perfection. Since treatment, I greatly enjoy dance. But, because I was afraid to do it, I’m not that good. The psychiatrist is an expert with anxiety, and often treats PTSD patients. I forget her name, but you’ll find her in my records.”

-Cadet Aramis Bijou, Security.

Vanessa furrowed her eyebrows, then relaxed and grinned, unfolding her legs to lean her forearms on them. “Dance can be quite beautiful; evocative and full of emotion. I hope I get to see you perform, once you feel ready for that.”

She paused, assessing Aramis. “We all have areas that we are weaker in, that could best use our focus to improve.” She shook her head, the bun containing most of her black hair wobbling slightly. “When I started my Academy cruise, I was fantastic at listening, fantastic at giving advice - but absolutely terrible at confrontation. Being able to look at myself, and know myself, helped me focus on that area - it made me stronger in all areas, and made me a better counselor.”

She sat back up and lifted her hot chocolate, taking a sip. “I’m glad you have dance as an outlet, and want to get better at something that you enjoy - but that’s not really an area that I or - unless I’ve misread him - that Lieutenant Anders can help you in. How can we help you be a better Starfleet officer?”

Lt. Cmdr. Lofton - CNS