Close Quarters

Posted on 08 Aug 2014 @ 5:36pm by Petty Officer 1st Class Pieter Van Zyl Ph.D.

3,089 words; about a 15 minute read

Mission: Episode 06 - Legend of Souls
Location: USS Galileo - Quarters 06-1003 EN
Timeline: MD07 - 1700hrs

[ON]

On any other day, Pieter would use the time after his shift to take a shower, change into his civies, replicate a glass of scotch and relax. As it was, on the day his roommate was due to arrive, he'd simply replicated a bite to eat before changing into his rec gear and setting about cleaning his quarters properly. Luckily, he kept clean quarters ever since boot-camp so it only took about thirty minutes before he was finished. Satisfied as he stood in the middle of the cozy living room, Pieter briefly wondered just what he should expect from the officer.

The idea of sharing his rooms with a commissioned officer made him slightly uncomfortable due to the difference in rank, but he hoped to get used to it.

The doors slid open suddenly to reveal a dark haired, black eyed young man carrying a single duffle bag. His eyes fell on the Human in the room, but they seemed to be looking right through him for just a second, before they were down cast. The man looked adorable, Tyrion mused to himself.

"I'm Tyrion Faye," he introduced himself, deliberately not mentioning his rank. "Intelligence officer, and computer systems are my specialty."

Wiping his slightly sweaty palms on his sweatpants, Pieter replied. "Pieter Van Zyl, botanist." He followed Faye's example and left his rank out before taking a step forward and holding his hand out.

Tyrion took one glance at the outstretched hand, then looked back up, ignoring it from then on and not offering his own. "Pleasure to meet you," he continued, just not looking him in the eye. It was so easy, so tempting to read someone. But the ethics...oh the ethics. And...didn't he get away from Betazed to get away from it all? His mental walls snapped in place, shielding him from that myriad of feelings before him. He hated being a telepath. "I'm a telepath," he added, the sound of his voice betraying the loathing. "But please..just pretend I'm human, just don't touch me. Ever."

Looking into the man's eyes, Pieter finally realised his new roommate was Betazoid. That didn't make him nervous, like it did most of the people he knew. He had no secrets to hide.

The tone escaped him of course and, as Pieter read what Tyrion told him, he nodded. "Alright." Despite the unease and awkwardness he felt at having his handshake rejected, he respected it. Tyrion wasn't human, after all.

"Well," Pieter continued, "the quarters are pretty small, so the tour will be short." Taking a few steps backwards, he finally motioned to the two beds standing opposite each other. One looked completely made, the walls around it bare and lifeless. The other bed looked made but lived in, with a few images mounted on the wall and a folded uniform jacket resting on.

"That's your side, naturally," Pieter explained. "Bathroom." He motioned to the door on the living area.

"Feel free to get comfortable. Anything from the replicator?" he asked, wanting to be courteous.

"No. I can get it myself, thank you. I'm not hungry." He let himself drop down on the couch and sighed. "Just...don't go at any length for me. We live together, we don't have to be friends." He never had any friends. Other than Tyrek, however brief that'd been. After a few seconds, he rose and set a single picture on the nightstand of the bareside of the room. A Vulcan male in science uniform. The edge of the picture frame was black. Before the frame, he lay down a single white plastic rose.

Watching the little display made Pieter's heart sink. 'Great, just my luck, getting saddled with a tragic romantic,' he thought. Right then and there, he decided to not touch the photo or anything relating to it with a fifty foot pole. Instead, he decided to focus on what was truly important.

"Alright, I agree," Pieter said decisively. "Let's discuss the ground rules." With that, he walked towards the small dining table and sat down, taking the paDD that was set on it.

Turning, Tyrion regarded him with a certain coldness, as if an important ritual had been disturbed. "Rules? We need rules to cohabit?"

Pieter gave him a look like he was crazy. "Of course," he shrugged. "Otherwise we'll just argue. Now, please sit."

Tyrion sat, leaning back on the couch, casting the man an expectant look. "Alright then fire away."

Pieter began by looking through the paDD. "The basics, which I believe we can both agree with. No touching of anyone's things without permission," he declared, looking up at Tyrion before glancing at the screen of his VOICE to check for any reply.

Not familiar with the device, Tyrion assumed is was some form of chronometer, and since he refrained from even trying to sense something from the man he was unaware of his disability. "That one's a given," he added, looking sideways at the picture. "Though I don't own much and I don't mind it if something trivial is moved aside to make room. Just please...whatever happens don't touch that picture."

"No plans to," Pieter assured him with a firm, understanding nod. "Cleaning. We both need to clean up after ourselves regularly," he explained. "Anything more in-depth should be done weekly and we'll switch off. I will take the duty this week," he added. "Anything to add for now?" It was best to check.

"Why not do it together on a daily basis? It gets done quicker that way, the more in depth cleaning I mean." He leaned forward and rubbed his eyes and face. "I like things to be clean, to be honest."

Pieter nodded. "Me too," he replied, happy that he wasn't going to be the 'neat' roommate for once. "We are both free on Beta shift, so we can do it then," he proposed.

