Posted by Civilian Sair Songz (Counselor) in Off Duty - Ship’s Lounge - Tag Anyone

Posted by Lieutenant Ben Hudson (Chief Medical Officer) in Off Duty - Ship’s Lounge - Tag Anyone

Posted by Lieutenant Kaia (Chief Engineer) in Off Duty - Ship’s Lounge - Tag Anyone
Posted by… suppressed (3) by the Post Ghost! 👻
<SNIP>

The perk of being a senior officer was larger quarters, but not everyone wanted or needed the space, so she too was curious what Kaia would choose to do.

~Sair Songz, CNS

“I don’t think I will, to be honest,” Kaia answered, smiling. “I don’t really need all that space, and I think I’d find it overwhelming and a little, ah… what’s the opposite of claustrophobic? I’m accustomed to small spaces, and I think trying to sleep in such a huge area would not work out well.” She remembered her childhood bed, a hole that had been carved into the heartwood of the home tree, just large enough for her (and a ton of blankets and stuffed animals) to squeeze into. She always wiggled around so that her head was peeking out the opening, the rest of her body encased in a cocoon of warmth. The memory made her smile. “I’m quite small as well, I really don’t need such a large space.”

Kaia, CE

Sair nodded, feeling she had guessed correctly.

Ben chuckled. “Yes, I guess it would feel a bit empty with too large a room. And it saves you the hassle of moving quarters.” He replied. He never enjoyed the hassle of assignment changes and having to pack and unpack everything.

Turning to the Counsellor, he offered out his hand. “Forgive me, I don’t think we have meet. Is it Sair?” He asked, recalling Kaia’s greeting.

Lt Hudson
CMO

The pink-haired Kobliad smiled and shook his hand, though it was not her custom. She had been around Humans enough that she didn’t mind it. It was more a cultural thing than a personal issue and as she was reminding herself all the time, thing son her world were changing and they were capable of being open-minded. “Sair Songz, ship’s counsellor,” she said, notably not listing any rank. “I started out in emergency medicine, so if you ever need an extra set of hands, don’t hesitate to call.”

“Why, thank you.” he said, gratefully, although noticing that Sair had correctly assumed who he was. He figured that she must have read his profile since he joined, and knew that it was only a matter of time before he was hunted down by the Counsellor to spill all of his darkest secrets. Alas, he didn’t really have any.

She looked at Kaia. “So, how do Galdori celebrate special events, or does it matter between species?” Sair asked curiously.

~Sair Songz, CNS

“Celebrations vary quite a bit between cultures within a single species, let alone different species,” Kaia said with a small smile, “Although firstly globalization and more recently the Age of Migration have caused some practices to mix. Homeworld Raka don’t normally do rank earrings, but on Oba, we do.” She pointed at the two golden rings on her right ear.

“On Galdor, it’s only Laleri who do this. My ancestors and the ancestors of the Oban Laleri kinda mixed their practices together. Raka plant trees. Or at least, the ones who my family is descended from. I think my ancestors, the ones who migrated to Oba, were from the Rothi region? Anyways, when litter is born, a grove of Baslu trees are planted in their honour. Significant days are celebrated by adding things onto the tree. The first five birthdays are celebrated by grafting a twig of the parents’ trees onto the child tree. Achievements made by the individual are celebrated with appropriate tokens. For example, my acceptance into Starfleet was celebrated by carving down to the cambium and implanting a piece of iron in the shape of a commbadge. My promotion to Department Head will be celebrated with copper. If I become an Executive Officer, they’ll put silver in there. If I ever become a Captain, it’ll be gold. Matings, oh, I guess the word in your culture is probably Marriage. Well, those are celebrated by transplanting the Baslu trees of the spouses into a new grove, placing them close enough to one another that they can pollinate each-other and create the next generation of trees for their children.”

Kaia, CE
-OOC, I just made this up as I wrote, thanks for prompting me to create a new tradition!!!

“Sounds… intricate!” Ben said, having listened to Kaia. “Is there a sense that the trees are somehow linked to those individuals, or is it purely symbolic?” he asked, curious to know whether there was any medical elements of the tradition.

Lt Hudson
CMO

“Family is very important for your people,” Sair intuited, though she knew that to a degree already from her previous conversation with Kaia. “They are on my world too, though I suppose circumstances make it seem like we take it to an extreme.”

~Sair Songz, CNS

Kaia considered the question for a moment before answering. “I think it is mainly symbolic. The trees are a way of connecting to our ancestry, as well as celebrating our present. The trees have the same ancestry as we do. Occasionally, if someone has a genetic defect that affects their growth, their tree will have a related defect. My tree has twisted branches that curl into themselves,” she lifted the arm with the prosthetic hand, “so maybe the link is more than just symbolic.”

Ben was genuinely fascinated by this, and was about to ask a series of follow-on questions, but then Kaia responded to Sair. The change of conversation gave Ben a moment to temper his enthusiasm, rather than barrage her with questions. Instead he made a mental note to ask Kaia at another time whether she would be open to discussing the concept. He could see a possible medical paper on the subject.

“Yeah, it definitely is. When my parents die and my siblings start having children, I’m not sure whether I’ll stay in Starfleet or go and help them raise their children. It’s a tough decision…”

Kaia, CE

Ben nodded. “Yes, family and Starfleet are not always compatible.” he said, remembering his Mother’s decision to leave the service when his sister became ill.

Lt Hudson
CMO

“You don’t even have to be Starfleet,” Sair said. “Though I’ve bene fortunate that everyone’s been very supportive of my having my son out here with me.” She had fought so hard to have him in the first place, that him not being with her was out of the question. Even the few months apart had been terribly difficult on both of them.

~Sair Songz, CNS

“My parents are pretty healthy for being in their early 50s, so we should be good for another five years or so,” Kaia replied with a small smile, then turned to Sair, “How is Koro? I interacted with him briefly at the movie night.”

Kaia, CE