'Round About Midnight

Posted on 06 Jul 2022 @ 6:42pm by Chief Warrant Officer 3 Alexion Wylde & Laeon Wylde & Petty Officer 2nd Class Leon Inaros

4,924 words; about a 25 minute read

Mission: Episode 18 - Cold Station 31
Location: USS Galileo: Mess
Timeline: MD 07: 0015

ON:

Alexion let out a long groan of satisfaction as he tucked into the first mouthful of food, sighing as he shook his head. Their shift had just finished, and true to his word, he'd taken Leon for dinner in the mess. And not a moment too soon. "I was ready to capture and eat a seabeast..."

Leon chuckled warmly, taking a bite as well as he watched the other man. "Does a seabeast taste like chicken?" he asked lightly, but it was playful as he reached for his water to sip. "Or...what does it taste like? Or is it like the Earth expression 'hungry enough to eat a horse'?"

"I think the latter," Alexion chuckled, relaxing now that he'd gotten a few bites, sighing softly with relief as he rested his elbow on the table. "They are...enormous and terrifying. Full of long, sharp teeth, as tough as tree bark."

Leon looked at him for a long moment, with surprise, taking a deeper breath. "That sounds terrifying. I've seen a lot of animals on various planets, but...luckily, nothing that bad." He smiled, taking more to eat, closing his eyes as he enjoyed it. It was difficult not to enjoy hot food, if you had ever lived on emergency rations.

"Which planet was home?" he asked as he watched him, reaching for his drink. He'd learnt not to assume that all humans came from Earth when he'd taken his first steps in the Federation.

"None," Leon said as he smiled, shaking his head as he took his own glass, drinking half of it quickly. "I was born out here, on a Starfleet ship. So...no home planet. Just...this. I don't mind it, but I know a lot of people feel...like I am missing something."

Alexion was quiet for a long moment, thinking on the words. It also meant that he couldn't lose it either. "Real life is what you know," he shook his head firmly. "Maybe there is a freedom in that which cannot be found by people from planets."

"So you hang your flag on an ideal instead," Leon said quietly, holding his eyes. "For years, that was the Marines. Now it is medicine," he gave a small shrug and picked his fork up again.

"Well, I meant what I said earlier," Alexion assured, shaking his head as he started to tuck in again. "This is a scientific ship. If you have the urge to branch out into some medical research, this is the place to do it."

"Not sure where I'd begin," Leon admitted as he watched him, a fond smile coming to him. "I...just do. Pick up things and do it. The research element is...not something I have tried before. I...do know some strange things on how to treat wounds if your dermal regenerator has crapped out. Should be in one of my notebooks." He looked thoughtful, thinking it over. "Also about this algae on Salva II. One of the privates got chemical burns on his skin and we used it to wash it off with as there. Damnest thing, it started healing his skin. Of course, he was a Bolian, I don't know if it would have worked on other species, but it worked on him. Came back with only a few pox marks on his skin and he got that fixed as soon as we were back on a ship."

Alexion chuckled at the story, shaking his head lightly. It must have seemed like a miracle in the middle of nowhere. "Maybe that's more your skill then...luck."

"Luck's what has kept me alive," Leon said playfully before he took another spoonful, but clearly he was getting full. "What about you though, Wylde? Any research you get all excited over?"

"Not so much," Alexion had to admit with a slight shrug of a shoulder. "Being a doctor was only ever just a job to me, it is not something I am particularly passionate about. I think I may be more like you in how I work...get it done, move on."

"So what are you passionate about?" Leon asked softly, holding his eyes for a long moment before he smiled, encouragingly. "What...makes you stop and take notice?"

Alexion laughed softly at the question, shaking his head lightly. "I think I am getting old, not much does that anymore. Besides, I am more concerned that my son is happy, that's all that matters now."

Leon smiled gently, watching him with interest. "You have a son?" he asked, his voice curious now. He remember Laeon said his father was in medical, but without a last name it had been difficult to ask around. So he had left it at that.

