STF

Lounge- Getting to Know You

Posted May 18, 2023, 12:58 p.m. by Commander Dr. Royal Sinclair (Executive Officer) (James Sinclair)

Posted by Captain Dira Myqian (Commanding Officer) in Lounge- Getting to Know You

Posted by Commander Dr. Royal Sinclair (Executive Officer) in Lounge- Getting to Know You

Posted by Captain Dira Myqian (Commanding Officer) in Lounge- Getting to Know You
Posted by… suppressed (10) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)

He smiled and said “Makes perfect sense. And I will do my best to be your balance.” He leaned forward and said in a much quieter voice “All I ask is that if and when I change up something that effects my day-to-day as the XO, even though you’ve been in the role for the past few years, you let me do it unless you tried it before and it just doesn’t work. I’m not going to try and change anything just to make it mine. But we all do things our own way. And my way and your way may not be the same. Hell… the way you Captain will be different than how Taylor did it. I need you to let me support that style… once you get it figured out, that is.” and he chuckled. “I can see A LOT of quick side meetings between you and I asking ‘Wait, what did you mean? Why did you do it that way?’ kind of questions… in both directions.”

Royal

She smiled. “I’m good with that. I mean, we’re both therapists by training. If we aren’t having lots of communication and double-checking intent and understanding I think I’ll be rather worried.” In a way it was nice to have that similar background, though she knew all too well that not all therapists worked from the same place. Her instincts told her, however, that they would be just fine.

“What questions do you have for me?” she asked, digging back into her soup.

~Dira

Royal thought for a moment as he ate. Finally one came to him. “Ok… disciplinary actions. What is your policy? Mine is a three step. First offense, I say something. Second offense, I give a final verbal warning. Third is a formal reprimand. Now, that is for issues that aren’t severe. Anything more severe than being late for a shift or something similar I tend to be far less lenient.”

Royal

She nodded slowly. “We haven’t had a formal policy, and dealt with everything on a case by case basis, but in practice it looked pretty similar. If you feel having something more concrete useful, I’m fine with it as I know you have the background to assess a situation beyond the surface.” It mattered a lot what was going on for a person, and even if someone wasn’t going to discuss an issue with a ranking officer, being able to read between the lines and intuit a path forward could help a lot.

~Dira

He nodded and said “I think having a formal policy in place that the Command Team and DH’s are all utilizing would be a good idea. The more consistency and stability we can give the crew, the better. Especially after all the sudden changes and such.” He took a drink and then asked “And what about…” and he paused, knowing the relationship the Captain had with the Security Chief. “Well… fraternization? I know it happens, and I personally don’t care… as long as it doesn’t effect the crew and the ship. But I am also a bit… wary… of subordinates and superiors having personal relationships. But I am pretty emotionally risk-averse, so I may be talking out of my ass.” he added with a laugh.

Royal

She gave him a lopsided smirk. “Well, that is definitely a situation we have to manage on an individual basis. Have I seen where it can be an issue? Yes. Do I still think people having the freedom to trust their own hearts? Yes. It’s the risk of serving longterm on a ship where we are our own community.”

Dira gazed off out the windows at the stars who seemed to be very elusive in their answers and feedback lately. “I didn’t go out of my way to start a relationship, trust me. A part of me fought it too. It had been a very long time.” She shifted her dark eyes back to him. “Would it have been easier to have just backed away from the connection? Absolutely. But the things I have gained from my relationship for exceed the risks.” She spoke quietly but there was an earnestness in her tone.

~Dira

Sinclair nodded and said “I believe that wholeheartedly. You do not strike me as the ‘casual fling’ type. And as long as a relationship- be that yours, mine, or anyone’s- doesn’t interfere with the ship, I really do not care. My only priority is the ship and her crew.”

Royal

The irony was that over her career the only ‘relationship’ that had ever affected the ship she was on had been entirely one-sided and it certainly hadn’t been on her end. “When I first arrived at the Starbase to be this crew’s first officer it had been ten years since I had been in a serious relationship. We were engaged but she was killed in the line of duty. Security officer,” Dira said, quirking a brow against her soft brow ridge. “I’m well aware of the tendency and risk.” She almost laughed, but didn’t.

~Dira

“Well, at least we know you have a type.” Royal said with a tone of friendly teasing. “So now that we have most of the heavy lifting out of the way… tell me about you. Hobbies? Favorite foods? Guilty pleasures that I need to make sure stay out of the ship gossip factory?” and he laughed.

Royal

She smirked. “I love outdoor activities and foods of all kinds. My mother is a neuroscientist and my father is an artist and though they divorced when I was six, they are still best friends and I had a rather adventurous childhood. Boundaries, yes, but lots of mess and play and experimenting.” She ate a spoonful of her soup. “Let’s see, what else… oh.” Dira flushed. “Okay, so not a secret but no one on the ship has yet to experience it for… reasons, but I love singing and adore Terran show tunes. I blame a roommate at medical school. I hate tidying and my quarters are often messy, and Captain Taylor got me hooked on a show called a soap opera named Starbase Hospital. That’s my guilty pleasure,” she said with a grin.

~Dira

“I moved into your old quarters, remember? I know of what you speak.” and he laughed. “So for me… I make models. Star ships and sailing ships. I make the pieces by hand, and I assemble them all by hand with glue and solder. I have…” and he thought a moment and then chuckled, “… well, more than is probably healthy. If you ever come see me on my off time, you’ll understand what I mean. I love music, but am wretched at making it in any form or fashion. I still play rugby when I can, and I follow my club and National team without fail. If I am ever in a bad mood and you can’t figure out why, check the latest score. That’ll more than likely be the reason.”

Royal

“Good to know,” Dira laughed with a chuckle. There was an ease to their conversation that she appreciated and it allowed her to push the ugliness for earlier far back in her mind. For now it didn’t exist and it allowed her to be in the lounge with her new first officer and for the crew to see their command team getting along and getting to know each other. It mattered. Deeply.

“Do you have a favourite assignment so far?” she asked.

~Dira

Royal thought for a moment and then said “No, not really. I mean, all of ‘em had their positive and negatives. The Challenger was my first DH spot, so that will always be special. The Saracen was exciting, but I don’t think I ever really… ‘fit’… there. I honestly don’t know if I have ‘fit’ anywhere, though. But I think this may be different, I dunno. Time will tell.”

Royal

Dira thought for a moment. “I’ve had several assignments and I used to think my time on the Halcyon was the my favourite, as it was the first time I was made the head of a counselling department, but then I realize it was just the calmest assignment I had had. And that is saying something,” she said with a laugh. After all, she had been in a situation that had earned her a commendation, so it hadn’t been all quiet. “I don’t know, the Ogawa can be a tricky ship, but all my other assignments had taught me something important and I so think they were leading me to be here, one way or another. If not this ships specifically, then something similar.”

~Dira

“Tricky? How so? I mean, I take it the ship doesn’t do card tricks or anything, right?” Sinclair said with a grin.

Royal


Posts on USS Ogawa

In topic

Posted since


© 1991-2024 STF. Terms of Service

Version 1.15.9