Posted by Lieutenant Commander T’Aria (XO / Navigation Officer) in Putting on a Logical Top Hat (Tag XO)

Posted by Lieutenant Symar (Chief Medical Officer) in Putting on a Logical Top Hat (Tag XO)

Posted by Lieutenant Commander T’Aria (XO / Navigation Officer) in Putting on a Logical Top Hat (Tag XO)
Posted by… suppressed (6) by the Post Ghost! 👻
(Snip!)

OOC: Basing this off desert herbs, so feel free to tell me these flavours are totally wrong!

A blend of Vulcan spices and herbs, T’Aria expected a near-tasteless liquid with hints of redspice and mint. Her assumptions shattered the second she brought the cup to her lips and took a small sip. She tasted spice, comparable to cinnamon or nutmeg, and an earthy bitterness that crept into her nose. It stung. Then, it suddenly felt warm and soothing, like the nectar from the plants Y’cha used to grow. The sensations bewildered T’Aria and it was evident in her furrowed eyebrows and crooked expressions.

“That is…” she coughed a bit, “interesting.”

T’Aria did not immediately notice any difference in her body nor her mind. How long did it take for the concoction to work? She wondered whether this mind-world would change it potency. Would their connection strengthen or subdue its effects? T’Aria exhausted the thought to the back of her mind and let the medicine do as it would. She kept a careful eye on Symar, in case anything seemed abnormal.

“If you don’t mind my asking,” she leaned against what remained of the wall, “what was your childhood like? After the events that transpired on that Klingon ship?”

— T’Aria

Symar chuckled, “It takes a bit of getting used to,” he admitted. Then, softening a little in response to the XO’s question, “Well,” he began softly, “My parents knew I couldn’t be raised as your ‘traditional’ Vulcan child, so they seemed to let me forge my own path in life.”

-Lieutenant Symar: Chief Medical Officer-

T’Aria felt a warmth – slight and easily mistaken as indigestion from the tea – fill her chest when he talked about his childhood. Her curiosity dissolved into a kind of attentiveness that could not be described plainly. “And what path did you choose?”

— T’Aria

Symar chuckled, “What better path than to join the people I was experimented on in order to work against?” A flash of pain crossed Symar’s face for a second and it faded as quickly as it arrived.

-Lieutenant Symar: Chief Medical Officer-

T’Aria reached out to touch his shoulder, catching only a flicker of emotion that she assumed to be sadness or hurt. “Do you want to talk about something else?” She asked, hardly desiring to contribute to his suffering.

— T’Aria

‘It’s better to get it out, anything else you want to know?’

-Lieutenant Symar: Chief Medical Officer-

Her arm felt heavy and sore, cautioning her to the fatigue that would soon overwhelm her body, so she let it fall comfortably to her side. T’Aria knew the risks of a weary mind and, though her curiosity ran rampant with half-baked questions founded in near conjecture, chose to limit her exertion. He had already disclosed more than she needed to know.

“Yes, just one… why did you confide in me?”

— T’Aria

“I.. I suppose it was because I was drawn to you, T’Aria.” Symar let it all out, quicker than he was expecting.

-Lieutenant Symar: Chief Medical Officer-

“Drawn?” T’Aria echoed as if he were referring to an invisible force of attraction, not simple emotion. “In what way?”

— T’Aria

“Emotionally,” Symar replied with a chuckle.

-Lieutenant Symar: Chief Medical Officer-

I am going to need a little more than that… T’Aria thought, briefly forgetting the fluidity between reality and thought in this world.

His words, unlike the vivid recollection of his unconsented role in Nyrax’s nefarious plan, were vague. T’Aria tried to decipher their meaning, but ‘emotionally’ was a broad word, used to describe a spectrum of feelings. He would not have confided in her if he felt negatively toward her, so there went one side the spectrum, but there was still another.

They shared a mutual trust, deep enough for vulnerability, so it was more than aquaintanceship. A kinship, perhaps? T’Aria examined the lines between siblinghood, friendship and affection… but it was too much for her weary mind to handle.

Then, she laughed.

It was not derisive, nor spirited, but the kind of laugh born of awe and frustration and the brain’s inability to process everything happening without blending them into something wholly unrecognisable. So, it did the only thing it could to release all of that stress: it made her laugh.

And it was liberating.

“I am sorry…” she clamped a hand over her mouth, but spurts of laughter escaped through her fingers.

“I am not laughing at you,” T’Aria coughed, closing her eyes to take a sobering breath. “This is a lot to take in and I am not sure how to process it all. I feel like everything I thought I knew was wrong. That is not your fault, nor your responsibility, so please do not assume it. I just…” she sighed, “there are so many unknowns here and I would deeply appreciate some clarity. What do feel?”

— T’Aria

“I feel strongly that I care about you Comma- T’Aria,” Symar said, feeling a glint in his eye.

-Lieutenant Symar: Chief Medical Officer-