Alexion relaxed a little, a small smile coming to him at talking about him as he nodded. "Yes. Laeon. He lives here with me. I made the mistake of trying to send him away for a while, it didn't work out well. I think it took a week for my ears to recover."

Leon chuckled as he looked at him, wondering if he should say or not. He decided to be honest. "I met him," he said gently. "On Regula I. He's a brilliant young man and so talented with his art."

Alexion watched him with surprise, lowering his fork absently as he chuckled. "Really? He got around more than I thought," he shook his head, lifting his eyes in what would be an eye roll for humans. "I hope he didn't bother you."

"No, if anything I disturbed him," Leon said with an apologetic smile. "It was nice talking to him. I hadn't realised he was your son, but now we're talking I can see the resemblance. He looks a lot like you, Wylde."

"I'm not sure I was ever that young, or enthusiastic, or energetic..." Alexion gave a half grimace, but it turned to a wry smile as he shook his head. "Children make you feel old, be warned."

"Well..." Leon leant closer over the table, to hold his eyes. "You don't look or sound old, so there is that," he said, with a brilliant smile before he sat back. "Call it a victory."

"Now I know you're lying," Alexion shook his head with a half smile, but appreciated it all the same. "I feel old here. But then, I felt old when I was instructing at the Academy too. Nothing like medical students to make you want to learn how to use a scalpel as a throwing knife..."

"Well...reason I did not go to the Academy," Leon said lightly, finishing eating and giving him a smile. "So really, I get what you mean. When I was doing my nurses course, someone thought I was an instructor. And when realising I wasn't...advised me to cover the grey."

Alexion frowned, shaking his head firmly with a dismissive 'tut' sound. "Why cover your marks of experience? Honest to the Brothers, but I have never looked at legal adults and felt more certain that I was surrounded by children..."

Leon watched him, surprised, but smiled at the words. "I wish I could say we'd get used to it, but it isn't the case." Marks of experience. I am going to start calling my grey that from now on, he thought, studying Alexion. "Still, one must make do. At least if they are in uniform, we know they have passed their teenage years."

"Barely..." Alexion gave a gruff tsk, but his eyes were shining. It might not be obvious from the unimpressed expression, but he was amused by it, and his eyes glinted. "Don't ever become an instructor, Leon, no matter what they promise or offer you."

"Oh, no one would offer that to me," Leon said softly, giving a firm shake of his head. "So I am trying not to worry about that. No, give me people to patch up, cure earaches and that sort. That I can do."

Alexion watched him for a long moment, reaching for his drink to sip as he considered him. "I have a feeling you are capable of a hell of a lot more than that," he said bluntly.

"I am," Leon said, unapologetically. "But, it isn't the role I am playing here," he added, with a smile. "I'm not playing two parts anymore, healer and soldier I had a choice. I chose healing." And he had. Security would have been the closest to the Marines, and he had turned his back to that idea within seconds.

Alexion nodded, watching him intently, with interest. Wondering how he separated the two. Or if he even did. "And how is it?" he asked quietly. "If...I can ask. It's none of my business..."

"It's...an adjustment," Leon said, not having any issues with him asking. He...sort of liked it. "I wake up and...my weapon isn't there anymore."

"Or maybe it is, if your weapon of choice is now a medical tricorder," he teased lightly, shaking his head as he refilled their glasses from the jug.

"Maybe, I could always throw it in a crisis," Leon said and smiled, taking his glass once full. "Thanks, Wylde. So...I suppose I am going to get used to you, and how you work in sickbay. And what you're talented in, and what you need a nurse to cover you for."

"Well, I am told my 'bedside manner' is sorely lacking," Alexion shook his head with an arched eyebrow. It wasn't something he considered to be particularly important, but others did. "Perhaps you should deal with those earaches rather than me," he added with a wry smile.

"Now, why would your bedside manners be lacking..." Leon said aloud, pretending to be thoughtful. "Perhaps because you're more a surgeon than a doctor...you prefer your patients unconscious, so you can heal them, and then just..." he made a movement, as if shooing something away. But with it, he grinned teasingly, to show he was just pulling his leg.

