Posted by Lieutenant Commander Faye Calloway (Chief Intelligence Officer) in Beyond the Spotlight

Posted by Civilian Dawson (Intelligence Operative) in Beyond the Spotlight

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Faye Calloway (Chief Intelligence Officer) in Beyond the Spotlight
Posted by… suppressed (4) by the Post Ghost! 👻
The sensation of the spotlight on her face was nothing to the heat n her own cheeks as the song ended. For a moment Faye was utterly unaware of the applause that broke out as her and Rollin finished singing Something Stupid. Indeed she had not been the Chief Intelligence Officer at all, nor would most recognize the Faye that appeared.

Rollin had suggested that there was an inner diva to be unleashed, but Faye didn’t think it was quite that. If anything it was a heightened accent of the things people knew about her in general, and only a few knew the deeper parts of.

Amongst the commotion of people chatting up Rollin’, Calloway did what all spooks were notorious (infamous?) for: she disappeared. She’d have laughed at that thought if it hadn’t been a something she had been used to doing her whole life. Slipping through the excited crowd and out the Lounge doors, Faye stood in the corridor, hands on her black satin pant covered hips. She forced herself to take deep breaths, but found herself shaky. It was some strange mix of anxiety and adrenaline and it honestly left her a little dizzy.

That persona, that sister or cousin of herself, vanished. Poof! Just because she had stepped out of her comfort zone, didn’t mean she didn’t struggle with the ramifications. What those were, however, were a mystery to her as Faye struggled to find her way back to the ease she had felt in her own skin just a few minutes earlier before Rollin’ had trained his gaze on her. If she had had the wherewithal, she would have continued walking and perhaps made it to her quarters, but for the moment, she was stuck here in this corridor, too close to the scene she had just made. Paralyzed.

OOC: For reference, this all follow this thread: https://www.star-fleet.com/core/stf3/athena/posts/280702/ (the song link no longer works)

~Faye Calloway, CIO

Dawson had observed Faye’s performance in delight. It was a different side to her that he had not yet seen. And in a whirl, after it was over, it all seemed to come to a halt as she seemingly disappeared. Though Rollin seemed to keep the entertainment rolling. He could sense the shift in her even at his distance. And in classic Dawson-esque fashion, he slipped into the shadows and found his mostly secret exit from the lounge.

His tube led to the corridor beyond and he back tracked down the hall to find Faye standing outside of the Parthenon. She seemed locked up in a way. Dawson had figured her to be the type to book it all the way to her quarters and disappear totally. This was different. He kept his eyes trained on her as he approached, his mind naturally taking in whatever emotions were streaming through her. He was naturally quiet, so it was possible if she was too focused that she might be startled by him. He was prepared nonetheless.

-Dawson

Faye caught the movement and her head snapped up, stormy eyes wide. Her heart was thudding in her chest and she could feel the tingling in her toes that spelled danger. She hunched forward, she threw out her hand, palm up towards her. “I need you to tap on my hand with a fingernail. Hard! Please.” She didn’t bother with conveying her desperation through her eyes. She knew he’d feel it. It wasn’t like it had bene lately, which told her this was more of her classic symptoms and since she knew she could battle it and win, she was determined to.

~Faye Calloway, CIO

And the El Aurian certainly could sense the trouble. Without giving it a second thought, he wordlessly did as she requested, leaving no question as to whether it had been hard enough. His eyes locked on to her own, attempting to read further into the issue at hand. “Something tells me it might be better for you to find some privacy?” he inquired curiously.

-Dawson “Stillwater”

Faye nodded but for a moment she didn’t move. Faye just focused on the sensation he was generating on her palm. It wasn’t quite painful but it focused all her senses. Taking a deep breathe, she felt her lungs expand with more ease than they had just a minute ago. Her exhale was a release of relief.

Pulling her hand away, Calloway stood upright and gestured with her other hand for him to follow. Then she simply headed for her and Dag’s quarters.

