Posted by Cadet Nala Shai’Mori t’Liriena (Scientist) in NALA’S NEXT STOP — COUNSELOR CHECK-IN

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Viveca Arlander (Counselor) in NALA’S NEXT STOP — COUNSELOR CHECK-IN

Posted by Cadet Nala Shai’Mori t’Liriena (Scientist) in NALA’S NEXT STOP — COUNSELOR CHECK-IN
Posted by… suppressed (2) by the Post Ghost! 👻
Her datapad chimed gently.

NEXT APPOINTMENT:
Ship’s Counselor – Deck 6, Section A
Mandatory New Personnel Intake

Counselor.
That word always made her ears flatten slightly.

Not out of fear just a cautious reflex. Counselors asked questions. Deep ones. Slow ones. Ones she had to answer carefully, without leaping ahead three thoughts at once.

Still… this was procedure. Predictable.
She could do procedure.

Nala followed the corridor signs to Deck Six, tail tucked close so it wouldn’t betray her tension. The walk was quietjust the soft hum of the ship and the occasional passerby nodding in acknowledgement.

One step. Then the next.

She repeated the mantra until her pulse steadied.

When she reached the counseling office, the doors slid open to reveal a warm, softly lit room. The colors were muted—greens and golds meant to calm humanoid senses. A small fountain trickled in the corner, its gentle rhythm oddly soothing, even to her heightened ears.

A receptionist a Bajoran petty officer looked up.

“Cadet Nala Shai’Mori?”

Nala nodded, standing straight. “Reporting for intake, sir.”

“Welcome aboard.” He smiled warmly. “The counselor will be with you shortly. Please have a seat.”

Nala moved to the waiting couch, choosing the far end where her tail wouldn’t brush against anything. She folded her hands, consciously slowing her breathing.

Counselors meant well, she knew.
They always meant well.
But sometimes they asked too slowly, or waited too long for answers, and she had to fight the urge to fill the silence with everything at once.

She focused on the fountain’s rhythm instead.
Plink. Plink. Plink.
Steady. Predictable.
Like a metronome for her mind.

The door at the back of the office opened.

A calm voice said, “Cadet Nala? You may come in.”

Nala rose smoothly, smoothing her uniform jacket, ears forward but tail tight with nerves.

This was her arrival interview mandatory, procedural… and the first real moment where she would have to show the Challenger’s crew who she was beyond her records.

She stepped toward the open door.

And into the next step of her new life aboard the USS Challenger.

C adet Nala

Viveca watched the new cadet enter her office, her blue eyes searching for any sense of nervousness or something that would warrant careful choice in words....at least more careful than she normally was, “Welcome in,” she waved from her desk, “If you’d like anything from the replicator, it’s over there on that wall,” she pointed, “I find some people prefer a drink before we sit down for a brief chat.”

~Viveca Arlander~

“Thank you, ma’am,” Nala said, standing just inside the threshold. She clasped her hands behind her back as she had been trained, but the motion did little to loosen the coil of her tail at her ankles.

A drink. The replicator. Right.
Most beings would probably take that offer. Something to hold, something to sip, something to anchor themselves with.

But Nala knew herself.

“I appreciate the offer, Counselor,” she said carefully, tone balanced between respect and truth. “But I think I’ll skip a drink for now. It’s easier for me to focus when my hands are free.”

“Not a problem, some people thrive when their hands are occupied, others not so much,” Viveca replied with a smile.

A small, almost shy attempt at humor flickered through her whiskers.

She took three measured steps toward the seating area, pausing a respectful distance from the chair as if waiting for permission, or for a cue she might be misreading.

Her ears lifted in a gesture of readiness.

“I’m prepared for the intake interview,” she added, steadying her breathing like she’d practiced. “And I’ll do my best to answer at your pace.”

A beat.
She corrected herself softly:

“I mean… I’ll match your pace.”

Her tail betrayed a tiny flick at the slip, but she managed to meet the counselor’s eyes with quiet determination.

She’d trained for starships. For procedure. For structure.
She could handle this.

Even if her heart was still beating a touch faster than she wanted.

Cadet Nala

“So, I like to start with an explanation behind these procedural intake interviews, I find it helps put everyone at a bit more ease,” Viveca explained, “Loads of cadets come in here super nervous, some having never even met a counselor until this moment and it can be a bit nerve-racking to be sure. I like to keep these meetings brief, but I also like to make them as painless as possible in hopes that if you need further counseling down the road, you are more likely to choose that path because I haven’t scared you off,” she joked lightly.

“Also it helps me to learn who you are right now, so if you have a mental health event while on the ship, I can better help you because I have that background information,” she paused, “So I like to start with that explanation and then open with do you have any burning questions to ask me before I start asking you my questions?”

~Viveca Arlander~

Nala’s whiskers gave the faintest twitch her attempt at humor more subtle than most humans were used to.

“Well… the good news is you won’t be my first counselor,” she said, tone dry but not unkind. “So if you were planning on scaring me off, you’ll have to work harder than that.”

Her tail betrayed her with a small, tight flick before settling again.

cadet Nala

“Good to hear,” Viveca replied with a smile, “So let’s get started with my favorite, what made you interested in joining Starfleet?”

~Viveca Arlander~