Alexion just grinned at the assessment though, holding his hands out to either side as if caught. "Well I never claimed to be complicated," he gave a gruff laugh, shaking his head. "People talk about a doctor's bedside manner, they never talk about the patient's."

"Still learning that bit myself," Leon said with a thoughtful look. "I got used to being the let's tape their guts up so they don't die, and hand them over to the proper medical professionals. Now I am there from they get in until they leave. Means...bedside manners, like you said."

"Oh well, then you are already doing better than me. I have never really...adapted. If that is the right word," he raised his right shoulder in a shrug. "To me, if the patient is healed, then I have done my job. The rest is a nonsense of time and energy."

"So..." Leon's voice was soft, thoughtful as he watched him. "How did you end up here, as a doctor?" Because it was clear it wasn't a passion to him. When he talked to Laeon, he had gotten a feeling of something...else, a story, behind the two. A story that he wanted to hear.

"I had a son to raise. I needed a job to do it," Alexion broke it down to the fundamental point, because to him, that had been the only thing that mattered. "I had been a doctor all my life. It seemed the only option."

"Necessity, not choice," Leon said after a moment, taking his drink to sip. "Not choice, not chance...necessity. You needed to provide for your son, so you did. It's...commendable."

"No," Alexion shook his head quickly at that, watching with violet eyes that became darker with emotion. "It was not commendable. It was simply what I had to do. What any parent should do."

Leon watched him, a small smile coming to him. "But not all do," he said, his voice gentle. "Especially within Starfleet. Many people here are...ambitious. They do what is best for their career, not for their children."

"He's all that matters now," Alexion said firmly, matter of factly. It was simple truth to him, and he didn't resent it. "He won't be forced to live like this."

Leon frowned slightly at how he said it, reaching out to touch his hand. "He won't. He'll have all the opportunities of the United Federation of Planets, to do what he wants to do with his life. He can be an artist, if that is what he wants."

"He would be a good one, I think," Alexion gave a small smile at that. It was clearly preferable to him that he did something like that rather than serve. "His uncle is an actor, Jaq Wylde? He does holoacting, not just the live stuff."

"I..." Leon clearly tried to think, to put a face to the name before he smiled. "Did he do the Dragonstar trilogy, or am I confusing him that...whatshisface..." he gestured, clearly thinking about it. "Clifton Ares?" In all fairness, Leon knew about four or five contemporary actors by name. The rest were more in the ancient ones from when he had been a teenager on a ship and done film club.

"I have no bloody clue," Alexion laughed, shaking his head as he sat back. "But it would sound about right. He was born to be a politician, so I suppose acting suits him just fine."

"Well, glad you're as clueless as I am with modern holomovies," Leon said with a grin, shaking his head. "I usually would catch one or two every few years, but I mostly just...read."

"You will have to give me a suggestion," Alexion said, seriously, not out of politeness. "I would like to catch up on some good material, but there is such a huge choice I have no idea where to start."

"I...depends on what genre you like," Leon said, holding his eyes before he smiled. "But I can give you recommendations."

"Espionage," Alexion shook his head with a small, half smile at admitting it. "I like a good spy thriller. Who doesn't?"

Leon chuckled, nodding with understanding. "I could recommend some of those. Mostly Earth literature, to be honest. Downside of being human, we aren't the most...openminded when it comes to literature."

"No, Earth is good, it is what I am lacking," Alexion assured with a small, half smile. The usually cynical and rough around the edges doctor was actually surprised and warmed by the offer. That he'd go out of his way instead of just point him to the ship's computer.

"Hey..." Laeon moved over to their table, grinning when he saw them together. "You made it then," he teased Leon, shaking his head before pulling the wrap off of his hair.

"And I see Starfleet put you to use," Leon smiled, meeting the youth's eyes as he grinned. "I heard rumours of teenage acting ensigns, but never thought I'd ever see acting galley chef."

