Posted by Commander Shara Calloway (Executive Officer) in Holosuite 2- Processing New Paths

Posted by Commander Shara Calloway (Executive Officer) in Holosuite 2- Processing New Paths

Posted by Lieutenant Patrick ‘Paddy’ McMillan (CNS) in Holosuite 2- Processing New Paths
Posted by… suppressed (3) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)

Paddy sighed, “Commander Calloway,” he said with an unexpected bluntness, “I wish - I just wish for once you would trust me, I understand that you haven’t ridden before, but this whole experiment is to allow me to show you that facing your fears will help you, I’m not going to get anywhere if you keep closing off-” He caught himself, “Let’s just pretend I asked for permission to speak freely?”

-Lieutenant Patrick McMillan: Counselor-

Shara felt actual anger bubbling up within her, which was rare. Normally she was well in control of her emotions, especially towards others. “This is a therapy session and I’m not a ranking officer here. If that’s how you’ve been operating this whole time, then what are we even doing?” She threw her hands out to the side in exasperation.

“And I’m not closing off. I’ve been very open with you, but I think it’s rich of you to try to educate me about facing fears when I have been doing that my entire life. I don’t need a lesson in that. What I needed was a bit of compassion. This isn’t about you!” She was breathing hard and was very tempted to just walk out of the hlodeck. Shara wasn’t prone to making scenes and even now she felt decidedly uncomfortable with her her display.

~Shara Calloway, XO

“I didn’t say any of this was about me, I’m trying to uncover what it is that makes you tick Commander, but with all of this going backwards and forwards we’re never going to get anywhere!”

-Lieutenant Patrick McMillan: Counselor-

She wanted to scream! This man made her feel like losing her cool in ways she had never experienced in recent years. Or perhaps it was that events in the last couple fo years had made it impossible to fully shut herself off anymore and so people could irk her in visible ways.

Shara ran her hands over the top of her head, fingertips pressing in as they went along. It gave her something to focus on as she struggled to contain her anger. “I have never climbed upon a horse. When I said I have never rode, I mean I have never rode. It’s not just what happens once I’m in the saddle. I have to walk up to a creature I’m scared of and, what, just throw myself on their back? Teach me how to be around horses and get on one before you get frustrated about my not letting teach me how to ride. Walk before we run and all that. How hard is that to understand?”

~Shara Calloway, XO

“That’s what I’m trying to tell you ma’am,” Paddy said, reducing the exasperation in his voice as much as he could, “With things like this, you need to learn as you go.”

-Lieutenant Patrick McMillan: Counselor-

Hands planted on her hips, Shara dipped her head, fighting back the tears. She would not cry in front of him, not for this of all things. “I get it, not everyone is a teacher, but I had this assumption that therapists would be better at it, given they have to walk their patients through things, step-by-step if needed. I’m here, trying to ask for what I need, which is very difficult for me by the way, but the truth is that I’ve not been made to feel this stupid in a very, very long time. I didn’t deserve it from my father, and I certainly am not going to accept it from you. So maybe we should just call this quits. Clearly we’re not a great match. I can find another therapist and then we can deal with each other professionally as we always do.” She spoke softly and there was no anger in her voice, just resignation.

~Shara Calloway, XO

Bump

Bump?

“Commander,” Paddy said, beginning to level himself out again, “We can do this, I know we can, we just need to… start over.”

-Lieutenant Patrick McMillan: Counselor-

Shara stuffed down the turmoil that had been pulled to the surface and stared at him for a moment. “And how exactly do you want to go about that?” she said before her eyes flicked to the horses. Did he mean the entire session, just this riding part? She didn’t know, but either way, her unease around the large animals was annoyingly obvious. Had they bene in front of real horses, they most certainly would have reacted to her emotions.

~Shara Calloway, XO

Bump

Bump

“Tell me,” Paddy began, “What is the first activity you think of doing when you want to lower stress levels?,” Sensing he was about to receive a ‘look’, he quickly added, “Trust me.”

-Lieutenant Patrick McMillan: Counselor-

Shara sighed. “I play music,” she said softly. “Usually my guitar, because that’s what I have available to me in mine and Micah’s quarters. Back on Earth I have a piano of my own again. Music isn’t the first thing that comes to mind, but it’s one that’s appropriate to talk about in this context and without my husband,” she added, quirking her brows upwards and gazing at McMillan intently.

~Shara Calloway, XO

“You play? I had no idea, the Irish in me can handle a fiddle with the best of them!” Paddy grinned, an idea forming in his head.

-Lieutenant Patrick McMillan: Counselor-

Shara nodded, wary. Music was not a casual subject to her. It had a profound meaning that was hard to describe some days. “My mother was a concert pianist with the local orchestra outside of her day-job. I learned from her. I also learned guitar, which I have one with me that is very special, but I also learned to play the Vulcan lute and the Bajoran lyre. If you give me a stringed instrument, I can learn to play it, though bowed instruments would take more time and study, for obvious reasons.”

~Shara Calloway, XO

Bump

Paddy smiled then shot a look at the sky, “Computer, switch to the inside of the farmhouse, add space for a grand piano in the living space and materialise the room around us.” The computer acknowledged the command and the lush green landscapes of the McMillan farm disintegrated to be quickly replaced the varnished oak interior of an old farmhouse, twentieth-century in design. The glow of a warm, homely fire sat in the centre of the room, crackling against the protection of a fire-guard.

“Welcome in,” Paddy shot a glance at the visage of a black grand piano in the corner of the room, “Want to take a seat?”

-Lieutenant Patrick McMillan: Counselor-