Plots and Ink Blots

Posted on 23 May 2013 @ 6:57pm by Lieutenant JG Delainey Carlisle & Ensign Varek
Edited on on 23 May 2013 @ 11:19pm

725 words; about a 4 minute read

Mission: Episode 03 - Frontier
Location: USS Galileo - Counselor's Office
Timeline: MD7: 1653 hours

[ON]

"Well, that was fun," James mused with a light-hearted tone. He was sitting comfortably on a chair in Delainey's office, across from the woman herself. "Do we get to look at ink-blots now?"

Carlisle smiled, offering, tongue clearly in cheek. "Not on your first visit."

"Ah well," came the man's reply, leaning back. Time to change the subject, he decided. "Do you know Ensign Varek?"

The sudden change of subject caught Carlisle off-guard. "Ah, I know of him more than I know him personally. Why do you ask?"

James smiled slightly as he noticed the momentary sign of unsureness. "Oh, he's so... logical. But you know, he has a fascination with cultural studies. I think he could benefit from some first-hand experience, don't you?"

"First hand experience can be beneficial to everyone," Delainey allowed, getting the impression there was more to this than a simple philosophical discussion. "What are you up to?"

"I think what Ensign Varek needs is first hand experience in the cultural intricacies of human courtship."

Delainey quirked an eyebrow. "Are you volunteering?"

"No," Watt said with quick laugh. "Not my sort of thing, and I don't think it's his either. But I thought you might know someone... extroverted. Someone in medical that he at least knows? He won't agree to it of course, so a blind date might be in order."

Delainey had a weird feeling about this. She wasn't the sort to pimp out any of her colleagues... even in the name of science. "It seems rather cruel to put someone in that position out of the blue, don't you think?"

"No," Watt replied with a shake of his head. "It's not as if you'd be tricking them. A blind date is a blind date, and we are not setting anyone up with oh... someone ugly or bad-mannerered. I've always thought vulcans are a lot less logical than they let on; give them a little push and you find their human sides, even if they never admit it. And Varek seems like a fine officer and all. It would be good for both of them."

"We'd need to get them both to agree to the idea," Delainey asserted.

"Of course," Watt conceded, smiling and giving a nod, "Do you know anyone who might... bring out Varek's human side?"

Her first thought was to suggest Kiri or Maenad, if only because they could benefit from additional social interaction, but she quickly dismissed them, not wanting to subject them to the added pressure given how personally they could take things. Then her thoughts turned to Scarlet and Dawn, in part because she knew them more than anyone, and in part because they'd be naturally inclined to educate and help a member of the crew adjust. She considered suggesting herself, but figured it would seem self-absorbed. If he wanted her to be involved, wouldn't he have suggested it directly? "Perhaps Dawn or Scarlet would agree to help, provided this was a friendly interaction and nothing too serious."

Watt shrugged. "That's up to them, not us. Nothing wrong with a blind date just for the fun of it. What they make of it is none of our business. With Varek, you might be lucky to even get a friendly interaction, though I'm sure he's very serious." He smiled to reassure her that his wordplay was not in earnest. "Why don't you have a talk with Varek. I'm sure he's due for a counseling session or something. I'll go talk to the girls."

Delainey took some comfort in knowing Watt was going to elicit cooperation from either Dawn or Scarlet, and she was sure either one of them would treat Varek with dignity and respect, just as if they were in session. Still, she hoped she wouldn't regreat this. "I'll approach him personally." Carlisle wasn't comfortable using the pretext, or anything that looked like a pretext, to get Varek to agree.

Watt stood up. "Hey, counselor," he said with pleasant sincerity, "thanks for the session. And take it easy, huh? Come to the crew lounge sometime, I'll fix you a drink."

Delainey smiled and nodded. She did need to get out more. "I'd like that."

[OFF]

PO3 James Striker Watt
Engineering Officer
USS Galileo
played by Psylus Anon

Lieutenant (JG) Delainey Carlisle, M.D., Ph.D.
Assistant Chief Counselor/Doctor
USS Galileo

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