"Same," Alexion reached out to take the silk cloth, looking at it with an arched eyebrow. "What are you doing? This is no place for my son to be drifting."

"I'm helping a friend!" Laeon shook his head with wide eyes, laughing softly as he pushed his shoulder. "And there is nothing wrong with that!"

"No, there's nothing wrong with that," Leon said before he looked at the colourful silk cloth. "That suits you. I take it you're having some fun with helping then?"

"The Captain threatened to make me cut my hair if I wanted to help Nesh out in here. Nesh saved the day with this idea," he chuckled, reaching to touch the silk. "It does its job. And I don't have to cut this," Laeon laughed softly, reaching up to touch his blonde hair, a shade or two lighter than his father's.

Leon chuckled, giving a small nod at that. "You would really have hated the look I had in the Marines. Hair shaven down most of the time..." he winked before he looked at Alexion. "If we had known Laeon was here, we could have...taken full advantage. Gotten bigger portions....dessert..."

"I'm an honest kind of man," Laeon said with playful aloofness before shaking his head with a soft laugh. "I bet the short hair looked good on you. I bet it made you look pretty tough."

"When you're my size, you need all the help you can get," Leon countered, smiling as he held his eyes. "Now I can have my hair longer...and I am allowed to grow a bit of a beard, which makes a change."

Alexion laughed softly at that, shaking his head as he looked between the two of them, sitting back. "So vain..." he tsked at them both with a shake of his head, but he was chuckling.

Leon laughed and blew Alexion a kiss at that. "Hey, we appreciate the way we are," he winked, before he looked at Laeon with a grin.

Laeon laughed warmly, nodding in agreement as he leant back with a theatrical sigh. "See, I bet you'd let me have the new trousers I want...you think they're black, but really, they're the darkest blue. The material shimmers when the light hits them right, and the fit is divine..."

"Blasphemy..." Alexion lifted his eyes, but with no real rebuke. It was clear he'd heard all about them. Several times.

Leon looked over at Laeon, his eyes warm. "Just how tight a fit are they?" he finally asked, having been a teenager once and remembering a pair of silver trousers he had loved.

"Tight," Alexion beat the youth to it, arching an eyebrow as he held his hand up and waved his finger back and forth in a no motion. "Do not think recruits will help you..."

Leon chuckled, his eyes gentle as he watched Laeon with warmth. "Sorry, buddy...sounds like you got to get them and hide them away," he said teasingly, winking, before he looked towards Alexion.

"And you, do not encourage him," Alexion arched an eyebrow, but there was a hint of playfulness to his unimpressed expression, his finger moving to wave at Leon instead.

Leon smiled innocently, biting his lip for a moment. "Aw...but I like fuelling the teenage rebellion. Makes me feel all young again," he teased, and gently nudged him with his foot under the table.

Alexion shook his head with a sigh, rubbing his face with dramatic, over the top fedupness. "Fantastic...two youths to deal with..."

Leon laughed, sitting back and winked to Laeon. "We'll wear him down eventually," he said playfully, before he looked at Alexion with genuine warmth.

"Good luck with that," Laeon rolled his eyes in the more human fashion as he sat back and folded his arms. "He's as stubborn as a mule..." he leant to Leon, lowering his voice. "It's a mule, yes?"

Leon nodded, his eyes shining. "But I've never seen a mule, so can't really say how stubborn they are," he said, with an easy chuckle. "Although, I suppose everything within reason. Patience, dear Laeon..." he paused, considering it. "Alexion, is it confusing that...our names sound so similar?" he suddenly asked.

Alexion gave a slight shake of his head with a flick of his hand to indicate his son casually. "Not for me, there's a slight hardness on the first syllable that's always there with that grouping. It might actually end up being more confusing for you though, if you can't hear the difference as fully."

"No, I hear it," Leon chuckled, tapping his own ear. "I'm not brilliant at languages without the universal translator, but I can hear the difference. As long as it isn't confusing or strange, I'm okay with that. Was almost going to offer up my middle name!"

