Posted by Commander Dira Myqian (Executive Officer) in SB 157 Zeanar’s Quarters Avoiding the XO

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Ever Zeanar (Chief of Psychiatry) in SB 157 Zeanar’s Quarters Avoiding the XO

Posted by Commander Dira Myqian (Executive Officer) in SB 157 Zeanar’s Quarters Avoiding the XO
Posted by… suppressed (3) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)

Many of her initial staff meetings had been completed, and with the news that they weren’t going back to the old ship Dira found herself doing a lot of admin work in her temporary office. The chime startled her momentarily from the report she was writing and she glanced over at the ID. She mostly expected people to drop by her office or send her a quick note if they needed to chat with her, but there was a lot going on right now, so there were any number of reasons why they might be calling her this way.

The screen flipped to show her the new COP and Dira gave a bow of her head. “Commander Zeanar. To what do I owe the pleasure of this call? I do know I still need to have a chat with you sooner rather than later.” Dira had arrived first so they weren’t going to sideline her when the crew needed a first officer and her previous eval had been fine enough to use until she got a new one.

Commander Myqian, XO

“I hope this isn’t a bad time Commander Myqian. Things are a little hectic for the entire crew at the moment, but we still need to get our work done and these pesky evaluations,” Ever said raising one corner of her mouth in a tired half smile. Absently she brushed back her hair with one hand and leaned forward, then back again. Was every woman on the Ogawa stunning and always looked like she had just stepped out of a Paris spa? Zeanar shifted around before finally settling, thinking she needed to up her own game and appearance. 

Dira gave a small grin. “That we do. With all the crew scattered over the station, or for a select few, working on the ship still, tracking people down is becoming an even more important art form.”

“So I know this is a little unorthodox, but if you are game and have a half hour to spare, I was thinking, we could check each other out or in through a video chat. Looks like you don’t need much for your eval. Just check off some boxes for now and then later when things are more settled we could follow up if needed,” Ever said a little too rushed. Almost without stopping for breathe, the counsellor caught herself and followed with, “sorry. It’s nice to meet you. I hope you are having a decent enough day.” 

Lt. Commander Zeanar, CoP

While she was surprised and while it was hardly common, it was hardly the most unusual eval setting she’d ever been a part of. In fact, many therapists did their own therapy with specialist therapists who are trained to work with mental health practitioners specifically, and they were almost never stationed where their clients were. So, long distance conferencing was the norm there and something Dira had participated in plenty of times in her career thus far.

Ever relaxed physically and mentally. While Myqian had been, at first, a little surprised, she had accepted the request without much thought. From this distance, neither telepath would be able to “read” much more than surface or superficial emotions and really no direct thoughts as such. Hopefully. Body language, however, was another story altogether. Ever had specifically positioned the camera angle to minimised her body exposure, yet kept enough distance to avoid most micro expressions from being detected. Hopefully. All of her planned aversions could likely reveal her discomfort with her new boss. Ever had more confidence the other Betazoid would be left with only her own conclusions to draw upon and be mislead from the truth. Hopefully. 

Myqian shrugged. “I don’t see why not. We can save ourselves the trouble of wasting time moving about the station. I also have a meeting in forty-five minutes, so half an hour works for me.”

Commander Myqian, XO

Bump

“Perfect. Though at some point, we will have to catch up face to face. May be a little less formal. I have not served on ships much and not for some time. So being less formal and spending time outside of work with colleagues will be a challenge. Ship board there is a smaller circle of opportunity for social interactions particularly for senior staff. Speaking of, how was your last posting? I see the Ogawa is a recent transfer,”  Ever said finally asking a question. She made little attempt and smiling. Having drawn her own conclusions that Myqian was more straight to business unless she had some sort of connection with a person first. Time would tell if her first impression was correct or not. 

Lt. Commander Ever Zeanar, CoP 

OOC: Sorry, I need to order a new laptop, so its hard for me to keep up atm —Ty

OOC: No worries. Good to know though.
IC:
Dira drew in a deep breath and nodded. “It was, yes. This is my first command role after doing the Command training program. So it’s the first time in twenty years I’ve not been a therapist. It’s…”-she smiled a bit-“a bit awkward and I’m still finding my footing, but so far the crew has been very receptive to me and I think it’s going to be a good assignment overall.” How deep they wanted to get into any one thing depended on a large set of variables. For the moment Dira was good with revealing small things at a time. She was glad to be moving on and had been making sure not to dwell on what had been.

Commander Myqian, XO

Neither woman seemed eager to reveal more than was needed at this time. Small changes in facial muscles, a smile that wasn’t a smile. An effort to attempt to remain neutral in her answers. Even the briefest of expressions did not pass Ever’s scrutiny. Waiting for the next conflicting emotional and verbal response, she held her gaze for a few seconds, listening closely. Wondering if the XO was finding this type of communication as difficult as she was herself, Ever considered her next question. Clicking her tongue lightly against the roof of her mouth she asked,”Not a unheard of career move, but not a particularly common one either. What led to your decision to make the change from counselling to command?” 

Lt Commander Ever Zeanar, CoP