Posted by Lieutenant Junior Grade Vora Zorell (Scientist) in CNS’ Office- Zorell

Posted by Lieutenant Siennadye Nox (Counselor) in CNS’ Office- Zorell

Posted by Lieutenant Junior Grade Vora Zorell (Scientist) in CNS’ Office- Zorell
Posted by… suppressed (5) by the Post Ghost! 👻
It was all but decided. In fact, Vora understood that at the moment the had read Kiero Roden’s message that she would make the inevitable trip to Tenra, even if she hadn’t proven to be her father.

But he was.

And now her mind was so very confused. She was feeling everything and Vora knew it was normal, but right now she needed to sort through it all before she talked to him again. She sent a quick message to Johann: He sent the medical records. Undeniable match. Going to go see if Nox is free, but the trip is on.

Deciding to see the counsellor was one of those smart decisions because her addiction-minded brain wanted to soothe waves of really strong emotions: good or bad. She was being proactive before she got even more overwhelmed, even if seeing Nox one-on-one added an aspect of complication to everything. After all, she and Sienna hadn’t had a conversation just the two of them since she found out Nox was married to the Johann that exited in her alternate universe. And now everything felt awkward, but she still needed to have access to a therapist.

What was that Terran phrase? Ripping off the bandage?

Waiting till she was sure the woman was not in session with someone, Zorell made her way to Nox’s office and pressed the chime. Here went nothing.

~Vora Zorell, Sciences

Sienna was sitting propped up against one of the sides of the couch with her legs laying across the bulk of the couch. In her lap was a PaDD she had barely looked at in the last 15 minutes. Her arm rested on the ledge of the window behind the couch, a long cold coffee mug resting with her delicate fingers wrapped around it. Her mind had been wrapped around memories of her husband. Their anniversary was coming up and she was missing him. She had let her thoughts drift from work to their wedding and the daydream mix of reality and sadness had left her in a bit of a fog. The chime startled her some. She had not been expecting anyone and her head turned sharply toward the door. “Umm…” She cleared her throat. “Come in?”

She turned, placing the PaDD on the table in front of her sofa and quickly tucked an errant hair behind her ear.

Nox, CNS

She wished she could simply step in with confidence and just express what she needed, but that was not how she felt. It was, well, awkward. So it was that the tall Tenraith stepped into Nox’ office, twisting her hands, and wearing an uncertain expression. “Hi… I, um.. I kind of need to talk to someone.” The overwhelming mix of caution and happiness and fear all swirled together in her gut. “I… talked to a man on Tenra who I’ve confirmed is my father.”

~Vora Zorell, Sciences

Sienna let Vora’s emotions swim through and over her, using them to refocus herself on the task that was needed here and now rather than memories of her past. She stood and gestured to the couch opposite her and did not bother to remind the young woman that someone to talk to was in her job description. Vora knew and that was why she was here. She could tell Vora felt a bit awkward but it did not deter her in exuding compassion and care for the other woman’s obvious struggles. “That must have been quite a lot to handle.”

“An understatement,” Vora said as she took a seat, crossing one leg over the other knee and folding her hands over her lap.

She sat back down and faced her patient. “I would like to hear about it if you are up for sharing now, or we can have some calming and soothing hot tea, discuss nothing in particular and relax for a while together before we jump in.”

Nox, CNS

She inhaled deeply and leaned back, tipping her head up towards the ceiling. “No point in putting it off I guess.”

Blowing out a breath, Vora lowered her head and gazed at Nox. “You know I wondered on and off over my life who he was. My mother never really talked about him expect to say that they couldn’t be together. And she died when I was five so there wasn’t anyway to add context to any of it. All I knew was that the situation was painful for her. I had always thought it had meant that he was a bad person, but I didn’t get that vibe from him and I trust my instincts about people. From what he told me, she had gotten into some trouble in her adolescence and…” Vora couldn’t help the tears that blurred her vision. “Apparently she struggled with addiction like I have.”

~Vora Zorell, Sciences

Sienna felt sympathy for Vora. Not only did she feel a lot concerning the father now presenting himself into her life, but also she had to hear some troubling things about her mother. Even if Vora suspected that her mother had the same struggles with addiction that she had, it was altogether different to get confirmation. “So a lot to process on two fronts. First, the idea that your father was not some nebulous person who, through the lens of your mothers pain, had always been a bad person in your mind. Now you know he probably isn’t a bad person and you have to reconcile that. Then, handling the troubling information about your mother who you loved and look at through the lens of a small child’s love and adoration.”

She stood and retrieved a tray with a stone kettle of hot tea, cups, and various additives for the tea from the replicator and came back to sit down. She placed it on the table before them and began fixing each woman a cup, pointing to each ingredient to add for confirmation before adding it. “Let talk about her first I think.”

“Besides the pain of her romantic situation, what do you remember of her?”

Nox, CNS

Vora inhaled deeply, letting her chest expand against her ribs. “Not much, really. My eidetic memory didn’t really kick in till I moved into adolescence. But I remember her making sasso cookies and I stood on a chair next to her at the kitchen counter and helped her form the dough into balls and press them flat before baking. I remember she had this dazzling smile. It lit up every part of her face and even her body, but I saw that particular smile infrequently. It was special when she felt something that triggered it. Sometimes it was me, so I always felt loved. I never knew that we were living a difficult life in The District. She managed to hide all those terrible scary things from me. And… I remember her collapsing in our apartment and I ran to get the woman next door who watched me when my mother was out, presumably working. She died from cardiac arrest… drug interaction with her medication apparently.”

~Vora Zorell, Sciences

Bump