"What is it?" Laeon didn't miss a beat as he asked him, watching him with a curious smile. "And why is it?" he asked, not familiar with the concept of middle names.

"Usually, it is either the parents can't decide, or family traditions," Leon said, meeting Laeon's eyes. "And it's Aquilo. It's an old family name, from my mother's side. But my father didn't like it, he wanted something a bit less...strange. So he pushed for Leon instead."

"Aquilo," Laeon tried it out as he rested his chin in his hand. "Leon Aquilo. It sounds grand. Epic. You should be a Captain with that name."

"I could have been," Leon said before he sighed, shaking his head. "No, instead I am...just me. And that is enough, to be honest." He winked to the boy before he looked at Alexion. "Although in medical...I am Nurse Inaros. Makes like easy."

"Only in Sickbay though, yes?" Alexion checked with an arched eyebrow. He couldn't think of anything more depressing than being 'Doctor Wylde' throughout his existence.

"Oh, yes...nowhere else," Leon made a face and sat back, holding his eyes. "I wouldn't want you to call me that when we're...talking like this. It would be my worst nightmare, my whole identity reduced to what I do for a roof over my head."

"We noticed it," Laeon admitted with a small smile, glancing to Alexion at the comment. "When we came to the Federation. Our people's first question to each other is usually where are you from, here it was often what do you do."

"I feel like I should apologise...it's usually, 'what do you do', followed by 'what ship are you on'..." Leon shook his head, smiling weakly to them. "I...think it is because there's so many different species. We're almost afraid to ask other things. For instance...I am curious about where you are from, your people and culture."

Laeon looked to his father with a weak smile, seeing, or sensing, he wasn't sure, his reluctance to talk about it. "We're from Vaeron," he said softly. "The capitol city of Sol, actually. It's outside of the Federation."

Leon smiled gently, nodding as he looked at him. He noticed the...chill from Alexion. "I don't know anything about it," he admitted softly. "I must sound so ignorant."

"I wouldn't worry, it doesn't matter anymore," Alexion cleared his throat, looking away. "I'm going to get us some drinks," he pushed himself up, moving away to look at the board.

Laeon watched him go, his throat tightening slightly, feeling guilty. That had been his fault, for the clumsy opener to questions. He looked back to Leon, offering a weak smile as he shook his head. "Sorry," he shook his head quickly, wanting to reassure him. "It's not you. We...were invaded. They took our planet...there's no going back."

Leon looked at him with pain at the words, reaching to touch his hand. "I'm so sorry," he said, holding his eyes. He couldn't imagine that. "It was insensitive of me to even ask." He hoped the young man could forgive him, and Alexion.

"No, of course it wasn't, it's a perfectly normal thing to ask," Laeon assured him with a gentle smile, covering his hand with his own. "It was...difficult to be a part of. I think it must be more so for Dad, it had been his home for longer."

"Still has to be hard for you too," Leon said, watching him for a long moment. "If only to see it being hard on him."

Laeon nodded with a frown, taking in a slightly shaky breath as he looked down to their hands. "We don't really talk about it. He wants me to go to a counsellor, but he won't, so we reached a...stalemate," he tried out the very human word.

He frowned at the words, letting out a breath. "Talking about something difficult, with a neutral person...it helps a lot. Putting things into perspective. It's something I recommend a lot, actually. From my own experiences." He watched him before he gave a small smile. "I can try and eventually see if I can convince your Dad, but don't hold back going yourself as a bargaining chip."

"It's the only thing that works with him, honestly, he's as stubborn as a sea squall," Laeon smiled softly though, fondly as he shook his head, looking to him with gratitude. "You know what these doctors and nurses are like, they think they know everything."

He laughed, nodding as he reached out to grip his shoulder. "I'll find a way. You...do need to focus on yourself," he said, his voice gentle. "Promise me you'll consider it?"

He searched his eyes for a long moment, holding his breath. "Oh alright, I'll think about it," he said softly, shaking his head. And he wouldn't lie to him.