Tyrion gave him the first smile since walking into the room. "That sounds like a good idea. It really shouldn't take more than an hour if we both are at it." He pointed at the device Pieter kept glancing at on occasion. "What is that, are you late for somewhere? Please don't let me keep you if you got to go."

Pieter looked up to see Tyrion pointing at his wrist. Feeling confused, he wondered what Tyrion thought he was doing with his arms when he spoke.

"I'm deaf, and this is my VOICE device," he signed. "It translates sign language into spoken language. Usually Federation standard, but it can translate to others.

"It also picks up language spoken around me and translates it into text, which is written out on this device." Pieter finally held his hand out closer to Tyrion to show him the device up close. On the screen there the Betazoid could read out their entire conversation.

"Ahhh....all that waving around makes sense now." His smile grew a little as he regarded the man. "Wish I knew sign language, that'd probably make your life a hell of a lot easier, wouldn't it? Or..." Tyrion hesitated, grimacing visible. "Or I could resort to telepathy, though I'd really rather not.. but if it'd help you, just between the two of us..." He shrugged. "What do you do if that thing fails? Does it ever fail?"

"Once or twice when exposed to certain types of radiation. Any mechanical failures I fix myself," Pieter said, trying not to feel slightly offended by his way of talking being referred to as 'waving around'. "Telepathy is not necessary if it makes you uncomfortable. I am used to using my VOICE." He'd noticed the man's discomfort when mentioning telepathy and he didn't want to make it worse. "I do turn it off occasionally," he admitted. "During those time, if you need my attention, just get into my field of vision and let me know," he said.

"I'll try to remember that," Tyrion promised, "but only if you remember that in here, there's no rank. No calling me sir or anything...I'm just a lowly ensign out there and I don't want you to feel uncomfortable with me. What are your thoughts on bringing dates to the room? The stay the night sort?"

Shifting a bit uncomfortably, Pieter answered, "I believe the other roommate needs to be notified beforehand. After the notification, I believe two hours should be the maximum amount of time to finish..." He paused, trying to find the right word. "Everything."

"NOtification is fair, but a time limit is unacceptable." He shrugged. "We can always put up a curtain or something, or arrange to be out if the other has a date. Plus...I work gamma so if you want to have someone overnight I'm not even here. And you're not here during alpha, so I could have someone when I come home after a shift. Problem solved right?"

Pieter thought about it for a moment and couldn't help but agree. He'd been used to his previous roommate having the same shift as him, so evenings were the only time either could have company over. He finally nodded.

"Alright. I agree." He nodded. "Well, I believe that is everything. One more thing. Privacy.

"Anything we speak of or see in this room stays in this room. Agreed?"

"Under normal circumstances yes, but we reserve the right to inform a superior officer if ship's security, or one of our lives, or other lives may be compromised if we stay silent. You know...due to injury or illness or whatnot. Remember, I'm an intelligence officer, I'm bound to learn things...and if for some reason I'm sick, and I tell you things I really shouldn't I expect you to inform my department head. And vice versa..."

Pieter rolled his eyes. "Of course." He shrugged and gave Tyrion a look at clearly told him that all of what he'd just told him was presumed.

"So..now that we have that out of the way, waht about family? Do you have siblings or parents that may come visit you?"

"Probably. I have a father, two siblings, their spouses and two nieces and two nephews," Pieter explained, smiling at the mention of his family. "You?" he asked in return.

"Three sisters and no they won't come to visit me. Nor will my parents and even if they wanted to, I don't want them here. I joined Starfleet to get as far from Betazed, and my sisters, as possible. Dominating lot, the three of them, think they can commandeer me simply because I'm a male."

Pieter raised his eyebrows in surprise. He'd knew that Betazoids lived in a matriarchal society, but he'd always imagined that was just their lot in life and they learned to live with it. Between the photograph, the rose, the discomfort with telepathy and, now, his family, it looked like Tyrion might have a few issues, Pieter thought. Then again, so did he.

"My father will probably not visit either. Him and I were never very close."

"Sometimes, I wish I was Human, it seems so much less complicated," Tyrion suddenly confessed. "I was born telepathic and I guess I'm lucky to still have my sanity. Anyway...enough about that. What do you do for fun?"

"I like the outdoors. So I go to the holodeck, go hiking, wildlife watching, camping. I also like to read, mostly non-fiction. I spend a lot of time in the gym," he explained, the final activity unnecessarily mentioned considering Pieter's bulky frame.

"Ugh, working out," Tyr responded, though given his wiry frame it belied his actual strength which indicated he did spend the necessary time engaged in strength enhancing activities. It just didn't show, which worked just as well, given his area of operation. "I like hacking into other computer systems, and I like going for long walks, preferably in an actual outside area, and not a holodeck." He grinned, displaying two rows of perfect white teeth. "Don't worry, I never hack into personal accounts unless I'm told to do so."

Pieter raised an eyebrow at what his new roommate described as activities 'for fun'. Leaning back in his seat, he chose his words carefully and it showed in his precise hand movements. "Well, I would hope so." For a moment, he regretted that he could only use his body language to convey the idea that, if he caught Tyrion doing anything unseemly, he'd report him.

