Check in with counseling

Posted on 17 Jun 2016 @ 12:33am by Lieutenant JG Rael Psy.D. & Lieutenant JG Randolf Eklund & Lieutenant JG Drusilla McCarthy

1,109 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Episode 11 - Divinum Mundi
Location: USS Galileo - Counseling Office
Timeline: MD -27 - 1500 hrs

[ON]

This was the last place Randy needed to check in, but he knew he had to do it. He respected what the counselors did, and they had been extremely helpful when he was trying to adjust to life at the Academy. He knew that a lot of his classmates had dreaded going, though.

He entered a quiet office decorated in soothing tones. He assumed that somewhere at Starfleet there was a central team who specialized in making sure people at the counselor's office chilled out. That thought quirked his lip as he walked up to the person currently sitting at the front desk.

"Pardon me, I'm Lt. Eklund," he nodded crisply. "I've just been transferred here and needed to check in. Is there anyone available at the moment?"

Rael looked up from a computer terminal near the back and gave the newcomer a light smile. "Good morning, Lieutenant Eklund. I am Rael. Have you made an appointment?"

Randy smiled back. A smiling Vulcan wasn't something one saw every day. "Nice to meet you. And no, I didn't make an appointment. I'm sorry. I've just come on board and wanted to drop off a current record with all the relevant departments." He held up the PADD he'd brought with him which contained his history as well as his most recent evaluation.

"I'm afraid I'm a bit old fashioned that way. I'm sure the records transferred, but..." His smile quirked a bit as he decided to try a small joke. If the Vulcan could smile, perhaps he could laugh, "Maybe that's something I really should make an appointment for, eh?"

Looking downs at a PADD as she used her codes to gain entry to the room, Dru barely looked up as she moved in. "Rael have you got a second? I need to speak to you about To..." Her words trailed off as she realized that herself and her colleague weren't as alone as expected. "Ah..my apologies...am I interrupting?"

"No, ma'am," Randy replied brightly. "I was just transferring my records, and speculating about my own mental health." He'd always felt quite secure in his own general mental well being, so he had never minded joking around with counselors before. He'd gone through quite a bit of counseling adapting to the wider world his family had eschewed when he was growing up, so he was now fairly self-aware. "And your colleague, I believe, was trying to decide if I was bad enough to take as a walk-in, or whether I should make an appointment." He smiled, hoping even the Vulcan would know he was joking.

"Fortunately, I believe I can pencil you in," he relished the idiom dryly as he turned to face his superior. "Lieutenant McCarthy," he acknowledged with a bow of his head.

Dru smiled easily as she picked up on the joviality of the crew member. "We'd only been discussing the other day installing revolving doors as people seem to prefer the drop in, fly out option over the book an appointment option. Well so Rael, that's your emulation on the man's lack of appointment situation."

"You've gotten rid of all your straight jackets, I hope," Randy winked. "They make me itch terribly."

"Indeed. We are working on that," Rael hummed serenely.

"Getting rid of the straight jackets, or reducing the itch," Randy winked and the laughed at the look on Rael's face.

The man seemed easy going, an easy case on the surface but it was what might be found beneath which interested them beneath. "Lieutenant..."

"Eklund, ma'am, Randolf Eklund." Randy nodded to her in respect. "I'm the new Assistant Chief of Security and Tactical."

"Lieutenant Eklund...Randolf, would you mind if I sit in to observe your evaluation? I'm sure you know it from your own department, every once in awhile people need to be observed in the performance of their duties and this would give me an opportunity to evaluate Rael if both of you consent?" Dru smiled at the officer.

"That's not a problem for me," Randy said, "though I hadn't expected a full evaluation. I'm always happy to help out, and I don't have any other commitments today." He thought for a moment then smiled, "And I hope I won't have any commitment to worry about after this, either."

"Rael, does it suit you also?" Dru didn't wish to push in unless she knew that her colleague would be somewhat comfortable with the idea.

"Certainly," he bowed his head and extended his hand toward the office. "If you would like to follow us inside?"

"Absolutely," Randy stepped into the office. It was clear the soothing tones team at SF Medical had been hard at work in here, too. He chuckled as he sat down. "You know, they use some of the same colors and design tricks in the brig. I guess they figure that whatever relaxes us here might help calm someone down in Security, too."

Dru stopped by the desk for a moment as she grabbed an available PADD with which she could take notes. She knew that Rael should have it easy with this patient, but at the same time it would be interesting to see if the counsellor was able to suss out if the exterior persona of the patient was the same was what lay beneath the surface.

"Indeed," Rael smiled again as he passed the replicator. "At the very least, they did not pick canary yellow. Would you like anything before we get started?" he asked, procuring a green tea for himself.

"Thanks," Randy nodded, "I'll just have some water." He took a seat once he had his drink. "So I guess we'll begin at the beginning, yes? I think the biggest thing there is to help you understand me is that I grew up in a bit of a backwater. My family are Luddites of the highest order. No replicators, no holos, no anti-grav. We were farmers in Minnesota on Earth. There was a whole community there, so it wasn't quite so isolated as it sounds, but it was plenty isolated. I was the black sheep. I left the community joined Starfleet. It's been rough at times trying to catch up with everyone else as far as stuff that you think of as mundane. To me, it's crazy...like magic. Sometimes I wake up and can't believe that I don't have to go out to a coop to get eggs if I want an omelet."

[TRUNCATED]

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LTJG Rael
Counselor
USS Galileo

LTJG Drusilla McCarthy
Chief Counselor
USS Galileo

LTJG Randolf Eklund
Security/Tactical Officer
USS Galileo

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