On Deck 4, Room 4 and 5 had been combined into 4/5 Alpha and made more suitable to DHs who lived together and still needed their own workspace.Faye punched in the code and stepped in. Immediately, a fluffy light grey feline with darker grey ears, tail and paws bounded over. Her brilliant blue eyes were focused on Faye and she let out a plaintiff meow. Faye managed two full steps before she collapsed to her knees and the cat crawled onto her thighs and reached up with her front paws onto Faye’s shoulder, nuzzling and purring. Faye gently held her and took deep breaths.

The Calloway/Hammor Quarters were one large room with doors flanking either side, with a kitchenette, work area and sitting space. The room they were in had a large couch and low table in front flanked by two large chairs big enough for Daggum to sit in comfortably. Along the walls were transparent frames holding old comic books, and there was painting of a beach cliff scene. The kitchen area was partially separated by an island with the sink, and had cold storage and an induction burner. The door to the left led to the bedroom and bathroom, the door to the right was locked. One free corner had a shelving unit with grow lights where seedling were sprouting, aided by a small fan that oscillated a gentle breeze only into the corner. Next to it was a basket with a rolled up yoga mat and other accessories.

Breathing more easily and once again able to speak, Faye held the cat firmly and pushed herself to her feet with her core muscles and legs alone and moved over to the couch. “Dawson, this is Tess. Tess. meet Dawson.” She finally looked over at the man and gestured for him to take a seat. “Tess is my therapy animal. She is mixed with an empathic Betazoid breed and is bonded to me. She’s trained to respond to my emotions and deal with my distress, including summoning help if needed. If I am ever in a bad way, like non responsive, bring me to Tess, or bring Tess to me. She’ll know what to do.” At the multiple mentions of her name, Tess brought her face over to Faye’s chin, rubbing her cheek against it before lowering herself into her person’s lap.

~Faye Calloway, CIO

Dawson took a moment as Faye gathered herself with her feline companion, to soak in the environment now surrounding him. Shared quarters that had its markings of each occupant. It was unique.

His eyes soon settled on Faye and the creature. Something had changed in Faye now. He obliged the chief and took the offered seat, eyes taking in Tess. She was an adorable feline and clearly uniquely equipped to handle Faye. He left a hand out in welcome, but not so close that she would be threatened by it. “Well, hello there Tess. A pleasure to meet you.” He kept his mind open in the off chance she might reach out empathically. He doubted she would, but he was open to the possibility to understand her better.

Tess gazed deeply at Orvos and gave a chirp of acknowledgement. She didn’t reach out with her mind but sniffed at his hand. She seemed at ease with him there, either because her focus was on Faye or because Faye clearly trusted Dawson enough to bring him into her space.

Turning to Faye, “I’ll certainly keep this in mind.” He said in the hopes to reassure Faye he could be trusted with that information.

-Dawson

“Thank you,” Faye said, stroking Tess from the top of her head and down her back. “For that, but also in the corridor. When I get too overwhelmed, I can dissociate. It doesn’t happen very often anymore, or at least not in the form it used to and I haven’t really had it happen after I settled in here on the Athena. But I recognized the signs. You tapping on my hand created a sensory input my nervous system couldn’t ignore and thus I stayed present, rather than slipping elsewhere where my mind my feel safer.”

Dawson listened intently, soaking in every word. For a man who centuries old, this was something he had not encountered, or perhaps recognized? He stored in his mind the information supplied to him for future understanding and usage.

She shook her head and looked at Dawson. “You know more about me than most on the ship. Many of the senior staff know a great deal because they need to, their job requires them to, or I’m married to them.” Faye gave a brief smirk. “I’ve worked really hard to move past a lot of the stuff that easily took my down before, but this is the first time in awhile I’ve felt so overwhelmed. It took me by surprise. I’m still not even sure if it was performing with him, or just having all that attention on me.”

~Faye Calloway, CIO

Dawson grinned at her remark of him knowing more than most on the ship about her. Good. “Perhaps a bit of both? We could always test those waters. Maybe get you in front of a ton of people without that enchanting performance to start?” he teased. He felt at ease with her. This was her abode as it were. A place of safety for her and he had been allowed entrance. It was likely a big deal for her. So he felt a bit more at ease being himself.

-Dawson