"Okay," Leon nodded, accepting it as he smiled. "And I'll look out for your Dad a bit. See if I can...nudge. Or just be his friend, if he needs that more."

"I mean, he needs all the help he can get, have you seen him?" he gave a grimace, but there was playfulness back in his eyes now. "A grumpy old doctor with a tendency to snap..."

"Good thing...I am made of sturdy stuff," he said, his voice mock-serious. "I can handle grumpy old doctors."

"I bet you have to," Laeon whispered back with the same mock intensity. "Keeping grumpy doctors in check must be half of a nurse's job..."

"Oh yes, at least half...the other half is dragging people to their medicals. The higher the ranks, the worse they are..." Leon said with a wink, his eyes warm as he held the boy's eyes.

Laeon laughed softly at that, but he was able to imagine it being true. He'd been around Starfleet officers enough to recognise the truth in the jest. "And rogue doctors?"

"Especially rogue doctors...and if they are dashing, we are all doomed," Leon said before he chuckled at what he had just said. "But I got my ways to lure people to sickbay. Worst case...drug them. They'll never remember, although the ethics of it is a bit...dodgy."

"Just a bit," Laeon shook his head with a soft laugh, looking down. He felt comfortable in his company. He was easy to talk to. Natural. "Should I...let you and Dad alone?" he asked delicately.

"No! Unless you find yourself needing to leave," Leon said before he smiled, shaking his head. "Don't...worry. I am not exactly...you know..." he made a gesture. "I'm just getting to grips with who I am in this uniform."

"Okay, I wasn't sure if I had crashed a working dinner," Laeon admitted with a half smile, but straightened as he saw his father returning with a tray that held three exotic glasses on it.

"I have no idea what these are," Alexion had a facial expression that might have led to an eye roll from a human as he set the glasses down for them. "I was told they would 'blow our minds'. I feel as if the people who work here need more experiences in life."

Leon smiled at that, his eyes warm as he took it. "Well, it won't be anything alcoholic, but...let's see how this can blow our minds." He took a sip, closing his eyes with a soft sigh. "Mmmm...okay, this is good. Ginger in there...and something else."

Alexion tried it, quirking an eyebrow in reaction. Okay, so it was pretty good. "There is some kind of herb in it. Trust me, I know my herbs..."

"Herbalist on the quiet?" Leon asked, smiling easily as he sat back with the drink. "A specialism I did not expect from you."

"He liked to burn and breathe them," Laeon said lightly, a small smile pulling at his lips at outing his father like that.

Alexion shrugged at the information slip. Yes, it had been considered a vice where he was from, but it had been all above board and safe. "I learnt how to grow a decent variety. It stays with you after a while."

Leon wanted to ask if he still grew them, but decided it was insensitive considering how Alexion and Laeon got to be here. "I've never been good at...growing things. Used to just...replicators."

"There is no real skill to it," Alexion assured, shaking his head with a weak smile. "Just time, attention and patience. If you can deal with patients without wanting to shut them in the airlock, you can deal with herbs."

"I don't know yet, I'm still new to the whole...take care of patients for longer than a medevac," Leon admitted, smiling back to him. "Maybe...you could teach me how to grow something?"

"I can do that," Alexion replied, but with a note of surprise. It seemed something of a lost art amongst humans, outside of the sciences at least. "You will have to get your hands dirty though..."

"I'm not unfamiliar with dirt under my fingernails," he said lightly, watching Alexion closely, with a smile. "Give me a chance, Alexion."

Alexion sat back as he sipped his drink, watching him carefully for a long moment before sighing as he set the glass down with a firm thud. "Okay. I can do that."

OFF:


PO2 Leon Inaros
Nurse
USS Galileo-A
[PNPC Rice]

&

Doctor Alexion Wylde
Medical
USS Galileo-A
[PNPC Blake]

&

Laeon Wylde
Civilian
USS Galileo-A
[PNPC Blake]

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