"I'm not a peeping Tom," the Betazoid assured him, "but if you're ever locked out of your systems for some reason, I'm the guy you should call. I haven't encountered a system yet that I haven't hacked into within minutes."

Pieter nodded, impressed. "My job isn't nearly as exciting, being a botanist." Pieter had seen enough excitement during the war and being stuck in an engine room for days, dealing with damage. Now, watching plants grow and caring for them was a welcome break from all the action.

"Depends on your definition of exciting," Tyrion laughed, "I don't have the patience to stare at a plant all day, but I sure can appreciate the beauty of one." He looked around. "If you want to stuff the place with flowers, by all means. I'll even help keep them alive, if you trust me with them."

"The environment isn't really suited for them here," Pieter admitted. "Speaking of keeping things alive," he said suddenly, remembering. "I would also like you to know something. I suffer from a lot of allergies and I don't like taking too much medication since the side effects affect me badly." That said, Pieter picked up the paDD again, scrolling through its contents before handing it to Tyrion once again. On it was a list of what appeared to be two dozen things Pieter was allergic to. The top five were eggs, milk protein, saltwater fish, and most tree nuts from several different planets.

"Oh wow..." Tyr exclaimed as he scrolled through the list. "Not keeping any of those here then. Do you keep any antihistamine here in case of emergency? Anywhere I can get at it quickly if necessary?"

"There is a hypo in my bedside drawer, under the coffee table and in the bathroom on the second shelf," Pieter informed him.

"Good. I'd hate to have something happen to you one way or another." Playfully, he patted him on the knee before withdrawing his hand. "Oh...and don't worry...no inappropriate behaviour. I'll...behave, I promise. But..." He blushed. "You are cute..."

Pieter huffed a small laugh, rolling his eyes. "Thank you. You are handsome as well, but I don't like men that way," he told him with a shrug.

"That's okay. I do but that doesn't mean I expect every male I meet to fancy me in return. Besides...I'm not looking." He gestured to the picture. "I just lost someone who was very dear to me, I don't really want anyone else just yet. Not that I'm saying no, I'm just not specifically looking." He stood from his seat. "Excuse me for a moment," he apologized, before walking towards the bathroom.

The Betazoid froze in the doorway, then turned. "You've not been in here recently, have you?" he asked, his face becoming a mask of sudden concern. "Not feeling puffy or fluffy?"

Pieter looked down at his wrist before giving Tyrion a slightly confused look. He started to shake his head before the realisation hit him. "There's one of them in the bathroom isn't there?"

Tyrion nodded. "Two, actually. A small white furball, and a huge black one. Purring softly too. I can get rid of them, but either you hold your breath for a few seconds, or you get that injection right now and still hold your breath while I put them outside."

"As long as I don't come into direct close contact with it, I'll be fine. The most I get from Tribbles is sneezing and hives. Eggs are the worst; it's why they're first on the list."

"No eggs, got it. Or at best, i'll make sure to leave no trace when I do have one. Give me just a minute to ah..complete my business here, and I'll get rid of them."

Pieter didn't say anything and just nodded. As he waited, the Botanist scrolled through the paDD on the table, checking to see if he'd missed anything.

A few minutes later, Tyrion emerged from the bathroom, carrying the two Tribbles in his arms. Be right back. He thought, drawing his roommate's attention, before slipping out the door. Another several minutes later, he returned, minus his service jacket. Promptly, he disrobed and stuffed his clothes into the reclamat, then got himself a new uniform. "Don't want you to have any residual issues," he explained as he pulled a clean shirt over his head.

For the first time, Pieter smiled at him. "Thank you, Tyrion."

"You're welcome. Oh...any regs you wanna discuss on that? You know...clothes and stuff. I ah.....don't sleep in anything you see....and idon't want you to be embarassed if you ah...see anything you really wouldn't want to see."

"I would prefer if you put something on," Pieter replied honestly. "I sleep in just boxers, which I think would be enough. Just to keep....everything," he chose the word awkwardly, gesturing downwards. "In check."

"I'm Betazoid," Tyrion offered playfully, "no secrets, nothing to hide."

Pieter shifted. "I've got nothing to hide either," he said back, looking almost defensive.

"I wasn't suggesting you do. I was...trying to be funny. Besides...you're an emotional open book to me. I'm just saying...should I forget for some reason...just say so okay? Don't go all embarrassed or shy on me, just tell me straight. Deal?"

Pieter nodded. "Deal."

"Sweet. Now I probably should go get some sleep...I get on duty in five hours..."

Pieter nodded with an understanding look on his face. "Alright. I will try to be quiet..." In truth, Pieter wasn't exactly sure what quiet mean or if he made noise at all, but he knew that, if he spent the time reading and didn't bump into anything while walking, people didn't object or wake up.

"There's no need...short of a bomb going off, I won't wake up." Tyrion smiled. "Goodnight gorgeous."

"Goodnight," Pieter replied, shaking his head with a smirk.

Ensign Tyrion Faye
Intelligence Officer
USS Galileo
pnpc T'Vanna

PO1 Pieter Van Zyl
Botanist
USS Galileo
[PNPC by Idris]

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